Business Park & Industrial Estate Glasgow

At Hillington Park, Glasgow we strive to continually improve the environment in which our customers work.

We not only aim to raise the quality of our real estate offer and extend the life and value of our buildings, but also to provide a range of amenities at the business park to make it more than just a workplace. It’s all part of our belief in creating a genuine sense of community, where people can meet and have easy access to quality amenities that enhance their working day.

 

Industrial Estate Glasgow

Rainbow technology is an industrial pot of gold

Legend has it that a pot of gold is to be found at the end of the rainbow. For Rainbow Technology Systems, a company that arrived at Hillington Park last September to take up residence in Kelvin Avenue, the electronic equivalent is already in place.

What Rainbow is developing at Hillington, from scratch, offers electronics manufacturers the world over a chance to reduce their printed circuit costs by a considerable margin. It could prove to be a ’pot of gold’ in the world of smart electronic devices.

Managing director Jonathan Kennett is quite certain that what they have under active development will also revolutionise the production of flat-panel and touch-screen display systems, large and small.
“It’s a ‘disruptive technology’ that we have in our hands,” he says with some pride – and with the experienced knowledge that a serial engineering entrepreneur can bring to such a statement.
“It should allow substantial reductions in labour and production costs, energy use and processing times for the manufacture of printed circuit boards (PCBs).”

His company’s product supplants a typical production line of half a dozen different processes – normally carried out by separate items of machinery over a space of 35 metres length and consuming over 70 kilowatts of power – with a single unit no more than six metres long that could be plugged into a socket in the wall.

This marvel of modern high-precision production machinery has been designed and is being built in-house by chief engineer Robert Gibson, applying the chemical technology developed by John Cunningham, the company’s chief chemist.
The machine uses patented optical techniques to reduce feature sizes on PCBs to less than 10% of the current standard dimensions.

The key to the patented Rainbow process – seven years in development, at a cost of over £2 million – lies in the creation of solvent-free ‘resists’ – the chemical ‘inks’ with which the circuits are printed onto the copper sheeting, which dry instantaneously when exposed to ultra-violet light.
Mr Kennett says: “Although laser-based machines are an improvement on the traditional method of making PCBs, our system can now beat the best lasers by printing circuits down to a width of 5 microns (a micron is one-millionth of a metre).

“This will enable electronic designers to pack more processing power into a much smaller space with ‘high density interconnect’ techniques and – as far as we know – no-one else has been able to image to this size using conventional phototools.”

Mr Kennett and his colleagues have returned from recent trade fairs elated by the reactions to their test results, and are confident there is a world market of perhaps 200 printed circuit board ‘shops’ who would be desperate to be among the first to use the new Rainbow system.

Robert Gibson is in the middle of constructing the first full production Rainbow machine, to be used as an active demonstration unit. Each client will demand a bespoke configuration, but each machine will command a price of up to £750,000.

“We are confident of securing two or three orders in the next few months. And we will also be the sole suppliers of the chemical consumables,” says Jonathan Kennett, anticipating the next question. “We know where the market is, our product ticks lots of boxes, and the results are easy to demonstrate.”

Some of the technology Rainbow is using was developed by his previous company Teknek, based at Inchinnan, now sold on. “We are delighted to have set up anew at Hillington Park,” he added. “There is great connectivity here, both to points west such as the airport and to central Glasgow.

“Our landlords have been very constructive and helpful. And there is plenty of space for expansion. But now we are looking to recruit more top-notch mechanical design engineers.”

Contact: 0141 892 3322
Web: www.rainbow-technology.com

Occupancy rate sustained

For the fifth year in a row, MEPC Hillington Park has maintained its occupancy rate at the estate at more than 90%.

Offices To Let Glasgow

Glasgow Offices To Let

In the space of just a few months, Hillington Park’s majority landlords MEPC have successfully filled a large amount of office space at the estate which had recently become vacant.

Following the departure of financial outsource administrators Ceridian to Braehead in June, MEPC found itself with 22,000 sqft of vacant office space on its hands.

Ceridian had been located at Hillington Park for more than a decade, during which time the company expanded at regular intervals, taking on additional office accommodation within walking distance of its original location at Centura Court.

But Ceridian were keen to consolidate their personnel within a single building, and had been discussing the possibility of a newbuild headquarters within the proposed Nexus development on the M8 frontage of Hillington Park.

That possibility faded away with the economic recession, but the company was able to find itself an alternative accommodation at Braehead, and has now moved out of Hillington.

Their departure, however, was an opportunity for MEPC to demonstrate what managing director Grant Edmondson calls a ’can do’ attitude in its relationships with potential customers.

Now, the former Ceridian space has very quickly been filled following deals with McNicolas Construction, who will take over the whole of 1 Centura Court, while Amici Procurement will move into part of one of the other pavilions after relocating from Irvine.

The deal with McNicholas will significantly alter the company’s profile in Scotland. The Hertfordshire-headquartered utilities, communications, renewables and rail markets service provider has won a major contract in the south of England which will be controlled from its Scottish base, which was moved to Hillington from Bishopbriggs just two years ago.

But McNicholas Construction will shortly be moving again – this time within the Hillington estate, where it currently occupies mainly industrial premises in Earl Haig Road – to accommodate its expanding Scottish workforce.

The company has agreed a four-year deal with MEPC to take over both floors of an entire building at Centura Court, amounting to 10,000 sqft. And McNicholas has already started moving in to its smart and modern new Scottish headquarters, where it expects to double its current workforce of 35 within the next 12 months.

