Biopure's new manufacturing site in Dunsbury Park takes shape - and will create 150 jobs

THE CONSTRUCTION of a new manufacturing unit in Havant is set to create 150 local engineering jobs.
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

A team from Portsmouth City Council which is building the unit at its Dunsbury Park facility off the A3, has celebrated the 125,000 sq ft structure reaching its maximum height.

Councillor Hugh Mason, the council’s city development boss, said: ‘This building will start to generate millions of pounds in rent once it's fully operational next spring and that's money that the council can spend on vital Portsmouth services.

Read More
Palestine supporters show their defiance in Portsmouth protest amid calls for 'f...
A team from Portsmouth City Council, which is building the unit at its Dunsbury Park facility off the A3, celebrated the 125,000 sq ft structure reaching its maximum height this week.A team from Portsmouth City Council, which is building the unit at its Dunsbury Park facility off the A3, celebrated the 125,000 sq ft structure reaching its maximum height this week.
A team from Portsmouth City Council, which is building the unit at its Dunsbury Park facility off the A3, celebrated the 125,000 sq ft structure reaching its maximum height this week.
Hide Ad
Hide Ad

‘It will have a tremendous benefit for local people - we need good jobs in this area and these are good jobs. This is the type of industry which I hope to see more of in south Hampshire which is high tech, high end engineering - very skilled, very specialist and obviously very profitable.

‘This also points the way to the industrial future of this country.’

John Gilmour, project manager for construction contractor BAM, said the building itself would be completed and handed over to global engineering firm BioPure before the end of this year.

‘It's a portal frame construction unit and it’s approximately 12.5 metres to haunch in height,’ he said.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

‘There's office space on the ground floor, first floor and second floor with associated car parking.’

Managing director of BioPure's parent company Watson Marlow Fluid Technology Group, Andrew Mines, added: ‘This is an exciting development for our BioPure brand and the expansion that we see moving forward.’

Watson Marlow has signed a pre-let agreement with the council for the building.

Dunsbury Park is already home to the international headquarters of lifestyle clothing brand Fat Face which has 80,000 sq ft of bespoke office and distribution space with a 40,000 sq ft expansion option.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

It is one of the three designated tax sites in the Solent Freeport which will benefit from financial incentives for businesses. The Solent Freeport is a designated freeport in England announced by the government and will go live at the end of 2021. It is predicted create 26,000 new jobs and £2bn across the Solent over the next 25 years.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

You can subscribe here for unlimited access to our online coverage, including Pompey, for 27p a day.

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.