Businesses blooming
We have a long and proud heritage of manufacturing in Renfrewshire and the area is home to some major producers whose products are renowned worldwide.
In recent weeks, I’ve visited two such businesses and heard more about the fantastic work they do, each at the cutting edge of innovation in their fields.
My tour of the established RollsRoyce facility was highly informative and enabled me to see the highly-skilled work done there at close quarters.
And I was delighted to be invited to join colleagues from Thermo Fisher Scientific at their ribbon cutting ceremony as they expand their Inchinnan facility.
The expansion will enable manufacturing of products used in cell biology for laboratories worldwide and will see 10 new manufacturing roles being created at the campus, which adds to their 800-strong workforce.
It’s great to see these major employers continuing to grow and offer new jobs and opportunities.
We are determined to create the conditions that attract new businesses to the area and enable established businesses to grow and innovate.
And with the National Manufacturing Institute for Scotland and the Medicines Manufacturing Innovation Centre both to be built in Renfrewshire over the coming years, we will be at the heart of Scotland’s manufacturing future. Iain Nicolson, left, is shown round the Thermo Fisher Scientific facility by site leader David Rae Thousands of people flocked to Paisley to enjoy Scotland’s leading Halloween event.
The festival has certainly set the bar high and I’m looking forward to the next big date in the diary, with the Fireworks Spectacular in Paisley on Saturday.
The town hall will have lots of activities on offer throughout the day before the skies light up with the display starting at 7pm.
And the winter events extravaganza continues with the Christmas Lights Switch-On events in Paisley on Saturday, November 17; in Renfrew, on Saturday, November 24, and in Johnstone, on Saturday, December 1.
All these events are opportunities to showcase what we have to offer to visitors and to celebrate the talents and creativity of our communities.
The footfall they bring provides a vital boost to the local economy – but above all that, they’re great fun.