UKSPA Breakthrough Issue 19

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ukspa chair , John leake

An important story to tell

In the Spring budget, the Chancellor announced the creation of 12 new Investment Zones. These zones will aim to create new business clusters, focused around universities and research institutions in “priority” sectors of digital and tech, life sciences, advanced manufacturing, green and creative industries. The Investment Zones will seek to accelerate R&D in UK’s growth industries delivering economic prosperity to assist in the government’s Levelling Up agenda. This will be achieved through £80m of funding per Investment Zone as a mix of tax incentives alongside capital and revenue grant funding.

The first tranche of these proposed zones will be in Liverpool, Greater Manchester, South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, Tees Valley and the West Midlands, all of which already have directly elected mayors, as well as the East Midlands and North East mayoralties, which are due to be created next year.

This is clearly good news for the successful locations to enable the acceleration of investment into, and growth from, key sectors and technologies. It also enables greater collaboration between universities/research sector, Mayoral Authorities and regional businesses – the classic triple helix. However, at the heart of the Investment Zone proposals are physical spaces that bring these communities together to make the magic happen.

From my own experience with the proposals for the Liverpool City Region Investment Zone, Science Parks and Innovation Locations, UKSPA members, are recognised as having a strategic role to play in the successful delivery of these Investment Zones, and therefore much to gain from it. This can only be good news. However it begs the question about those parts of England and the wider UK, that are not in this select group of locations chosen by government. How can they benefit? How can they demonstrate the value that they deliver to their local geography and local communities?

The UKSPA Board has been focused on the issue about the need to demonstrate the value and impact of our members not just in selected Investment Zones but across the wider country. We have an important story to tell that needs to be communicated into government.

We are embarking on building partnerships with research organisations to help build this evidence base and start to articulate more effectively the value that we bring to the UK’s Innovation ecosystem. It won’t be a quick win, it will take persistence, and cooperation from across our membership.

A very important first step is to be able to demonstrate the growth that is taking place within our own organisation. Growth in the number of Science Parks and Innovation locations as we see more created across the country; growth in the physical size of them, as we see greater investment into the development of new buildings; and growth in the number of science and technology companies that call them home, and number of people working in these companies.

We need all UKSPA Science Park and Innovation location members to complete the current Members survey as best they can. To help provide the evidence base that we need to support our sector, and ourselves. Thank you in advance for your cooperation. ■

Please send your comments and feedback to the UKSPA team: info@ukspa.org.uk

UKSPA

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“ We are embarking on building partnerships W ith research organisations to help build this evidence base and start to articulate more effectively the value that W e bring to the uk ’s i nnovation ecosystem. ”

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Beyond Investment Zones

you will no doubt be aware of the recent announcement by the Chancellor of significant funding for 12 new Investment Zones, as already mentioned in the Introduction by UKSPA Chair, John Leake. This is a significant opportunity for many UKSPA Members to play an even more central role in accelerating R&D and economic growth in key sectors across several regions. UKSPA commends this initiative, and we hope to see many positive outcomes from Members forging closer ties with their local universities, research institutions and businesses.

However, we also recognise that many science parks and innovation locations across the country will not be included in these Investment Zones, but are just as important and valuable to both their local communities and the national economy. We want to ensure that they also receive the level of recognition and support they deserve, allowing them to benefit from additional funding for cluster-building.

That is why one of UKSPA’s main priorities is to build a strong evidence base, backed-up by robust data, to deliver a compelling narrative for the impact and contribution of our members, both within and outside the new and proposed Investment Zones. With this in mind, it is encouraging to see the very recent announcement from UKRI of a further £7m fund to establish the Innovation and

Research Caucus (IRC), a centre of excellence in research and innovation funding. Over the next three years the IRC will generate evidence and insights to guide UKRI’s strategies and investments, helping to realise the goals of the UK Science and Technology Framework.

As an association, we need to showcase the diversity, dynamism and excellence of our member locations, and demonstrate how they are driving innovation, entrepreneurship and social change in every corner of the UK. To achieve this, we need your help. We need you to share your stories, your achievements, your challenges and your aspirations with us. We need you to complete the current Members Survey, which is accessible from the UKSPA website. This will provide us

with essential data and insights on the growth and development of our sector. We need you to engage with us and with each other, through our conferences, webinars, newsletters and social media platforms. We need you to be an active part of a vibrant community of practice that can learn from, collaborate with and advocate for each other.

One of the best ways to do this is to join us at one of our regular conferences – the next edition takes place on 27th & 28th June at York Science Park. These are fantastic opportunities to network with your peers, hear from inspiring speakers, learn from best practices, and celebrate our achievements. The theme of the York Summer Conference is ‘Clusters, Networks & Partnerships: Driving Growth’ - you can find out more details and register for the conference on our website.

I am very excited about the future of UKSPA and its members, and I hope you are too. Together, let’s continue to push the boundaries of what is possible and unlock the potential of science and technology for the betterment of our society. Thank you for being part of this journey with us. ■

“ one of ukspa ’s main priorities is to build a strong evidence base, backed-up by robust data, to deliver a compelling narrative for the impact and contribution of our members, both W ithin and outside the ne W and proposed i nvestment Zones. ”

14 UNDE r T h E l IME l I gh T James s heppard, managing director uk & i reland at k adans s cience p artner, outlines its remarkable recent growth trajectory.

18 SMA r TE r r E g U l ATION - A NE w APP r OAC h TO r E g U l ATION IN T h E UK p rofessor r ichard b rook obe , v ice p resident of airto , investigates the smart regulation pathway.

T h E P l ACE TO BE s ciontec’s head of commercial, l eanne k atsande, gave b reakthrough a virtual tour of its l iverpool campus - and reflected on her own journey.

PASSION IS T h E KEY

i an h alstead met up with the newest recruit at b abraham r esearch c ampus, k athryn c hapman … and came away most impressed.

MAN ON A MISSION

m ission s treet’s a rtem k orolev takes a walk along memory laneand offers a glimpse into the future of science real estate.

34 PIONEE r S A r E OF A l IKE MIND

a lisdair g unn, director of g lasgow c ity i nnovation d istrict (gcid), enlightened i an h alstead about its origins, achievements and ambitions.

57 PO w E r MOVES s tephen c layton, a ssociate d irector of esg and s ustainability at l ambert s mith h ampton discusses how a burgeoning l ife s cience sector can mitigate energy cost and carbon emissions.

44 MEMBE r P r OFI l ES

i ncluding 3 pm ; e lga v eolia; dll ; g leeds; s + b ; g ranta p ark; ma 24; l ife s cience reit, Wates and m ace.

52 SCIENCE D r EAM IS MADE r EA l b arry Warden, the md of g lasgow-based product design house Wideblue, explains its role in turning a cherished scientific dream into reality.

C A rg I ll CATA lYST

l iz c ashon, innovation manager at york b iotech c ampus, highlights the crucial role relationships play in building a science hub with national presence and international tenants.

24 UK SCIENCE PA r KS '

r ET r OFIT P r OB l EM

m att r ichards, a partner at r idge and p artners, shares some of the findings from their major study into the attitudes surrounding retrofitting non-domestic buildings.

28 CUSTOMISIN g IT AND CONNECTIVITY SE r VICES

FO r T h E EVO lVIN g SCIENCE PA r K MA r KET b ob c ushing, c onsultant at c ommunicate outlines why the company is in it for the long haul.

SCA l IN g T h E C r O l ADDE r ceo l ee p atterson took i an h alstead on a journey of discovery through c harnwood m olecular.

C AMPBE ll h AS 2040 VISION mepc commercial director p hilip c ampbell outlined the history, present and future of the m ilton p ark campus.

64 SCITEC h FO r MU l A Jamie c lyde, b runtwood s ci tech's director for the southern region and innovation services, offers i an h alstead an insight into its portfolio.

Advocacy

t he world according to ukspa and its members

Sciontec’s head of commercial, Leanne Katsande , gave Breakthrough a virtual tour of its Liverpool campus - and reflected on her own journey.

It’s always satisfying when someone’s personal pathway dovetails perfectly with the growth of their organisation. Back in the autumn of 2009, when Katsande started work as an assistant in Liverpool Science Park’s (LSP) operations team, the UK economy was on its knees after six successive quarters of negative growth. However, although market demand had slowed as business owners became more risk-averse, the park launched its second building to increase the profile and presence of its city centre innovation centres.

Now, as Sciontec’s head of commercial, Katsande can proudly highlight LSP’s occupancy rate of 97% as she looks down over Paddington Village, Liverpool’s new £1bn urban innovation-led business destination.

She is taking her bird’s-eye view from the top-floor of a 14-storey tower called The Spine, a £35m office scheme, which since 2021 has been home to the Northern operations of the Royal College of Physicians (RCP).

The city council funded its development, in Paddington Village, during the pandemic to deliver the long-awaited supply of new Grade A office space at scale.

The RCP signed for seven floors within the landmark building, and their very specific requirements make it one of the world’s healthiest buildings for physical well-being and mental health, according to LSP.

Those unfamiliar with its environment might consider that a tad hyperbolic, but Katsande points out that the building was designed to achieve all the required certifications for Platinum WELL status, and its official accreditation is due to be confirmed this summer.

Sciontec even now has a delightful (and pleasingly pithy) slogan to promote its charms: ‘We provide great spaces for great minds to call home’.

THE PLACE TO BE

“It does look and feel like a different world from 2009,” admits Katsande. “Liverpool Science Park had a great location, was close to the two main train stations and because the city’s graduate retention rate is so high, the potential talent pool was huge.

“However, the park had been established as a not-for-profit organisation, and although all revenues were reinvested back into its buildings, it lacked the capital to deliver new space and services at scale.”

The first step was to create a coherent brand which brought together the various strands of the city’s offer and made its potential clear to investors, companies (from the region and further afield) and entrepreneurs.

Given Liverpool’s significant focus on culture, education, health, science and technology, largely due to the long-term presence of the University of Liverpool and Liverpool John Moores University, the council and its other key partners created Knowledge Quarter Liverpool (KQ Liverpool).

The latter organisation certainly succeeded in raising the area’s brand and attracted particular interest from the real estate sector.

However, the innovation district remained constrained by its inability to deliver Grade A offices, R&D space and labs at the speed and scale which science-based enterprises required.

TIPPIN g POINT

Katsande says the tipping point came in 2019, when KQ Liverpool created a commercial spin-out property company, Sciontec Developments Ltd, in which both universities and the city council took an equal stake.

When Bruntwood SciTech came on board as a fourth equal partner in May 2020, the £12m publicprivate partnership was finally able to deliver as intended.

“It was genuinely a transformational moment for us, for Liverpool and for the city region’s economy,” recalls Katsande.

“We now had the expertise and financial resources to deliver our original growth vision and match our aspirations.”

Sciontec’s first major project was a £1m refurb of the ground-floor of LSP’s iC1 building, which underlined just what could be achieved.

“There hadn’t previously been quality space where people could come together to collaborate, and to be honest, we’d also lacked a community coffee shop too, where random social interactions can lead to exciting opportunities.” says Katsande.

“We’d worked very closely with Bruntwood SciTech and their consultants about how the new space would look and feel. The refurb began in October 2020 and when it was completed in June 2021, it looked just as amazing as we’d all hoped.

“Carrying out the work during the pandemic was a huge achievement, and the timing was actually a benefit, because a lot of customers were working remotely, with the exception of those who needed to be in their lab space.”

manufacturing sectors,” she says.

“This space was delivered last March, which helped showcase us to the regional economy, and

T h E P l ACE TO BE

Even two years on, Katsande’s voice still carries the sense of excitement which she and her colleagues felt.

“It really opened up the science park, the new entrance lounge gave everyone a focal point and the key players from across KQ Liverpool also began coming in there more often,” she says.

The new space also immediately attracted serious interest from would-be customers, and Katsande’s team also persuaded existing occupants, notably the Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC), that Sciontec’s innovation centres were the place to be and expand within.

“They wanted to bring in a Digital Manufacturing Accelerator (DMA) lab to accelerate the development of technological capabilities in industrial robots and advanced automation systems, a crucial asset to companies operating in advanced

Above: the spine has been home to the Northern operations of the royal college of physicians (rcp) since 2021

Below: entrance to liverpool science park

because the lab is alongside a main road within the city centre, it also helped promote Sciontec as a location for leading technology and science businesses.

“We saw more footfall here as soon as the DMA lab opened, and I think it helped people on the outside realise that the science park is a separate entity from the university campus.”

September 2022 saw another high-profile arrival, when Elida Beauty, a new Unilever business unit for personal care products, set up its new global product development hub at the park.

Katsande admits she’s particularly proud that Sciontec’s workspaces benefit not only those who occupy them, but the surrounding communities and wider region.

She and her KQ Liverpool colleagues recently rolled out a ‘Sixth Form into Science’ programme, introducing the next generation of talent to the world of science and technology by bringing cohorts of local youngsters into Sciontec’s innovation centres.

The trend for remote working which evolved during the pandemic subsequently resulted in increased demand for flexible workspace.

Working with the RCP, Sciontec created its Sciontec AI product within two of its floors at The Spine, which after barely a year is now home to around 200 employees.

“Our workspace offering has always been a magnet for creative and technology companies, and increasingly we were finding that customers needed more flexible space and smaller offices, so it made sense for everyone,” says Katsande.

“However, we do pride ourselves, individually and collectively, in responding quickly to shifting markets and demand, so when a leading fintech organisation, Cashplus Bank, asked for a whole floor, we could also easily accommodate them.”

g AME-C h AN g E r

As Katsande continues to scan the horizon from her eyrie, her thoughts turn to the next of Sciontec’s grand projects, Hemisphere.

An eight-storey building scheduled to complete during 2025, it represents a £56m investment which will deliver 120,000 sq ft of Grade A offices and sit alongside The Spine in Paddington Village.

Katsande says that, like The Spine, it echoes Sciontec’s vision

of delivering new space for science and technology businesses. It will also be the region’s first Net Zero Carbon operational new build and be designed to achieve six global sustainability certifications.

“We brought in the same architects who designed The Spine, the planning application was approved last November, and we’re on course to break ground before the end of 2023,” she says. “The Spine still has the ‘wow’ factor, but we expect Hemisphere to be a game-changer.”

However, the UK’s dearth of lab space remains a challenge for all locations and every developer, and Liverpool isn’t the exception.

“LSP delivered the city’s first Cat 2 commercial labs in its third innovation centre, and they now operate at 100% capacity,” says Katsande.

“It does sometimes become frustrating because we get inquiries, but have no available space, although we are working with the city council and the combined authority to deliver more.”

It’s just momentary reflection though, and she quickly returns to her upbeat and positive self by looking ahead to the addition of Sensor City to the Sciontec portfolio.

Liverpool’s two universities established the Copperas Hill innovation hub in 2017 to provide 27,000 sq ft of rapid prototyping and digital technology space.

However, given the remarkable pace of change in the Industry 4.0 and Internet of Things’ sectors, it now needs further investment to achieve its potential.

“It’s right by Liverpool Lime Street Station, just five minutes away from LSP, and we have the resources to redevelop and reconfigure Sensor City to provide additional innovative workspace and labs across its four floors.” says Katsande.

“Talks have been progressing well, so I’d expect our plans to be formally announced later this year.” ■

For more information, please visit: https://sciontec.co.uk/

liverpool science park is home to businesses from a variety of knowledge intensive sectors including biotechnology, biomedical and healthcare

It’s taken Kadans just three years to move from the fringes of the UK’s life science community and achieve a market-leading presence and profile.

