Harworth Group plc, a leading regenerator of land and property for development and investment, has announced that it has practically completed six new speculative ‘R-evolution’ units totalling 56,549 sq. ft as part of its continued expansion of the Advanced Manufacturing Park (“AMP”) in Waverley, Rotherham, the UK’s premier advanced technology park.
The new units across three acres constitute the third phase of Harworth’s award winning ‘R-evolution @ The AMP’ development and provide high quality space aimed at leading advanced manufacturers. Over 100,000 sq. ft of space constructed in 2014 and 2017 as part of phase one and two of the project is now fully occupied by high quality businesses including X-Cel Superturn, Metalysis, Spendor Audio and British Steel.
The Advanced Manufacturing Park has been designed to bring together world-class organisations for the advancement of technology solutions in precision industries, including aerospace, defence, construction, automotive and sport. Additional major occupiers include the University of Sheffield’s Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre, Boeing, Rolls Royce, McLaren Automotive, Castings Technology International (CTI), Dormer Tools and Sandvik Coromant. The technology park is Yorkshire’s largest ever brownfield mixed-use development at 740 acres, where over 1.2 million sq. ft of employment space is fully occupied and more than 750 homes have already been built.
David Travis, Director of Business Space at Harworth Group, said:
“Another six completed units have been delivered to the highest quality and I want to express my continued thanks to both JF Finnegan and our appointed project team for a job well done. We are now focussed on promoting these units for immediate leasehold occupation to advanced manufacturing and engineering companies, who wish to be a part of the collaborative cluster of high-value occupants that has been successfully established at the AMP over the last decade.”
The scheme is being marketed by jointly appointed agents Knight Frank and Gent Visick.
Rebecca Schofield, Partner at Knight Frank’s Sheffield office, added:
“We are delighted to see the latest phase of speculative development completed at the Advanced Manufacturing Park. Harworth Group’s commitment to delivering space on a speculative basis specifically for the advanced manufacturing sector has clearly been welcomed by the occupier market and we continue to see good levels of interest. The units are designed with flexibility to satisfy a variety of occupier requirements.”
Paul Mack, Partner at Gent Visick, commented:
“Given the success of Harworth’s previous phases at the AMP, it’s exciting that the latest phase is now finished and ready for immediate occupation. The AMP is home to some of the biggest names in the manufacturing sector and we look forward to welcoming further companies to the park. Funding from Sheffield City Region’s JESSICA fund was utilised to facilitate the construction of these units, as Harworth has done for its’ previous phases of ‘R-evolution @ The AMP’.
William Church, Director of CBRE Capital Advisors and Fund Manager for SCR JESSICA, added:
“Following the success of Harworth’s previous SCR JESSICA supported developments throughout the region, we are delighted to have funded the delivery of further speculative space at the Advanced Manufacturing Park. The provision of such space is fundamentally important infrastructure for the economic growth of the region; given limited existing supply; and supporting this growth is the purpose of the Fund.”
The SCR JESSICA Fund, which is made up of the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Growing Places capital, aims to provide funding for projects at competitive commercial rates where funding might otherwise prove challenging in the current markets. The Fund will commit capital to regeneration opportunities with a focus on office and industrial developments which meet the ERDF’s targets on employment, remediation and floorspace outputs. Qualifying developments should be under the control of the sponsor, commence development this year and must fall within the Sheffield City Region, which comprises; Sheffield, Rotherham, Barnsley, Doncaster, Chesterfield, North East Derbyshire, Bolsover, Bassetlaw and the Derbyshire Dales. The Fund is managed by CBRE Capital Advisors.
JF Finnegan acted as Harworth’s principal contractor. The Harris Partnership, Burnley Wilson Fish, Barton Willmore, WYG, JPG, RSK and RBS Design all acted on Harworth’s behalf in the planning and construction phases of these units. Keebles and Eversheds also acted as solicitors on Harworth’s behalf on the construction and funding phases of the scheme.