Pharmaceutical giant Sanofi looks set to be given the go-ahead to significantly expand its huge production complex outside Holmes Chapel in Cheshire.
Councillors have been told that the ambitious proposal "would bring economic benefits through the delivery of new jobs and investment".
On Wednesday (25 November 2015), the Cheshire East Council southern planning committee is due to discuss Sanofi's hybrid application to redevelop its Holme Chapel site, which currently employs 320 staff and is the company's inhalation and nasal spray centre supplying markets worldwide. The site is also involved in the manufacture and supply of clinical trial materials, including clinical packaging and labelling.
Ahead of the meeting, a report prepared for councillors has recommended that the scheme should be approved.
It said: "This proposal would bring economic benefits through the delivery of new jobs and investment in an area with a longstanding association with the manufacture of pharmaceuticals. Sanofi Aventis are a major employer located within one of the local service centres in the borough where national and local plan policy supports the expansion of existing development.
"The proposal is compatible with the surrounding development and the design (subject to reserved matters), scale and form of the development would not appear incongruous within its context."
Sanofi is seeking outline approval for its 2017 masterplan to facilitate planned future growth over the next five years by ensuring there is sufficient manufacturing, warehouse and laboratory space. The plan involves extensions to its Area 12 manufacturing building, its Area 11 warehousing building, its Area 77 laboratory building and its Area 37 stability building.
The proposals are set out in a hybrid design and access statement in which How Planning is listed as the agent and Jacobs Engineering is named as the design consultant.
It said: "Sanofi are currently experiencing a period of growth at their operations in Holmes Chapel with additional third-party products being manufactured under contract. In addition, a further area of growth is utilisation of its site-wide facilities to undertake research, development and manufacturing of new drug products for third-party companies.
"The impact of this additional manufacturing volume means a significant increase in the number of personnel working on the facility and the growth of the production facility to support this manufacturing upturn. A site vision has been developed for the Holmes Chapel site. A new masterplan has been developed for the site to facilitate the planned future growth.
"The primary objective of the site vision is to ensure that there is sufficient manufacturing space, office space and infrastructure to accommodate the increased number of personnel working on site to achieve the improved manufacturing quantities."
In the other part of the hybrid application, Sanofi is seeking full planning consent to demolish Building 15 and extend Building 13. The current Building 13 comprises an entrance reception, a canteen, changing facilities and the site management office, and the company wants to refurbish and extend the existing building on two sides to provide a new main entrance reception to the site, a larger restaurant, new meeting and conference facilities, office space and associated facilities.
It is envisaged that work would start in late 2015 and complete by the end of 2016.