A Cheshire high-tech campus is using a £3.5 Government grant to build almost a quarter-of-a-million square feet of new offices and laboratories and create hundreds of additional jobs.
Sci-Tech Daresbury, a science and innovation park which already houses one of the UK’s most powerful super computers, recently purchased 12-acres of land adjacent to its main campus.
No price has been released for the sale, but it is known the plot was part-owned by SciTech and part by the Lord Daresbury estate.
Sci-Tech Daresbury is a three-way private and public sector joint venture between Langtree, the Science and Technology Facilities Council, and Halton Borough Council.
Work on the expansion, to include 220,000 sq ft of floor space spread across six new buildings, will start before the end of the year and is being part funded by a £3.5m grant from Enterprise Zone Capital.
“This latest phase of development marks a key stage in our plans for the Sci-Tech Daresbury site,” said John Downes, chief executive of Langtree and director of the Sci-Tech Daresbury joint venture board.
“The campus is a key growth driver for the region and the fact we are proceeding with this ambitious site expansion plan and the speculative development of the office and laboratory complex speaks volumes for our commitment to Sci-Tech Daresbury and the demand for what we are proposing.”
Downes feels that investment in Sci-Tech Daresbury is critical for the health of the region’s economy and that to enable it to compete globally it must have the facilities core and an environment that supports technology and innovation enterprises.
“Our project partners share this vision and we believe this new scheme will help address the lack of new laboratory and office space in the region and support the expansion of a wide range of the businesses already thriving at Sci-Tech Daresbury,” added the executive.
Since it opened in 2005, Sci-Tech Daresbury has become one of Britain’s most prolific enterprise zones and is internationally recognised as a key research location. So far it has attracted almost 100 companies, mainly within the biomedical, digital and computer and engineering sectors. It is also the base for a strategic IBM business unit which moved to the campus solely because of the presence of the HPCx super computer.
The site’s latest development is its flagship Vanguard House, now almost 70 per cent full and with 13 high-tech companies in residence.
Welcoming the latest scheme the Government’s Local Growth Minister, Penny Mordaunt, commented: “This scheme is great news for Sci-Tech Daresbury, especially as the expanded site will be able to accommodate more businesses and create hundreds of new jobs for the area.
“Innovative sites like Daresbury are an important part of the government’s long-term economic plan and show how enterprise zones are helping to build resilient economies and bring widespread benefits to communities.”
