The ‘no vacancy’ signs to go up at tech centre

The Advanced Manufacturing Park Technology Centre in Rotherham is home to companies including Rolls Royce and British skeleton trailblazers Bromley Technologies.

The 19,939 sq ft building is 98 per cent full, with 19,569 sq ft let.

The centre, which was built in 2006, is likely to be 100 per cent occupied by June following a number of “strong” enquiries on the one remaining office, according to letting agent Creative Space Management.

The building’s latest tenants include engineering firm C Spencer, Lab Logic Systems, which designs and manufactures instrumentation and software for the life sciences and nuclear markets, and Strainsonics which improves and develops new load monitoring technology for the civil and mechanical engineering industries.

The Technology Centre is also refurbishing its meetings and conference area. The building is home to more than 30 rapid growth, advanced technology and engineering companies which employ more than 210 people.

Winter sports technology company Bromley Technologies has a 725 sq ft workshop where it designs and builds prototypes for its products.

The company, which was set up by British and World Skeleton champion racer Kristan Bromley with his brother Richard, manufactured over 30 per cent of the sleds used in the Sochi Winter Olympics last month.

Kristan and his partner Shelley Rudman competed in the Games on the company’s patented sled.

The firm spent three years working on the design and is now putting plans in place to design the next generation sled for the 2018 games in PyeongChang, South Korea. It is also working on a range of recreational products

“For our Skeleton product we operate in four-year Olympic cycles with technology reaching a high point just before the Olympic Games,” said Kristan.

The firm, which has been based at the centre since 2006, works with a number of other businesses on the site, including expert tooling supplier Nikken and precision component manufacturer IIDEA.

“We moved to the Sheffield/Rotherham area to be part of the park because it has an advanced manufacturing ethos and like-minded organisations that we can connect to,” said Kristan.

Jane Hunt, senior area manager at the Homes and Communities Agency, said: “The centre has played an important role in attracting pioneers in technology and manufacturing to the Advanced Manufacturing Park.

“These companies represent the future of engineering in this country and benefit enormously from being at the vanguard of the industry, working alongside some of the biggest names in British manufacturing – from Boeing to Rolls Royce – and having access to research and development facilities at Sheffield University’s Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre.”

Paul Taylor, director at Creative Space Management, added: “The Technology Centre helps companies to achieve their full potential and accelerate their growth which makes for a competitive and energetic environment.”