Manufacture-focused NMIS inks deal for Boeing site

● Football pitch-sized facility will house R&D work ● Marks key step in development of manufacturing

A pioneering manufacturing institute has signed a lease on a base to house a £11.8 million research and development programme with aerospace giant Boeing.

The National Manufacturing Institute Scotland (NMIS) said it had taken on a unit the size of a football pitch at Westway Park in Renfrew, part of the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District Scotland. The facility will be primarily used for the group’ s programme with Boeing.

The space, signed under a deal with property investment firm Canmoor, will also house other state-of-the-art advanced engineering equipment to be used in projects with other manufacturing businesses including a purpose -built area dedicated to advancing the use of additive manufacturing in Scotland.

The Boeing programme, run by the University of Strath - clyde’ s Advanced Forming Research Centre (AFRC), part of NMIS and the only High Value Manufacturing Catapult centre in Scotland, will see the company establish a research and development (R&D) team at the Westway facility working with AFRC’S leading forming and forging technologists. Boeing has hire date am to work on the programme and it is expected that the personnel will be on site later this year.

The programme is expected to demonstrate innovative manufacturing technologies related to metallic com ponents, building on research previously conducted at the AFRC. Through these technologies and building capability in others, the team will be investigating reducing material wastage, possibilities to improve safety, productivity and environmental impact.

It comes a year after the official opening of the Lightweight Manufacturing Centre at Westway Park.

John Reid, the new chief executive of NMIS, said: “This facility is a significant step not only in the development of THE [NMIS], but also in bolstering the future of manufacturing across the country post lockdown.

“We are delighted to be bringing Boeing to Scotland at this time to work on such a critical project with our team and play a crucial role in developing the aerospace supply chain across the country for generations to come.”

Sir Jim Mcdonald, principal and vice-chancellor of the University of Strathclyde, said: “I am delighted that this new facility takes us a step closer to the development of NMIS and marks the start of the next chapter of our prestigious R&D partnership with Boeing which has been growing for over a decade.

“The project is testament to the calibre of collaborators who see value in working with NMIS, which will offer the advanced facilities, equipment and high quality talent to fuel innovation and manufacturing growth in Scotland.”

NMIS in March hailed the obtaining of relevant planning permission.