Major milestone reached in the construction of £18 million Stowmarket Innovation Gateway

Construction work on a “transformational” state-of-the-art skills and innovation centre at Gateway 14 in Stowmarket has reached a key milestone.

 A topping out ceremony took place at the £18 million development yesterday (Tuesday, December 2) with the centre due to open in June next year.

Mid Suffolk District Council’s Stowmarket Innovation Gateway will help businesses adopt emerging technologies – including artificial intelligence – especially in growing sectors like the green economy. It will also provide exciting new training opportunities.

As well as offering office space for high growth start-ups, collaboration and innovation spaces, meeting rooms and a café, the centre will also be used for training, working in partnership with the Universities of Suffolk and Essex, West Suffolk College, Suffolk New College, Colchester Institute, and the AI Hub in Generative Models to address the region’s skills gap.

The centre will be run by Hethel Innovation, which has provided innovation support to hundreds of businesses across East Anglia.

It already manages ​three sites in Norfolk – Hethel Engineering Centre, Scottow Enterprise Park and Broadland Food Innovation Centre – stimulating regional growth by supporting the creation of over 1,500 jobs through the delivery of activity at their innovation hubs.

Freeport East is contributing £16.66m towards the project’s total cost of £18.8m, with Mid Suffolk District Council meeting the rest with the centre not only destined to be a hub for entrepreneurship, collaboration, green skills and innovation between Gateway 14 tenants, but also across the surrounding Freeport area.

Property developer Jaynic is delivering the project as the development partner of Gateway 14 Ltd – a wholly owned subsidiary of Mid Suffolk District Council.

Richard Winch, the cabinet member for Housing and Property at Mid Suffolk District Council, said: “We’re delighted to reach such a significant milestone for this transformational project, which will benefit Stowmarket and the whole region.

“This is going to be a fantastic facility, which will not just attract and support innovative businesses and entrepreneurs, it will provide a talent pipeline that allow firms to innovate and grow. We can’t wait to see the centre open next year and are excited by the opportunities it brings.”

Steve Beel, the chief executive for Freeport East, said: “Today’s milestone is a really proud moment for everyone involved.

“The Stowmarket Innovation Gateway represents exactly what Freeport East is here to do – create new opportunities for people and businesses across our region.

“This centre will give local companies the space to grow, help young people develop the skills they need for the future, and support innovation in areas like digital technology and green energy, where the East of England already has real strength.

“It’s great to see the building taking shape, and we’re excited for the positive impact it will have on Stowmarket and the wider Freeport East area.”

The 35,000 sq ft building is being built to meet a minimum BREAAM standard of “excellent” which will ensure it is highly sustainable and delivering significant energy and carbon savings.

“This will include a biosolar roof system, with green roofing and solar PV panels.

Elsewhere on Gateway 14, Ipswich-based Bauder – which makes sustainable roofing – has also opened a new facility, and work is continuing on a £45m factory for Assan Panel, a leading international manufacturer of sandwich panels and other sustainable building materials.

Gateway 14’s first unit – a 1.17 million sq ft logistics and distribution centre for The Range – is already up and running.

Anyone interested in finding out more about the space, tenancy and training on offer at theStowmarket Innovation Gateway can contact Hethel Innovation at enquiries@hethelinnovation.com