SGP celebrates planning win for new high-tech manufacturing campus in Warwickshire

Stephen George + Partners (SGP) is pleased to announce that North Warwickshire Borough Council has resolved to grant planning consent for MIRA Technology Park South Site, a strategic development park of up to 213,500 sqm of employment space on a 59ha site near Nuneaton.

The South Site is an extension of the existing MIRA Technology Park, and together with accesses, highway diversion, landscaping, sustainable drainage, and other associated infrastructure, creates the opportunity for a high-quality manufacturing campus encompassing a range of building sizes. Aimed at advanced manufacturing SGP’s masterplan can accommodate units ranging in size from 250,000 sqft up to 1,000,000 sqft, complementing the existing R&D facilities at MIRA Technology Park, and meeting the increasingly bespoke requirements of a growing hi-tech manufacturing industry.

Explains Luke Abbott, Partner at SGP: “We have worked closely with joint developers Evans Randall Investors and Horiba MIRA, and development managers, Swanvale Developments to prepare a masterplan to deliver large manufacturing facilities with all the benefits of linking directly into the existing Technology Park site. This synergy is at the heart of the proposal, expanding the world class technology cluster with an additional 213,500 sqm of employment space, creating further economic growth and high value employment in the region.

The quality of the development is not restricted to the architecture. The landscape and the public realm in which the buildings are set also provide a cohesive campus environment for businesses and individuals to encourage productivity, focus and wellbeing. Our masterplan will help to attract and retain the best future workforce.”

Horizontal and vertical profiled cladding systems add texture to the warehouse facades and flat panels with elegant full height glazing emphasise the office entrances. A selection of recessive and neutral colours will be used to reduce the impact of the warehouse buildings upon the surrounding environment, whilst stronger colours for feature bands, flashings, fascias and glazing at lower levels offer contrast and relief, and to create some individuality for occupiers.

SGP’s building design will contribute to a new place and brand identity for the Park with grade A industrial buildings that will attract inward investment, whilst retaining expansion capacity for local business. These buildings will provide large clear spans up to 32m at 16m cnts required in manufacturing and similar operations, and also have the institutional standard clear height to house the associated equipment and processes.

A network of green spaces, including indigenous woodland, open glades of wildflower meadow, and waterbodies will create character areas, visual screening and interest and improved ecology and bio diversity. The green spaces will be complemented with a planned blue infrastructure where an integrated Sustainable Urban Drainage System (SUDS) enhances amenity and provides opportunities for biodiversity gains.

Concludes Luke: “The blue and green infrastructure will help integrate built forms into the landscape both physically and by mitigating visual impact. They are arranged with focal points aligned to key vistas and active frontages to address the public realm, providing security through surveillance and overlooking. Together, these masterplanning decisions will create a strong and positive sense of place. SGP’s understanding of the varied elements of MIRA Technology Park and the context will enable us to deliver high quality buildings and spaces that help foster a sense of community, enable businesses to attract and retain staff and improve individual well-being.”

MIRA Technology Park is one of the UK’s leading Enterprise Zones and Europe’s largest and fastest growing automotive R&D cluster, being home to major international automotive engineering companies such as Bosch, Toyota and Polestar. At the centre of the UK’s automotive heartland, the world class cluster contains over 40 major test facilities and more than 110 kilometres of test tracks and the South Site extension offers a perfect synergy for companies looking to be at the forefront of new automotive and low carbon-related advanced manufacturing technologies.

Contact Luke for more information here