There is a chronic shortage of laboratory space for UK companies that are starting up and scaling up. It’s not a new problem, and it’s been holding back growth of innovative firms for years. Chemistry World’s Julia Robinson has been speaking to innovators about their experience attempting to scale up a business in the UK, as well as outlining some of the holes in the system and looking at potential solutions.
The RSC’s 2024 Unlocking Innovation report laid out several reasons for the ongoing shortage. One major issue is that chemistry is so diverse: within the huge overall demand for lab space hides an enormous range of differing needs, meaning in many fields there isn’t the critical mass of ventures with similar lab requirements to attract investment. Chemistry labs are expensive to build and operate, so developers often choose less complex lab types, in fields where demand is more homogeneous and hence more prominent, such as life sciences. And while there are lab and scale-up spaces available in some parts of the country, they tend to be isolated from hubs of investment and sources of suitable employees.
This persistent problem requires innovative solutions. There are elements that involve political influence, such as ensuring chemistry companies’ needs are represented in government priorities and strategies, and working to lower barriers in the planning system. Progress here is ongoing, but slow, with the RSC and other industry groups working to make chemistry’s voice heard as the government develops its long-overdue industrial strategy.
Meanwhile, there are opportunities to capitalise on broader societal trends – new generations of scientists are much more likely to want to live and work in an urban environment. Sustainable travel options, as well as access to social amenities, make urban laboratories more desirable than ever. And where economic considerations once pushed labs out of city centres, declining demand for retail and office spaces in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic are opening doors to redeveloping those sites as labs.
As well as finding the right locations, it’s important that new labs are functional, affordable and fit-for-purpose. Modular designs, with the flexibility to cater for companies across a wide variety of sectors and at various growth stages, can avoid the need for extensive (and expensive) remodelling and refitting as tenants move in and out.
Matching space and rental models to company funding and growth cycles is crucial to ensuring companies can grow from handfuls of people renting shared labs by the day (in spaces like QuickLabs in Leeds), through incubators that can adapt to their needs as they expand (along the lines of Bristol’s ScienceCreates), and into pilot and scale-up spaces with access to equipment, but perhaps more importantly expertise, to enable them to fulfil their potential. These spaces and models also need to be networked together, allowing for smooth transitions and avoiding barriers that could force innovative high-growth firms to seek pilot plant facilities outside the UK – as happened to Chris Kay and Interface Polymers.
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