Edinburgh Napier University launches £12m scheme to boost businesses

EDINBURGH Napier University has launched a £12 million plan to support more than 3,000 businesses,

Nine institutes, designed to act as one-stop shops for businesses to access expertise, research, facilities and product testing are being established as part of the investment.

EU project grants worth a total of 8m together with 4m of funding from the Scottish Government will be used by the new institutes to work with the private sector.

The investment is expected to help develop more than 300 new products and services and create more than 300 full-time equivalent new jobs.

The institutes will offer direct technical support, grants, specialist skills and training in sectors identified as key growth areas by the Scottish government.

Construction, creative industries, digital markets, energy, financial services, food and drink, forest industries, life sciences, manufacturing, textiles and tourism are among the sectors being targeted.

The move has been welcomed by CBI Scotland director Iain McMillan.

"It is essential for Scotland's future success to focus resources so that we continue to build our national and international competitiveness, be globally engaged and work towards 'world class 'performance. Innovation is at the heart of this goal.

"This focus on Scotland's key sectors will help to drive active innovation in the areas that will have the greatest impact on economic growth."