DEKRA recently announced it is acquiring Chilworth Global, the explosion protection and process safety service company based in Southampton, UK. Chilworth Global operates testing laboratories in the UK and the U.S. and has branch offices in India and in continental Europe (France, Italy and Spain). The range of services includes material testing, consulting, and training services for the process industries with a current emphasis on the chemical, pharmaceutical, and food industry sectors.

Through the acquisition, DEKRA reportedly strengthens its role as a provider of quality and safety services. Chilworth Global will be assigned to DEKRA’s Product Testing and Certification service line and will work with the laboratories of the DEKRA Certification Group in Arnhem, the Netherlands, and DEKRA EXAM in Bochum, Germany, where DEKRA’s explosion protection activities are based.

“The pairing of Chilworth Global and DEKRA is a decisive step in DEKRA’s strategy to expand the industrial business with high-quality expert services in the process industries on a global scale,” said Stefan Kölbl, chairman of the board for DEKRA e.V. and DEKRA SE. “We are decisively expanding our position in the UK and the important markets in India and North America, and are establishing a further strategic platform for the development of markets in Asia and the American continent.”

“DEKRA is the ideal partner for Chilworth Global in order to further develop the company within the worldwide DEKRA network and to provide exciting opportunities for our highly skilled and valued staff,” said Paul Cartwright, Ph.D., CEO of Chilworth Global. “DEKRA stands for values such as openness, customer satisfaction and innovation, which we have also extolled from the beginning as the foundations of our corporate activities and which are also practiced by our employees.”

For more information, visit www.dekra-certification.com or www.chilworth.com.