The facility, opened by Rebecca Evans, cabinet secretary for Economy, Energy and Planning at the Welsh government, is expected to unlock up to £18m in additional GVA annually within five years by helping manufacturers improve their productivity, efficiency and sustainability through the adoption of digital solutions.
The site is located at the Bay Technology Centre in Port Talbot and will be home to manufacturing equipment funded by the Welsh government. The facility is part of HVM Catapult’s network of industrial research and innovation centres that link research, business and government to develop technologies that can help Welsh manufacturers achieve their digital and sustainability goals.
In a statement, Evans said: “Wales has a strong industrial heritage and more people are currently employed in manufacturing than any other single sector in Wales. This new digital factory hub has the potential to supercharge the future of high value manufacturing here by helping more Welsh businesses access the expertise of AMRC Cymru and the Catapult network in addressing current challenges and taking advantage of new opportunities.”
HVM Catapult Baglan is the second HVM Catapult site in Wales. It is supported by Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG) and the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC), widening Welsh access to HVM Catapult’s UK-wide network. It will build on the success of AMRC Cymru in Broughton, part of the University of Sheffield AMRC, which, since opening in 2019 backed by £20m from Welsh Government, has helped Welsh businesses make their products faster, cheaper, safer, cleaner and more sustainable.
The new facility will initially focus on the estimated 100 medium-sized enterprises that do not currently engage in R&D activities in the area.
HVM Catapult will also work to transform Wales’ heavy industry heritage into a new net zero cluster able to capitalise on the floating offshore wind opportunity in the Celtic Sea. The team in Baglan will support the scaling of disruptive technologies and optimising of factories for the wind farms which could create over 5,000 new jobs and deliver a £1.4bn boost to the Welsh economy.
HVM Catapult Baglan will be managed by WMG in collaboration with AMRC Cymru, which will run the digital factory hub. The hub has been granted £1.5m of Welsh government funding and will showcase the latest digital technologies including a SMART workbench, advanced robotics, virtual and augmented reality, and additive manufacturing.
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