Siemens Healthineers has announced a new facility in North Oxfordshire, UK that will design and manufacture superconducting magnets used in healthcare facilities globally for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) patient scans.

With an investment of £250 million ($314 million), 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 56,000m² site, which will support more than 1,300 skilled jobs. It will be the UK’s first major production site for the new so-called DryCool technology by Siemens Healthineers, which reduces the amount of helium required in an MRI scanner from 1,500 liters to under a single liter.

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 the company’s decades-long commitment to manufacturing in the Oxford area. 

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said, “I am delighted 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 R&D. But 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.” 

The new factory will include a research and development hub responsible for new technologies such as designing and manufacturing some of the world’s smallest and most lightweight whole-body scanners.