Serving the Teesside Business Community | 19
High Force Research expands into new Wilton Centre lab
Leading chemical research and development company High Force Research has opened a new 1,018 sq ft laboratory at the Wilton Centre.
The new fully equipped laboratory features six chemical fume cupboards and advanced research facilities custom designed for chemical development and allows the company scope for future expansion as its facility at Bowburn is at full capacity.
Founded nearly three decades ago in 1988, Durham-based High Force Research is one of the UK’ s longest established chemical research companies.
High Force Research’ s Dr Roy Valentine said:“ We will be staffed from day one with full time chemists based on site, two of whom are newly qualified PhD students from Newcastle University.
“ We are hoping to recruit more chemists in the near future to help with our expansion plans at Wilton Centre.
“ The location is great with excellent facilities designed for chemical research companies including plentiful parking, a restaurant, gym and open parkland.”
The award-winning Wilton Centrebased fuel testing company, Guardian Marine Testing( GMT), is looking forward to an exciting future as a global business following its acquisition by Lloyd’ s Register.
GMT, which specialises in the management of marine fuel quantity and quality, was acquired by Lloyd’ s Register in a deal agreed in March 2015.
Now re-named as Lloyd’ s Register GMT Ltd( LR GMT), the business has grown to 56 staff with access to 238 offices around the world.
As part of the buy-out deal the original management team was retained and tasked with running the newly joined-up operations from Wilton Centre, where it has been based since its outset.
Andrew Shaw, formerly GMT’ s MD and now MD of LR GMT, said that the deal is great news for the company which was set
Neil Sim in High Force Research’ s new Wilton Centre laboratory
He continued:“ With around 90 research oriented businesses onsite we feel that the location also provides us with increased networking and collaboration possibilities.”
Wilton Centre’ s site director, Steve Duffield, said that it was good news to be welcoming such a prestigious new tenant to the Centre.
“ We are very proud that the company has chosen to expand its operations here,” he added.
Takeover makes Wilton Centre’ s GMT a global player
( L-R), LR GMT’ s operations director, Andrew McEwen, laboratory director, Paul Livingston and MD Andrew Shaw
up in 2007 with three employees and has expanded ever since.
He said:“ We started out with me and my fellow directors, Paul Livingston and Andrew McEwen, and then grew to 12 staff by 2011.
“ After doing a deal to service the requirement of Lloyd’ s Register( LR) fuel testing that year, our work increased by 200 % and we grew the staff to 36 overnight.
“ The main significance of becoming part of LR is the fact we have the security of a large corporation and, whilst our strength previously was very much on a European basis, we now have business in all four corners of the globe.”
Andrew added:“ Our new set-up means that we are now in a position to deliver the world’ s best marine testing service with an assured backup financially for any future plans for growth.”
Lloyd’ s Register( LR) is a global engineering, technical and business services organisation with over 9,000 employees in 78 countries, wholly owned by the Lloyd’ s Register Foundation, a UK charity dedicated to research and education in science and engineering.
Wilton Centre chosen as location for world-first process plant
Calysta’ s new feed is aimed at the growing worldwide salmon-farming industry
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multi-million pound new plant is being built at the Wilton Centre by a leading US biotech business.
Calysta( UK), a subsidiary of Californiabased Calysta Inc, is investing £ 30m over 10 years to develop a Market Introduction Facility to undertake R & D critical to a commercialise a new fish feed ingredient.
FeedKind, a natural, safe, non-GMO sustainable fish feed ingredient that is approved for sale in the EU, is designed to replace fishmeal and is aimed at the global salmon-farming industry which is expected to grow by 50 % by 2020.
Alan Shaw, PhD, Calysta president and CEO, is a former Teessider who once worked at ICI.
He said:“ After looking at potential sites around Europe, we look forward to building Calysta’ s first plant on Teesside and are keen to capitalise on the area’ s commercial attractiveness, technical skills and research and development expertise.”
Manufactured using a natural process similar to the production of yeast-extract products, such as Marmite, studies have confirmed the nutritional value of the feed which will allow the industry to reduce its impact on the environment and on wild fisheries, while offering consumers a more sustainable product.
The project is being supported by a conditional award of up to £ 2.8m Exceptional Regional Growth Fund( eGRF) grant.
Calysta plans to locate a novel loop reactor adjacent to CPI’ s existing National Industrial Biotechnology Facility 2( NIBF2) facility. This loop reactor will incorporate Calysta’ s proprietary, best-in-class gas fermentation technology.