Manchester’s industrial story has entered a new chapter. On Tuesday 10 November 2026, Bev Craig OBE, Mayor of Greater Manchester, officially opened Graphene Innovations Manchester’s (GIM) new factory in Trafford Park, marking a significant step in the company’s journey from research and development to manufacturing and commercialisation.
GIM’s factory provides an important step towards fulfilling the 2035 Greater Manchester Innovation Plan. Unveiled by Mayor Bev Craig, the plan sets out a vision to make the city-region a global leader in innovation, specifically accelerating ideas from prototype to market in advanced materials and manufacturing.
The opening brought together two chapters of Manchester’s story. Trafford Park, the world’s first planned industrial estate, helped shape the modern industrial age. Graphene, first isolated at The University of Manchester in 2004, is helping shape the next. Founded by University alumnus Dr Vivek Koncherry, who won the 2021 Eli and Britt Harari Graphene Enterprise Award, GIM builds on that legacy. Its new factory translates scientific discovery into advanced materials, technologies and products for global markets.
GIM’s Advanced Materials Platform uses graphene and other nanomaterials, together with AI and robotics, to develop products for construction, energy, aerospace and other demanding industries. Its new factory turns that work into products at scale, bringing research, engineering, manufacturing and global sales/exports under one roof. The factory will also be used as a training ground for international licensing and joint venture partners.
Guests saw GIM’s products up close, from GIM Concrete to GIM Composite lamp posts and GIM Graphene fibre among others, through showcases and live demonstrations, and met the team taking them into international markets.
A highlight saw Mayor Bev Craig, Dame Nancy Rothwell, Prof Luke Georghiou and local school students work together to make sustainable GIM Concrete. The session celebrated women in leadership and science across generations and gave students a hands-on introduction to the possibilities of materials innovation as a future career opportunity.
Dr Vivek Koncherry, CEO of Graphene Innovations Manchester:
“Scientific discovery creates possibilities, but manufacturing is how we turn those possibilities into something people can use. This factory is an important step in that journey for GIM.
“Manchester is where our story began, and the support of its research, business and wider innovation community has helped us reach this point. Our ambition is to build on that foundation, creating advanced materials here that can solve problems around the world.
“Women are at the heart of GIM’s scientific achievements and senior leadership, including our Chief Innovation Officer, Innovation Lead, R&D Supervisor, Global Head of People and Financial Controller. We want the students here today to see the breadth of opportunities open to them – from scientific discovery to leading an innovative global business. Being able to make something, test it and understand its potential can be the moment a young person starts to imagine their own place in that future.”
The event provided an opportunity to discuss how Greater Manchester can help more businesses move from promising research to manufacturing at scale – connecting scientific talent with the skills, investment and industrial capacity needed to grow.
Bev Craig OBE, Mayor of Greater Manchester:
“Greater Manchester has always been a place where ideas become industry, and GIM’s new facility is a brilliant example of that continuing today.
“Turning innovation into new products, businesses and good jobs is central to our ambitions for the city region. The decade ahead will see Greater Manchester’s good economic growth reach new levels.
“It was fantastic to see young people getting hands-on with the technology today, inspiring the next generation to see the opportunities available to them in science, innovation and manufacturing.”
Joe Manning, Managing Director of Invest Manchester:
“Graphene Innovation Manchester’s new facility is a great example of Greater Manchester’s ability to turn world-leading research and innovation into commercial opportunities.
“Our strength in advanced materials, alongside our talent, universities and manufacturing heritage, gives businesses the foundations they need to scale here and compete in global markets.”
Cllr Tom Ross, Leader of Trafford Council:
“We are delighted to welcome this new facility to Trafford Park as part of a wider and very exciting picture of investment and innovation in the area. With our private and public sector partners, we are building on our proud, industrial heritage to forge a bright, sustainable future with great career opportunities, world-class products and services.”
For GIM, the opening marks both a milestone and a starting point: a new home for its manufacturing ambitions, and an opportunity to show what the next chapter of Manchester’s materials innovation could look like.
