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Agilent opens state-of-the-art spectroscopy site in the UK

Agilent Technologies

New facility will be a major research and development hub for molecular spectroscopy

14 Oct 2019
Arran Tabary-Davies
Microbiologist

Industry news

Agilent Technologies has announced the opening of a new state-of-the-art facility for spectroscopy research and development at the Harwell Science and Innovation Campus in Oxfordshire, UK.

A leader in molecular spectroscopy, the new Agilent site will be a major research and development hub for laser spectroscopy. It will also incorporate Agilent's Raman spectroscopy business, formerly known as Cobalt Light Systems (acquired by Agilent in 2017).

Agilent is focusing on investment in two main areas: research and development to enable customers to perform better science, harmonizing existing product lines to ensure an optimal customer experience. The site will also accommodate the company's Laser Spectroscopy Center of Excellence, focusing on research and development in the field of vibrational spectroscopy.

The Harwell Campus spans 710 acres south of Oxford, UK, and is well-known as a hub for science and innovation. Harwell is home to over 200 organizations (public, private, and academic), 6,000 people, and £2 billion of large-scale national science infrastructure. It is also where Agilent's proprietary Raman technologies were originally developed by Prof. Pavel Matousek, and his colleagues at the Science and Technology Facilities Council's Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, and where Cobalt Light Systems was first established.

"I'm proud to see Agilent, and the Raman business we helped to establish, growing strongly and returning to Harwell," said Prof. Pavel Matousek, a senior fellow at the Science and Technology Facilities Council Central Laser Facility. "The new Agilent facility is perfectly located for collaboration between Agilent's spectroscopy businesses and the large number of scientists and engineers we have at Harwell. I very much look forward to our future joint endeavors."

"The growth in Agilent's molecular spectroscopy business created the need for a larger facility," said Phil Binns, vice president, and general manager of Agilent's Spectroscopy division. "Our new flagship site will enable us to develop a truly unified approach to vibrational spectroscopy. The location will also facilitate greater collaboration with internationally acclaimed academic and scientific thought leaders based at this premier UK hub of scientific innovation."

Agilent UK has more than 480 employees across the UK in manufacturing, sales, and service. Agilent's two manufacturing sites in Shropshire manufacture liquid chromatography columns, silica and polymeric particles, and magnetic beads for the clinical and diagnostic industry; as well as instruments for gel permeation chromatography. This investment in the UK strengthens Agilent's role as a leader in molecular spectroscopy.

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