Invest in chemicals in Yorkshire & Humber

Chemicals make up the largest manufacturing sector in Yorkshire, and our region contributes 10% to the UK chemical sector overall.

Yorkshire Forward is encouraging more businesses to invest in chemicals in Yorkshire & Humber: visit the Invest in Yorkshire website.

Size and scope

There are over 400 chemical manufacturing sites here, with a well-developed supply chain of supporting industries. The chemicals sector in Yorkshire & Humber has an annual turnover of over £8bn and employs 24,000 people.

The region is home to over 450 chemical companies, including such giants as BP, Novartis, Syngenta, CIBA, ConocoPhillips and Tencel.

We’re investing in this sector

Output in this sector is expected to increase by almost 21% by 2012, from £2.4bn to over £2.9bn. That’s one of the reasons Yorkshire Forward has made chemicals a ‘priority sector’; targeting investments to help the industry innovate, grow and compete for the future.

We employ a sector manager and ‘strategic sector champion’ for chemicals, helping to identify opportunities for innovation through collaboration, and brokering relationships between businesses and the science base. Call Yorkshire Forward on 0113 394 9600 to find out about land availability, special projects and more.

Academic excellence in chemicals

The Universities of Sheffield, Leeds and York have been identified as some of the UK’s major clusters in chemical science spin-out companies. World-class centres of expertise include the only UK school of colour chemistry, at The University of Leeds. Our region has one of Europe’s largest concentrations of universities, producing 10% of the UK’s graduates and with R&D investment at 12% above the European average.

Yorkshire Forward has set up several Centres of Industrial Collaboration to unlock cutting-edge technical expertise from the region’s universities:

• The Pharmaceutical Innovation CIC, based within the renowned Institute of Pharmaceutical Innovation at the University of Bradford
• The Particles CIC, based at the Universities of Leeds and Sheffield
• The affiliated Green Chemistry Centre is helping companies to comply with legislative developments such as REACH, through the manufacture of products that reduce or replace the production of hazardous materials whilst still being commercially viable.

Find out more about collaborating with our universities.

A strong existing infrastructure

Yorkshire & Humber has ready availability of essential inputs, with 2 oil refineries, 9 power stations, and capacity for high-energy usage. Electricity here is cheaper than the market average. Additionally there are strong supplies of piped nitrogen, high- & medium-pressure gases, and potable & non-potable water; and there’s a steam and ethylene pipeline. There’s easy access to 4 port facilities and trouble-free access to the UK motorway network and local airports.

Promoting safe training and development

The Centre for the Assessment of Technical Competence Humber (CATCH), supported by Yorkshire Forward, is unique in Europe. Created in answer to mounting legislation preventing the training of unskilled staff on hazardous sites, it provides a real-life training environment to help develop skills in the region. The site comprises a full-scale plant with working machinery, control room, workshops and training rooms—all using non-hazardous liquids and powders.

Funding and support

We welcome investment enquiries from UK and overseas companies. You may be able to find funding support in our funding for business section, our business support page, and our priority sectors section. If you’re an overseas business interested in investing in Yorkshire & Humber, please also read our inward investment page.