RSA supports an innovative Scotland
Third quarter report published today
Scottish Enterprise is supporting Scotland's reputation for innovation, with firms like Adrok Limited (Edinburgh), Formedix Limited (Glasgow), Omega Diagnostics Group (Alva) and Sigma-Aldrich Company Limited (Irvine) appearing on the latest report into Regional Selective Assistance (RSA) funding.
Altogether, RSA funding for the last quarter comes to £12,032,000 and is supporting around £61 million in capital investment from recipients. It's also creating or protecting up to 1,274 jobs. The list of recipients includes companies offering advanced manufacturing facilities and services; business and legal process outsourcing services; support to the aerospace and marine engineering sectors and the innovative thinking needed to drive a business forward.
“Scotland has always been known as a nation of innovators,” said David Smith, Director of Innovation & Enterprise Services at Scottish Enterprise. “We have a world-wide reputation for the quality of our science base and for leading the way in the introduction of new technologies and solutions that address global market needs”
“This latest quarterly report shows our reputation is well-deserved – we’ve made awards to a range of organizations from large-scale life sciences companies to home-grown talent offering new technologies to a global marketplace.
“RSA funding continues to be instrumental in bringing global companies to Scotland and Scottish companies to the rest of the world.”
Adrok’s founding member Dr Colin Stove developed Atomic Dielectric Resonance (ADR) technology for use in the location, identification, mapping, and exploration of subsurface natural resources. Today the company supplies its geophysical services to industries all over the world. It accepted an offer of £180,000 to help further develop the company and create up to 15 new jobs. (See more at www.adrokgroup.com)
Formedix works with some of the world’s largest pharmaceutical, biopharmaceutical and medical device companies, as well as contract research organizations (CROs), to deliver time and cost savings in the design and build of clinical trials. Its £200,000 offer will be used to create up to 20 new jobs. (See more at www.formedix.com.)
Omega Diagnostics Group PLC is one of the UK’s leading companies in the In-Vitro Diagnostics (“IVD”) industry. Based in Alva, Clackmannanshire, it has a global presence in more than 100 countries, with subsidiaries in Cambridge and Axminster, (UK); Reinbek (Germany) and Mumbai (India). It manufactures a wide range of specialist products in three UK sites and one in Germany, primarily in the immunoassay sector of the IVD market. The Group operates within three segments: Allergy and Autoimmune, Food Intolerance and Infectious Disease. The £150,000 RSA grant will be used to create up to 40 new jobs. (See more at www.omegadiagnostics.com.)
Sigma-Aldrich is a top 10 global fine chemical supplier and manufacturer of specialty chemicals and biologics to the life science and high technology industries. Its biochemical and organic chemical products and kits are used in scientific and genomic research, biotechnology, pharmaceutical development, the diagnosis of disease and as key components in pharmaceutical and other high technology manufacturing. In September last year it announced it would be expanding its Scottish operations, supported by a £1.5 million RSA grant, which will help support up to 24 new jobs and safeguard 44 existing positions. (See more at www.sigmaaldrich.com.)
“Supporting innovative companies, whether they’re home-grown or global, is vital to the future of Scotland’s economy,” said Lena Wilson, Chief Executive of Scottish Enterprise. “Building on our well-deserved reputation for excellence, and continuing to lead the world in innovative practices, will ensure we maintain our global profile and keep attracting quality investment.
“It’s not all about technology or sciences; it’s also about how we work together, how we interact with others and how we do business with the rest of the world. We have a range of ways to help companies in Scotland – whatever their size and whatever their business – remain innovative and therefore growth-ready. RSA is one of those ways. It’s part of the overall package of support we can offer companies to help them to grow and expand in Scotland.”
Read the full quarterly report here.
Scottish Enterprise is Scotland's main economic development agency and aims to deliver a significant, lasting effect on the Scottish economy.
Our role is to help identify and exploit the best opportunities for economic growth. We support ambitious Scottish companies to compete within the global marketplace and help build Scotland’s globally competitive sectors.
We also work with a range of partners in the public and private sectors to attract new investment to Scotland and to help create a world-class business environment.
Regional Selective Assistance (RSA) is the main national scheme of financial assistance to industry. It provides discretionary grants to investment projects that will create and safeguard employment in areas designated for regional aid under European Community law.
Payment of RSA is made in instalments, typically over several years as job and capital expenditure targets are met. Not all projects will proceed, and nor do all accepted offers result in full payment, as projects are sometimes scaled down or abandoned before payments are made.
The figures quoted represent the maximum grant potentially payable if the project is satisfactorily completed, and not the amount actually paid to date. All job numbers are firms’ forecast figures, and are subject to change depending on future economic conditions and other factors affecting the businesses concerned.