A Leading Location for Advanced Electronics and Materials
Specialist space, research expertise and an established technology community supporting advanced electronics and materials businesses from innovation through to commercial manufacture.
Advanced Electronics and Materials at NETPark
NETPark is home to companies developing advanced electronics, photonics, semiconductors and advanced materials for applications across communications, defence, space, healthcare and manufacturing.
The park forms part of a significant and growing regional cluster represented by North East Advanced Material Electronics (NEAME), which brings together businesses and organisations working across the sector.
Businesses benefit from specialist facilities and research expertise provided by CPI and Durham University, including the National Printable Electronics Centre and the Centre for Advanced Instrumentation, alongside connections to the High Value Manufacturing and Satellite Applications Catapults. With new units ranging from 11,500 to 35,700 sq ft, companies can move from research and development into commercial manufacturing without leaving the campus.
The technologies developed at NETPark also contribute to the UK’s sovereign capability in strategically important areas including defence, security, space and communications. Supporting their development and manufacture in the UK helps retain specialist skills, knowledge and intellectual property while strengthening domestic supply chains.
Why electronics companies choose NETPark
For many electronics businesses, growth creates a practical problem. The laboratory space that supported early development is no longer suitable for pilot production. The building that worked for a team of ten no longer works for a team of fifty. Expanding often means relocating, disrupting projects and risking the loss of staff and knowledge.
NETPark offers a different route. Its range of accommodation includes offices, laboratories, cleanrooms and space for light manufacturing, allowing businesses to find facilities suited to each stage of their development.
Companies can begin in incubator space within Plexus, move into Discovery or Explorer as they grow, and then take a bespoke facility in our brand new expansion. The address stays the same. The facilities, research partners and business connections remain close by.
That continuity matters for people as much as it does for property. Electronics businesses depend on specialist scientists, engineers, technicians and manufacturing staff whose skills and experience take years to develop. By growing on the same campus, companies can keep experienced teams together and retain the knowledge they have built. As businesses and their workforces expand, this creates a critical mass of expertise and a long-term skills base at NETPark.
More than 40 science and technology businesses and over 1,000 people are already based on campus. That concentration of companies creates opportunities to collaborate, recruit and share expertise without needing to look beyond the site.
The Facilities
Developing and manufacturing advanced electronics requires specialist facilities that can take years to establish and significant investment to build.
CPI operates three national innovation centres at NETPark covering printable electronics, healthcare photonics and formulations. Companies can access cleanrooms, pilot-scale facilities, characterisation equipment and technical expertise that would be difficult to replicate independently.
The National Printable Electronics Centre is particularly relevant to electronics businesses. It supports the development of flexible, hybrid and large-area electronics, helping companies move technologies closer to commercial manufacture.
Durham University is part of the campus community and has recognised strengths in photonics, semiconductors, advanced materials and engineering. Businesses based at NETPark can work with researchers, develop collaborative projects and access graduate talent from a university ranked among the world's top 100.
The Companies
The strongest endorsement of NETPark comes from the businesses already based here.
Filtronic develops and manufactures radio-frequency, microwave and millimetre-wave components and subsystems at NETPark. Its technology supports demanding communications applications across the space, aerospace, defence and telecommunications sectors.
Kromek develops radiation and biological-threat detection technology for the defence, security and healthcare markets. Its work includes cadmium zinc telluride semiconductor components used in medical and industrial imaging, alongside compact radiation-detection systems designed to protect people, infrastructure and public spaces.
Pragmatic Semiconductor designs and manufactures flexible integrated circuits. Its ultra-thin, physically flexible chips can add connectivity, sensing and computing capabilities to everyday objects, with potential applications across consumer products, healthcare, packaging and supply-chain management.
aXenic designs, develops and produces optical modulators for communications and sensing. Its compound-semiconductor technology supports high-speed optical communications in demanding satellite, aerospace and defence applications.
Alongside them are businesses working in photonics, compound semiconductors, sensing technologies and advanced materials.
Being part of this community brings practical advantages. Companies can access specialist suppliers, recruit from an established talent pool and build relationships with organisations operating in the same markets, particularly defence, security, communications and space.
Part of a Larger Cluster
NETPark sits within one of the UK's largest concentrations of advanced electronics and materials businesses.
Across North East England, more than 330 companies operate in the sector and the region produces around 19 per cent of the UK's research in advanced materials and electronics.
Organisations including North East Advanced Material Electronics (NEAME), Space North East England and the North East Regional Defence and Security Cluster help businesses connect with supply chains, collaborative projects and new customers.
Ten minutes from NETPark, the Octric semiconductor foundry in Newton Aycliffe strengthens the region's semiconductor manufacturing capability and supports defence and security supply chains. Together, these regional assets connect research, development, testing and manufacturing, helping to build resilient UK supply chains and reduce reliance on overseas capability for strategically important components and technologies.
For businesses locating at NETPark, these regional assets become part of the wider support available around the campus.
The Space
The £100m expansion adds 285,650 sq. ft. of space across 11 units ranging from 11,500 to 35,700 sq. ft.
Each unit is delivered as shell space, allowing occupiers to create laboratories, cleanrooms, technical facilities and production environments designed around their own requirements. Companies do not need to adapt their operation to fit an existing layout.
For earlier-stage businesses, Plexus, Discovery and Explorer provide incubator and grow-on accommodation on the same campus, creating a clear route from start-up to large-scale occupation.
A Connected Location
NETPark provides access to research, clinical and manufacturing expertise across Durham, Newcastle and Teesside. By car, Durham is approximately 20 minutes, Teesside 25 minutes and Newcastle 40 minutes - Its close proximity to the A1(M) ensures executive travel is seamless to the rest of the UK.
Teesside International Airport can be reached in around 25 minutes and Newcastle International Airport in 45 minutes.
NETPark is a 20 minute drive from two major train stations, Darlington and Durham. Both stations are on the East Coast Mainline, connecting the region to London, Cambridge, Oxford, and Scotland. London can be reached within 3 hours from either station.
The campus itself provides a landscaped working environment with green spaces and walking routes. Combined with County Durham’s housing, schools, countryside and lower cost of living, this can help employers attract and retain the people needed for long-term growth.
Business support at NETPark
Support continues after a business moves to NETPark. Delivered by Business Durham, the campus has a team that takes the time to understand each company’s plans and connect it with the right people and opportunities.
This can include guidance on funding, skills and recruitment, future property requirements and growth planning, as well as introductions to universities, Catapults, sector networks, suppliers and potential collaborators.
Regular events and direct introductions also help businesses get to know their neighbours and become part of the wider NETPark community. As a company’s needs change, it has a local point of contact ready to provide practical help and make the right connections.
Discover what NETPark could offer your business
To find out how your company would benefit from locating to NETPark please contact Sara Williams, on 01740 625 250 or email sara.williams@durham.gov.uk