Even for an ambitious, well-funded and established organisation, it’s worthy of note that it has a building due to reach practical completion every six months until 2027.

“It has been a steep transition. Traditionally, Kadans didn’t really seek the limelight, but now we find ourselves being mentioned by senior people who hadn’t heard of us a few years ago,” admits Sheppard.

“There’s been almost a cultural shift, and the market has realised Kadans should be leading conversations and not being dictated to. When I started here, we had maybe 45 people across two countries, but now we have more than 150 across six.

“Like any organisation, we aren’t immune to growing pains, but it is certainly interesting to see how we are now regarded.”

The catalyst for its rapid expansion came in August 2021, when AXA IM Alts, the business arm of AXA Investment Managers, which had acquired Kadans on behalf of its clients in 2020, revealed that it had raised EUR 1.9bn to fuel its growth.

UndE r THE Lim ELig HT

Even given the sharp global uptick in life sciences, it had taken just five months to raise the capital, and as clients piled in from across North America, Asia and Europe, its fund was significantly over-subscribed.

The tipping point for Kadans then came in Q1 2022, when it unveiled a JV with Canary Wharf Group to develop 823,000 sq ft of life-science lab and office space in a 23-storey tower.

Understandably, the thought that Europe’s largest and most technologically advanced life sciences’ building was to be delivered at a location previously known only for finance made international headlines.

It was a moment to savour deeply for Sheppard, who’d only

joined Kadans in the autumn of 2020, and One North Quay is rarely far from his thoughts.

“It’s going exceptionally well, we are due to receive full planning approval in the summer and were already well underway with the enabling works through the outline consent we received 18 months ago,” he says.

“We’re out in the market procuring various construction packages, so it’s ticking away nicely from a development perspective.

“On the commercial side, we continue to see huge interest both nationally and internationally and are having a lot of really exciting conversations happening, with an array of potential tenants from top 10 pharma companies down to more innovative small biotech firms.”

James Sheppard, managing director UK & Ireland at Kadans Science Partner, outlines its remarkable recent growth trajectory.

One North Quay will be Europe's largest and most technologically advanced life sciences' building

TAN g IB l E SI g N

To give potential occupiers a tangible sign of One North Quay’s offer, Kadans has fitted out 40,000 sq ft of wet labs and office space at nearby 20 Water Street.

“It’s targeted at SMEs who need incubator space, and the interest ranges from firms making medical devices and in materials science, to ones in cellular and gene therapy, and global pharma,” says Sheppard.

“It’s very much in tune with Kadans’ long-term philosophy that we are one of the first investors in new markets. We did it in our domestic market of the Netherlands, then in Paris and now across multiple geographies in Europe.

“We say to the market that we believe in a location, in the science, in the quality of the space we will deliver, and in the companies and individuals who come to our schemes.

“Where we see that there has been a market failure to provide laboratory space, rather than waiting for someone to come along and take a pre-let on a building, or somebody else to take up the slack and take on the risk, we are happy to be the first mover.”

Sheppard says it’s a core element of Kadans’ philosophy that once it’s chosen a location, it will always invest for the long-term.

“We’ll take on the risk, build top quality and fully functioning laboratory space, with equipment, lab managers, and a high level of ecosystem and support service, and from that point, we will continue to invest there,” he says.

“We never go to any location, and then deliver just a single building, because if our judgement is correct, the tenants we attract will start growing and growing, and ultimately will need more space.

“If we hadn’t provided grow-on space, all we would have achieved was to move the market failure from year one to year three.”

Life sciences continues to be one of the hottest global sectors, but Kadans isn’t fazed by the increased competition.

“Even five years back, there were just a few niche firms delivering lab space in Europe, but now everyone seems to imagine they can build such space anywhere,” says Sheppard.

“However, the reality is that this remains a very difficult and different asset class because you need

highly technical buildings designed for highly technical tenants who always demand the best.

“We’re already starting to see a divide between the high-quality developers and projects which deliver high-quality space … and everything else.”

POwEr DrIVEr

Sheppard draws a persuasive parallel between the UK’s office market of a decade ago, in which there was a very distinct ‘flight to quality’ where providers of new Grade A space set themselves apart from those still focused on refurbs and secondary space.

“One of the main drivers in the life science market is power. So many landlords are coming unstuck because they failed to realise that lab space typically requires four times the power of traditional office uses, and power remains the issue regardless of geography.”

Kadans carried out due diligence on Glasgow’s Met Tower, before it was acquired by Bruntwood Sci-Tech, and although he agrees the building could never be converted for lab space, he still sees huge potential in the city.

“Glasgow is thriving from a science and technology perspective, very interesting companies are being spun out of its universities, and it continues to attract companies needing lab space, from across Scotland and the rest of the UK,” says Sheppard.

“Tenants on our West of Scotland Science Park are very happy to be there, as the talent pool is so strong and because of the city’s long manufacturing heritage.”

Kadans also has a presence in Manchester, via its Upper Brook Street scheme, and Sheppard readily acknowledges the impact which Bruntwood has had on its home turf.

“It’s has been an exciting market for years, and I must pay tribute to the tremendous work they’ve done in attracting international attention,” he says.

“We hope to submit a planning application shortly for 215,000 sq ft of space for pharma and bio-tech companies. Interestingly, we’re also seeing significant interest from public sector organisations.

The strength of the local talent pool is a recurring theme as Sheppard discusses the merits of development locations.

“Manchester has a higher graduate retention rate than even Oxford and Cambridge, and there are significant numbers who wish to live and work there, looking to build careers in life sciences.”

r APID APP r OAC h

Such is the pace of Kadans’ growth that the B900 building on Babraham Research Campus, which it acquired in Q2 2019, is now considered a legacy asset.

In April, the 3D deep-learning company CHARM Therapeutics took 13,500 sq ft there for an R&D centre for its drug discovery team, where it will continue to develop its pipeline of transformational oncology medicines.

A few miles away, and just a stroll from the new Cambridge North rail station, new-build development plans have gone in for at Merlin Place for lab and office space.

“We’re expecting that scheme to progress before Q4. The market there continues to see demand massively outstrip supply, and it’s no secret than winning permission in the county is difficult,” says Sheppard.

“However, we hope there is positive traction for our scheme and others, otherwise the market will be severely impacted.

“There are only so many occasions on which companies can be told there is no space in a particular location before they look elsewhere.

“We are rapidly approaching that point in the Cambridge area, and once one company goes elsewhere it rapidly becomes a tidal wave, which would seriously impact the regional economy.”

Back in London, Kadans owns three buildings at London’s King’s Cross, the most advanced of which is 5-10 Brandon Road which will offer 114,000 sq ft.

The mixed-use scheme, which topped out in May and is on course for practical completion during Q1 2024, is targeted at high-growth SMEs in life sciences who need flexible space for pilot plants, labs and offices.

Sheppard says Brandon Road will be the only location in the capital to offer GMP-standard

manufacturing facilities alongside R&D space and offices, allowing tenants to take innovations from the lab to commercial products or services on a single site.

The other two schemes are due to go to planning in June, and will provide a similar mix of space, also aimed at companies who don’t want long-term leases.

Elsewhere, Abingdon Science Park remains a popular destination and Sheppard says its model has successfully evolved into a community-based eco-system.

Two new buildings will reach practical completion there in late summer, which will together deliver another 45,000 sq ft of lab and office space.

“Some companies want to be in London, Cambridge and Glasgow,

and are willing to pay premium rents, but others are more costconscious, and Abingdon is benefitting hugely from that dynamic,” says Sheppard.

“Now venture capital isn’t as readily available as it was two or three years ago, many companies are assessing their rent rolls to reduce their burn rate and fund their businesses for longer.

“We continue to believe in the strength and the depth of the UK’s life science sector, and although it wasn’t what I expected a year or two ago, I now spend around 70% of my time visiting locations outside the Golden Triangle.” ■

For more information, please visit: www.kadans.com/?lang=en

Above: Kadans' JV with canary Wharf Group will develop 823,000 sq ft of life-science lab and office space in a 23-storey tower

Sm A rTE r rEg ULATiOn

A new approach to regulation in the UK

The Prime Minister’s recent statements advocating smarter regulation have been widely welcomed, most notably the City Week address for Business Connect via Linkedin (24 April 2023).

Rishi Sunak’s comments were primarily intended for the financial services sector. However, the message is also relevant to other sectors of the economy, particularly the ‘smarter regulation’ message which affects the wider industrial, business and research landscape.

The Department for Business and Trade has recently published its plan for ‘Smarter Regulation to Grow the Economy’, the first of three intended publications setting out the role of regulation and plans for its implementation in the context of a free-market approach to management of the economy. Whilst there is much to agree upon in this plan, the government must also focus on requirements to regulate in anticipation of market developments, where businesses and the population need to be protected from foreseen harms. Hopefully, subsequent government publications will address these aspects of regulation.

The term ‘Smarter Regulation’ recognises a need to enhance current UK regulation to match complex modern requirements. To remain effective, regulations should be regularly reviewed, kept up to date, efficiently delivered, and fit for purpose in relation to developing innovations in business practices, technologies and markets. Regulations need to be readily understood and easily adopted by business and the public. Certain significant aspects of today’s regulations in the UK require improvement. Oversight, leadership and setting the regulatory environment is the responsibility of government.

The developing prominence of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the implications of a rushed approach to the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill for areas such as environmental protection, food security, and employment are thrusting the importance of smarter regulation into the public spotlight.

The complexity of the task is immense, but the need for a smarter approach is evident if the UK is to tackle the challenges posed by the continual flow of innovations arising from advances in science and new technologies

and their expanding assimilation into everyday life. Smarter Regulation will require investment from government as well as the private sector. Benefits will include the removal of unnecessary burdens on business and enhanced public and industrial safety. Particularly important in this regard are key consumer supply chains such as agriculture, food, energy and healthcare as well as potentially hazardous occupations like construction and transport. Regulations have to be properly formulated and policed once in use. Smarter regulation should facilitate better, more cost-effective enforcement and compliance checking, the latter being the responsibility of Conformity Assessment Bodies (CABs). These organisations, accredited mainly private sector entities, are important and essential to the infrastructure underpinning the workings of our domestic economy and the UK’s dealings and trading with other countries. Together with their industry clients, CABs have been seriously impacted by uncertainty, indecision and delays in setting the direction for the UK’s new regulatory environment following Brexit.

Professor Richard Brook OBE , Vice President of AIRTO, investigates the smart regulation pathway.

The transition from CE to UKCA product marking is still to be completed pending further guidance from government.

Cross-party alignment is needed on the direction of travel for UK regulation. This echoes the recent call by Make UK for a long-term industrial strategy to rebuild manufacturing competitiveness. Right now, post Brexit, the UK has an opportunity to bolster its status on the world stage as a leader in smarter approaches to internationally agreed regulation and standards.

The first step towards achieving smarter regulation is to take a hard look at how we currently approach formulating, agreeing, managing and implementing our regulatory environment. This needs to be undertaken with care, to balance the upside of ‘loosening’ regulation (i.e., stimulation of growth) against the increased risks from ‘looser’ regulation to consumers and the public. Conversely, overtightening regulation will likely slow economic

growth - the price to be paid for increased caution and further strengthening protection for our national and personal well-being.

The UK urgently needs a regulatory environment and ecosystem that works faster and operates much more as a partnership between government, regulators and business. There are lessons we can learn from the approach of regulators during the expedited development and introduction of new vaccines during the COVID pandemic, including changes in regulator behaviour. Regulator capacity, capability and behaviour was recently identified by the UK’s outgoing Government Chief Scientific Adviser in the Pro-innovation Regulation of Technologies Review, Green Industries

Learning from this and other plentiful recent experiences, three core principles should underpin a smarter approach to regulation going forward:

1. There should be greater collaboration between relevant policy makers, regulators, CABs and affected industries;

2. Faster processes should be developed for deciding and approving changes and updates to regulation and for applying existing regulation to deal with developing technologies, newly introduced product and service innovations and take-up in emerging markets;

3. Upskilling and resourcing should become a priority on all sides to ensure progress is not hampered by skill shortages and scarcity of experience and budgetary resources.

Enforcement needs to be thought through carefully. The role of CABs is key. Prior to Brexit, the UK’s accredited CABs led in Europe’s ecosystem of Notified Bodies. They are now being adversely impacted by the UK’s protracted upheaval in regulation and the uncompleted transition towards an as yet undefined post-Brexit regulatory environment. These highly skilled and very specialised bodies are critical assets that must be retained and fully utilised in this new era of smarter regulation. The UK has been an acknowledged world leader in legal frameworks and regulation. However, in recent times, the ‘lived experience’ by innovators in the UK has too often not lived up to our reputation for good governance. It is time for the reality to catch up with the rhetoric as the UK seeks to promote a message of ‘being open for business’ and for the UK to lead the way in shaping effective and smarter regulation for emerging technologies and markets! ■

For more insights, please visit: www.airto.co.uk

hen York Biotech Campus hosted the International Commission for Plant-Pollinator Relationships'

Bee Protection Group's 15th annual symposium in May, it was a tricky challenge for headline writers at the local paper.

The event, which attracted almost 130 delegates from 17 countries, was also a very tangible symbol of the success of YBC in persuading people to return to its space.

“There was a huge take-up in demand for events and conferences after Covid, which was unexpected, as we thought people would still be using hybrid models,” admits Cashon.

“However, we already have bookings running well into 2024, and we've brought national and international events here which is very pleasing.”

The May event also underlined the depth of the links Cashon has carefully cultivated, with the long-term lead occupier of the campus, Fera Science and Make it York, the city's destination management organisation.

Connections across both public and private sectors are, of course, pivotal to the success of any science hub, particularly in such a footloose niche as bio-tech.

o

and off-site services for your business

CArgiLL CATALYST w

It's evident, as Cashon enthuses about the campus and its tenants, that the ability to build productive professional relationships has been the catalyst for her achievements since reaching the 80-acre campus in 2015, when it was occupied solely by Fera and other government bodies.

Her remit was to drive YBC's evolution from a public sector base to become home to an array of bio-tech enterprises, from start-ups to scale-ups, and to attract international tenants.

“Fera Science became a joint venture business in the year I arrived, and since then the business has grown to be increasingly open

and collaborative, they've absolutely transformed themselves,” says Cashon.

“Right from the top down, they really integrate with other tenants. We have innovation breakfasts and lunches, and their people are always present. Our latest tenant arrived in January, and Fera immediately began talking to them about potential collaborations which was so great to see.”

YBC's ongoing challenge is how to take the offices which Fera no longer requires to repurpose them for new uses and new tenants, as the organisation itself invests significantly in its future business model.

“They had an innovative concept of creating an insect research laboratory here to study bioconversion, which is essentially feeding different species of insect with different types of waste to create different applications, such as protein for animal feed, pet-food or fertiliser,” says Cashon.

“It's very sustainable, which is why bioconversion is being looked at around the world, but the UK had never had a research facility of this scale or technical sophistication which could assess the safety of the products being developed, so the discussions with government took quite some time.

n

Liz Cashon, innovation manager at York Biotech Campus, highlights the crucial role relationships play in building a science hub with national presence and international tenants.

right: liz cashon, innovation manager at ybc

left: the insect lab of Fera science - a lead occupier of york biotech campus

“Finally, Fera won approval to deliver the lab in partnership with DEFRA, and they spent just over £1m converting a former storage unit to create 2,000 sq ft of new space for clean labs and related uses, so it was a major milestone for us.”

