It’s fair to say that Neath Port Talbot has seen many changes in the types of industries in the area, but the one thing that has remained constant throughout is our ability to innovate and embrace new ideas and technologies.
Our local manufacturing base is one of the largest in Wales with an excellent reputation for innovation, high quality products and a flexible multi-skilled workforce.
Working in partnership with local academia, and key innovation and R&D facilities in the area, our focus is to build on our strengths to develop a community of collaborative, innovative high growth businesses in sectors such as Advanced Materials and Manufacturing, Technology, MedTech and Energy.
Key Centres of Excellence include:
- Steel and Metals Institute (SaMI) – Swansea University
- Advanced Engineering & Materials Research Institute (AEMRI) – Harbourside
- TWI Technology Centre (Wales) – Harbourside
- Engineering Research Centre of Excellence – Swansea University (Bay Campus)
- SPECIFIC: Buildings as Power Stations – Swansea University (Bay Campus)
- Welsh Centre for Printing and Coating – Swansea University (Bay Campus)
- Wales Centre for Advanced Batch Manufacture (CBM) – University of Wales Trinity St David (Swansea SA1 Campus)
- University of South Wales Hydrogen Centre – Baglan Energy Park
- Flexible Integrated Energy Systems (FLEXIS) – Cardiff University
- Energy Safety Research Institute (ESRI) – Swansea University (Bay Campus)
Neath Port Talbot has also welcomed the first occupants of its new energy positive Technology Centre. This visionary building, located at Baglan Bay Energy Park, provides flexible office and laboratory space for start-ups, indigenous businesses and inward investors focusing on innovation and R&D across a range of industry sectors including energy, digital and life sciences.
Neath Port Talbot is also the chosen location for the exciting Global Rail Centre of Excellence project, a world-class rail testing facility which will provide a vital service to UK and international train manufacturers, network operators and the wider industry and supply chain.
NPT is part of the South Wales Industrial Cluster (SWIC), a partnership between Welsh industry, energy suppliers, infrastructure providers, academia, the legal sector, service providers and public sector organisations. Its focus is to help meet the UK Industrial Strategy’s Clean Growth ‘grand challenge’ which aims to maximise the benefit to the UK as the world shifts to cleaner technologies. Private sector partners include Tata, ABP and Siemens.
SWIC is investing in the development of new energy technologies, aimed at maximising the region’s opportunities in decarbonisation and clean growth, reversing decline in traditional manufacturing and generating economic growth. Its projects explore a range of opportunities for ‘cleaner’ energy production and use including: hydrogen, CCUS (Carbon Capture Usage & Storage Technologies), transportation and shipping of Co2, fuel switching (to enable large industry decarbonisation), process efficiencies & low carbon manufacturing of steel and cement products.