Siemens Healthineers

Germany-based Siemens Healthineers is building a facility in Oxfordshire to design and manufacture superconducting magnets used in healthcare facilities globally for MRI patient scans.

With an investment of £250m, the site will be home to novel technology that minimises the use of helium, making scanners lighter, easier to install, and more sustainable.

It will be the UK’s first major production site for new so-called DryCool technology, which reduces the amount of helium required in an MRI scanner from 1,500 litres to under a single litre.

Construction has begun on the 56,000sq m site and it will open in 2026. It is being developed by Tritax Symmetry.

The facility will be operationally carbon-neutral and should create more than 1,300 jobs when fully operational, including the retention of over 600 Oxfordshire-based jobs currently at an existing Siemens Healthineers facility in Eynsham.

Many of the roles are for highly-skilled workers such as physicists, engineers, technicians, and specialised support staff.

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.”

Chief executive of Siemens Healthineers, Bernd Montag, commented: “MRI technology plays a vital role in diagnosing disease, helping patients to get healthy and stay healthy.

“As a world leader in medical imaging, we are very proud to open the next chapter of our history here in Oxford.

“This factory will be the global centre for our innovative low-helium magnet technology, meaning we consume far less of a scarce natural resource and enable access to MRIs for many more patients.”