BIO-BOOST

Early 2023 saw another significant success, when the giant Cargill business empire decided to relocate its bioindustrial operation to the campus, signing for more than 10,000 sq ft of space, including 3,000 sq ft of labs.

Cargill came to the UK in the mid-50s, and with an existing presence stretching from Liverpool to Hull, and from London to Hereford, they were the definition of footloose, so Cashon's negotiating skills were paramount when their search team began trawling for a potential location.

“They wanted somewhere new to house Cargill Bioindustrial, but they also needed to relocate staff from their previous site and found it difficult to identify a location with ready-made lab space,” she recalls.

“Their other requirement was quite unusual because they also wanted 7,000 sq ft of office space alongside their labs, whereas most potential tenants wanted either a small suite or co-working space.

“However, we had a large openplan office available, because a tenant moved out during Covid, and managed to persuade Cargill that it could be converted to satisfy their needs.”

The company and its property advisers found the proposal so appealing that they decided to take the space, and to make it into a showcase office for its wider operations where they could bring different teams together to collaborate.

“We didn't have lab space immediately available, but we did have workshops which could be converted and fitted out to their requirement for 3,000 sq ft,” says Cashon.“They already have around 50 people on site and their labs should be ready to occupy during July.”

The transaction had immediate benefits across the campus, and one long-term tenant is already looking to collaborate with the newcomers.

“Refurbishing such large chunks of space was great for YBC, and the influx of dozens of fresh new faces also brought in so much energy. An international brand had brought a flagship scheme here and there was a real buzz around the place,” says Cashon.

“Cargill's people were also very keen to meet other tenants, so we've been taking them around the campus even before their space is ready to occupy.

“They are very focused on food packaging, which is tremendous for another tenant (Abingdon Health) which is interested in developing sustainable packaging for its medical devices, so hopefully there'll be synergy between them for joint projects.”

S h A r IN g IS T r ENDIN g

Cashon sees an emerging trend for shared spaces within campus environments, rather than corporates and organisations preferring stand-alone and independent buildings which was usually the case in recent years.

Her belief was underpinned by conversations with Cargill's real estate advisers once negotiations for their 'blended' model of lab and office space had completed.

“It was interesting to hear that when they began their search, they were looking for something similar to their previous location,” says Cashon.

“Even when they began looking here, they still had reservations around using shared space and shared corridors, as they had concerns about a possible lack of control around their R&D and their IP, but what actually happened was the complete opposite of what they'd been expecting.”

Meanwhile, ahead of potential collaborations with Cargill, Abingdon Health has just launched the first saliva-based pregnancy test to be available in the UK and Ireland.

The Salistick product, developed by an Israeli company which uses its revolutionary tech platform to deliver rapid saliva diagnostics for an array of uses, will be co-branded within the Abingdon Simply Test range.

“Abingdon is another tenant which converted redundant buildings into new manufacturing space and clean labs, all their R&D expertise is here, and they're expecting more benefits to come from their partnership with Salignostics Ltd,” says Cashon.

T r EMENDOUS MOMENT

The most tangible instance of her willingness to nurture and develop relationships with outside organisations also came this year, when the

University of York took 2,750 sq ft of space for a research project aiming to reduce the scourge of mosquito-borne diseases.

“It really was a tremendous moment, because although we've taken so many of their graduates over the years and multiple research projects linked to them are here, they've never had a physical presence,” she says.

“They needed to work within controlled environments, and we had two former labs which Fera no longer needed which could be converted relatively easily for their research requirements.”

The lead academic, the university's professor of genetics, Luke Alphey, moved on site in January and expects to expand his original research team of around 20 people by another dozen within the first six months.

“They began with five researchers, were up to 20 by the end of April, and now they'll have more than 30 before the year-end, so our priority is bedding their team into the campus and engaging them with our community,” says Cashon.

“Luke is already talking about collaborations with Fera, which makes absolute sense for both parties given their focus on insect research, and we will continue to talk to the university about its future requirements for space in this region.”

However, as with all locations targeting the bio-tech and life science sectors, the most pressing challenge is how to address the nationwide shortage of Cat 2 lab space.

“Demand shows no signs of slowing, and although we would consider new-build space via a pre-let, we also continue to see old offices being surrendered by Fera as it increasingly works in more agile ways,” says Cashon.

“We're talking to a developer to judge the cost of potential refurbs, and to get a better feel for cost, timelines and delivery for new-build lab space and Grade A offices.

“Our range of inquiries runs from just a single office unit to 40,000 sq ft and upward, and everyone seems to want to move in either during the next few months, or perhaps the following quarter.

“However, we are working very closely with the university and the city council's economic development team to study the data and see which way the market is moving. It could be there's not a huge difference compared with converting redundant offices, given the cost of installing labs.” ■

More detail about the York Biotech Campus and the work of Liz Cashon and her team can be found at: https://yorkbiotechcampus.com

the university of york's mosquito research lab

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We stand for ambition.

UK Science ParKS' r ET rO fiT PrOBLE m

Ridge and Partners, one of the UK’s leading built environment experts, has just completed a major study into the attitudes surrounding retrofitting our non-domestic buildings.

, a partner at the firm, shares some of the findings and what they mean for the UK’s science parks.

while much of the responsibility for reaching Net Zero is placed on the energy sector, others in our economy, including those responsible for our commercial buildings, have a vital role to play.

However, our new research report, The Role of Retrofitting our Non-Domestic Buildings in the Race to Net Zero, shows that whilst more than three-quarters (76%) of organisations say they are working to achieve Net Zero, fewer than one in four are considering how to make their premises more environmentally sustainable.

Bl OCKE r S & B A rr IE r S

A key blocker seems to be the attitude of boards. Over half of facilities and property managers say their boards simply do not consider retrofitting as part of their Net Zero strategy. What’s more concerning, almost a quarter (23%) of these facilities heads in the largest corporations haven’t been involved in Net Zero planning at all.

Even when facilities heads are involved in the conversation, there’s huge misunderstanding around the scale of the problem. The vast majority (86%) underestimate the need to retrofit current buildings to make them more energy efficient. This is, in part, because over a third of decision-makers mistakenly predict that less than 39% of the UK’s current non-domestic building stock will still be in use by 2050. In reality, it will be 70%.

The scale of misunderstanding means that many in the UK’s scientific community, and the science parks which serve it, are heading towards a building/ retrofit crisis. When we reach the Government’s Net Zero deadline, many will find themselves with old, poorly performing buildings.

So how can we address this?

And more specifically, what can science park operators do? Our research found that it’s not just a matter of educating boards about the possibilities and need. To turn

companies onto retrofitting some of its perceived barriers must also be addressed.

For instance, in our study almost a third said retrofitting will involve massive disruption to their day-to-day operations. While at least one in four believe it will simply take too long. These are likely to be very real concerns for the occupants of science parks. It’s true that retrofitting isn’t achieved overnight. It’s a considerable undertaking that can take months or even years to complete. This can be disruptive, and for organisations that require very specific stable conditions for their labs, the disruption can be difficult to overcome. This is magnified if there are multiple tenants occupying one building because the retrofit requires extensive coordination by the estate team.

There aren’t just practical challenges, but financial ones too. For instance, a quarter said they fear retrofitting will involve them having to relocate while the work is done. Relocating during a retrofit project can be costly. Smaller organisations, such as the start-ups typically found in a science park setting, may not be able to absorb the additional costs associated with a retrofit project – even if they do recognise its importance to reach Net Zero.

Matt Richards

Above: Matt richards, partner at ridge

Below: 86% underestimate the need to retrofit current buildings to make them more energy efficient

P E r FO r MANCE AND B E h AVIOU r

The good news is that with the right expert input, there are solutions. The trick is ensuring any retrofitting improvements are in step with the tenants’ behaviour and requirement - and that means embedding analysis of building performance needs early into the process.

This should include everything from zone temperatures and room comfort to the operation of an energy-hungry plant. It’s not enough to simply look at peak usage. Monitoring needs to happen throughout the day and from season to season. By investing in monitoring, data can be shared to ensure the occupying organisation’s people remain comfortable and productive and energy saving opportunities are identified.

To plan an effective retrofit project, time also needs to be taken to recognise and understand the critical activities tenants need to keep running 24/7 and to investigate the options for streamlining and improving spatial utilisation.

For example, skilled designers can support energy efficiency through the re-organisation of lab buildings. Spaces with high demands for air movement should be located close to the ventilation plant. Spaces needing close temperature control should be internal or within basements, and those which most benefit from daylight and which can use natural ventilation should be on the perimeter.

Sh A r IN g

Whilst it’s great to have data, that data becomes doubly powerful when it is shared. Tenants then have a full appreciation of the financial and environmental costs of poorly performing buildings over the lifetime of their tenancy – making the case for a retrofit clearer.

Data also ensures tenants understand the impact of their actions. They can see the effects of turning the temperature up beyond recommended levels. They appreciate things such as the temperature rise that comes naturally when everyone’s in or the energy wasted through equipment. After all, leaving fume cupboard extractors, CNC machines or calibration kits running is the lab equivalent of leaving the oven on.

While important, having a baseline of current usage and behaviour, sensors can only say and do so much. Consultation with future end users is also critical to a successful retrofit. Specialists will interrogate things such as the needs of different genders, perhaps responding in the end design with a range of comfort zones, especially in office and write-up spaces.

This is just a flavour of the approach and possibilities, but what it hopefully shows is that with a collaborative approach and expert support, our science parks can play their part in the retrofitting revolution we need if we’re serious about Net Zero. ■

Read 'The Role of Retrofitting our Non-Domestic Buildings in the Race to Net Zero' report in full at: https://ridge.co.uk/insights/the-uksretrofit-crisis/

Laboratory Services

If you are relocating your laboratory, need project management support or are looking for storage of equipment and consumables, Harrow Green Laboratory Services are the experts you can trust.

We have branches in every major UK city and are able to undertake any size and type of move at any location including all UK Science Parks, universities and public sector institutions.

We look after:

Full turnkey relocation project management, OEM and third party vendor management, Chemical relocations and disposal, Cold chain relocation (including LN2), Equipment packing, relocation and unpacking, Crate and packing material supply, Clean room relocations, Large and heavy equipment relocation, Office, breakout space and write up area relocation, IT relocation, including decommissioning and recommissioning.

What our customers say:

“We used Harrow Green to move our company to a bigger premises. We are a rapidly expanding BioTech company based in Oxford and required RHG to move three labs and two offices to a larger space. We had a lot of sensitive equipment and temperature sensitive samples and these were all handled with care. The team was friendly and checked in with us on everything they were doing. They were also very flexible. We had to change the date of our move and RHG accommodated us without any problem. “

cUStomi Sing it and connectivity S ervice S for

the evolving science park market

Communicate has been onsite at Discovery Park for ten years and member of UKSPA for over six years.

Discovery Park is one of the largest and most complex Science Parks in the country. Over the decade they’ve been active, we’ve serviced their growth to now 3,500 employees and 160 businesses.

Our onsite team has grown to match the site growth and we now have seven staff at Discovery Park.

During that time we have seen the Science Park market (as a subset of the multi-tenanted commercial property market) change significantly.

Although many Parks are owned by universities, research organisations or public bodies such as Local Authorities, the membership has evolved over the years to embrace more traditional property and asset management organisations, who take a different approach to how they manage the infrastructure and service offering to their clients. Communicate has sought to mirror these variables in how it operates, in its commercial models and how it delivers and supports service.

This semi-custom approach to delivering services and managing relationships seems to be gaining traction with our partners.

There are a number of aspects of how we do business which reflect that change:

1We will build or renew your network infrastructure for you at our own cost and risk, from supplying the kit to building comms rooms and installing cabling.

Bob Cushing, Consultant at Communicate outlines why the company is in it for the long haul.

2

If we can, we will offer on-site support for peace of mind. This is our best guarantee of a responsive and high-quality service. We have more people based on site than we do at Head Office. So, usually we have someone who can call in at short notice to get you up and running or fix faults even if we are not on site.

3 We offer a complete service for you and your clients from network support through a full range of IT and cyber security services, to the more standard Internet access and telephone services.

for new builds but also for existing sites needing a minor refresh or a complete refurbishment.

from its directors and shareholders, and has maintained both its long-term employee relationships but also successfully managed the integration of specialist service providers (such as Cyber and Telephony) which have joined the group over a long period. This is achieved by ensuring good cultural alignment between the various parties and creating a mutually supportive environment. Of course, this then flows down to our relationships with our customers, both landlords and tenants.

4

Communicate seeks long term relationships with its landlord and agent customers through the quality of its services and support.

The ability for us to invest in your infrastructure is attractive not just

One of our latest sites in London is still in development and we have rolled out the infrastructure in stages to reflect the development project and make sure services are available as capacity and occupancy comes online. HYLO is a multi-storey extension in Islington to an existing building so has a mix of refurbishment and new build. The initial infrastructure cost was about £100,000 but will increase to £250,000 or more as new floors and tenants come onstream and over the life of the contract. We are also in the early stages of planning the infrastructure build for 12 new student accommodation properties across London for an existing property management and development partner.

Communicate is itself a company based on long term relationships, with funding flowing

We have also taken some steps which might seem counter-intuitive. Rather than push for exclusive contracts we will support large corporates in their own buildings on site by enabling their choice of service provider at a modest cost. This helps the landlord because they don’t have to sign new wayleaves or deal with the disruption of new fibre installs and reduces time and set up costs for new tenants. Many of these tenants end up taking both connectivity and other services from us because of reduced cost and the decreased lag in moving in. Even if they take their existing preferred supplier they often take a resilient second connection from us at much lower cost than arranging a second external connection

Communicate offers an inclusive approach to service management because we know most building managers, landlords and agents rarely have the expertise and almost never have the time to manage complex service requirements for their clients and tenants. This is especially true for managing Wi-Fi networks in house, which has become a bugbear for may building managers.

Our partnership approach is based on aligning our services and models to fit your preferred operating methods rather than forcing a single approach on you and adapting as requirements change.

We are in this for the long haul. ■

For about Communicate, please visit: https://communicate.technology/

Innovation

e xtending the frontiers of uk science and industry

m A n On A mi SS i O n

Mission Street’s Artem Korolev takes a walk along memory lane - and offers Ian Halstead a glimpse into the future of science real estate.

In our era of science and sustainability, everything feels just so right about Mission Street’s ambitious plans for a 23-acre innovation district in the heart of Cambridge.

Coldham’s Lane is only a stroll from the main train station, near to the city’s largest opportunity for housing development at Cambridge Airport, and on brownfield land which has been derelict for years.

“It is an absolutely incredible opportunity for Cambridge and for us. Having the chance to create a science-focused innovation district in a central location is extremely rare,” says an enthusiastic Korolev.

“The co-location of homes and employment makes it very sustainable, and when you’re building at scale you can do so much more because you have a genuine opportunity for place-making.”

The proposals are still proceeding through the planning process, but he expects site work to begin during 2024.

From a purely personal perspective, it’s also a chance for Korolev to transform an area he knew well when studying at Cambridge, where a degree in Land Economy became his springboard into real estate.

The Mill Road of his undergraduate days was known only

as the birthplace of the sci-fi author Douglas Adams, who penned ‘The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, and for its late-night takeaways. However, the area has since become home to an impressive array of independent shops, cafes and bars, and even its Grade 11-listed library received a £500,000 refurb from the county council during 2022.

So, 15 years since Korolev left Cambridge to join Morgan Stanley’s London-based real estate team, with a first-class degree and a fervent desire to succeed, he’s back as the founder and CEO of a major investor-developer.

