New Investment to Strengthen UK’s Place in Global Pharma Market

A £56 million investment into a UK innovation centre in Scotland, which includes the University of Strathclyde as a strategic partner is set to dramatically improve the speed of bringing new drugs to market by transforming the way medicines are produced.

The world-first, industry-led Medicines Manufacturing Innovation Centre (MMIC) will offer pharma companies, from start-ups through to multinational organisations, a service to develop and adopt novel manufacturing techniques to adapt into their own manufacturing processes. The centre is to be located in Renfrewshire.

The new centre will be positioned next to the £65 million National Manufacturing Institute for Scotland (NMIS), of which Strathclyde is the anchor university and at the heart of an Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District. The MMIC aims to attract over £80 million of R&D investment by 2028 and will create 80 high value jobs directly by 2023. Up to 90 jobs will also be created or retained in companies involved in the design and build phase and post-construction.

The MMIC will also translate to industry the output of the EPSRC Centre for Continuous Manufacturing and Advanced Crystallisation, a UK-wide consortium also led by the University of Strathclyde.

Scottish Government Minister for Business, Innovation and Energy, Paul Wheelhouse, said: “I am delighted that the MMIC will be located in Scotland, given its potential to become a global centre of excellence and bringing significant benefits to Scotland’s economy. The location of the MMIC is also a very positive endorsement of Scotland’s Life and Chemical Science sectors and will build on our internationally recognised strengths in both Research and Development and manufacturing.

“Scottish Enterprise, on behalf of Scottish Ministers, is investing £15 million in the MMIC helping to fulfil the vision of Scotland’s Life Sciences Strategy. This will help to make Scotland the location of choice for the life sciences community and help us grow the industry’s contribution to the Scottish Economy by 90%, to £8 billion by 2025.”

“As well as helping to attract further manufacturing investment to Scotland, the Centre will also be well placed to support new business start-ups and spin-outs and enable established life

Supported by Scottish Enterprise (£15 million), UK Research and Innovation, through Innovate UK (£13 million) GSK and AstraZeneca (£7 million each), the MMIC is one of the first projects across the UK to receive funding from the UK’s Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund.