Scotland’s development authority Scottish Enterprise said investment in new research and development projects with companies in Scotland totalled £74 million in 2010 – 2011, with Scottish Enterprise investing £20 million in 179 separate projects and pulling in a further £54 million investment from companies running the projects.
The figures were released today (7 June) at the Scottish Technology Showcase in Glasgow. Speaking at the event, Paul Lewis, managing director of sectors and commercialisation at Scottish Enterprise, said, “These are very encouraging results. Over the past twelve months, we’ve supported more projects through our R&D funds and leveraged significant investment from the private sector. “
The grants are helping companies to sharpen their competitive edge and encouraging them to exploit new technology to improve their business, Lewis said, adding, “We need to help more Scottish companies adopt this innovative mindset and our R&D funds are one of the ways we’re doing that.”
One of the largest R&D grants to be awarded in the past year was to Toshiba Medical Visualisation Systems, which received £3 million towards the development of new medical imaging technology that will make it easier to diagnose and plan treatment for in fields such as heart disease and cancer.
Other examples of technology being developed as a result of Scottish Enterprise grants include:
- Gigle in Edinburgh – for the development of chip technology for multi-media home networking;
- Dynamo Games, Dundee - a games developer working within the social, smartphone and tablet gaming sectors;
- Antoxis, Aberdeen – a developer of anti-oxidant drugs for treating diseases including Alzheimer’s and diabetes.
Companies in the energy sector secured the most grants with 49 projects receiving £8.6 million of Scottish Enterprise investment, which brought in £28.5 million from the companies. Scottish Enterprise said this reflects an increased focus on supporting the growth of renewable energy and the development of low carbon technologies.
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