Ken Reavey, the Customer Experience Manager for McNicholas, told the Hillington Herald: “There’s no doubt that the estate’s infrastructure and facilities – and its proximity to Glasgow Airport – makes it an ideal location to ensure quick access to our customer areas. And Centura Court will project the right image for us when we entertain high-powered executives from our clients.”

The property move by McNicholas effectively doubles the rental value of the company’s presence at Hillington. Grant Edmondson added: “It’s another great example of why so many companies located here seem to enjoy growth and success. We were delighted that McNicholas moved here two years ago and even more pleased that they now want to expand and upgrade with us. The key for MEPC is to be able to offer competitive lease packages to attract businesses to HIllington and more importantly to retain them.”

And, as the Hillington Herald went to press, it was confirmed that Amici Procurement has signed a deal with MEPC that will facilitate their relocation from Irvine to 3 Centura Court.

The company provides cutting-edge sourcing solutions to companies across the Biotech industry, and recent innovations at Hillington Park and elsewhere in the central belt are thought to be behind the move to Scotland’s largest business estate.

Amici will occupy a suite of 2,374 sqft (220 sqm) which they have taken on a five-year lease. Part of the lease package included the fitting-out of the space to the company’s specification.

These are two of five office deals recently completed by MEPC at Hillington Park, which are detailed here, and there is said to be plenty of strong interest in the pipeline for other available office properties on the estate.

Dr Bike comes to Hillington

As part of the Keep Scotland Beautiful campaign The Glasgow Bike Station visited Hillington and offered, free of charge, a bicycle servicing service to all occupiers who cycle to work.

The Dr.Bike programme is designed to fix most minor problems on site, with more major problems diagnosed and a bike “MOT” provided.

The initiative is designed to encourage employees to think about their commuting habits and offers the opportunity to adopt a healthier lifestyle and reduce their carbon footprint.

It was a most successful event with 12 cyclists participating.

‘I noticed a big improvement in the performance of the brakes and gears on my ride home. I have pledged to cycle to/from work more frequently so here’s hoping for a dry Autumn!’
Business Centre Occupier.

Glasgow officses to Let, filled within weeks

In the space of just a few weeks, Hillington Park’s majority landlords MEPC have successfully filled a large amount of office space at the estate which had recently become vacant.

Following the departure of financial outsource administrators Ceridian to Braehead in June this year , MEPC found itself with an additional 22,000 sqft of offices to let on its hands.

Now, a large amount of the former Ceridian space has very quickly been filled following deals with McNicolas Construction, while Amici Procurement will move into part of another pavilion after relocating from Irvine.

McNicholas, who arrived at Hillington just two years ago, will shortly be moving again - this time within the Hillington estate, where it currently occupies mainly industrial premises in Earl Haig Road - to accommodate its expanding Scottish workforce.

The company has agreed a four-year deal with MEPC to take over the whole of No 1 Centura Court, amounting to 10,000 sqft. And McNicholas has already started moving in to its smart and modern new Scottish headquarters, where it expects to double its current workforce of 35 within the next 12 months.

Ken Reavey, the Customer Experience Manager for McNicholas, said: "There’s no doubt that the estate’s infrastructure and facilities - and its proximity to Glasgow Airport - makes it an ideal location to ensure quick access to our customer areas. And Centura Court will project the right image for us when we entertain high-powered executives from our clients."

The property move by McNicholas to higher quality office accommodation effectively doubles the rental value of the company’s presence at Hillington. Grant Edmondson added: "It’s another great example of why so many companies located here seem to enjoy growth and success. We were delighted that McNicholas moved here two years ago and even more pleased that they now want to expand and upgrade with us.

“The key for MEPC is to be able to offer competitive lease packages to attract businesses to Hillington - and, more importantly, to retain them."

Amici Procurement has signed a five-year deal with MEPC that will facilitate their relocation from Irvine to occupy a suite of 2,374 sqft (220 sqm) at a rental value of £10 per sqft. Part of the lease package enables the fitting-out of the space to the company’s specification.

These are two of five office deals recently-completed by MEPC at Hillington Park, and there is said to be plenty of strong interest in the pipeline for other available office properties on the estate.

• BMI Healthcare has already seen previous expansions of its contact centre operations at Hillington Park, and their business is continuing to expand. So the company is taking on additional space at Cameron Court, which adds a further 3,893 sqft (361.6 sqm) to their premises at a headline rent of £8.50 per sqft on a four-year lease term.
  

• Long-established refrigeration and air conditioning engineering company J & E Hall are relocating to Cameron Court from Port Dundas, and will take occupation of Suite 3 (2,536 sqft (235.6 sqm) in January for a period of five years at £8.50 per sqft. Remarkably, these are exactly the same premises which they left ten years ago, after being based at Hillington for a decade.
  

• H Robinson is a worldwide logistics company which already had a presence at Hillington Park under the name of Circle Express. Now, under the more familiar worldwide brand name, they are relocating their Scottish office to 69 Queen Elizabeth Avenue, where they have taken on a five-year lease on 1,631 sqft (151 sqm) at a rent of £12.50 per sqft. The premises are the original farmhouse at Hillington, which pre-dates the setting-up of the industrial estate in 1937, but was converted to modern office space in 2000.

Offices To Let / Rent Glasgow

Are you looking for offices to let or rent in the Glasgow area? Are you looking for high quality office space with the flexibility to meet your companies future needs?
If so then here on Hillington Park we're confident we can help you secure the accommodation you need to help you concentrate on growing your business.

Offices To Let / Rent Glasgow