Oxford Nanopore to establish new UK manufacturing facility at Harwell

Didcot-based Harwell Innovation and Science Campus and Oxford Nanopore Technologies Ltd have completed a significant expansion deal.  The UK based DNA sequencing technology company will occupy a new, 34,500 sq ft, high-tech manufacturing facility at Harwell, Oxfordshire.

The new facility at Harwell represents a significant increase in Oxford Nanopore’s manufacturing capabilities, including high specification clean rooms, laboratories, office space and logistics areas. The site will be used to manufacture and distribute the DNA/RNA sequencing products in one purpose-built facility.

Gordon Sanghera, Chief Executive of Oxford Nanopore Technologies said: “This facility at Harwell Campus reflects growing demand for our products across more than 70 countries. Building on existing facilities at Harwell, we will continue to access world leading testing facilities, be part of a unique ecosystem of people dedicated to science and innovation, and take advantage of the Campus space and development capabilities to create a high-tech bespoke facility.”

With 400,000 sq ft of development space completed and the next application of 750,000 sq ft of commercial accommodation being submitted in the first half of 2018, Harwell Campus is providing world-leading companies such as Oxford Nanopore with the scale they require to support massive expansion. With a total of 5.5million sq ft of planned development and 1.5million sq ft to be developed by 2025, Harwell Campus is set to be the largest regeneration and commercial property growth project ever seen in the region.

William Cooper, Partner, Harwell Science and Innovation Campus said: “We are delighted that Oxford Nanopore has chosen to expand at Harwell. We’ve seen them grow into a phenomenal world-leading company and by supporting their major scale-up we are sparking the start of a new era of high-tech manufacturing on Campus and in Oxfordshire.”

In 2017 Harwell let 160,000 sq ft of new speculative Grade A space, which equals 40% of the total Oxford region. This is the largest combined commercial take-up and development of new space ever seen in Oxfordshire.

The Nanopore building has been designed to reflect Nanopore’s handheld DNA device the MinION.