100 jobs created by US Kaiam Corporation
Optical components company to build a new production facility in Livingston
A US based optical components company, Kaiam Corporation, will generate 103 new jobs in Livingston, First Minister Alex Salmond has announced today (April 6, 2014) during Scotland Week.
Kaiam Corporation, headquartered in California, will relocate production facilities to Scotland from China and expand its existing Livingston site.
The project is being supported by an RSA grant of £850,000 from Scottish Enterprise.
Speaking from New York, the First Minister said:
“Scotland has a successful culture of private-public-academic collaborations, and this is continually proven to be a successful model for attracting inward investment across high growth industries. International companies recognise the benefit of our highly skilled workforce, continuous innovation and lower costs, teamed with extensive public sector support.
“In Scotland, there are 12 universities with over 400 researchers engaged in optoelectronics research. Today’s announcement will undoubtedly be a boost for the Livingston area and enhance Scotland’s optoelectronics industry.
“We are committed to support job growth and investment in this sector, an area where Scotland has been historically strong and will continue to strengthen. This is a company that clearly has global ambitions and I am delighted that Kaiam has decided to further invest in Scotland and in doing so securing jobs in Scotland for the long term.'
Minister for External Affairs Humza Yousaf will meet representatives from Kaiam Corporation as part of a visit to Vancouver and San Francisco to mark Scotland Week.
Chief Executive Officer of Scottish Enterprise, Lena Wilson, said:
“We’ve worked closely with Kaiam to support the expansion of their Livingstone facility with a £850k Regional Selective Assistance grant which in turn will create 103 new jobs and safeguard another 65.
“With Scottish universities undertaking about 50% of the UK’s Optoelectronics / Photonics research we have no shortage of graduates in this area, making us an ideal location for Optoelectronics / Photonics inward investment. We have 39 optoelectronics companies operating in Scotland, employing around 3500 people and generating a turnover of £660 million, making this a significant industry for Scotland’s economy. By investing in Kaiam’s future now, the company can accelerate its growth plans in Scotland and create real value for both the local community and Scotland’s economy as a whole.”
Background
Headquartered in Newark, California, with large scale manufacturing in Livingston, Scotland, Kaiam Corporation is a private company commercializing photonic integrated circuits. Founded by leading technologists from the optical networking industry, the team has a record of delivering breakthrough products that change the rules of the marketplace. For more information, visit www.kaiamcorp.com and follow on Twitter at: @KaiamCorp.
The optoelectronics industry in Scotland consists of approximately 100 companies including large multinationals, large indigenous companies and predominately small and medium enterprises. The annual sales of these companies in 2012 totalled approximately £1.2 billion and employment was in excess of 4,000. Source: Scottish Optoelectronics Association.
Scottish Government’s key actions in this area include:
· Establishing four Enterprise Areas in Scotland - including sites with a particular focus on low carbon manufacturing opportunities
· Providing advice and support to help SMEs grow, to hire staff and take on apprentices
· Promoting Scottish exports to capitalise on the significant opportunities in growth markets; with an ambitious target to deliver a 50% increase in exports by 2017
· Continuing to deliver the Small Business Bonus Scheme
· Strengthening levels of innovation and commercialisation, including improving the links between our universities and private sector companies
· Using the Scottish Investment Bank to support early stage innovative technology based businesses, and growth and exporting companies
To date, as part of his Scotland Week programme, the First Minister has:
· Announced a trade mission to New York: http://news.scotland.gov.uk/News/FM-to-announce-hundreds-of-new-jobs-for-Scotland-b21.aspx
· Announced 130 new jobs for Ceridian
· Spoke at an event to mark Edinburgh Napier University’s 50th anniversary
· Fired the starting gun at the annual Central Park Scotland Run
· Officially opened Smart Grid Solutions first overseas office in New York
As well as a programme of trade meetings to further the successful engagement with North America’s business community, the First Minister will:
· Deliver the inaugural Caledonian Lecture at Glasgow Caledonian University’s new New York City campus (Monday)
· Participate in an audience interview and Q&A session with the Wall Street Journal
· Deliver a keynote address at the annual Bloomberg Energy Investment Summit (Tuesday)
The First Minister is in New York to take part in the annual Scotland Week programme. This visit formed part of Scottish Development International’s trade and investment programme to support Scottish businesses and develop new opportunities.
Get news from Scotland Week as it happens by following the new First Minister feed @ScotGovFM and @AlexSalmond on twitter. Images will be available for use from the Scottish Government flickr channel – www.flickr.com/scottishgovernment. When available, audio can be found at www.audioboo.fm/FirstMinister
The 2013 Ernst & Young Attractiveness Survey on foreign direct investment (FDI) described Scotland’s performance in attracting inward investment as “sparkling”:
http://news.scotland.gov.uk/News/Report-praises-sparkling-investment-performance-c9.aspx