Factorytalk
Soft landing programme plays pivotal role in Factorytalks growth
About Factorytalk
Factorytalk specialises in manufacturing IT solutions and compliance consulting and its vision is to provide the highest quality services to the pharmaceutical, bio-tech, life science and medical device regulated industries, in order to maintain or improve their quality standards and competitive value.
Originating from South East Asia, Factorytalk was born in 2004 in Bangkok, Thailand. In its almost twenty-year history, the business has expanded its global reach and opened offices across multiple continents.
In order to support the businesses EU and US expansion, Factorytalk decided to open a UK office in 2020, with the Liverpool City Region (LCR) being the most appealing option due to its strong digital transformation credentials and network of pre-existing businesses based across the pharmaceutical, bio-tech, life science and medical device regulated industries.
Factorytalk has gone on to expand into a sister company, BatchLine, that is a cloud-based electronic batch record system used to produce batches of pharmaceuticals remotely. The technology saves business both time and money producing, reviewing and approving batch records.
Benefits of being born in the Liverpool City Region (LCR)
As the Group Managing Director of Factorytalk David Holt and CEO David Margetts both originated from the North West, the company was already aware of the high quality of life the region can offer to future employees when establishing its UK headquarters in the LCR.
Factorytalk is now situated at Sci-Tech Daresbury in Halton, which is able to offer the business valuable access to a world-leading network of other businesses and academics as well as an in-depth support network. These connections have been pivotal in driving forward Factorytalk’s UK growth strategy and enabling the business to collaborate with others in the immediate vicinity.
One example of these collaborations is that Factorytalk has now partnered with the Manufacturing Technology Centre to launch the Digital Manufacturing Accelerator, which simply would not have happened without being based in the LCR – and is expected to play a key role in the businesses next stage of growth, as it invest in BatchLine to enhance and provide more features for Pharma, biotec and cell and gene manufacturers.
As Factorytalk continues to look forward, the business is hoping to capitalise on some of the City Region’s untapped potential. With the LCR’s impressive roster of businesses across pharmaceuticals, bio-tech and life sciences being headquartered here, Factorytalk is in a strong geographical location to grow its client base.
Coupled with this future development will come the need to expand recruitment. The LCR is home to world-leading academic institutions such as Liverpool’s School of Tropical Medicine and the University of Liverpool that continue to produce graduates with the relevant skills to support both the region’s growth and Factorytalk’s ambitions.
Results to date
- First new domestic client in the UK since moving to the LCR.
- Second global client, aiming for an additional two in Ireland this year
- Managing global roll-out of manufacturing software for UK top tier pharmaceutical company
Support from Growth Platform and the LCR
Factorytalk first trialled Sci-Tech Daresbury as its UK headquarters as a result of the Soft Landing Programme offered. This is a scheme that provides new businesses to the region with an office space rent-free for a year. This encourages continual growth within the hub, ensuring the knowledge and skills ecosystem remains rich within Sci-Tech Daresbury, whilst also giving those new to the UK a boost as they make their first steps.
Outside of the financial support, Growth Platform partners with a number of events and conferences to put the spotlight on some of the City Region’s strongest sectors throughout the year to attract inward investment. Digital Manufacturing Week (DMW) is a prominent event that comes to the LCR every year, looking to attract industry leaders from all over the world. A few years ago, Growth Platform introduced Factorytalk to DMW event organisers and was part of the event’s virtual Innovation Alley which is a catapult for SMEs to promote their businesses, it is an opportunity for disruptive technology businesses to showcase their game-changing innovations targeting the UK’s manufacturing sector.
Events like these and facilities like Sci-Tech Daresbury, have played a pivotal role in Factorytalk’s successful growth in the UK and beyond, and will continue to as the business plays an active role in the launch of the Digital Manufacturing Accelerator programme. This is a place where facilities, resources, expertise and training that will enable organisations to investigate, test and prove new technologies that can be used in their own production environments.
Reflecting upon FactoryTalk’s move to the LCR, Managing Director of Factorytalk UK Neil Wetherall, said:
“The LCR’s leading position within pharmaceuticals, bio-tech and life sciences is undeniable. There are so many world-leading businesses headquartered in the region, and this played a key role in Factorytalk selecting the LCR as its own UK hub.
“The LCR has played the role of the perfect home to foster our UK launch. But also, we’ve only just scratched the surface of the region’s potential, which is truly limitless – particularly in what it can offer us as a UK hub for global activity.
“The region has great access to a strong talent pool of new recruits and new clients while also truly embracing and leading the digital transformation of manufacturing across all industries.”
“The region has great access to a strong talent pool of new recruits and new clients while also truly embracing and leading the digital transformation of manufacturing across all industries.”
Neil Wetherall, Managing Director of Factorytalk UK
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