i54 South Staffordshire is a UK technology-based business park located at Junction 2 on the
M54 Motorway
The M54 is a 23-mile (37 km) east-west motorway in the counties of Shropshire and Staffordshire, England. It is also referred to as the Telford motorway, after the road's primary westbound destination, the town of Telford. It cost £65&nbs ...
in the
West Midlands
West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth.
Etymology
The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...
, on the boundary of
South Staffordshire
South Staffordshire is a local government district in Staffordshire, England. The district lies to the north and west of the West Midlands county, bordering Shropshire to the west and Worcestershire to the south. It contains notable settlement ...
and
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton () is a city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunians ...
.
i54 South Staffordshire is a £50 million joint venture partnership between
Staffordshire County Council
Staffordshire County Council is the top-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Staffordshire, England.
62 councillors sit on Staffordshire County Council. Staffordshire operates a cabinet-style council
In England, local auth ...
,
City of Wolverhampton Council
City of Wolverhampton Council is the governing body of the city of Wolverhampton, England. It was previously known as Wolverhampton Metropolitan Borough Council (WMBC) prior to the award of city status in 2000, and also as Wolverhampton City Co ...
and
South Staffordshire Council. It benefits from Enterprise Zone Status and falls within the
Black Country Enterprise Zone.
The site entrance is at Junction 2 of the
M54 Motorway
The M54 is a 23-mile (37 km) east-west motorway in the counties of Shropshire and Staffordshire, England. It is also referred to as the Telford motorway, after the road's primary westbound destination, the town of Telford. It cost £65&nbs ...
, just to the west of the
Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal. The site is home to several manufacturing companies including
MOOG Aerospace,
Eurofins
Eurofins Scientific SE is a French group of laboratories headquartered in Luxembourg, providing testing and support services to the pharmaceutical, food, environmental, agriscience and consumer products industries Laboratories, International Security Printers (ISP) and the home of the £500 million UK advance engine manufacturing facility of
Jaguar Land Rover
Jaguar Land Rover Automotive PLC is the holding company of Jaguar Land Rover Limited (also known as JLR), and is a British multinational automobile manufacturer which produces luxury vehicles and sport utility vehicles. Jaguar Land Rover is a ...
.
The regeneration project is a joint venture between
City of Wolverhampton Council
City of Wolverhampton Council is the governing body of the city of Wolverhampton, England. It was previously known as Wolverhampton Metropolitan Borough Council (WMBC) prior to the award of city status in 2000, and also as Wolverhampton City Co ...
,
Staffordshire County Council
Staffordshire County Council is the top-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Staffordshire, England.
62 councillors sit on Staffordshire County Council. Staffordshire operates a cabinet-style council
In England, local auth ...
and
South Staffordshire Council.
Project costs and details
The cost of the project to the site is estimated to be costing £67 million
GBP
Sterling (abbreviation: stg; Other spelling styles, such as STG and Stg, are also seen. ISO code: GBP) is the currency of the United Kingdom and nine of its associated territories. The pound ( sign: £) is the main unit of sterling, and t ...
and was granted crucial planning approvals from two local authorities in September 2006.
In August 2006 contractors to the site started the second major phase of the scheme, a £5 million
GBP
Sterling (abbreviation: stg; Other spelling styles, such as STG and Stg, are also seen. ISO code: GBP) is the currency of the United Kingdom and nine of its associated territories. The pound ( sign: £) is the main unit of sterling, and t ...
12-month programme of infrastructure and reclamation work.
On 3 July 2007 key partners for the project toasted the substantial completion of a £10 million
GBP
Sterling (abbreviation: stg; Other spelling styles, such as STG and Stg, are also seen. ISO code: GBP) is the currency of the United Kingdom and nine of its associated territories. The pound ( sign: £) is the main unit of sterling, and t ...
programme of remediation and site preparation works on the i54 site. The site preparation work ran over a 16-month period and has been carried out by Blackwell and supervised by
Mouchel Parkman engineering consultancy. During this time, the following was achieved:
* Produced level development plots
* Installation of primary infrastructure including a spine road
* Drainage Systems
* Site fencing
* Creation of new wetland and ecological habitats
Other statistics include:
* 152,000 cubic metres of topsoil has been excavated but retained on site.
* 190,000 cubic metres of sub-soil and rock excavated and reused on site.