Inventa is the first phase of a £100m life sciences’ innovation district close to oxford's railway station

He established Mission Street in 2017, having identified both the increased commercialisation of research-based and knowledgeintensive sectors in the UK, and the lack of suitable space for such activities.

“There was a supply/demand imbalance and the space that existed was outdated and based around business parks from the 80s,” recalls Korolev.

“In the tech sector, companies had amazing workspaces, but scientists with PhDs were being asked to work in secondary environments, often in the middle of nowhere.

“The shortage of space was forcing tenants which needed to expand to become reluctant developers, to navigate the complexities of the planning system and to spend money they’d raised to fund their science on the delivery of real estate.

“However, in the US and Europe, you could see urban innovation districts coming forward which were properly integrated into cities, and it was clear that was a pressing need for such space here.”

DYNAMIC S h IFT

Initially, Mission Street operated as asset and development managers, notably with Kadans during their entry into the UK market, on Sycamore House, Stevenage, which was one of the UK’s early conversions of an industrial building into speculative space for science uses.

Korolev also observed a shift in the property market’s dynamics, where what was then a small and niche sector of real estate rapidly attracted the attention of institutional investors, particularly during the pandemic.

“Two elements developed in parallel. Investors saw great thematic opportunities around health, science and innovation, looking at the need to deal with key trends around aging populations, healthcare and sustainability” he says.

“At the same time, returns from the major property asset classes into which pension funds had traditionally invested, particularly offices and retail, faltered and their future is still evolving and difficult to forecast.

“In the past, tenants took long-term leases on office space with limited hands-on operational engagement from the landlord once the scheme was let.

“Research space, on the other hand, is an operationally intensive sector, which was seen by many mainstream investors as too complicated.

“However, as lease lengths have shortened, traditional property sectors have become much more operationally intensive, putting innovation real estate on a more equal footing from an investor standpoint.”

Korolev retained his original vision of creating an independent specialist platform to deliver science space, but Mission Street’s growth was accelerated after increased interest from institutional investors and ultimately agreeing a JV with BentallGreenOak.

Their portfolio has since scaled rapidly, now runs into 1.5m sq ft and shows no signs of slowing its pace of growth.

DOUB l E DE l IVE r Y

Two of its projects will be delivered during autumn 2024: Inventa, the first phase of a £100m life sciences’ innovation district near Botley

Road, close to Oxford’s railway station, and the first phase of The Press, at Foxton, in the South Cambridge cluster.

Inventa, which will initially see some 65,000 sq ft of purpose-built R&D space delivered, was so well-received that it won unanimous support at the city’s planning committee.

Korolev says The Press combines the creative repurposing of a former printing press, with the demolition of unattractive industrial space, to deliver a new laboratory building surrounded by high quality public realm.

Mission Street’s proposals there received planning consent early this year, and with wide support from the local community.

“We saw the potential to create a new and very well-connected location for science. It’s next to the railway station, so just one stop out of Cambridge, and soon to be one stop from the Cambridge Biomedical Campus when Cambridge South is operational in 2025/26,” says Korolev.

They’re both significant schemes, and so it’s intriguing to hear his take on the dramatic growth of Mission Street and its peers over such a short period.

“The transformative scientific research and its commercialisation which underpins the sector continues to be strong, which means there’s a great opportunity to continue to deliver the space the customer needs,” says Korolev.

“From a real estate standpoint, institutional investors also continue to take interest in the sector, providing the capital needed to deliver the space. Even five years ago, investors didn’t have much appetite for life sciences and lab space, and there wasn’t much talk about science clusters, but that quickly changed.”

However, Korolev says some challenges remain because the delivery of science space at scale is still relatively new to the UK.

the press in the south cambridge cluster will deliver a new laboratory building surrounded by high quality public realm

“Some planning authorities, particularly those in urban locations, still need to understand more about the sector, to realise what science companies want and how these buildings work.

“There needs to be something of an educational process here, although equally, even in such a mature market as the US, if you are away from Cambridge-Kendall Square and a handful of other established locations, a similar dynamic exists.

“The biggest challenge here, and it’s a global one, is to make local communities more aware of the huge benefits of open science clusters, and to increase engagement before and after schemes are delivered so that everyone can benefit from the value these schemes will create.”

gr O w T h E PIE

Given the traditionally fierce rivalry between developers of office, retail and industrial space, it’s also interesting to hear Korolev’s take on science real estate.

“I’ve always liked this sector’s collaborative nature. Sometimes, we have to compete very hard for an opportunity, but equally, if we have a potential occupier we can’t accommodate, we’ve directed them to one of our peers,” he says.

“We all share the same desire to ‘grow the pie’, as some say. I think everyone in this sector is very aligned and wants to see the UK increase its already significant presence in science.”

Clearly though, innovation real estate is not immune from the current global and local geopolitical and economic uncertainties facing the UK economy regardless of sector.

“Inflation remains a concern, is having a big impact on construction costs and interest rates are obviously higher than for quite a long time. Because the real estate sector is fundamentally funded by debt, it becomes more expensive and lenders become more selective,” admits Korolev.

“The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank could have had a serious impact, as a significant number of UK life sciences and tech firms had high exposure, so it was reassuring to see how quickly everything was resolved.

“However, despite the more difficult environment, on a relative basis, science space remains very attractive to institutional investors, both from existing and new sources. Of course, there’s more caution in the market, but I think it’s in a stronger position than most other real estate sectors.”

The Mission Street team enjoy the challenge of identifying new development locations and just as Coldham’s Lane exemplifies that mindset, so does a very different scheme underway in Bristol.

The company is converting the former Evening Post building into Projekt, which will deliver 147,000 sq ft of R&D space, making it the biggest scheme of its type in

the South-West and one of the largest outside the Golden Triangle.

“We like being an early mover in an emerging ecosystem and looked there very carefully for more than two years before making this investment,” recalls Korolev.

“You have a top-class university with increasing investment into spinouts, a proven tech ecosystem, successful incubator space, and sizeable companies which had grown there.

“However, one of the constraints on the local ecosystem was the absence of grow-on space. We hope that by supplying this, we can help grow the critical mass of the Bristol ecosystem.

“The Post building on Temple Way was perfect for us because of its large floorplates, vibration resilience and high slab-to-slab heights. It’s very unusual to have a building of this design in a city centre.”

With planning consent granted, and strip out-work ongoing, Mission Street hope to start on site with the main works in Q1 2024, but despite equally positive news across the portfolio, there’s one challenge as yet unresolved.

“We don’t yet have a scheme in London, but we will soon …” promises Korolev, and no-one he’s met since arriving at Cambridge would think otherwise. ■

For more information, please visit: www.mission-property.com

the former evening post building in bristol is being converted into a 147,000 sq ft r&d space named projekt

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Alisdair Gunn, director of Glasgow City Innovation District (GCID), enlightened Ian Halstead about its origins, achievements and ambitions.

Scotland’s most powerful innovation district has been created in the urban heart of Glasgow, but whilst its driving force is a pioneer of our digital era, its catalyst was a visionary academic from the 18th century.

Even at a time when radical firebrands huddled in the teashops of Edinburgh and London to rail against politicians and aristocrats, whilst others peddled strident pamphlets to rouse mobs to anger, John Anderson stood out.

He held the chair of natural philosophy at Glasgow University during five decades, offered public support for the French Revolution, and even designed a new form of six-pounder cannon which he dispatched to the sans-culottes in Paris as a “gift from science to liberty”.

Anderson then posthumously stunned his alma-mater by leaving most of his estate to create the city’s second academic institution, which evolved into the University of Strathclyde. His stipulation that women students could attend classes was also impressively far-sighted.

The bequest underlined his commitment to what he described as “useful learning” which brought together the advances of science and the innovations of industry to create employment and wealth.

PE r FECT lY ATTUNED

It’s a philosophy perfectly attuned to the mindset of Alisdair Gunn, the impetus behind the GCID’s fast-growing international profile and physical presence, brought in after demonstrating his digital and technology nous and passion for innovation in the public and private sectors.

His reputation for supporting Scotland’s tech and digital start-up scene was solidly established, even before he and two likeminded friends created the annual tech festival in Edinburgh in 2011 named after Alan Turing, the godfather of modern computing.

The event swiftly became a fixture on the international tech calendar, and the organisers of June 2023's Turing Fest have bullishly described it as ‘the ultimate learning party for start-ups’.

As the subsequent founder of Framewire, Scotland’s first advisory practice focused on the building and development of tech ecosystems, it’s easy to see why the GCID team recruited Gunn in July 2020.

In these hyperbolic times, it’s also refreshing to discover that he’s a modest and unassuming individual, regularly praising his team, the district’s partner organisations and the efforts of the tech community which he dedicates his time to support.

“When I was asked to get involved with Glasgow’s first innovation district, engaging with investors across Scotland and driving the international presence of Scotland’s fledgling tech sector, I considered it an honour,” recalls Gunn.

“I’ve always been passionate about digital and tech innovations, what they can achieve and their huge potential to benefit society, and this position is all about supporting start-up enterprises and helping communities.

“Before the GCID was established, although there had been support for the tech eco-system, it had primarily focused on Edinburgh because investors had been keen to back enterprises coming out of its university and the established tech ecosystem.

PiOn EE r S A r E Of A Lik E mind

“However, Glasgow has the UK’s highest concentration of research technology organisations, including its only Fraunhofer, and is the location for all Scotland's Innovation Districts, which is a tremendous platform for growth.

“GCID isn’t the biggest urban innovation district in terms of acres, but it is very dense, built on decades of academic and industrial expertise, and has a solid base of applied research into industry.”

VITA l VISION

As Gunn talks with such enthusiasm, he highlights the crucial importance of the University of Strathclyde’s vision in taking the district from a concept back in 2015 to the present reality.

“It has long been renowned for the quality of its applied research, its engagement with major Scottish companies, including Scottish Power,

the Weir Group and Rolls-Royce and also its expertise in advanced manufacturing and new technologies,” he says.

“Back in 2011, Strathclyde came up with the idea of a Technology and Innovation Centre (TIC) to bring academics, business, industry and the public sector to deliver partnerships which delivered solutions to crucial economic challenges”.

Construction began in Q1 2012, and the nine-storey triangular building designed as the focal point for collaborative research was completed three years later.

There’s a case to make that the TIC became the UK’s first Catapult: organisations being developed around the same time in London, to bridge the gap between research and industry by helping to commercialise innovative ideas.

Certainly, as Gunn points out, having

four UK Catapult centres in the district has helped the GCID concept evolve, as has the presence of four of Scotland’s Innovation Centres (Cencis, Digital Health and Care, Data Lab and IBioIC), Fraunhofer UK and the National Physical Laboratory.

Given that the Fraunhover concept, of using applied research to underpin the evolution of science innovations, was hugely influential on the development of the UK’s Catapult network, it’s telling that Glasgow was chosen as the home for its centre for applied photonics.

Strathclyde’s impressive track record of bringing academics and entrepreneurs together to deliver new products and services was pivotal to the evolution of Glasgow’s tech cluster, as was the city’s long manufacturing heritage.

Its founder would certainly have warmly applauded Gunn’s commitment to the city’s communities, which is a recurring motif in his thoughts.

“We want to help push technological advances and applications into industry, but also to support new and innovative businesses, so the current generation of entrepreneurs get all the advice and backing it requires, but so does the next,” he says.

“However, creating an innovation district in the heart of a dense urban area is about much more than the buildings, the research and the technological advances coming from its students and its entrepreneurs.

“It’s also about the people who live and work in Glasgow, and making sure that employment opportunities and potential careers are being created for them.

“There’s a strong focus on genuine engagement with the community,

particularly around giving people access to the facilities in the various elements of the district.”

Gunn recognised that for the GCID to realise its full potential, it had to build wider and deeper connections with the tech community.

“There hadn’t been much development of the city’s tech and digital eco-system, so we organised a programme of meetups for founders, developers and product designers which has brought a vibrancy back to the local tech community,” he says.

“We are one of the partners of the Scottish Government’s Techscaler programme that supports the founders of start-ups and help them grow.

“We are also engaged in the development of regional innovation policies with the city council to ensure they are delivered for the benefit of both entrepreneurs, enterprises and industry across the city region.”

C r ITICA l C h A ll EN g ES

During the Age of Enlightenment, the pace of innovation saw many scientists use the new technologies to study the distant past.

Anderson was no exception, and his manuscripts and catalogues on fossils, natural history, antiquities and ballistics are stored in the archives of the academic institution he founded.

However, in an age where sustainability and the looming perils of climate change are uppermost, Gunn’s gaze is understandably fixed on the critical challenges facing today’s society, and again he’s swift to praise the work of others.

“We’re working on feasibility studies to become the first climate neutral innovation district, headed by Dr Roddy Yarr, the University of Strathclyde’s

sustainability lead, who is looking at how we can take energy from the Clyde and convert it into renewable power for local companies,” he says.

“With the city having hosted COP26, we are in the process of securing funding for the programme in the medium-term.

“A second major element of our work will be to raise awareness of the key industries and the accumulated expertise we have here to support those sectors.

“We recognised that the city didn’t have a focal point to bring the founders of tech companies and their teams together, to amplify the innovations and potential investments which they are delivering.

“In 2022, we created the first Glasgow Tech Fest, which was lauded by the tech community. We ran it again in April this year when it attracted more than 300 delegates, and now we’re already planning Glasgow Tech Week for May 2024.

“London has run such events for years, but there’s never been a Tech Week dedicated to developing a city’s tech sector in Scotland.”

Gunn also highlights Strathclyde’s decision to repurpose buildings. “Their new learning and teaching building was created through the refurbishment and integration of two existing buildings, the Colville Building and the Category B-listed Architecture Building,” he says.

“The same will soon be happening to another building in the district, the Met Tower, by its owner Bruntwood SciTech, and such initiatives are very important from the perspectives of Net Zero and sustainability.”

The combined expertise of Stathclyde’s Technology and Innovation Zone is also driving forward the growth of multiple tech clusters.

“Energy, enabling technologies and advanced manufacturing clusters were created when the TIC was established, but now we’re seeing new enterprises in space, fintech, healthcare, 5G, quantum and the creative industries being founded across the district,” says Gunn.

“It’s also great to see the university develop Strathclyde Inspire, a new strategy conceived to stimulate the rate of entrepreneurship, start-ups and spinouts from across its faculties.

“It was already one of Scotland’s leading institutions for business creativity and amplifies Anderson’s founding vision as “a place of useful learning”.

Anderson and Gunn may be far-distant bookends of GCID, but it’s pleasing to discover that they share the same scientific philosophy and dedication to serving, and growing, their communities. ■

For more about GCID, please visit: www.glasgowcityinnovationdistrict.com

the technology and Innovation centre (tIc) has been a focal point for

Join the thriving Silverstone Park business community

Silverstone Park, managed by MEPC, is adjacent to the British Formula 1 Grand Prix circuit, at the heart of the Silverstone Technology Cluster.

More than 90 companies are on site, many of which are high tech companies with capabilities in advanced engineering, manufacturing, electronics and software development. There are also a number of professional service companies on site, which support the high-tech engineering activity in the area.

Companies apply their expertise to a wide variety of sectors including aerospace, agritech, automotive, defence, energy, marine, medical, motorsport and space.

Each has been drawn to Silverstone Park by MEPC’s considerable development of the estate over the past decade which has created stylish and contemporary industrial accommodation. MEPC also provide opportunities for networking and collaboration, a sense of business community and a location that provides access to a specialist supply chain and skills pool.

