Regional Focus meant demolishing a number of complex buildings which are no longer needed .
Charnwood Campus strongly believes that anchor tenants , mainly large organisations with a global reach , will help take the site to the next level of its regeneration . By attracting significant inward investment in this form , the site becomes a magnet for smaller companies and creates a long-term , sustainable micro-economy .
Life Science Opportunity Zone Charnwood Campus is planning to become one of the pioneer Life Sciences Opportunity Zones by piloting the initiative in the East Midlands . The Charnwood team is working with local partners to make a strong case for recognition and for supporting the vision to create a thriving commercial centre for innovation and industrial excellence .
The designation of Charnwood Campus as a Life Science Opportunity Zone would recognise both the quality of its existing facilities , and also its long term potential as a global hub for innovation across a number of industrial sectors . Companies such as Almac and Apical have to take account of a number of variables before deciding on a new location , but they cannot afford to compromise on highly-technical laboratory specification , access to a skilled workforce and investment .
The site is one of the UK ’ s largest facilities of its kind , but with the flexibility to reconfigure buildings to suit laboratory , manufacturing or digital processes . This makes a move to Loughborough even more attractive to companies looking for specialised equipment , tissue storage , GMP suites or even open-plan offices to house teams of digital programmers .
Evidence from other parts of the country show how the most successful science parks thrive in a culture of innovation with proximity to world-class university research activity as well as to a strong business support infrastructure . The ‘ cluster pull ’ of Charnwood is now incredibly strong ; the site sits between the five NIHR Biomedical Research Units , and between the recently formed NIHR Diagnostic Evaluation Centres in Leeds , Newcastle , Oxford and London .
There are a number of projects already underway that will involve developing and setting up support services for the companies on site . These include an Innovation Centre with access to a team of business advisers , and a training and education centre - a University Technology College . In order to bring people together , a new café as well as on-site gym , running track and landscaped lake come within the site ’ s current and future plans .
Case study : Almac Group
The Almac Group confirmed a £ 16 million investment to expand its formulation and analytical development services at Charnwood in November 2015 .
The contract development and manufacturing firm provides an extensive range of integrated services to more than 600 companies globally within the pharmaceutical and biotech sectors . Services range from R & D , biomarker discovery and development , API manufacture , formulation development , clinical trial supply , IXRS technology ( IVRS / IWRS ) through to commercial-scale manufacture .
The international company is privately owned and has grown over 40 years to employ in excess of 4,000 highly skilled employees . Headquartered in Craigavon , Northern Ireland , Almac also operates across the US ( Pennsylvania , North Carolina and California ) and in Asia ( Singapore and Tokyo ).
The company ’ s investment in Charnwood is very much an expansion of its work in Craigavon . Almac senior management looked at a number of UK sites before deciding that Charnwood fitted their specifications perfectly .
Graeme McBurney , Managing Director , Almac Pharma Services said : “ As we experience increased client demand for our pharmaceutical development and niche commercial manufacturing services , this latest expansion will significantly enhance Almac ’ s offering , increasing capacity and capability and further demonstrating our continued commitment to support our global clients in the development and manufacturing of their drug products .”
The world-class facilities , originally designed and built by AstraZeneca , meet the company ’ s need for highspecification development and manufacturing processing areas , analytical labs and office accommodation . These existing facilities will allow Almac to recommission the
Almac House in Craigavon
state-of-the-art GMP processing rooms to cater for the expected increase client demand for their services .
Location also played a big part in their decision as the campus benefits from excellent road , rail and air links . East Midlands Airport is a 15 minutes ’ drive and services European and North American destinations . With frequent flights from Belfast City Airport , employees and visitors can commute between the two sites within 2 hours ’ travel time .
Gosia Khrais , Commercial and Marketing Director for Charnwood Campus , says : “ The decision by Almac Group to expand its UK operations into Loughborough demonstrates the confidence such global companies have in locating in the East Midlands . Charnwood Campus is a major contributor to the region ’ s life sciences cluster and will continue its expansion as more of our facilities come on-stream .”
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