Engineering technology firm Renishaw has confirmed a major expansion of its manufacturing operation in South Wales with a £50m investment.
At its existing 193-acre site in Miskin, near Cardiff, it will build 400,000 sq ft of additional low carbon buildings - almost doubling its presence where it employs 650.
The investment will deliver new production halls and an employee welfare facility. The existing production halls will also be refurbished to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.
Planning permission for the expansion, at the former Bosch automotive site which was acquired by Renishaw in 2011, was granted by the Vale of Glamorgan Council last year.
Renishaw said the additional manufacturing capacity is required to meet its forecast sales growth in the coming years and will also enable it to help achieve its 2028 net zero target. At this stage it couldn't give any indication of the scale of any new job creation at Miskin.
The construction will be completed in phases, with a 15-month programme of work starting in July to build a first hall of 188,800 sq ft, the welfare facility and supporting infrastructure.
The basic shell for the second new production hall, extending to 195,800 sq ft, will be built by December 2024. It will be completed when business levels require it.
Full details of the operations that will take place in each of the new halls has yet to be confirmed, but will see a ramping up in machining operations and the assembly of products already built at the site, including Renishaw’s metal additive manufacturing (3D printing) machines.
By the end of 2024, the company also aims to have refurbished the two existing halls reduce their carbon emissions including new energy-efficient cladding and the replacement of existing heating systems.
The investments complement initiatives at the company’s other global sites, including large investments in roof-mounted solar panels, new car port solar panels, and feasibility studies to assess the viability of wind power.
Gareth Hankins, head of global manufacturing, said, “The last two years have highlighted the importance of in-house manufacturing for Renishaw and the control that this gives us in meeting our quality, cost and delivery targets. This significant investment by our board to increase the group’s production capabilities demonstrates a huge vote of confidence in our manufacturing operations and people, at an exciting time for the business.”
UK-based Renishaw is a world leading engineering technologies company, supplying products used for applications as diverse as jet engine and wind turbine manufacture, through to dentistry and brain surgery. It has over 5,000 employees located in the 36 countries where it has wholly-owned subsidiary operations.
