Hydrogen fuel cell company will lease new premises in Sheffield

The agreement is for the company to lease a new build development of 134,000ft² at PLP Bessemer Park. The manufacturing facility will have an electrolyser manufacturing capacity of up to 1,000MW per annum, said to be the largest in the world.

The agreement commits ITM and PLP to enter into a lease at completion of the building, expected in Q4 of 2019.

PLP Bessemer Park is a new 50-acre development at a strategic location next to junction 34 of the M1 and in close proximity to the company’s existing facilities. ITM expects to occupy the building from March 2020 and complete its own technical and industrial fit out and transition the majority of its operations into PLP Bessemer Park by Summer 2020.

The requirement to expand ITM's production capacity has been led by the continued growth in the company’s order pipeline. The new headquarters will see the company co-locate into a single building and gain access to a five-fold increase in production space.

Key to the selection of the building was the proximity of the grid connection to provide the substantial power supply required, using existing infrastructure near to the location.

ITM has been able to take advantage of a new build development in construction that will meet its needs for capacity and production at speed. The new development will include capacity for 140 office-based staff and will accommodate a large production and after sales support workforce.

It has the advantage of excellent public transport connections in addition to substantial parking facilities for staff and visitors.

Key to the Company’s development strategy is reducing the cost of its product offering through standardisation, process development and production volume. Central to this is the adoption of semi-automated manufacturing equipment for repeat components.

These special purpose machines have required significant upfront engineering and verification work as part of an integrated manufacturing system. The planning behind this important step for ITM has been underway for some time and has worked in parallel to the search for the right premises.

Essential to maximising product throughput is the increase in mains power connection available at PLP Bessemer Park. The substantial power connection will enable parallel testing of larger products prior to dispatch.

Grant Teagle is appointed as master production scheduler and brings significant experience in manufacturing including change management and driving complex projects in production.

Dr Graham Cooley, CEO of ITM commented: “The move to larger premises and the design of our new manufacturing and testing process has taken some time. I am delighted to be able to announce this key milestone in the project and I do so with confidence that ITM Power and its advisors have done a thorough job in selecting the right premises. The detailed planning that has taken place will pay dividends as we transition our activities to PLP Bessemer Park from the New Year.”

ITM Power www.itm-power.com