The facility, which opened last month and cost a “significant” sum, includes both R&D and manufacturing capabilities as a first phase, with potential for further expansion in the future. About 20 new jobs are expected to be created at the facility, which Victrex said will further establish strong relationships between UK medical businesses and academia.

The investment forms part of Victrex’s plans to ramp up the proportion of revenue from the Invibio business to more than one-third in the next 10 years from less than 20% today. Its goal will also be supported by the commercialization of new applications for trauma and knee devices, as well as other growing segments that include cardio, craniomaxillofacial and drug delivery.

Victrex added that the expansion also reflects good progress in several medical programs, including the development of a polyether ether ketone (PEEK) implant for total knee replacements. Its pipeline in trauma is also accelerating, following the launch of a US-based In2Bones carbon fiber PEEK composite plating system, along with new customers in Asia.

“This investment is a key milestone in our global medical strategy, with our aim of treating a patient using Invibio solutions every 15 seconds by 2027,” said CEO Jakob Sigurdsson. “With good progress in a number of emerging segments, we need to ensure we have additional capability to support how we commercialize and scale up these opportunities. The Leeds facility will be a key part of that, building on our innovation and manufacturing hub at Hillhouse in the UK.”

Author: Elaine Burridge, Freelance Journalist