Scientists in the UK have now started work in new state-of-the-art laboratories using enzymes to find more cost effective and environmentally friendly ways of making chemicals and pharmaceuticals.
The opening of the development laboratories at the Centre for Process Innovation in Wilton near Redcar is the first stage in an ambitious multi-million pound plan to bring competitive and sustainable technology to the UK's chemicals industry. By the end of the year a larger scale production facility will also come on-line, so completing the planned scale up and demonstration capability in fermentation and enzyme technology.
Together these facilities will form the National Industrial Biotechnology Facility (NIBF), which is being built following investment by the Regional Development Agency One North East and The Northern Way programme - a collaboration by One North East, North West Development Agency and Yorkshire Forward.
The NIBF is also partnered with the CoEBio3, a world-class centre of excellence for biocatalysis based at the University of Manchester, enabling a combined 'genes to kilos' service.
Operations manager Dr Jerry Cooper said that the NIBF would work with a wide range of customers to produce particular enzymes and demonstrate their effectiveness and commercial viability. It is forecast that in the next 10 years, new, sustainable and renewable processes involving enzymes will be developed and applied to the production of 20% of all chemicals and pharmaceuticals.