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Colchester
Ultra Ready for Business
Driving Growth
through the
Knowledge Economy
The University of Essex has become an incubator
for innovation and skills and is increasingly acting
as a magnet for businesses of all sizes. Mid-way
through a 10-year £250m expansion programme,
the University’s plans include a 50% increase in
students, investment in accommodation and the
creation of a 17.4ha (43 acre) science and business
park called the Knowledge Gateway. These are
contributing to a growing reputation among
students, employers and knowledge-based
enterprises alike.
Particular strengths of the University are science and technology,
data analytics, financial services and the creative sector. This
is attracting interest from around the world and a third of
students are from overseas, from 130 countries.
Work on the Knowledge Gateway – which could eventually
accommodate 400,000 sq ft of office and research space
employing 2,000 people – started in 2010 with landscaping,
access roads, utilities, cycle routes and footpaths, along
with the creation of a dedicated entrance from the A133
dual carriageway.
The first phase of an office park at the site, the Parkside Office
Village, has provided 14,000 sq ft of space for 15 SMEs and a
second phase of 4,600 sq ft opened in 2016. Development of
a further 16,000 sq ft in eight units is planned in the future.
A new £21m building for Essex Business School,
previously located elsewhere on the campus, opened in 2015.
The innovative timber structure is carbon neutral and has
its own micro-climate created through the use of Eden
Project-style window insulation. It includes several lecture
theatres, study pods for individuals and innovation booths for
group working. Students can practice their analytical skills on
a specially-created trading floor which uses real data provided
by financial information and media firm Bloomberg.
The next stage of the Knowledge Gateway will be a £10m
Innovation Centre due to open in 2017. This will provide 38,000
sq ft of start-up space for more than 50 companies which, it is
hoped, may then expand into Parkside Office Village.
In a ground-breaking venture the University is also working with
Blue Abyss to build the world’s deepest and largest research
and training pool, 50m long and 50m deep. It will simulate
deep-sea and outer space environments for use by marine and
space organisations and inform the study of human physiology.
Bryn Morris, the University of Essex’s registrar, believes that
the University and businesses located on the campus can
provide each other with reciprocal skills and opportunities.
Companies can gain access to full-time staff, interns,
placements and benefit from the research and consultancy
capabilities of students and lecturers.
The University is already involved in a number of formal
Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTPs), where teams with
suitable skills are set up to address a company’s specific
problems and identify opportunities.
“There are wide-ranging benefits from co-locating with the
University. We believe that in due course we will see the
creation of national and international research facilities here,”
Bryn Morris says.