The £4.2m Precision Agriculture and Engineering Innovation Centre was part funded by a loan from the Marches Investment Fund (Growing Places Fund). The centre which opened in September 2013, is a catalyst for research and education, innovation, knowledge transfer and skills development within the agri-tech sector. The centre is playing a critical role in developing new technologies for farming practice, and in bringing together expertise from the agricultural engineering industry, the farming sector and the wider academic community. So far, it has created 21 of the 22 new, direct full time equivalent jobs that were forecast to be created by this scheme. The facility’s indirect job target of 200 new jobs has been exceeded through the support provided to businesses using the facility.
Funding – £750k from the Marches Investment Fund with the remaining funding coming from the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) and Harper Adams University.
Please see the related news story for more information.
A project to transform a dilapidated four-hectare site in Telford into a state of the art industrial facility could provide up to 240 jobs starting with those in construction – thanks to £720k of financing in the form of a MIF loan to Mold-based developer, Dicentra, so that the former Brintons carpet factory on Halesfield, can be brought back into productive economic use.
Please see the related news story for more information.
The redevelopment of the derelict building on Skylon Park, at Rotherwas, will create more than 2,000 sq metres of employment space, with room for new and growing businesses to set up and expand alongside facilities for development and innovation, presently earmarked for the new NMiTE University.
The Marches LEP is providing a £2.498m interest free loan for the work with £2m being contributed by the ERDF and Herefordshire Council is investing the balance.
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