The vision for MIRA Technology Park was ambitious; become a national centre of excellence for UK automotive development, bringing together world-class automotive test facilities and skilled engineers, to provide a location for OEMs, Tier 1s and start-ups to develop innovative new technologies. Fast-forward 10 years and the Park has achieved unprecedented success having seen staggering growth over the years. It has developed from an initial 1.75 million sq. ft., to a site that now covers over 147,840 million sq. ft. and is home to over 35 global OEMs and Tier 1s including Jaguar Land Rover, Toyota, Bosch, ClearMotion, Aston Martin, Bentley and Haldex, to name a few.
Over its lifetime, MTP has seen over £60m invested to date and has leveraged over £250m of private sector investment. It has created and safeguarded over 600 high value jobs in specialist areas such as electromobility, embedded software systems, ECU calibration, connected and autonomous vehicles and vehicle resilience, and employment is set to grow further as new phases of MTP are developed.
In 2012, not long after opening, MTP became a UK Enterprise Zone and went on to be rated as one of the top performing UK Enterprise Zones, cited as exemplary in Chancellor George Osborne’s speech in the Midlands on the 12th February 2015.
It has since become a global technology cluster bringing companies from around the world to the UK. In fact, international companies account for over 70% of MTP’s total revenue which was a key factor in the Park winning the Queen’s Award for International Trade in 2018.
The Park is also home to the MIRA Technology Institute, a bespoke global centre for developing specialist skills in key areas of emerging automotive technology. The MTI helps to create a sustainable supply of the specialist skills required to support the continued growth of the technology cluster that has formed at the Park.
Reflecting on the anniversary, Tim Nathan, Managing Director of MIRA Technology Park said, “I’m extremely proud of how MTP has grown over the last 10 years developing into a world-class centre of excellence for mobility R&D and strengthening the UK's position as a global automotive R&D location. It is testament to the hard work, innovation and commitment we have seen from our team. Together, we’re a vibrant community of passionate professionals and a powerful collaborative network, facilitated by the social activities that have become so popular amongst those who enjoy MTP as their place of work.
“We’ve had tremendous support over the last decade and wish to thank our colleagues, the community, our tenant companies, the Department for International Trade (DIT), central, regional and local Government, our suppliers and neighbours, who without which we simply wouldn’t be where we are today.”
Tim added, “We’re very much looking forward to what the future holds for MIRA Technology Park and the most recent ASSURED CAV developments at HORIBA MIRA are great examples of the continued investment we’ve seen, ensuring our international appeal goes from strength to strength. As we head into a new year, we have some exciting announcements in the pipeline and look forward to continuing to push the boundaries of automotive technology development to support the industry’s commitment to the progress of shared, autonomous, connected and electric mobility.”
To join MIRA Technology Park and be a part of the next 10 years, contact us here.
