Download History of the Cambridge Science Park

East Region – Six Counties*
• Fastest growing UK economic region
• £1.8bn exports, 1900 foreign cos.
• £82bn economy, 10%+ of UK GDP
• 70% of UK high-tech employment
• Below UK unemployment average
• R&D spend 3x UK average
• 78% below £250K turnover in 1995
• 91% fewer than 20 workers
*Cambridgeshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire
• 750 years old
• 31 Colleges, federated under
‘umbrella’ of university
• 1557
John Keys: Gonville & Caius
• 1661
Isaac Newton at Trinity College
• 1702/4 Chairs of Chemistry/Astronomy
• 1762
Dr Richard Walker’s Botanic Garden
• 1871
Cavendish Laboratory for Physics
East Anglian Economy
and Cambridge University
• 50% of Cambridge Region hi-tech firms report
research links with University
• 22% of research staff and 17% of directors of
Cambridge region hi-tech companies possess
Cambridge University degrees
• Cambridge University spin-outs make 16% of
Cambridge hi-tech start-ups
source: Keeble. ESRC WP96 Publ. 1998
Centres for Research
•
Wellcome Genome Campus
• WCMC, FFI
• Babraham Institute (Biomedical)
• Addenbrookes, Papworth
• NIAB
• “Nobel Factory” - LMB
Government funded: MRC (8/40) & BBSRC (4/8)
Research Establishments
and Science Parks within
15 miles of Cambridge
Biotech Cluster
•
180 Companies, 10,000 employees
• 25% of all biotech SMEs in Europe
• 49 startups since 2000
• £1bn of VC funds in the region
Technology Providers
•
5 large companies - eg CCL
• 1300 employees. 75% QSEs
• Virtual incubators, 80-100 spin-outs
Science Parks
1970 Cambridge Science Park
1987 St John’s Innovation Centre
• Granta Technology Park
• Babraham Institute
• Melbourne Science Park
• Peterhouse Technology Park
• Cambridge Research Park
• Cambourne Business Park
• Chesterford Research Park
History of the Cambridge Science Park
• 1960s: First Science Park: Stanford University
• 1964: Labour Government urged closer links
between universities and industry
• Cambridge sets up Mott Committee
• 1969: Mott Committee report
Trinity College’s response
• Trinity had a strong scientific
tradition*
• First use of the word “scientist”
1835 (Whewell)
• Spare land available in a suitable
location
• Funds to enable it to carry out the
development.
• Dr John Bradfield
*Alumni include Newton, Clerk-Maxwell, Rayleigh,Thomson, Walton,
Rutherford, Aston, Lyle, both Braggs, Bohr, Hopkins, Klug, Kendrew
First Decade: a slow start
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1970 IBM turned down
1971 Planning permission
1973 Laserscan moves in
Other companies follow –
including some UK subsidiaries of multinationals
• By the end of the 70’s, 25 companies installed
Second Decade: clustering
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Cluster developing - critical mass reached
1984: The Trinity Centre
3i, Venture Capital company
Labour unions, BTG monopoly broken
Academics start companies (IPR relaxation)
Spin-outs & collaborative ventures from existing
companies (e.g. Cambridge Consultants)
Third Decade
• Greater Cambridge cluster 3,500 cos,
(85% with <10 staff) 50,000 employees
• More venture funds available
• Strong sectors: Life Sciences, ICT
• Fewer but larger companies, more
Stock Exchange launches
• Same mix of spin-outs, new ventures,
& UK subsidiaries of multinationals
Present
• 80 companies employing
5,000 people, average age 30
• 61.5 hectares, 145,000 sq m.
• Premises: 90 to 4,600 sq m.
• Development by occupiers on
long ground leases
• Purpose-built units on 15, 20,
and 25 year leases
• Starter units, multi-occupancy
or ‘listening posts’ on 1 month
to 9 year leases
What type of tenants?
• Scientific research linked to
industrial production
• Light industrial production
closely associated with on-site
or university research
• Ancillary activities (e.g.
Venture Capital companies,
Patent & IPR law firms etc)
• Not much manufacturing,
except Napp, Heraeus, Polatis
Trinity maintained these criteria during economic recession
Industry Sectors – company numbers
1. Biomedical
14
2. Computers/Telecoms
25
3. Consulting (technical)
6
4. Energy
1
5. Financial/business/non-technical
2
6. Industrial Technologies
4
7. Other
28
TOTAL
80
Future
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New Conference Centre
Health & Fitness club
Nursery facilities (130 places)
8.9 Hectares being developed
(23,000 sq m, mostly biotech)
• Cambridge Innovation Centre
(60 people in 19 suites)
• Continued landscaping
(site density 1:5 – 18,000sq ft
per acre)
Trinity’s role
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Promoting contacts & interchange, website
Advertising university functions & seminars
Research sponsorship
CSP Newsletter (“Catalyst”) biannually
Provision of Conference Centre etc
Landscaping
But: Rents at normal commercial rates, minimal
bureaucracy, no central management company.
• Management by Bidwells, local property specialists