£65m hub boost for manufacturing

A £65MILLION international centre of manufacturing expertise is to be built near Glasgow Airport.

Nicola Sturgeon yesterday revealed plans for the National Manufacturing Institute for Scotland (NMIS) which will provide support for businesses throughout the country, and aims to attract investment.

Strathclyde University will be the anchor university for the institute, which will be located at Inchinnan in Renfrewshire.

The First Minister and Economy Secretary Keith Brown made the announcement during a visit to Rolls-Royce’s manufacturing facility in Inchinnan.

The company is a founding member of Strathclyde University’s existing Advanced Forming Research Centre.

Miss Sturgeon said: ‘This exciting facility will be an industry-led international centre of manufacturing expertise.

‘Research, industry and the public sector will work together to transform skills, productivity and innovation, attracting investment and making Scotland a global leader in advanced manufacturing.’

The Scottish Government will invest £48million in NMIS, with £8million from Strathclyde University. It comes after £8.9million was announced by the Scottish Government in June 2017 for the Lightweight Manufacturing Centre as a first step towards the wider plans. Renfrewshire Council will provide a further £39.1million through the Glasgow City Region Deal.

Mr Brown said: ‘Our investment in NMIS builds on our support for the Lightweight Manufacturing Centre and will support that and our ambitious target of doubling business expenditure on research and development by 2025.’

Professor Sir Jim McDonald, Strathclyde University principal and vice-chancellor, said: ‘Today’s announcement marks the beginning of a new chapter for Scottish manufacturing.’