The development also has a positive impact in the surrounding region in terms of jobs creation, apprenticeships and skills/training. Underpinning this, Silverstone Park has a Schools Programme which invites businesses to work with local schools to raise youngsters’ awareness about career types and pathways.

SILVERSTONE PARK, SILVERSTONE, TOWCESTER, NN12 8GX

workshop

outdoor surroundings

Unit 1136 yard

ToGEThEr wE ChAnGE ThE world

The two striking properties (1134 and 1136) reflect MEPC’s on-going development across Silverstone Park’s 131 acres which straddle the Buckinghamshire-Northamptonshire border and wrap around much of the Silverstone Circuit.

Uni T 1134 totals 48,083 sq ft and Uni T 1136 totals 90,473 sq ft

Both benefit from smart reception areas, 10m clear height warehouse areas and generous service yards.

Their two sister properties, constructed at the same time, have quickly been occupied by advanced engineering businesses Lunaz Applied Technologies and KW Special Projects.

Designed also to achieve a BREEAM ‘Excellent’ rating, their enhanced thermal insulation and highly efficient building services include:

Air source heat pumps providing heating and cooling to core areas

Domestic hot water generated from the heat pump system

Heat recovery mechanical ventilation to the core area & LED lighting

Infrastructure for EV charging points and covered cycle storage add to the environmental credentials for prospective occupiers.

More than 10,000 hedgerow, shrub and aquatic plants and 230 trees, as well as wildflower and wetland meadow mixes, add to the relaxing outdoor surroundings for employees to enjoy.

There is a very good level of natural lighting, too, throughout the warehouse areas. The structural frames are also upgraded to enable occupiers to install PV (solar) panels if they wish to generate electricity.

Externally, a lot of thought has been put into providing good amenities such as nature trails and seating/picnic areas for businesses and their employees to enjoy.

MEPC’s Chris Kimber-Nickelson, Commercial Director, Silverstone Park.

For further information about units 1134 and 1136 at Silverstone Park, viewings and plans for further development at the estate, please contact appointed letting agents dT rE and Carter Jonas:

dT rE

Jamie Catherall

+44 (0) 77 1824 2693

jamie.catherall@dtre.com

ollie withers

+44 (0) 74 9685 2526

ollie.withers@dtre.com

silverstone-park.com/availability

Carter Jonas

Jon Silversides

+44 (0) 77 2053 7141

jon.silversides@carterjonas.co.uk

Two sizeable industrial premises – designed with energy efficiency in mind and each with an EPC ‘A’ rating –are the latest properties to become available to let at Silverstone Park.

Growth

CAm PBELL HAS 2040 ViSiOn

MEPC commercial director Philip Campbell

given the size and scale of the modern Milton Park, it's seductive to imagine that those who first recognised the site's development potential decided to honour the famed British poet and author.

After all, with close to 3m sq ft of lettable space across 200 acres, more than 270 tenants employing an estimated 9,000 people, housed in 90 separate buildings, and another 100 acres ready for development, this is a science park of truly epic proportions.

It's interesting – though not quite as satisfying – to discover from the genial and well-informed Philip Campbell that the area (and the park) actually acquired its name, via centuries of linguistic evolution, from the Saxon settlement of Midletun.

“The land was used by the military for decades, then two university friends (Ian Laing and Nick Cross) acquired it with plans to develop warehouses, but later sold their property company to MEPC,” he recalls.

“Given the huge concentration of R&D in the region, MEPC realised the site would be much better suited for business enterprises than distribution and storage uses.

“The dominant trend during the 1980s on business parks was to identify 'bulletproof' companies which could sign 25-year leases, but MEPC took the innovative and far-sighted view that this park should accommodate and support emerging life science and tech companies.”

A SPECIA l P l ACE

Laing and Cross were clearly of the same mindset, as they began investing in such enterprises, founded Oxford Asymmetry International, which went through Milton Park's accelerator programme, and became serial entrepreneurs of note.

Their bio-tech company later merged with Germany's Evotec, and the drug discovery and development organisation remains one of Milton Park's largest tenants, alongside Immunocore and Adaptimmune, who also began as Oxford University spin-outs and are now listed on Nasdaq.

“We still think of Milton Park as an incubator, although with some 270 tenants, we're obviously operating on

much larger scale than a traditional one,” says Campbell.

“We can accommodate enterprises of any size, regardless at what growth stage they're at, and I feel very privileged to be involved with so many companies doing so much amazing work.

“We have 80 tenants in our innovation centre, both virtual and physical, and whilst some are sole traders who essentially just want a desk, others are SMEs who employ 20 people and more.”

The Bee House is a hybrid, so start-ups who want to collaborate enjoy the co-working space, but larger enterprises can take serviced offices.

At the upper end of the scale, the park also has international organisations operating out of purpose-built space of 200,000 sq ft and more.

“I've been working here a long time, and always knew it was a special place, but during the pandemic, the outside world suddenly realised just how special this region was in terms of the accumulated

s haring your success, best practice, and lessons learned

outlined the history, present and future of the Milton Park campus to Ian Halstead.

Nebula is a new development of seven properties across three buildings providing high tech research and development (r&d) workspace with offices

expertise and research capabilities of its bio-medical sector,” says Campbell.

“It doesn't surprise me that the Golden Triangle in general, and Milton Park in particular, has continued to attract innovative and growth-focused enterprises in life sciences.

“The original rationale for taking space here has been further enhanced now it has developed an international presence.

“When potential tenants from overseas or UK-based start-ups see such brands as Adaptimmune, Evotec, Exscentia, Immunocore, Oxford BioTherapeutics, Tokamak Energy and others, they want to be here. Co-location with talent is a very powerful lure.”

STAND-OUT STAT

Campbell's commitment to the region is emphasised by his presence on multiple public and private sector bodies; from Oxford University's strategic capital steering group and the Didcot Powerhouse Fund to the Oxfordshire LEP's enterprise zone sub-group and Didcot First.

With more than a decade at Milton Park, it would be the devil of a task trying to discover anything he doesn't know about the location or its wider environment.

However, even he admits being surprised by a statistic uncovered this year when the data consultancy Beauhurst was commissioned to analyse Milton Park's impressive long-term growth, to identify reasons for its success.

“We obviously knew their expertise at collecting data, collating it and then underpinning all their accumulated information with in-house research,” recalls Campbell.

“It was very pleasing that most of their analysis confirmed our previous perceptions, but one of their findings really stood out.”

Beauhurst's report, 'Lifting the lid on Milton Park' revealed that 7.5% of all equity investments into the UK's life sciences sector between 2013 and 2022 had been secured by companies based on the park.

Google Ventures, RA Capital Management and OrbiMed had led the way during that decade, pouring a combined £12bn+ into high-growth companies throughout the UK, but even the MEPC team hadn't realised such a significant percentage had flowed into its location.

“The total equity investment secured by our tenants in life sciences was just over £950m, which is a remarkable tribute both to the global talent we have here, and the commitment and energy demonstrated by our team to attract companies and to retain them,” says Campbell.

Requirements are, of course, usually couched in physical form when potential tenants are mulling potential locations, especially in such a footloose sector as life sciences.

It's been a notable feature of MEPC's stewardship over the decades that it's been consistently able to attract the science -- and develop at the desired scale.

Campbell is quick to admit that a partnership with the Vale of White Horse District Council has been at the heart of its success.

“We have an award-winning Local Development Order simplified planning regime in place across the whole of the park which allows us to very easily accommodate the requirements of existing and new tenants,” he says.

"7.5% of all equity investments into the uk 's life sciences sector bet W een 2013 and 2022 had been secured by companies based on milton park."

“It takes just 10 days to receive planning permission, and it’s been very beneficial for us, the park and the regional economy to have such fantastic support from the local authority.

“The current planning regime came into effect in 2012-2013, and after extensive engagement and collaboration with council officers, supported by our excellent consultants led by James Iles of Provision, a 'refresh' was recently approved, so we could expand the space here to 4m sq ft.”

For developers who regularly face delays of many months, and often years, discussing possible proposals, bringing them to local authorities, repeatedly refining their plans and finally gaining permission, a 10-day process is the stuff of corporate dreams.

SEC r ET IN gr EDIENT

However, Campbell believes the 'special ingredient' is trust, which MEPC has acquired through its long-term presence.

“Because we've been here for so many years, people know that we are open and transparent, and that we will do exactly what we say. I think many issues around planning are based on fear,” he says.

“You can have as many policies and strategies as you like, but if people and politicians in the local communities don't trust you, the process is very likely to be drawn out.”

The extension of the simplified planning process now firmly underpins MEPC's short-term and medium-term strategy, as Campbell explains.

“Our 2040 Vision is at the apex of our strategy, partly around the ongoing shift from a 9-5 location to one that operates 24/7 and offers an even greater range of amenities, but beneath that is a rolling five-year business plan setting out the operational initiatives in detail,” he says.

“We see around 800,000 sq ft of new and refurbished space being delivered during the 2023-2028 plan and several projects are already underway.”

The first is Nebula, which will provide almost 80,000 sq ft of open-plan R&D workspace with offices, ranging from 6,000 sq ft units in a shared building to a single building of 30,000 sq ft.

By their nature, all out-of-town business parks face issues around sustainability and access, and with 9,000 people already working there and the number set to swell significantly, they are a constant challenge for Campbell and his colleagues.

“We've been trying to encourage behavioural change with regard to transport, and a core element is steadily increasing the use of buses. We ran a shuttle service to the park for years, but during the pandemic, we changed our strategy and decided to subsidise the local services,” he says.

“It's been very successful. Large numbers of people who work here live in the Didcot area, and with issues around the cost of living and the price of fuel they really appreciate that we're offering them alternatives to car travel.

“Last November, we carried out research and discovered that bus passenger numbers to the park had doubled since the pandemic, and single car use had fallen by 12% over the same period.

“We are always looking at ways to make Milton Park more sustainable and will be enhancing the present system significantly later this year.”

Anyone who can quote Bruce Forsyth in one breath, and speak passionately about augmented reality glasses in the next, is clearly a man for all times.

It's also very evident as he enthuses with such pleasing passion that Campbell has found his professional equivalent of paradise at Milton Park. ■

For more information about Milton Park, please visit: www.miltonpark.co.uk

We are an incubator for science and technology companies, fostering collaboration and accelerating innovation.

Discover Milton Park in Oxfordshire www.miltonpark.com

3PM is an award winning Project, Programme and Portfolio Management consultancy, with a robust reputation for delivering complex projects across a range of sectors and specialisms. Established in 2012, we have redefined the art and principles of Project Management, nurturing a strong team of trusted advisors, known for our value, detail and service.

Along with continuous and sustained growth across our portfolio, we have built a strong reputation and significant expertise within the science and technology sector. We are trusted to manage a number of high-profile business and estates portfolios, with our reach extending across government bodies and research councils,

universities, developers, occupiers, and scientific research campuses across the UK. Our commercial offer underpins this work, adding a full service landlord/ occupier offer, which bridges the gap between strategic design and fit-out.

Over the last decade, we are exceptionally proud to have consistently delivered successful outcomes for our long-term, valued clients including; Wellcome Trust Genome Campus, Oxford Science Park, BBSRC and The Pirbright Institute, Unity Campus Sawston, Cell & Gene Therapy Catapult, Stevenage Bioscience Catalyst, GSK Stevenage, Discovery Park, Cambridge Science Park, University of Cambridge and Imperial College.

To play an active role in creating a sustainable future for the industry and to ensure 3PM is present on the top

table of the science community, we hold advisory roles for Innovate UK and STFC, are members of the BioIndustry Association, and are present across all science sector conferences.

We invest heavily in science research including publications for the BCO: The Future of Business Parks and Who is the Science Occupier. Our current research project combines our science expertise with our industry-leading sustainability knowledge for the Net Zero Lab; developing frameworks to support our clients to drive down embodied and operational carbon from their research and development facilities and activities. ■

For further information, please visit: www.3pm.uk.com

Veolia Water Technologies UK (VWT UK) and ELGA LabWater are experts in highly purified water of all grades for scientific and laboratory applications.

From small, bench-mounted point-of-use units to complex centralised water systems. Our teams can provide the help, advice, system design and ongoing services support laboratories need to ensure they have a laboratory water system that continuously meets their highly purified water requirements. ■

For further information, please visit: www.elgalabwater.com/en-us amd www.veolia.co.uk/

Grow your business with innovative equipment financing solutions

de Lage Landen (DLL) is a global equipment finance company with a managed portfolio of over EUR 35 billion. Founded in 1969 and headquartered in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, DLL provides financial solutions to the Agriculture, Food, Healthcare, Clean Technology, Construction, Transportation, Industrial, Office Equipment and Technology industries in more than 25 countries. DLL is a wholly owned subsidiary of Rabobank Group.

DLL’s UK business supports many different industries with Life Sciences being a key focus. We deliver sustainable and effective solutions to support the acquisition of new laboratory equipment. Advancing discovery is made easier with the latest technologies. However, these technologies and equipment are not always accessible and that’s where an experienced financial solutions partner comes in.

Many of the world's leading life sciences companies trust DLL's experienced and knowledgeable team to provide financial solutions for them and their customers.

We understand the

Life Sciences market and the various stages of development following an original research idea.

We help customers find a funding solution to address their laboratory equipment needs. Whether it’s a single bench top analyser, a bundled solution combining technology, consumables, software and services into one monthly payment or a more comprehensive Laboratory as a Solution (LaaS) product, we help preserve capital, reduce upfront expenses and allow new equipment to be ordered now.

If you’re financing single pieces of new equipment to lab expansion, an equipment refresh or full kit out of a new site, you select the supplier and equipment, and DLL engage with your finance team to provide a cash preserving solution that allows you to order the new equipment now. ■

To discuss your requirements, please contact Life Sciences specialist, Nick Hoof on 07469 146162 or by email at nick.hoof@dllgroup.com

To learn more about DLL, visit: www.dllgroup.com/gb/en-gb/ industries/healthcare/life-sciences

Gleeds is an international property and construction consultancy with over 130 years’ experience in the property and construction industry. We have been supporting innovation and preserving life across six continents for over a century.

w h O w E h AVE w O r KED w IT h

Whether it’s delivering state-of-the-art facilities for Illumina and BioMed

Realty, collaborating with multinational pharmaceutical brands like AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), or supporting academia at University of Nottingham’s GSK Centre for Sustainable Chemistry we have worked on some of the world’s most exciting projects.

These projects are just a taste of the huge funds being injected globally into a

sector that is catalysing property portfolio diversification, as well as town and city centre regeneration.

hO

w w E h E l P YOU

With broad global experience and deep local knowledge, we help organisations work smarter, faster, and with certainty to create environments that preserve life and protect our planet.

Through every stage of the project lifecycle, we provide proactive program management, options for better informed decisions, and answers to technically complex challenges. We do this by supporting commercials goals, controlling costs, optimising functions, driving innovation, and embedding sustainable practices from inception and planning to operation and disposal.

We can establish funding opportunities and business plans,

appoint and manage technical teams, through to supporting implementation, construction, delivery and operation. Along the journey, our digital platforms provide meaningful real-time data bespoke to your needs.

