The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has visited Silverstone Park to hear about the high-tech activity amongst businesses at the estate and across the Silverstone Technology Cluster (STC).
The DBT was invited to visit the estate by South East Midlands Enterprise Partnership (SEMLEP) as part of a tour of the region that also included stop-offs at Cranfield University and the Millbrook automotive training ground.
At Silverstone Park, they heard from MEPC’s Chris Kimber-Nickelson, Commercial Director who brought them up to speed on the latest industrial development at the estate; Barclays Business Development Director Steve Henson (representing the STC); and Matt Peachey, Head of Enterprise Zone Development for the Buckinghamshire Local Enterprise Partnership (Bucks LEP).
SEMLEP’s Investment and Innovation Manager Jon Rawcliffe enthused:
“Profiling this area’s business capabilities and trade opportunities is a key part of our work, so we were delighted to host the government’s sector team for a tour of the SEMLEP area.
“Together, we visited some of the key businesses and sites working at the forefront of high performance technology and fast growth sectors such as automotive, defence, space and manufacturing.
“At Silverstone Park, our guests were very interested to hear of the world-class levels of innovation, technology and productivity amongst businesses at the estate and more broadly across the STC region.
“Similarly, how both MEPC’s development of Silverstone Park and the work of the STC have encouraged technology businesses to invest, collaborate and grow.
“We’re all keen to continue to highlight the excellent and very exciting opportunities for collaboration in the future.”
Chris Kimber-Nickelson commented:
“This was a tremendous chance to convey to members of what is effectively the UK government’s business growth team how Silverstone Park has transformed into a remarkable showcase for the engineering, manufacturing, electronics and software development industries in the UK.
“Additionally, we provided them with valuable information regarding our forthcoming development plans.”
Matt Peachey added:
The DBT visit was a great opportunity to discuss the many benefits of locating to Silverstone Park and its Enterprise Zone, including investment in enabling infrastructure, technical and research facilities, for international investors.
“A number of potential investment opportunities were identified, which we will work in partnership to progress.
“The visit showed the value of long-term collaboration between the local partners (Enterprise Zone, Technology Cluster, both LEPs and MEPC) and the DBT Virtual Team to promote the Silverstone offer worldwide.
“We look forward to welcoming more innovative firms to Silverstone in the future and supporting their plans for expansion wherever we can.”
Stephen Henson said:
“I was very pleased to be asked to represent the STC, (which Barclays has supported since its formation as a founder members), to present an overview on the cluster to a visiting delegation from the Department for Business and Trade.
“The visiting DBT team focuses on manufacturers that support sectors such as automotive, defence, aerospace, space, marine and logistics and they are looking at opportunities in areas such as inward investment as well as overseas opportunities.
“All of these sectors are absolutely at the heart of what the SMEs in the STC live and breathe. As such, the delegates were very keen to understand the ecosystem that exists as well as the capabilities in the cluster, with examples such as the Digital Manufacturing Centre (DMC), Lunaz Applied Technologies, the Silverstone Sports Engineering Hub and Silverstone Composites which are all located at Silverstone Park.
“The DBT team was also impressed by the work of the Silverstone Park Schools Programme careers outreach programme which specifically looks at addressing the skills gap.
“It was a pleasure to meet the DBT team and there were some very positive discussions to follow up on.”
