Go-ahead for Liverpool materials centre

LIVERPOOL University has secured planning approval for a £65m Materials Innovation Factory.

The 120,000 sq ft facility in Grove Street will house 250 researchers working on the discovery of new materials which the university said could have the potential to to save energy and natural resources, improve health or transform manufacturing processes.

A partnership with the consumer goods group Unilever, it has been supported by the Higher Education Funding Council for England, as part of the UK Government’s Research Partnership Investment Fund.

It has been designed by the Manchester-based Fairhursts Design Group which also handled the planning process.

Vice-Chancellor, Professor Sir Howard Newby, said: “The MIF will further develop our relationships with industry partners and provide an invaluable service to the energy and manufacturing sectors.

“It will provide state-of-the-art facilities for our researchers and professional partners to discover and innovate together.”