Ar EAS OF ACTIVITY

Repurposing, refurbishment and new development projects in urban centres and dedicated science parks/campuses. R&D facilities, laboratories, clean rooms, controlled environments, technology and data storage, production, manufacturing warehousing, logistics and administration. ■

For further information, find us at: www.gleeds.com or @GleedsGlobal

university of Nottingham's GsK centre for sustainable chemistry

s+B is one of the UK’s longest established and leading specialists in the design, manufacture and installation of bespoke commercial laboratory furniture, Fume cupboards and associated services. We have over 50 years’ experience of converting old fashioned, uninspiring laboratory spaces into smart, modern, and highly functional laboratories.

The sustained growth in our contemporary designs together with our international experience and exceptional overseas sales has enabled us to win the Queen’s Award for Enterprise for International Trade, both in 2016 and again in 2022. This award is the UK’s highest accolade for business success with winners selected by the Prime Minister’s office and approved by Her Majesty the Queen.

S+B is not only a supplier and installer of laboratory furniture and

fume cupboards, but also provides specialist consultancy services. We advise global brands in laboratory science and engineering, as well as independent research facilities of all sizes, and of course Universities.

We can work as a sole consultant on laboratory layout, design, specification, fit-out and costings, or we can work alongside other consultants on large and multidisciplinary laboratory new-builds and refurbishments.

All our bespoke laboratory furniture and fume cupboards are manufactured at our facility in Manchester, UK, based on designs drawn up to meet our clients needs, and with a dual focus on both quality and cost-efficiency.

Areas we work in include:

• Life Sciences & Pharmaceutical research

• R&D

• Healthcare

• Universities

• Utilities

• Food & Beverage

• Industry & Production

As a UK based manufacturer, specialising in laboratory environments, we feel our experience and expertise, alongside our extensive list of customers situated on science parks throughout the UK brings a huge amount of value to UKSPA and its members. ■

For further information, please visit: www.splusb.co.uk/

Granta Park, set over 120 acres of truly inspirational parkland, has been established for over 20 years and can be found in the heart of the Cambridge Science cluster. The Park creates the perfect environment for a work-life balance and has a scientific population of around 3,000 hardworking people.

As one of the most recognisable Parks in the area for science success globally, Granta Park is owned and managed by BioMed Realty and TWI. It is home to 30 leading companies, including Sosei Heptares, AstraZeneca, Illumina, Pfizer and Thermo Fisher, and has a purpose built 45,000 sq ft amenities centre, The Apiary, and a 4-acre sports field at its heart for tenant use.

Featuring a world-class fitness centre, 25m indoor pool and outdoor tennis courts all operated by Nuffield Health, The Apiary is also home to an

onsite restaurant and coffee bar making it a hub of activity for relaxing, working out, socialising and networking. With a work life balance for tenants remaining a priority, the landscaped grounds around The Park are used by tenants for walking, running and cycling and there are three maintained woodland walks around the park to appreciate the vast range of wildlife that also calls Granta Park home, with the help of a partnership with The Wildlife Trust.

With a current 100,000 sq ft development already underway and more in the pipeline, the Park is expanding and will be able to offer even more state-of-the-art space for not only new companies wanting to join the Granta Park community, but also offering space for existing tenants to relocate and flourish. ■

For further information, please visit: www.grantapark.co.uk

MA24 is a fully integrated design, consulting, and construction firm specialising in Life Sciences, Advanced Technology, and Microelectronics. We provide comprehensive solutions for processes that operate within closely controlled environments and ensure the highest quality and regulatory compliance.

Our innovative team has almost 30 years of experience and has delivered fast-track projects for international blue-chip clients. We are fully accredited for ISO 9001, 140001, and 45001 and are committed to providing safe and effective management of design, construction, commissioning, and qualification works.

From bases in the UK and Belgium, we offer our multi-disciplined expertise from initial feasibility to commissioning

and qualification, including fit-outs, refurbishments, conversions, and new builds. Our interesting projects include hi-tech laboratories and cleanrooms, satisfying many different requirements and classifications, to innovative complex pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities.

C E ll & gENE Th E r APY

C ATAPU lT (I NNOVATE UK)

• MA24 personnel provided management, commissioning, and validation support for the design and build of the new Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult facility in Stevenage.

• The new facility was developed for cGMP manufacture of late-stage clinical trial and commercial batches of new cell and gene therapy products.

• The scope included construction of a new 7,500m2 facility with over 2,500m2 of ISO 7 and 8 cleanrooms.

A DVANCED Q UANTUM

Ph YSICS lABO r ATO r Y

• MA24 personnel designed and built this facility in Teddington for the National Physical Laboratory (part of DSIT).

• The new facility expands research into quantum technologies that underpins advances in telecommunications and media, computing, and controls.

• The measurement of sub-atomic particles demands the highest level of environmental stability and tight control of variables i.e. vibration, noise, EMI shielding, temperature, air velocity.

At MA24, we are committed to delivering competent, competitive solutions for your project requirements. Why not contact us today to discuss your next capex investment? ■

For further information, please visit: www.ma24.co.uk

" ma 24's interesting pro J ects include hi-tech laboratories and cleanrooms to innovative complex pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities."

life Science REIT plc is a specialist property business focused on the UK's growing life science sector. The Company's portfolio of assets is located across the Golden Triangle of research and development hubs in Oxford, Cambridge and London's Knowledge Quarter.

Proximity to centres of academic excellence and innovation is critical for both emerging and established life sciences businesses and as a result demand for space is acute across the Golden Triangle. This has accelerated as a result of funding at both the Government and venture capital level, capitalising on the UK’s market leading position in life sciences and skilled talent pool. At the same time, supply is constrained, and it is this imbalance that Life Sciences REIT is addressing.

The Company listed on AIM in November 2021 and in December 2022 moved to the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange. In that time, it has established a diverse portfolio of assets which range from a 20-acre science park currently under development through to fully let buildings.

In London, it’s portfolio includes Rolling Stock Yard in the heart of the Knowledge Quarter, where the Company has successfully completed a conversion of office to laboratory space and the building is now occupied by two of the Syncona owned businesses.

In Oxford, its assets include the Oxford Technology Park, which is well located for Oxford University, but offers more flexible and affordable space. Currently under development, this park has potential for nearly 500,000 sq ft of life sciences space and is currently home to The Native Antigen Company and Williams Advanced Engineering.

In Cambridge, its assets include the Cambourne Business Park which is also being repositioned as a dedicated life sciences and technology hub, establishing it as the premier science park west of Cambridge. Current occupiers include Carl Zeiss AG and MTK Wireless Limited. ■

For further information, please visit: https://lifesciencereit.co.uk/

life science reIt's rolling stock yard in the heart of london's Knowledge Quarter

the university of oxford's life and Mind building will be a £152m new build research facility, and will house its departments of zoology, plant sciences and experimental psychology

We are The Wates Group, and we’re one of the largest privately-owned construction, development and property services companies in the UK. With a 3,800 strong workforce, we collaborate with over 10,000 supply-chain operatives and partners, where together we inspire better ways of creating the places, communities and businesses of tomorrow.

Celebrating our 125th anniversary in 2022, we have a wealth of experience delivering complex, technically challenging science and research projects for our public and private clients and have become firmly embedded in this rapidly developing sector.

Through the pioneering science and research facilities in the UK, groundbreaking developments in vaccines and cancer treatments are being discovered

and renewable new technologies are being developed which have an outstanding impact globally. But the sector faces its own challenges particularly around sustainability. To meet the guidance set out by RIBA 2030, these facilities need to reduce operational consumption by 75% and embodied carbon by 50%. We strongly believe that the construction industry has the expertise to respond to these challenges and implement positive change.

To make a real difference, collaboration is key. To encourage these conversations, we hosted a series of round table discussions across the country facilitated by Wates Principal Design Manager, Jamie Young. A group of experts from our business, consultants and clients gathered together to share ideas around three significant topics, The Net Zero

Agenda, Race to Market & Modern Methods of Construction and Placemaking & Clusters.

The sessions reinforced the need for partners, contractors and endusers to work together from the outset to establish priorities. We must consider all aspects of sustainability, take a holistic approach to creating spaces and ensure flexibility in design to allow buildings to adapt. We need to look beyond the handover of a building and consider its long-term impact. Access to key data and having open, transparent conversations to share best practice across the industry is vital to improve delivery, develop innovative solutions, and drive the net-zero agenda forward. ■

For further information, please visit: www.wates.co.uk

Mace is a global company of experts in shaping the built environment. We provide development, consulting, construction and operations services for many of the world’s most inspiring building and infrastructure projects and programmes.

From complex, large scale research centres to bespoke high performing laboratories our teams deliver some of the most functionally demanding buildings in the life sciences and pharmaceutical sector. We work with world-leading private and public organisations across science parks and campuses in the UK.

Our portfolio includes AstraZeneca’s Discovery Centre (The DISC) on the Cambridge Biomedical Campus, the Rosalind Franklin Institute at Harwell Science Park, and Begbroke Science Park in Oxford. And we delivered award

winning teaching, research and learning facilities for some of the UK’s leading higher education institutions, including for University College London (UCL), The London School of Economics (LSE) and the University of Oxford.

Our multidisciplinary team of accredited biomedical engineers and delivery experts understand the demands and complexities of the changing regulatory landscape that drives equipment specification and installation. Together with our network of specialist partners, Mace offers a full-service solution that is comprehensive, compliant and adaptable. We advise our clients on the best strategy for saving time and money, crucial in in a highly competitive market.

The breadth of our expertise ensures we can provide solutions to issues

specific to the life sciences sector as well as from a wider construction and consultancy perspective. Our clients benefit from the know-how and global expertise of a large company with a dedicated project team.

Building relationships with all stakeholders has been key to making more effective decisions and designing bespoke solutions to deliver the best outcomes. We involve the end-users from the start, ensuring what we build meets their needs. ■

Mace is headquartered in London but has regional offices around the UK and globally - visit: https://macegroup.com

Alternatively, please email Rob Lemming, Director – Life Sciences & Pharmaceuticals Construction, at: robert.lemming@macegroup.com

astraZenica's discovery centre (the dIsc) on the cambridge biomedical campus

Barry Warden, the MD of Glasgow-based product design house Wideblue, explains its role in turning a cherished scientific dream into reality.

Devising ways to measure gravity occupied the minds of intellectuals and scientists for centuries, with Newton, Galileo and Einstein among their number.

The first spring-mass gravimeter was invented in the 1890s, when two Australian academics used newly discovered quartz fibres to identify and record gravitational changes.

In the 1930s, a precocious French student and his physics teacher invented the first modern gravimeter using springs made from steel and quartz.

The genius of Lucien LaCoste enabled him to design a device which could be mounted on ships or aircraft, allowing geological surveys for minerals and oil to be carried out across vast areas for the first time.

The use of such equipment to detect tiny variations in gravity was immediately seen as ideal for the study of active volcanos, where early forecasts of eruptions could save lives and allow defences to be erected against lava flows.

SCiEnCE drEAm iS mAdE rEAL

the Wee-G gravimeter device, built by Wideblue with the university of Glasgow, collected valuable data on Mount etna

The scale of the deaths, destruction and global pollution caused when Indonesia’s colossal Krakatoa volcano had erupted in 1883 remained in the minds of the public and politicians alike.

Unfortunately, for decades after LaCoste’s breakthrough, no-one created a gravimeter which was sufficiently sensitive, could be manufactured at low cost and was rugged enough to withstand the varied conditions it would face on the exposed slopes of the world’s volcanos.

However, as Warden explains, a research team at the University of Glasgow had the breakthrough idea of using the same micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) as mobile phones for their gravimeter’s technological platform, though with one crucial change.

“The MEMS in mobiles use relatively stiff and insensitive springs to maintain the orientation of the screen relative to the earth, but their Wee-G device uses a silicon spring ten times thinner than a human hair, so its sensor can detect very small changes in gravity,” he says.

T h EO r Y INTO r EA l ITY

The concept was developed by the university’s Institute for Gravitational Research, in collaboration with the James Watt Nanofabrication Centre.

WideBlue was invited to join the partnership because of its long experience in helping take prototypes into the real world.

“We were established in 2006, as an MBO from Polaroid’s European R&D division, and have since worked on hundreds of collaborative projects, particularly in the areas of bio-medical engineering, imaging and technology which combines electronics and light,” recalls Warden.

“The systems and processes we use, and the skillsets of our engineers and designers, have obviously changed remarkably, but the basic mindset we employ to turn technological theory into practical and commercial reality hasn’t.”

The UoG asked Wideblue to develop a self-levelling mechanism so the Wee-G could be adjusted remotely, create a watertight enclosure to protect the electronics and MEMs from moisture, and devise insulation to withstand external temperature fluctuations.

“We ran the device in parallel with a commercial gravimeter to understand its characteristics and see if the design needed fine-tuning,” recalls Warden.

“Once the initial prototype had been on site for several months, we then went out again and installed multiple devices because we needed a larger sample size.

“The Wee-G was relatively low cost, so several could be deployed simultaneously, which gave much richer data for the scientists to study, and hopefully, to help them predict potential eruptions more accurately and earlier than previously possible.”

STEPPIN g OUT

Naturally, no two projects are the same, but Warden says the same checklist should be applied, when anyone looks to take something from concept to prototype and then on to market.

He says the first step is to determine the potential demand for the mooted product, what problem it will solve and what people are likely to pay.

“If there seems to be something similar which has been patented, it’s crucial to decide how you plan to differentiate your product and how you will protect your IP until you are ready to go to market,” says Warden.

“There are also useful tools available to give you a framework for product planning. NASA developed the concept of technology readiness levels (TRL) back in the 70s, for instance, so the maturity of different technologies could be assessed via consistent and uniform discussions.

“The European Space Agency adopted the same scale decades later, made its TRL calculator available to the public in 2022 and it’s a very useful tool for engineers and product managers.”

Warden counsels that entrepreneurs and designers must also consider the potential volume at which their product would be designed, if it will use standard components or require bespoke parts which might well require special (and costly) tooling.

The regulatory environment must be analysed to give crucial context, as specialist testing and the need to obtain certifications could also be required.

“Some sectors are very highly regulated, notably biomedical, and meeting compliance requirements which take time, money and effort, particularly as the regulations might

well be different in countries outside your domestic market,” says Warden.

DIFFErENT PErSPECTIVES

He stresses too the logic of carrying out initial pre-compliance tests, as proceeding to regulatory testing too early will often require repeat tests, adding unnecessary time and expense.

The desire to save resources is understandable, but without the proper analysis and reflection, can lead to costly mistakes.

“You need to create a real 3D version early on as a proof of concept. I realise it’s tempting for inventors to knock something together in their garage, but they should consider working with professionals who have seen the errors of others and know how to avoid them,” he says.

“Outside eyes will always offer different perspectives, whether it’s about the sourcing of materials, identifying potential design flaws or the style and weight of the product’s packaging, or the branding and target audience.”

Warden says the same instinctive wish to reduce spending shouldn’t be the driving force when the owners of a fledgling enterprise are wondering where to have their product made.

“It’s always tempting when you’re considering manufacturing costs to choose a supplier based in a low-cost overseas location, but we saw the potential dangers of such a strategy during the pandemic,” he says.

“You may envisage significant savings for high-volume production, but even giant corporations came unstuck when there was a global shortage of micro-chips and the cost of freight containers and shipping soared.

“There is a trend for start-ups and SME manufacturers trying to reshore supply chains to the UK, because they will be more resilient, but equally, we have to recognise that the majority of electronics are made in East Asia.” ■

For more details about WideBlue, please visit: www.wide-blue.com

"

t he Wee- g W as relatively lo W cost, so several could be deployed simultaneously, W hich gave much richer data for the scientists to study, and hopefully, to help them predict potential eruptions more accurately."

