Waters Corporation have unveiled plans today to build a new corporate headquarters in Wilmslow at a cost of £60m.
The American-owned corporation has signed a land-purchase agreement with The Royal Bank of Scotland for the 37-acre Stamford Lodge site on the A538 Altrincham Road.
The new research and development facility will create 100 new jobs and bring together 513 employees who are currently located on four separate sites in South Manchester and Altrincham.
Plans for Water's headquarters include state-of-the-art customer demonstration laboratories, research and development capabilities, and an expanded manufacturing capacity. A roundabout and pedestrian crossing are also proposed in the planning application, operational when the building is opened in 2013, and they will restore a Victorian sunken garden and build a bat roost.
Waters Corporation use Mass Spectrometry to determine the composition of a sample or molecule and, for more than 50 years, the company has enabled significant advancements in areas such as healthcare delivery, environmental management, food safety, and water quality worldwide.
Brian Smith, Vice President of MS Business Operations at Waters Corporation said: "We are committed to working closely with our customers to advance mass spectrometry capabilities to address scientists' and societies' most pressing challenges. The new Waters MS Headquarters will be designed to accelerate the rate of innovation with increased access for the world's scientific thought-leaders."
"In addition to our commitment to our customers, Waters is honored to be able to continue Manchester's long legacy of mass spectrometry innovation. Starting with John Dalton's Atomic Theory in the early 1800's, Manchester continues to be a global centre for mass spectrometry technology."
Waters will be holding a public consultation at The Wilmslow Rugby Club on Thursday 27th and Friday 28th January 2011 from 3pm-9pm to give the local people of Wilmslow an opportunity to learn more about the company and plans for the Stamford Lodge site.
Waters Corporation is working closely with Cheshire East Council's Regeneration Service. Erika Wenzel, Chief Executive at Cheshire East Council said: "We are very happy to be welcoming this prestigious company to Cheshire East. This is a fantastic opportunity to regenerate this area of Wilmslow.
"It will undoubtedly bring an exciting new perspective to the economic make up of the area and we are working closely with them to ensure that their move here is as smooth as possible"
The final sale of the land is dependent upon receiving planning and building permission from Cheshire East Council. Waters will submit a planning application in February and aim to start work on the site in the autumn.
The new Waters MS Headquarters is expected to open in 2013.
