The North West
Wirral’s £25m Maritime Knowledge Hub gets the Green Light from Wirral Council Planners
Designed by acclaimed architects Ellis Williams Architects, the Maritime Knowledge Hub will be an architectural landmark and is set to be one of the most important parts of the entire Wirral Waters regeneration project, which will drive economic growth and job creation to the Liverpool City Region and beyond.
Set within the existing 19th century Hydraulic Tower building and Engine House, originally designed by Jesse Hartley’s son, John Bernard Hartley, as a copy of the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence, the Maritime Knowledge Hub project will breathe new life into the building.
Wirral Council granted planning permission recently after the application was submitted in May 2022. Project partners include Peel L&P, Mersey Maritime, Liverpool City Region Combined Authority and Wirral Council, alongside a number of industry partners.
Maritime Knowledge Hub dark.
Plans to build a world class maritime centre of excellence, focused on innovation, engineering, R&D, entrepreneurship and training at the heart of Peel L&P’s Wirral Waters, have been approved by Wirral Council.
The announcement was made today at MIPIM, the international property event in Cannes, France, by Richard Mawdsley, Peel L&P’s director of development for Wirral Waters.
The Maritime Knowledge Hub will be a high-level industrial and maritime facility, supporting the region’s £5bn maritime ecosystem where research and innovation will focus on making the most of the incredible opportunities that decarbonisation of the global $3trillion maritime sector brings.
The Hub will also include business accelerator space and conference facilities for both the marine sector and the local business community.
MKH visit Maritime Minister Baroness Vere It is hoped that the project will be on site in 2023.
Network Space Developments Approach Completion on Construction of £54 Million Glass Futures’ Global Centre of Excellence
and developer NSD, on behalf of a partnership including not-for-profit Glass Futures, St Helens Borough Council, the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority and UKRI (UK Research & Innovation).
The facility was pre let to St Helens Borough Council on a 15-year head lease and sub-let to Glass Futures which will occupy the building to deliver industry and government- backed research and development projects focused on decarbonising the glass and foundation industries. It will also provide a platform for its members to access an experimental scale furnace for testing and trials of new technology on a state-of-the-art line, both collaboratively and individually.
NSD_Glass_Futures_March_2023-20 exterior
Partners and stakeholders recently gathered at The Glass Futures’ Global Centre of Excellence in St Helens to mark the imminent completion of the £54m project, managed and delivered by Network Space Developments (NSD).
Contractor Bowmer + Kirkland were appointed by NSD in December 2021 and started on site in January 2022. The main contract works will successfully complete this month and the 165,000 sq. ft building handed over to Glass Futures, ready for the internal fit out works to commence in April. The building is anticipated to be operational later this year. Delivery of the project has been managed by landowner
COMMERCIAL PROPERTY MONTHLY 2023
In 2022, NSD pre-sold the building to global investor Standard Life Investments Property Income Trust, part of abrdn, to secure forward funding and conclude a viable delivery strategy.
Throughout the construction phase, the scheme has made a significant contribution to the local economy with £11.2m of supply contracts going to businesses within a 20-mile radius of the site, including more than £1m awarded to St Helens’ businesses. Overall, 441 operatives and sub-contractors have been employed on the scheme, including 30 apprentices, with 36 per cent of the labour coming from St Helens, Wigan and Warrington communities. Glass Futures has also appointed its first three apprentices.
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