Ian Halstead met up with the newest recruit at Babraham Research Campus, Kathryn Chapman … and came away most impressed.

hen conversations turn to the future of the UK’s life science community, the uppermost topics are traditionally the shortage of lab space, the pipeline of research talent and innovation in both technology and treatments.

Very rarely does anyone mentions patients, how their conditions could be alleviated, or if their lives might be improved. However, as Chapman outlines the career pathway which brought her to Babraham Research Campus (BRC) last November, as its director, science and entrepreneurship, her empathy with patients is a constant.

After being awarded a PhD for analysis into the genetics of osteoarthritis, she spent a decade at UKRI, carried out research at the University of Manchester, Harvard Medical School and Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, and then moved into the private sector at GlaxoSmithKline.

At Cambridge, Chapman set up the Milner Therapeutic Institute (MTI), through which start-ups and pharma companies are co-located with academics-in-residence, and became its deputy director.

Last summer, she gained attention far away from the world of academia and the life science eco-system when chosen as one of the ‘Business Women of 2022; by the high-profile magazine CEO Today, for “outstanding leadership, vision and entrepreneurship”.

VE l VET gl OVE

PASSiOn iS THE k EY w

It’s a seriously impressive CV, but as Chapman modestly explains the context to her current role, it’s also easy to see why she’s struck up such a rapport with BRC’s equally unassuming chief executive, Derek Jones.

Both share the same steely mindset and determination, but also prefer the ‘velvet glove’ approach to tenants, partners and others who engage with the campus community.

“At UKRI, I was working with the various funding councils to try to establish mechanisms to support innovative start-ups in life sciences,” explains Chapman.

“I was looking to create collaborations between academia and business to bring the science and data out from these early-stage enterprises and give their research tangible purpose.”

The Cambridge Biomedical Campus has a stellar record of innovation over its 60-year history, and the MTI opened its research labs there in March 2019, but after six years at the university, Chapman decided to take up a new role at Babraham in late-2022.

The post of director, science and entrepreneurship hadn’t been created for her, but did sit perfectly with her passionate long-term belief that patients benefitted most when life science innovations were dovetailed with real-world challenges.

“This campus is a significant element of the Cambridge economy

taking care of your people, places and public perception

and has had a huge impact in terms of the companies which developed here in the life science sector,” recalls Chapman.

“When I was at the MTI, I saw the Babraham as a fantastic chance to keep the same approach (co-locating science, academics and industry), but also take advantage of everything which was already established here to benefit patients.

“It’s a very exciting time. We have more than 60 companies here, 2,000 people and 300 academic researchers work on the campus, and we’ve just won funding from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) for new collaborative research projects.

“The focus in life sciences is often on the scientific innovations and commercial progress, but the environment on campus also provides the next generation of scientists with the skills allowing them to work across academia and industry, and to become the founders and CEOs of new companies.”

ACCE l E r ATE AIM

Chapman’s key role is to inspire and drive forward the Accelerate programme established at Babraham in 2018, which has so far supported 20 companies of which several have subsequently

attracted millions via Series A fund-raising rounds, taking their combined valuation close to £80m.

Its central aim is to help very early-stage enterprises which might need lab space, office space or just a chance to meet those who know their pathway intimately, and the campus has multiple serial entrepreneurs willing to assist them.

“We had a record number of high-quality applications for places and have taken on six, all of which are new founders,” says Chapman.

“Two are working in microbiome and infectious disease, two are in neuroscience, one is developing new hydrogels and one is working on new technology to diagnose kidney disease and chronic cardiovascular disease.”

“Each will now get £10,000 of support, free lab space in the campus incubator, a week-long boot camp to assimilate them into the community, plus weekly training sessions about every business and finance issue which start-up companies need to know.”

However, Chapman doesn’t allow her enthusiasm for the work ahead to dilute her objectivity about potential challenges.

“It’s difficult to evaluate the commercialisation and IP structures for some business models in early-stage ventures, particularly around diagnostics and biomarkers, which are absolutely critical when you’re

the babraham research campus is a leading location which supports early-stage bioscience enterprises

babraham research campus duodr Kathryn chapman, director, science and entrepreneurship, alongside derek Jones, chief executive

working on new therapies in such areas as dementia and Alzheimer’s,” she admits.

“There are also many Accelerate programmes now operating across the UK, and I’d like to see a network established to identify the best places for each of these companies to be, according to the niche in which they operate.

“Like all science locations, we’d like to create more space, to bring more ideas out of academia, especially via shortterm leases within incubators with shared equipment and services, and I think we need to get in earlier, by providing entrepreneurial training to individuals at the post-doc stage.”

gr

EATE r DEMOC r ATISATION

She is also pleasingly passionate about introducing much greater democratisation throughout the UK’s life science cluster,

“Firstly, we need to facilitate more interactions on our campus, especially between start-ups and scale-ups to ensure they have all the support they need across their whole journey,” says Chapman,

“Secondly, we must all make sure we are working across campuses, not just in the Cambridge area, but much further afield, and thirdly, we need to open up access to companies, developers, investors and others across the life science sector.

“It’s not just about Cambridge, there are great parks across the country, from Alderley Park to Southampton and elsewhere, and we need to focus together on helping companies throughout the UK, especially those who are outside the core network.”

In the immediate future, Chapman and her team are preparing for the first Babraham Symposium, which will bring together all the companies and academics on the campus.

“It will be exciting in itself, as people look for new connections and pathways, and perhaps new access to funding, but although it’s about having new conversations now, the event will also be the catalyst for future interactions,” she says.

Chapman is equally keen to widen the strategic niche in which BRC currently operates.

“Historically, this campus has been particularly successful at developing new therapies and technology platforms,” she says.

“One of the most urgent challenges now, is identifying patient populations who will benefit from the latest treatments, particularly those who have the most challenging conditions to treat, for example depression, mental health, neuro-degeneration and dementia.

“Going forward, we’ll be supporting companies to create pathways to develop these new treatments and also carry out clinical trials to assess their effectiveness.”

Jones has been nodding in approval as Chapman expands so enthusiastically on her role, but when the topic turns to the 40,000 sq ft building under development for BioMed Realty, it’s his turn to offer thoughts on BRC’s future.

“We continue to be very full, which is both a blessing and a curse. Some companies here have raised significant amounts of money, and we’ve accommodated their expansion plans as well as we can,” he says.

“However, some have been forced to relocate from the campus purely because they need to grow and so they are looking elsewhere.

“In one sense though that is helpful, because it gives us more space to be flexible with other tenants, and when BioMed Realty’s space is ready during early-2024, we’ll then be able to accommodate companies here who are in growth phase.”

The life science economy across the Cambridge area, and in the wider region, is under pressure as potential tenants and growing companies jostle for limited amounts of space, but Jones believes this will prove transient.

“I suspect that by mid-2024 we’ll have a little more flex in the system, because most of the proposed developments will have been delivered,” he says.

“There’s a lot of discussion at the moment about how much lab space Cambridge needs, and I think it’s crucial that we focus carefully on the type of space.

“We can’t all pile into delivering start-up space, and then discover there’s no space for companies to grow into - or vice-versa, there has to be a considered balance. The grow-on space also needs to be within a reasonable distance. You can’t take on an early-stage company, and then expect them to relocate 40 miles when they need to grow.”

It’s exactly the balance of passion and pragmatism noted from Chapman, and it’s no surprise than even as our informative conversation comes to a close, they’re already musing away on another BRC-related issue. ■

For information on the work of BRC, please visit: www.babraham.com

bioMed@babraham offers first class life science research space within the leading hub of bioscience research and innovation at the babraham research campus

POwEr mOVES

B

ritain has been at the forefront of discovery and innovation punching well above its weight for hundreds of years.

The Life Science sector continues this great British tradition which is seeing a phenomenal boom since the pandemic with UK based pharma companies like AstraZeneca and Dechra Pharma and GSK attracting one billion in investments and growing still.

The government has recently announced a pledged of £650 million investment for the Life Science sector and other innovation sectors like AI and tech with the ambition to become a world leading science superpower that will ultimately turbo charge the economy and attract further investment.

With this expansion in demand and very little stock available, tenants are willing to invest in Life Science assets and stay for the long haul. New discoveries and R&D of an experimental drugs or treatments to market safety trials often take a long time with all the red tape. This means enormous rental growth and very little voids which is attractive to investors.

It’s now common to have multi-discipline occupiers under one roof so it is important to have collaborative spaces as it represents opportunities to gain new perspectives and cross pollination of ideas such as mechanical engineers having a novel solution for a drug delivery method. Physicists utilising high-powered lasers and other high energy electromagnetic wavelengths to make the invisible visible. Electron microscopes seeing the incredibly small and electron ptychography going even further looking at individual molecules and atoms which is revolutionising the area of advance materials and seeing drug performance and chemical reactions in real time. The amount of data and analysis needed is massive which requires energy hungry data centres and servers to crunch those numbers. Tech and AI speeding up data analysis with new drug discoveries, genetic mapping and protein simulations.

Stephen Clayton, Associate Director of ESG and Sustainability at Lambert Smith Hampton discusses how a burgeoning Life Science sector can mitigate energy cost and carbon emissions.

The list goes on with all these diverse processes and disciplines. Life Science assets therefore need a lot of power to keep these operations going uninterrupted and must be managed meticulously. It’s an energy intensive asset class using up to ten times more energy and four times the amount of water than commercial office real estate. Progress is a matter of trial and error, with a lot of wasted energy along the way, however, scientists will argue that failure is success, it just disproves that avenue, so the energy used was worth it.

So, what are the challenges facing these asset classes and what can be done to mitigate energy cost and carbon emissions to ensure both investors and occupiers can also transition to net zero and hit those ESG credentials that investors are looking for? Here are some topics to consider.

BESPOKE FITOUTS AND NE w DEVE l OPMENTS

Fitouts and new developments often have extremely bespoke specifications that require specialist equipment and engineering to meet occupiers’ uncompromising requirements. It’s important to strike a balance on sustainable building practices to future proof energy performance as much as possible, so collaborating with the tenant early in the design phase is essential. High scoring building certifications such as BREEAM and LEED are also coveted by Landlords and prospective tenants.

BUI l DIN g FAB r IC

High standards of airtightness together with good air filtration systems are critical to prevent contamination from the outside world and vice versa.

Environments have to be specifically catered to experiments such cryogenics, refrigeration or incubators for cultures and samples. This means thermal efficiency has to be to a high standard which also contributes to a good energy performance certificate (EPC) rating.

CAPACITY VS DEMAND

Ensuring the local distribution grid has enough available capacity to meet the demand of the site is challenging especially in London where available capacity is worth its weight in gold. The supply would need to be reinforced and an extensive upgrade of the local substation which can cost up to 150k depending in the current infrastructure so be prepared to price this into your budgets.

(PPA)

Life Science assets normally have an abundance of roof space or carparks compared with other asset classes, making it ideal for installing solar PV at scale. The installation can be either be sized to meet the occupier’s own demands or deployed across the maximum available surface area to put excess generated energy back into the grid for maximum return on investment. This also contributes to a good EPC rating and provides the highest quality renewable energy.

Power Purchase Agreements provide a means to install PV panels without upfront costs. Essentially, the landlord leases its roof space to the PV installer. The occupier can the consume the PV generated energy via a tenant PPA and any excess generation is exported and paid to the PV provider via supplier PPA for an agreed fixed period (normally 10 years). After the fixed period, the PV panels are transferred to the landlord to reap the full benefits of the export payments.

S PECIA l IST F ACI l ITIES M ANA g EMENT

With all the specialist and sensitive equipment there is bound to be power disruptions and trouble shooting. This requires a highly specialised FM team to keep the site and operations ticking over and to mitigate downtime as disruption can have huge implication to budgets and the overall objectives of the occupier. However, in the UK there is a shortage of highly skilled and experienced FMs and engineers to manage these types of assets and the unique problems they may find with bespoke equipment. FMs had to innovate in this space by using augmented reality for specialist engineers to remotely guide an onsite engineer from anywhere in the world which drastically reduces callout lead-times and travel.

life science assets normally have an abundance of roof space or carparks making it ideal for installing solar pV at scale

"

l ife s cience assets need a lot of po W er and must be managed meticulously. i t’s an energy intensive asset class using up to ten times more energy and four times the amount of W ater than commercial office real estate."

U NINTE rr UPTAB l E P O w E r S UPP l IES (USP)

Investment in power resiliency with the use of Battery storage and backup generators is essential to prevent disruption in the event of a power loss which can damage valuable samples, disrupt data sets and even ruin entire budgets.

SMA r T BUI l DIN g

You can’t manage what you can’t measure so investing in metering and sensors is the first practical step in energy management. Sophisticated and innovative Building Management Systems that uses AI can automatically optimise and balance the energy demands and environment of the buildings. High energy intensive activities can also be scheduled out of

hours to avoid peak distribution charges and to spread demand more evenly especially when capacity is an issue.

PO

w E r FACTO r S

Power factor correction improves power quality and availability by helping to optimise power consumption. Disruptive linear loads from equipment and motors can cause inefficiencies in the building’s power delivery. Voltage optimisers are transformer technology that steps down, up and smooths the voltage to exactly suit the needs of bespoke equipment and improves its lifespan. These solutions can save 10% consumption when utilised and coordinated correctly.

M INIMUM E NE rg Y E FFICIENCY S TANDA r DS (MEES)

Life Science assets also must comply with MEES legislation of EPC rating E and above from April 2023 and B and above by 2030 for new and existing leases or risk some heavily fines for noncompliance. This will be difficult for Landlords with long tenancies and disruption to their operations is not an option. Ensuring you future proof and mitigate this risk from outset by collaborating with new tenants in the design phase or take advantage of void periods to bring it up to compliance with a deep retrofit. However, EPCs may not apply for various demises within a building due to the nature of operations such as cryogenic storage areas and incubation areas. EPCs only applies

where human occupation of an area is continuous like an office area with HVAC. For more depth information on MEES please contact us for more information.

E NE rg Y Pr OCU r EMENT

The Energy Crisis has also raised energy operating cost significantly since the Russian invasion. Having a robust Energy Risk Procurement policy and strategy is essential in navigating Wholesale market volatility. Life science is an intensive sector, so it is beneficial to use that buying power by means of a Flexible procurement framework to spread energy risk by hedging little and often 1 to 2 years in advance and locking out 100% of volumes before your budget period to have price certainty. This means you have a greater probability to miss price extreme spikes, protect budgets and take advantage of market dips. However, this is dependant on the risk appetite of the end user to dictate the risk strategy.

In summary, managing a life science building requires the same creativity, innovation and collaboration to effectively manage the energy demands, mitigate risks and keep tenant operations working. It’s amazing how fast this sector is growing and progressing. However, with climate change being the number one long term global risk, Life Science sectors also need to transition to a viable net zero pathway and reduce their energy and carbon footprint. It’s about striking a good balance and thinking outside the box to find energy savings with tenants where possible in an energy intensive sector. ■

If you would like more information on the topics and solutions shown, please contact Stephen and the ESG and sustainability team at Lambert Smith Hampton, on: 07894987506 or sclayton@lsh.co.uk

Trends

SCALing THE CrO LAddEr

CEO Lee Patterson took Ian Halstead on a journey of discovery through Charnwood Molecular

It’s a given that the leaders of successful international enterprises require a rare blend of qualities, so it’s easy to see why Synova Capital identified Lee Patterson in the spring of 2022. The private equity fund had been providing growth finance to ambitious entrepreneurs and companies since 2007 and tracked Charnwood for several years before making a significant investment in January 2020.

