Siemens Healthineers has announced it is investing £250 million in a new facility in North Oxfordshire that will design and manufacture superconducting magnets used in healthcare facilities globally for MRI patient scans.
The site will be home to ‘novel technology’ that minimises the use of helium, making scanners lighter, easier to install, and more sustainable. Construction has begun on the 56,000 m2 site, which will employ 1,300 skilled professionals, and will be the UK’s first major production site for the new so-called DryCool technology from Siemens Healthineers, which reduces the amount of helium required in an MRI scanner from 1,500 litres to under a single litre. Siemens Healthineers said: “The new facility – which will be operationally carbon-neutral – will provide a range of financial, infrastructure, and environmental benefits to the local economy from its planned opening in 2026, underlining our decades-long commitment to manufacturing in the Oxford area.”
Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak (pictured during a visit to the Siemens Healthineers Magnet Technology facility in Oxfordshire), said: “I am delighted that Siemens Healthineers has chosen Oxfordshire for its new facility, supporting over 1,300 skilled jobs in the area, and reinforcing the region’s status as a vanguard in healthcare and research and development. However, as well as the incredible local benefits this will bring, this cutting-edge facility also presents an opportunity to enhance patient care globally – which means British innovation is saving lives around the world.”
With high-end manufacturing automation technology in place, Siemens Healthineers says the manufacturing facility will provide ‘vital additional capacity’ to help satisfy rising global demand for MRI products as populations age and chronic diseases become more prevalent. The new factory will include an R&D hub responsible for new technologies such as designing and manufacturing some of the world’s smallest, most lightweight whole-body scanners.
Of the 1,300 jobs supported at the new site, over 600 will be for Oxfordshire-based staff currently employed at an existing Siemens Healthineers facility in Eynsham. Many of the roles are for highly skilled workers such as physicists, engineers, technicians, and specialised support staff. These are in addition to workers who will be employed during the site’s construction. The phased transition is estimated to be completed by 2030, subject to variable demand for the products developed at the site.
Bernd Montag, CEO of Siemens Healthineers: “MRI technology plays a vital role in diagnosing disease, helping patients to get healthy and stay healthy. As a world-leader in medical imaging, we are very proud to open the next chapter of our history here in Oxford. This factory will be the global centre for our innovative low-helium magnet technology, meaning we consume far less of a scarce natural resource, and enable access to MRIs for many more patients.”
