MIRA Technology Park near Nuneaton has announced the construction of a 24,500ft² bespoke global skills centre.

The £9.5 million MIRA Technology Institute (MTI), due to open in September 2018, will be a collaboration between Horiba MIRA and some of the Midlands’ top education institutions, including North Warwickshire and South Leicestershire College, Coventry University, Loughborough University, and the University of Leicester.

MTI is being created to help satisfy the ever-increasing demand for specialist skills in the automotive sector — in particular, skills in ‘disruptive technology’ areas such as electrification and driverless cars.

The project follows research by the Leicester & Leicestershire LEP to identify future skills needs.

It is being funded with £9.5 million from the LEP’s Growth Deal Fund, and is supported by the Department for Business.

George Gillespie, chief executive of Horiba MIRA (www.horiba-mira.com), said: “The MIRA Technology Institute has been created to address a very real problem that the UK automotive sector is facing.

“It will be a huge asset to MIRA Technology Park, but we hope that its benefits will be felt throughout the UK automotive sector and beyond.”