Scotland’s Critical Technologies Supercluster Launches

The University of Glasgow has been announced as one of the founding partners of an ambitious new initiative set to boost Scotland’s cutting-edge technology industries.

Scotland’s Critical Technologies Supercluster, announced this month by the Scottish Government’s business minister, Richard Lochhead, was created to formally bring together Scottish expertise in photonics, quantum, semiconductors, connectivity and sensing. 

According to the university, this aggregation of expertise is unparalleled anywhere else in the UK, and will play a key role in developing industries of the future, with expectations that it will contribute to the country’s future economic growth.

The supercluster initiative is the result of collaboration between the Scottish Government, Scottish Enterprise, Technology Scotland, and the Universities of Glasgow and Strathclyde, currently supporting nearly 11,000 highly skilled workers generating revenues in excess of £4 billion.

As part of the launch, the business minister highlighted an action plan to support growth above £10 billion by 2035 while creating an additional 7,000 jobs, with focus on key themes such as skills, investment, scale up support and internationalisation.

“As well as being vital for our security, defence and economic independence, critical technologies will shape our ambitions in areas such as net zero, smart transport, energy and our broader advanced industries,” said Ally McInroy, CEO at Technology Scotland.

“The supercluster has been created in recognition, not just of the technical overlaps between these technology areas, but also the shared supply chains, market areas and skills pipeline. “

“Positioned correctly, the supercluster will also be a magnet for future investment and a platform to boost Scotland’s profile on the world stage.”

The University of Glasgow said that the supercluster initiative adds to its efforts to strengthen technology industry connections in partnership with Scottish Enterprise and Glasgow City Council through the Glasgow Riverside Innovation District (GRID), which is working to encourage the formation of new collaborations in dynamic sectors of the economy.

A major part of the university’s contribution to the supercluster is the James Watt Nanofabrication Centre, a facility for turning fundamental science into components for new devices and technologies used by global tech companies.  

The Centre’s capabilities have recently been enhanced with the opening of a £3 million ANALOGUE suite for silicon chip integration and packaging, which offers advanced automation capabilities to global partners.

Evelyn Toma, director of strategy at the Centre, said: “The breadth and depth of the Scottish Critical Technology Supercluster has been a surprise to many people who are not directly involved in these areas.

“I am delighted that the James Watt Nanofabrication Centre has been part of this initiative. I believe the supercluster will allow us to accelerate our goal of achieving £10bn sales by 2035, and position Scotland as a leading hub for these technologies in the UK.”

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Last month a new deeptech supercluster was announced by the Scottish Government’s chief entrepreneurial advisor Mark Logan prior to his resignation, with the initiative set to give spinouts, deeptech startups, and deeptech businesses better access to advanced manufacturing capabilities in Scotland.

The hope is that through such superclusters, startups and spinouts will be able to remain in Scotland while they grow, building businesses and new technologies that can provide a boost to the economy.  

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