A NEW £56 million centre hopes to revolutionise how medicines are made in the global pharmaceuticals industry. The centre, based in Inchinnan, Renfrewshire, will support 80 new jobs. The aim is to cut the time it can take for new drugs to reach the market.

The Medicines Manufacturing Innovation Centre (MMIC) will help pharma companies develop new techniques and adopt them into their manufacturing processes.

The project is being supported with £15 million from Scottish Enterprise, £13m through UK Research and Innovation, and £7m each from pharmaceutical firms GSK and AstraZeneca.

Scottish Business Minister Paul Wheelhouse said: “I am delighted that the MMIC will be located in Scotland, given its potential to become a global centre of excellence and bringing significant benefits to Scotland’s economy.

“As well as helping to attract further manufacturing investment to Scotland, the centre will also be well placed to support new business start-ups and spin-outs and enable established life and chemical science companies to profit from innovation.”

The centre will be sited next to the National Manufacturing Institute for Scotland and aims to attract more than £80m in research and development investment by 2028.

Linda Hanna, managing director at Scottish Enterprise, said: “There is no other facility like this in the world and it is a fantastic endorsement of Scotland as an ideal place to invest in global excellence in high-value manufacturing, drawing on our skills, innovative companies and academic expertise.

“Industry leadership and co-investment has been central to shaping this centre and will remain at the heart of what makes it a success, providing a platform for companies right across the UK to collaborate, innovate and develop world-leading medicine manufacturing processes and technologies.”