* 1 kilometre spine road constructed
* 4.5 kilometres of fencing erected ''(3 kilometres still to be erected)''
* Total of 6,500 cubic metres of ponds and
swales created as part of the landscaping
Jaguar Land Rover
On 25 April 2011,
Jaguar Land Rover
Jaguar Land Rover Automotive PLC is the holding company of Jaguar Land Rover Limited (also known as JLR), and is a British multinational automobile manufacturer which produces luxury vehicles and sport utility vehicles. Jaguar Land Rover is a ...
expressed an interest in the i54 site as a possible location for a new advanced engine plant.
[JLR plans i54 Wolverhampton engine plant and 1,000 jobs « Express & Star]
/ref> On 19 September 2011 Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg
Sir Nicholas William Peter Clegg (born 7 January 1967) is a British media executive and former Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom who has been president for global affairs at Meta Platforms since 2022, having previously been vicep ...
announced at the engine factory in Solihull the proposals for Jaguar Land Rover's decision to build their new engine plant in South Staffordshire
South Staffordshire is a local government district in Staffordshire, England. The district lies to the north and west of the West Midlands county, bordering Shropshire to the west and Worcestershire to the south. It contains notable settlement ...
creating around 1400 additional jobs within the company and more within the supply chain which will be created by a £500 million investment by Jaguar Land Rover and £10m by the Government. The new plant in Wolverhampton would join other Midlands-based plants in Solihull and Castle Bromwich as well as the birthplace of the new Evoque
The Land Rover Range Rover Evoque (generally known simply as the Range Rover Evoque) is a subcompact luxury crossover SUV developed and produced by Jaguar Land Rover, a British car manufacturer, under their Land Rover marque. The original Evoque ...
in Halewood, Liverpool.
It is understood that Jaguar Land Rover is taking on the investments to meet the demands of high sales in Asia. The new engine plant will be home to the new family of 4-cylinder petrol and diesel engines for the luxury Land Rover
Land Rover is a British brand of predominantly four-wheel drive, off-road capable vehicles, owned by multinational car manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), since 2008 a subsidiary of India's Tata Motors. JLR currently builds Land Rovers ...
brand, originally brought to help boost technology in Tata Motors
Tata Motors Limited is an Indian multinational automotive manufacturing company, headquartered in Mumbai, India, which is part of the Tata Group. The company produces passenger cars, trucks, vans, coaches, buses.
Formerly known as Tata Eng ...
vehicle range. JLR chief executive Dr Ralf Speth announced that £1.5 billion is to be invested into the company and the new engine plant each year for the next 5 years on product development and the engine range. JLR engines are currently being supplied by Ford Motors
Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. The company sells automobile ...
Usage potential
* Around of industrial space
* of commercial/retail and leisure.
Construction
Construction started on site in 2011, with MOOG fully operational on site by the start of 2012. The Aerospace company makes flight controls and spent £15 million to move from its current location, to the i54 South Staffordshire development. The company hopes to safeguard 400 jobs with its relocation. Laboratory firm Eurofins
Eurofins Scientific SE is a French group of laboratories headquartered in Luxembourg, providing testing and support services to the pharmaceutical, food, environmental, agriscience and consumer products industries also moved into the development and was fully operational by 2012.
On the 16 January 2019, permission was granted for a 60 acre expansion to the i54 Business Park to the west of the existing park towards Pendeford Hall Lane. The new extension will also be accessible from the M54 Junction 2.
Enterprise zone
The i54 South Staffordshire site is the largest of the 19 sites which make up the Black Country Enterprise Zone, which has 5 sites in Wolverhampton and 14 in Darlaston
Darlaston is an industrial town in the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall in the West Midlands of England. It is located near Wednesbury and Willenhall.
Topography
Darlaston is situated between Wednesbury and Walsall in the valley of the Riv ...
, Walsall. The creation of the zone for the Black Country was announced on 23 March 2011 by Chancellor George Osborne. Enterprise zone status speeds up the process of allowing companies to re-locate to the site and encourages it with tax breaks.Tax breaks boost for local businesses « Express & Star
/ref>
Companies at i54 South Staffordshire
*MOOG (2011)
*Eurofins (2011)
*Jaguar Land Rover (2014)
*International Security Printers (ISP) (2014)
*ERA (Home Security Company) (2018)
*Atlas Copco (2018)
References
{{coord, 52.6326, -2.1374, region:GB-WLV_type:landmark, display=title
Wolverhampton
South Staffordshire District
Business parks of England