Friday, December 11, 2015

News: Nikken opens new AMP facility

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Nikken Kosakusho Europe has opened its £4m development on the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) in Rotherham and planning is already in hand for a £3m extension.

With European headquarters on the Barbot Hall Industrial Estate, Nikken enjoys a global dominance of the rotary table technology market and supply manufacturers operating in the aerospace, defence, motorsport, automotive and medical sectors.

Now, it has opened a new demonstration and customer support centre - the Nikken Innovation Centre Europe - packed with advanced equipment to help companies become more competitive by increasing production rates and quality while reducing costs.

A total of £4m has been invested in the new development and the company plans to invest a further £3m on a second phase of development by the middle of 2017. Plans were recently submitted for a further 25,000 sq ft of flexible industrial floorspace.

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Nikken was one of the first partners to back the embryonic University of Sheffield Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC). The the new development is Nikken's first research and development facility outside Japan and will complement facilities at the neighbouring AMRC.

Tony Bowkett, group managing of Nikken Kosakuso Europe (pictured, second left), said: "Our partnership with the AMRC is a marriage made in heaven. We have been part of the AMRC from the outset. We share the same philosophy and the cross fertilisation between the two organisations is fantastic. We have a great collaboration and the AMRC is training our four apprentices, whose numbers we hope to increase to ten over the next five years."

Nikken believes that companies want the reassurance of seeing the technology used to make components similar to their own products on the machines which they themselves use. The firm has deliberately opted to invest in machines that complement, rather than replicate those at the AMRC, acquiring what is generally lighter weight equipment.
Bowkett added: "You won't find a machine here that is in the AMRC. The AMRC is free to use our machines and we can use theirs. It's a collaboration."

Adrian Allen OBE, commercial director at the AMRC, said: "We are pleased, proud and privileged to be associated with Nikken Kosakuso Europe – a business which Tony started in Rotherham and which is continuing to grow.

"His investment strategy broadens the scope of both our organisations to help manufactures increase competitiveness by taking advantage of the latest technologies, techniques and research.

"In addition to having customers in sectors like aerospace and space exploration, motorsport - including , Formula 1 - rail, offshore wind power and medical equipment, where we are also active, Nikken also supplies sectors where we don't have a presence.

"We look forward to continuing to help each other's clients."

Nikken Kosakusho Europe wesbite
AMRC website

Images: Nikken

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