New 3D Printing Hub to Open in Cheshire, England

In Cheshire, England is a hub for science and technology. Known as the Cheshire Science Corridor, the location is home to Capenhurst Technology Park, Thornton Science Park, Sci-Tech Daresbury (in Liverpool City Region LEP area), Birchwood Park’s Nuclear and Forensics Clusters, Alderley Park (Life Sciences), Jodrell Bank and the Square Kilometre Array, the largest and most sensitive radio telescope in the world. It will soon be home to a new facility – a 3D printing center, to be known as the Cheshire 3D Print Hub (C3D).

The hub will be the result of a collaboration between Manchester Metropolitan University and Tatton Estate, the largest private landowner in the east of Cheshire. The two partners will be signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) this week at MIPIM (Le marché international des professionnels de l’immobilier), the world’s foremost property and investment event, which is taking place in Cannes, France from March 13th to 16th.

C3D is anticipated to deliver an initial £6 million investment in the North West, located on Tatton Estate’s Yarwood Heath Farm, part of its Cheshire Gateway scheme. It will comprise about 40,000 square feet of existing buildings and will also act as an incubation space for the emerging North West Industrial Technologies market and supplement Manchester Met’s existing central Manchester PrintCity facilities. C3D will enable the implementation of advanced technologies including design, manufacturing through 3D printing, and service support.

Henry Brooks

“C3D is a very exciting prospect, regionally, nationally and internationally. It will help contribute to the global imperative for the UK and the North West to increase manufacturing, to create wealth, jobs and social cohesion,” said Henry Brooks, Managing Director of the Tatton Group, which represents Tatton Estate.

“It will also become an integral part of Cheshire’s international corridor of science and innovation which has some of the most significant science based assets in the north of England, some of which are of global importance. Sitting at the geographical heart of the UK, Cheshire Gateway already boasts fantastic connectivity to all major cities via train, which will be yet further fed by the HS2 hub stations at Crewe and Manchester Airport, where it is expected to connect to Northern Powerhouse rail, connecting C3D to the global community.”

Tatton Estate will support other science and technology businesses at the Yarwood Heath Farm site to create critical mass and foster industry collaboration, supporting jobs and growth in the local economy while taking advantage of the opportunities offered by Industry 4.0.

“The long-term ambition of the project is to create an open and inclusive science and technology hub. It will enhance our research and innovation infrastructure and capacities to develop excellence and promote business investment, including for SMEs,” said Professor Craig Banks, personal chair in Electrochemical and Nanotechnology at Manchester Met and Faculty of Science and Engineering lead for Research and Knowledge Exchange.

“The collaboration between Tatton Estate and Manchester Met will also form academic partnerships, using research knowledge to drive commercial growth. SMEs will be supported by postgraduate research projects, with senior academic expertise and could take ideas from concept through to commercialisation. As ideas develop, Knowledge Transfer Partnerships could be exploited to accelerate suitable projects as a route to commercialisation.”

Peter Gough, senior lecturer in digital technology at Manchester Met

The Tatton Group is attending MIPIM as part of the Cheshire and Warrington delegation, which also comprises Cheshire West and Chester Council, Cheshire East Council and Warrington Borough Council and 30 private sector partners. The Group will be hosting an event called “Outstanding Places: how quality of place is driving economic growth,” on Wednesday, March 14th.

“The Tatton Group is committed to helping make Cheshire and the UK an even better place to live, work and visit and our objective is to attract leading national and international innovators,” said Brooks. “We believe that manufacturers; leisure; PRS; science businesses; and institutions and long-term investors such as pension funds and developers can achieve exceptional quality schemes and returns in Cheshire the more they understand the area’s genuinely unique offer.”

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