Construction starts on AMIC’s Factory of the Future to reinvigorate Northern Ireland’s industrial potential
Construction has started on a state-of-the-art Factory of the Future at Global Point in Newtownabbey led by Queen’s University Belfast, which is key to an exciting future for advanced manufacturing in Northern Ireland. This marks a major milestone for the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation Centre (AMIC) through a £100 million investment, expected to create up to 1,500 jobs across Northern Ireland, contribute £1 billion to the economy and train 300 apprentices by 2050.
The Factory of the Future is being delivered in partnership with industry, Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council and Ulster University as part of a wider £230 million transformational programme of innovation led by Queen’s and supported by the UK Government and Northern Ireland Executive through Belfast Region City Deal. Almost £80 million of funding for AMIC has come from the City Deal.
Due to open in 2026, the 10,000 sq m open access manufacturing and engineering innovation centre with capacity for 150 staff, is being built by Henry Brothers. It is set to reinvigorate local industrial potential and address the future technology and skills challenges faced by the region’s manufacturing sector.
AMIC will provide a specialised environment for advanced manufacturing, materials, and engineering sectors to access the latest digital, automation and robotics technology, supported by experienced engineers and underpinned by academic excellence.
Following a recent recruitment campaign AMIC has grown its team of experienced engineers and support staff to over 50, to increase delivery of digitalisation and innovation projects for local manufacturing companies across a range of sectors.
This work builds on more than 55 years of Queen’s delivering industry-focused innovation through the Northern Ireland Technology Centre (NITC), Polymers Processing Research Centre (PPRC) and Northern Ireland Advanced Composites and Engineering Centre (NIACE).
The innovation centre recently received Full Business Case approval from government, signalling confidence that AMIC can deliver on time and to budget following a rigorous specialist and peer-reviewed process.
For more information on AMIC go to we-are-amic.com
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Pictured are: Kara Bailie, Deputy Director of Strategic Programmes at Queen’s; alongside Councillor Neil Kelly, Mayor of Antrim & Newtownabbey Borough Council; Joe Kennedy III, U.S. Special Envoy to Northern Ireland for Economic Affairs; Professor Sir Ian Greer, Queen’s Vice-Chancellor; Sam Turner, AMIC CEO; and John Irwin, CEO of Kiverco and Chair of AMIC Industry Board.