Already a successful contract research organisation (CRO), it now had the financial support to build the business and compete alongside the industry leaders.

Two years later, Synova brought Patterson on board as CEO to help the business achieve its true potential.

With three decades at a senior level in the global pharma and drug development sectors, and a track record of business transformation allied to a passion for science, he was the obvious choice.

Now, a year since his arrival, it’s timely to reflect on what’s changed and what’s next amid the imposing environment of Charnwood’s HQ.

“The company was established as a spin-out from Loughborough University in 1998, initially working from a small industrial unit before expanding into BioCity at Nottingham,” says Patterson.

“In 2021, Charnwood made the critical decision to relocate its business to the

state-of-the art facilities here in Loughborough. Now everyone is now under one roof, which is a great advantage for our clients and our scientists.”

The former AstraZeneca (AZ) building was easily identified as suitable for Charnwood’s ambitions and desired scale.

“It was an obvious location. Most of the staff were located in the region and because it had been the place where AZ performed much of its drug discovery, it was fit-for-purpose,” says Patterson.

“Synova invest in quality, niche service providers with great growth potential, and Charnwood fitted the profile perfectly because it adds significant value to pharma and biotech companies at the early stages of the discovery pipeline.”

“Essentially, through the quality of their science and scientists, they had integrated themselves in clients’ programs and projects as a critical partner. Synova then recognised the

potential of adding other elements of the discovery process to build a more comprehensive and deeper service.”

CA r EE r BUI l DE r

The company moved into the Loughborough campus with around 50 scientists, now has more than 100 and still has space for 80 more, who will be recruited over the next two years or so.

Over the past few years, recruiting scientists has been an industry-wide problem, but Charnwood took on more than 50 staff during 2022 and the retention rate is currently running at an impressive 96%.

“Our reputation for science and this building definitely attracted talented scientists from around the world,” says Patterson.

“Working alongside other ambitious

q uantitative and qualitative analysis of the innovation ecosystem

scientists, working on demanding and interesting projects, the opportunities for personal development and the growth ambitions of the company make it an attractive place to build their careers.

“Our scientists invent new molecules. We have more than 90 patents with our scientists’ names on which is mindblowing. These molecules then move through the drug discovery process to become medicines, which save people or help improve their lives.”

To underpin its growth, Charnwood acquired Aurelia Bioscience in June 2021, which specialises in assay development, pharmacological profiling and compound screening.

It also invested significantly in computational chemistry (which uses computer simulations to solve complex chemical challenges), the latest techniques for ADME (absorption, digestion, metabolism and excretion) analysis, and the most advanced DMPK disciplines to help identify suitable drugs.

Combined with the organisation’s existing services, the investment created a highly experienced team of scientists acting together seamlessly to provide the ideal environment for an integrated solution to drug discovery.

“We can take the basic concept of a drug, make it, test it, and deliver a lead candidate for our clients to take it through the final stages of the development process and to market,” says Patterson.

MO r E T h AN w O r DS

Much has changed over the last three years, as the business expanded, more robust processes and systems were implemented, including procurement, CRM and ERP systems.

“I was attracted to Charnwood Molecular because of the strong foundations in place, including the facility, the scientists, the vision and ultimately the growth potential,” says Patterson.

“I’ve worked on large campuses and for large organisations, and it’s very easy to become siloed and isolated. Here, we do everything we can to bring people together, and that’s not just words.

“Right now, around 80 scientists are having a breakfast meeting, learning about each other’s projects and sharing thoughts. We encourage self-development and collaboration across our business because it makes us all better at what we do.”

Patterson entered the sector 34 years ago, but it’s clear that his passion still burns just as bright, as when the eyes of an innocent apprentice were suddenly opened to the wonders of science, back in his native Northumberland.

“I appreciate the challenges scientists face when they complete their degrees, leaving the world of academia and start to perform science for a commercial organisation. I’ve seen many examples where the initial passion for science is eroded when it becomes just a job” he says.

“At Charnwood Molecular, we try to keep the science at the forefront of what we do, our scientists are regularly engaged in client meetings, sharing ideas and exercising their scientific curiosity on behalf of those clients.

“It all translates to a very engaging environment for our scientists to be the best they can be. I know this is appreciated by our clients, and it also sets us apart from our competitors.

In May, the leadership team was strengthened by the arrival of Dr Francesca Sadler as chief commercial officer, to lead its business development, sales and marketing teams.

She joined from Eurofins Discovery, where she was most recently its senior VP (commercial) with responsibilities across Europe, North America and Asia, following previous senior roles at Aptuit, Charles River and Cyprotex.

“We needed to take every aspect of the business to the next level. We had the right building, the right services and the right quality of scientists and research, but when a small company has grown very quickly, it often lacks the larger company experience to take the next step,” says Patterson.

“Francesca is very experienced in the field of drug discovery, highly ambitious (for herself, but also for the company or organisation where she works) and very

driven. It can be difficult to attract someone with those qualities to a smaller company, but she can see our potential as I did.”

Sadler is the second such recent recruit, following Sarah Simpkins as HR director. Equally though, its operations director, Dr Mike McKenzie, has been with Charnwood since its formation 25 years ago.

“It’s all about achieving the right blend of expertise and talent. We now have a very experienced leadership team, backed up by the excellent science,” says Patterson.

“Originally, Charnwood was known for its chemistry expertise, producing made-to-order chemicals for a variety of sectors, but it has evolved over the years.

“Now, after bringing chemistry, biology, computational chemistry and ADME expertise together, we have an integrated operation focused on drug discovery.”

C l EA r r OADMAP

After bringing the different disciplines together under one roof, Charnwood is now engaged in several integrated projects which will each typically take between one and two years.

However, having managed operations for large global CROs, with thousands of scientists in multiple locations, Patterson is not fazed by the thought of significant future growth.

“You can’t scale a business without the right mindset and the right tools. It’s important as Charnwood Molecular grows that its systems and processes grow too and we have a clear roadmap of how we can add value for our clients,” he says.

“I focus on our people and our clients, and we’re always looking for

continuous improvement, so we operate as efficiently as possible and always add value for clients.

“I have a Lean Six Sigma background, so understanding ‘lean’ tools and how best to apply them has been essential wherever I’ve worked. There are always opportunities to simplify a process, make it easier for our people to do their jobs, or increase the quality and efficiency of our work.”

With all the elements for pre-clinical integrated drug discovery in place, Patterson says Charnwood Molecular is seeing increasing interest from the US.

“It’s an important market for us, and we have seen significant growth in clients from there over the last year. Our science and our scientists have been greatly received.”

In early June, Dr Sadler was at a major East Coast investment event to meet current and potential clients, but she was also sounding out candidates for the new company role of VP (Sales).

“We are well regarded in the US so we are committed to raise our profile and establish a greater presence in the market,” says Patterson.

“I’ve been with the business for almost a year, we have established much of the foundations required for significant growth and I am really excited for the years ahead.

“Our campaign to attract the best scientists will continue, and at the same time, we’ll be looking to enhance our products and services to make Charnwood Molecular into the CRO we know it can be.” ■

For more information about Charnwood Molecular, please visit: www.charnwood-molecular.com

SCiTECH fO rm ULA

There's much to be learned from the way major developers walk and talk when they bring their vision and their views to a new community.

When Bruntwood acquired its first chunk of real estate in Birmingham in the late-90s, it was barely noticed, but when it hoovered up the unloved McClaren Tower in 2010 and then invested some £7m in a refurb, it earned serious attention.

Long before Bruntwood SciTech was created in 2018, as a 50:50 JV between Bruntwood and Legal & General, the group’s chief executive Chris Oglesby launched a programme of seminars at the McLaren, talking with passion about integration and partnerships.

His words came across as both credible and genuine - not least as he'd invited the well-respected CEOs of Birmingham Airport (Paul Kehoe) and the West Midlands Growth Company (Neil Rami) as keynote speakers to share the platform.

Now of course, both Bruntwood and Bruntwood SciTech have 'Big Beast' status, so it's reassuring to hear that when Clyde echoes Oglesby's words from more than a decade ago, he too has the ring of authenticity. The Bruntwood SciTech portfolio is now valued at north of £850m, and with 2.4m of current space and a development pipeline of another 5m sq ft, his days are long and densely crowded, but two schemes in particular catch his eye, Melbourn Science Park, near Cambridge, and Glasgow's Met Tower. Both represent intriguing challenges for any investor-developer, for historic, demographic,

and cultural reasons, of which Clyde and his colleagues are well aware.

The long-term vision at Melbourn Science Park is to create a £250m masterplan which will see phased development over the next ten years. With sustainability at the forefront of its design, much needed state-of-the-art office and lab space will be created, alongside extensive public realm.

“The site has been mainly occupied by Astra Zeneca and TTP who are both in the process of moving to their own new campuses,” says Clyde.

“We’ve formed a partnership with TTP, whose space is ‘next door’, giving us the opportunity to redevelop the park for both the next generation of science and tech businesses and established R&D businesses to co-locate,” says Clyde.

“It's a stunning setting in a historic village, so whilst we're delivering the lab and office space which the Cambridge economy badly needs, and promoting STEM skills and science, these proposals

Jamie Clyde, Bruntwood SciTech's director for the southern region and innovation services, offers Ian Halstead an insight into its portfolio.

must be carefully integrated into the existing community.

“We'll be creating a new village green and wetlands space, adding a gastropub and boutique hotel, and making sure all the elements of the scheme work not only for staff or visitors at the park, but also Melbourn's residents.”

Planning approval for the masterplan has been submitted, and once approved, the first development phase is likely to commence in the summer of 2024.

“We still have design work to do, but we're thinking of it as a multiphased project encompassing both the delivery of the public realm and commercial buildings,” says Clyde.

“Shared amenities are a major focus, so it'll be about balancing the requirements of the village, keeping the existing campus working, which is largely full, and creating the new space all at the same time.”

TO w E r IN g TEC h

Illustrating the portfolio’s broad range of campus settings, Glasgow's Met Tower is a derelict 14-storey Grade B-listed concrete building, whose last functional use was to

display the 'People Make Glasgow' graphic for the 2014 Commonwealth Games and is located in the midst of a dense urban area.

However, it has been a city centre landmark since opened by Harold Wilson in 1964, was one of the city's first commercial high-rise buildings and is even considered an elegant example of modernist architecture by those of the brutalist persuasion.

As the former College of Building and Printing and City of Glasgow College, the tower is also a symbol to generations of Glaswegians, and the millions of train passengers who use the nearby Queen Street station.

“It's a fascinating heritage building, and from the day we went there, I've met so many people who either studied there, or had a personal attachment to it,” recalls Clyde.

“Its location and size make it perfect for a new technology and digital hub, and businesses of all sizes, and at all stages of their growth will find suitable space.”

The Met Tower's roof presents an interesting design opportunity within its listed structure, with a distinctive 'upside down boat' structure, and after collaborative discussions with council planners, heritage consultants and architects, a design was agreed which is agreeable to all.

“We're going to be creating a lounge and double-height flexible event space for 60 people, and I'm assured that on clear days, you'll be able to see as far as Ben Lomond 30 miles away, which is the most southerly Munro (mountain) and one of Scotland's most popular hill-walks,” says Clyde.

“We'll be redeveloping the tower to offer 110,000 sq ft of leased and serviced office space to support the city's tech and digital sectors, and then building a new 10-storey building alongside it which will be connected to the tower, with another 95,000 sq of office space.

Enabling works are well underway, with work on the Met Tower due to begin this winter, and it should open in mid-2025, followed by its smaller siblingin 2026.

SI g NIFICANT P r O gr ESS

Meanwhile, some 300 miles down the West Coast main-line from Queen Street, another major project in Bruntwood SciTech’s burgeoning portfolio is also due to make significant progress before the year-end.

The launch of the Birmingham Health Innovation Campus (BHIC) has been much awaited, as it will ultimately deliver around 700,000 sq ft of lab space and offices and become a hub for healthcare technologies on international scale.

In a JV partnership with the University of Birmingham and supported by Birmingham Health Partners, the campus is being designed to deliver the full circle of translational medicine, from innovative data-driven research to commercial products and treatments via real-world studies.

For the first time, the region's life science companies and start-ups will have a location to match the scale of their ambitions, and a focal point from which to expand their expertise in genetics, healthcare data and field trials which embrace Birmingham's diverse population.

Above: Glasgow's Met tower (far left) is set to be transformed into a dedicated digital and tech hub in the heart of Glasgow

Below: Melbourn science park is part of a £250m masterplan

In May, there was significant progress when Bruntwood SciTech, Aston University and Birmingham City Council revealed plans to create a new Birmingham Innovation Quarter on 20 hectares of land owned by the university and the council.

Clyde says formal JV partnerships will be revealed later. Howells and Arcadis have been commissioned to work with the partners on a spatial framework for the development.

Like the Melbourn scheme, BHIC's masterplan envisages multiple phases, and the first is on course to deliver 130,000 sq ft of lab and office space this winter.

“The university’s Precision Health Technologies Accelerator will occupy the top three floors, around 70,000 sq ft of incubation and collaboration space to 'translate' research into viable treatments and services, and the rest will be for early to mid-stage life science companies” says Clyde.

“Greater Birmingham has many superb healthcare assets, so essentially this is about creating and promoting a platform for them to grow and mature.

“At the same time, we're also establishing an eco-system across all our cities and communities, so customers in Cambridge, for example, will in future be able to easily collaborate with their peers in Birmingham, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool and Manchester.”

S h APIN g UP

Mention of Bruntwood SciTech’s other communities across the UK inevitably turns the conversation towards the latest expansion at Circle Square, a JV between Bruntwood SciTech and Vita Group at the heart of the innovation district expanding along Manchester's Oxford Road Corridor.

“We recently secured an additional £100m of green funding from our four bank lenders, and roughly half will enable No.3 Circle Square to get underway, now the first two phases have been fully occupied,” says Clyde.

With 267,000 sq ft of office space across 15 storeys, providing chunky

floorplates of more than 16,000 sq ft, and an estimated development value around £90m, it's of a size and scale to be expected.

“Every developer-investor will obviously have opinions about their own model, but for me, what sets us apart is that we have the whole value chain in-house, from development and construction right through to property management, the commercial operation, and specialist business support,” says Clyde.

“Such functions are often partially or wholly outsourced, but we think it's crucial that our people gain experience and then feedback knowledge across the group, so we don't have to rely on third parties to provide that insight.

“Even from an energy perspective, we take the same approach and have a 42.4% stake in a windfarm in Ayrshire to directly access renewable energy to power our portfolio, which we again see as an important point of difference.

“We can now source some 80% of our electricity needs, across all

our office, lab and shared spaces, through Bruntwood’s Unify Energy business.”

Despite record demand, the UK still has a chronic shortage of lab space, from the Golden Triangle between Oxford, Cambridge and London to far smaller locations, so it's intriguing to hear Clyde's take on the issue.

“The big challenge is that traditional buildings, whether listed or not, usually can't be converted into lab space owing to the complex infrastructure requirements of highly technical life science and engineering businesses, which is why our focus is on purpose-built space,” he says.

“It's very different trying to convert an existing commercial building or retail space for lab uses. I see that some people are trying it, but will be very interested to see how those schemes turn out.” ■

To discover more about Bruntwood SciTech, its philosophy and its development portfolio, visit: https://bruntwood.co.uk/scitech

Above:

3 circle square is at the heart of the innovation district along Manchester's oxford road corridor