Healthtech firm Emblation looks to rival 'best Silicon Valley can offer' with new hi-tech £4m HQ in Stirling

A healthtech firm has invested a seven-figure sum to create a swish new HQ “to rival the best Silicon Valley can offer”, boasting facilities such as a high-tech gym, and located in Stirling.

The gym area is set to include treadmills, Peloton bikes, rowing and elliptical machines and a large floor space for weight training or yoga. Picture: contributed.

Emblation – which harnesses microwave technology for treatments in oncology, dermatology, and podiatry – has invested £4 million in the forthcoming state-of-the-art premises, saying its growing workforce of more than 60 UK-based employees will have access to a gym including Peloton bikes, games room with pool table, sauna, and sealed, sound-proofed and low-lit chillout room. The building, which overlooks Stirling Castle and the Wallace Monument, will also have free-to-access bikes for use on the nearby network of cycle paths.

The new Emblation House site in fact covers more than 20,000 square feet altogether across two floors at Castle Business Park, with the move partly supported by Scottish Enterprise Regional Selective Assistance funding, and staff will start a phased move into the new base during August.

Emblation says a crucial element of the new HQ is the 4,000-sq-ft production area, with the firm bringing manufacturing of its devices in-house, previously being outsourced from various global locations.

The new premises covers more than 20,000 sq ft across two floors at Castle Business Park in Stirling. Picture: contributed.

Bosses say the opening is a huge milestone for the firm, adding that it has seen major investment and rapid global expansion thanks to the success of its Swift device, which treats stubborn skin lesions, with more than 300,000 treatments having been carried out internationally. It adds that its microwave technology is also being trialled as a potential treatment for conditions including cervical and skin cancers.

Co-founder and chief executive Gary Beale has been heavily involved in bringing to life the new HQ, and said Emblation is “beyond excited” about its completion. “We’ve worked really hard to create a space where we hope it will be inspiring, enjoyable and rewarding to come to work,” he added.

He and co-founder Eamon McErlean, who met during their post-graduate studies at Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, say they were determined to remain in Scotland, so the new complex also boasts a 90-person auditorium to unite staff and industry leaders from around the world.

Giving back

Beale added: “In our sphere, America is the place to be, so it would have been the easiest thing in the world for us to set up our headquarters in the US. However, we were determined to retain the strongest possible Scottish identity. The business was created here in Scotland, and we want to reflect the huge talent in this country, while also putting something back into the local economy of Central Scotland.”

Design work for the new HQ was delivered by Glasgow architecture and interior specialist Keppie Designs over an 18-month project alongside Alloa-based main contractor Neil Porteous Building Contractors.

Emblation, which was founded almost 15 years ago, notes that in 2021 it received an eight-figure cash injection from specialist healthcare investor Apposite Capital that drove rapid global growth with the acquisition of a distribution company to form its US arm, for example. Meanwhile headcount more than doubled, prompting the need for bigger offices as it outgrew its Alloa base.

Beale also stated: "Manufacturing is not a sector which has been faring well in the UK over recent years, so bringing production back to Scotland and centralising our production at Emblation House will have a significant impact in reducing our carbon footprint.”