Dyson to open tech campus in UK as part of wider £2.5bn investment
Tech giant Dyson is to expand its UK operations dramatically with the opening of a new 517 acre research and development campus in the Cotswolds.
Dyson recently developed a supersonic hairdryer
Company founder James Dyson announced the expansion on Tuesday (28 February) saying that the move was a bid to increase British tech innovation.
"The UK’s skills shortage is holding Dyson back as we look to increase the amount of technology we develop and export from the UK," the firm said in a statement. "We are taking matters into our own hands."
The expansion is part of a wider £2.5bn investment by the firm to support the development of new technologies. The campus will be built in a former Ministry of Defence airfield in Wiltshire, with the base focusing on the research and creation of robotics, batteries, vision systems and artificial intelligence.
While the company is best known for its vacuum cleaners it has found success in other markets over the past few years, more recently developing a supersonic hairdryer which retails for £299 and buying battery startup Sakti3 with recent reports suggetsing Dyson is developing an electric car.
British Prime Minster Theresa May touted the company's UK plans as a "vote of confidence," in the country's industry. "Dyson’s exporting strength and commitment to creating jobs in Britain is a real success story that demonstrates the opportunity that our plan to create a truly global Britain can present," she added.
Dyson himself was one of the most public business leaders to showcase support for the UK's exit from the EU, saying it wouldn't damage UK trade.
Work will start on Dyson's new campus in May, with the goal of it opening by the end of 2017.