Data-Driven Innovation Programme Annual Review

The University of Edinburgh and Heriot-Watt University’s Data-Driven Innovation (DDI) initiative has published its latest Annual Review, showcasing achievements from the academic year 2023-24.

Twenty in depth case studies feature in the review, covering start-ups and spin-outs, research, and partnerships delivering positive impacts for a range of industry sectors.

The DDI initiative launched in 2018 as part of the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal, and was set ambitious targets for increasing data skills, industry partnerships and entrepreneurship.

The Review provides a snapshot of recent activity across six DDI hubs, all now open and located at the University of Edinburgh and Heriot-Watt University, and delivering impact across ten industry sectors, from Argritech and Creative, to Fintech and Healthcare.

The review includes examples of how staff at the Bayes Centre and Edinburgh Futures Institute helped housing and homelessness teams at City of Edinburgh Council improve services. Also featured is a partnership from the Creative Informatics team, which enabled an arts organisation to enhance digital skills and data capabilities.

In the 2023-24 academic year, the DDI initiative delivered £160million in research activity and saw a 24% increase compared with the previous year. 80 early-stage data-centric companies were supported, surpassing DDI’s unique company end-of-programme target by 25%.

23-24 also saw the initiative surpass its entrepreneurship goal by four times the initial target. Since launch, 550 entrepreneurs have been supported through DDI, together securing more than £200 million of investments. Half of this funding has remained local, with businesses in the Edinburgh and South East Scotland area.

With all DDI hubs now open, the University of Edinburgh and Heriot-Watt University are able to increase learning opportunities for a variety of communities and organisations, additionally offering residency spaces for companies where they can benefit from University collaboration.

Expanding partnerships, and increasing engagement with business, remains a core future goal for the DDI initiative; the opening of all six DDI innovation hubs is a significant milestone in helping deliver that ambition.

View the Annual Report

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First tenants move into flagship Levenmouth Business Park

The first tenants have moved into the new flagship Levenmouth Business Park – marking a major milestone in the ongoing regeneration of Mid-Fife.

Seven new modern and attractive units have been built at Muiredge on the outskirts of Buckhaven, providing 741 square metres of space for a range of businesses and supporting the creation of an estimated 15 jobs.

The units – which have been built to a high specification - have evidenced high demand, with six units snapped up by growing businesses and new enterprises with ongoing enquiries focussed on the remaining available unit.

After the units were formally handed over by contractors last week, the occupants are starting to settle into their new surroundings, supporting the expansion of Levenmouth’s business base.

The creation of Levenmouth Business Park is part of the £58 million 10-year Fife Industrial Innovation Investment (Fife i3) Programme, which has been supported through the wider £1.5 billion Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal and aims to provide much-needed serviced employment land and new industrial, office and business space across the Kingdom.

Around £1.2 million was secured via the City Region Deal for this particular project, while £715,000 from the Levenmouth Reconnected Programme – a £10 million fund set up to maximise the benefits of the new Levenmouth Rail Link – also went towards site servicing and the new builds.

Councillor Altany Craik, spokesperson for finance, economy and strategic planning, said he was delighted to see the new units open for business.

“The Fife i3 Programme is all about creating conditions for start-ups and SMEs (small/medium-sized enterprises) to grow and innovate, and with that comes direct and indirect employment, increased demand for local services, and major benefits for supply chain businesses both here in Fife but across Scotland more generally,” he commented.

“It’s great to hear these units have been in demand, and of course they are perfectly placed to take advantage of the new £116m Levenmouth Rail Link, the new active travel network going in, and enhanced bus services.

“We’ve been committed to ensuring new, flexible business property is available across a range of locations, sizes and uses, and I think Levenmouth Business Park is a prime example of that.

“On behalf of the council, we’d like to wish all the new tenants well and we look forward to seeing them flourish.”

Fife Council’s Economic Development team has led on the development and promotion of the new units and employment land with the aim of securing new occupiers and investment at the Business Park. To find out more, visit www.investfife.co.uk or email fifemeansbusiness@fife.gov.uk.

A fly-through video of the new units can be found on the Levenmouth Reconnected You Tube channel here: https://youtu.be/Qczb-uPDc9g

Work Starts on Edinburgh Innovation Hub

A ‘ground-breaking’ ceremony has taken place to mark the start of construction on an innovation hub designed to become a nationally significant centre for innovation driven business growth and to create new high value employment.

The Edinburgh Innovation Hub is a joint venture between East Lothian Council and Queen Margaret University (QMU).

Representatives of the council and university were joined for the ceremony by Donald Cameron, UK Government Minister for Scotland, and Richard Lochhead, the Scottish Government’s Minister for Small Business, Innovation, Tourism and Trade.

The 7,200 sqm Hub, which received planning permission last September, is expected to be completed in 2025. It will comprise flexible laboratory, office and fully equipped meeting and conference spaces for rent by high growth small to medium enterprises (SMEs).

The Hub will support and grow businesses driven by innovation, knowledge exchange and technology, bringing together research, industry and academia under one roof, creating opportunities for synergies and knowledge-sharing. Tenants will be able to rent accommodation packages, for move-in ready space, that fits their size and needs. The design of the Hub will enable tenants to take up more space as and when they need to.

The venture is supported by £28.6 million from the UK Government, £1.4 million from the Scottish Government and £10 million from East Lothian Council as part of the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal (ESES City Region Deal).

Councillor Norman Hampshire, Leader of East Lothian Council, said: “The start of construction on this project highlights our ambition to create a sought-after location for business growth and increase high value jobs for East Lothian. It aligns with our aim of making East Lothian the best place in Scotland in which to live, work and do business.

“By supporting the food and drink and other important economic sectors, including tech and life sciences, we can attract innovative businesses to one of Scotland’s fastest growing areas.

“The 52 acre Edinburgh Innovation Park adjacent to the Edinburgh Innovation Hub will transform a strategic economic development site, owned by East Lothian Council, into a nationally significant cluster of knowledge exchange, innovation and high value business growth.”

Sir Paul Grice, Principal and Vice-Chancellor of QMU said: “Along with driving economic development locally and nationally, the Hub will act as a gateway into QMU for businesses, increase opportunities at the University for industry-relevant research and knowledge exchange, promote an entrepreneurial culture, and increase the vibrancy of the area around the campus.

“The Hub is not just a new building, it will be a new business. Importantly, it will provide a much more bespoke and focused service than is currently offered by business parks, providing not only physical facilities but also the operational support SMEs need to work effectively and grow.”

UK Government Minister for Scotland, Donald Cameron said: “Construction starting on this UK Government and partners funded innovation hub is a hugely exciting milestone for the area. I can't wait to see the facility up and running as it will help boost the local and national economy through generating innovative business and employment growth. The UK Government is backing the facility with £28.6 million investment - part of our £300 million commitment to the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal. In total we are investing more than £3 billion to level up across Scotland.”

Scottish Government Minister for Small Business, Innovation, Tourism and Trade Richard Lochhead said: “This is an important milestone in the development of the Edinburgh Innovation Hub, which is being delivered with Deal partners and £1.4 million of Scottish Government investment.

“We are investing £300 million in the Deal across a range of projects, which will be crucial in helping us deliver a fair and sustainable wellbeing economy with good quality jobs at its heart.

“Our National Innovation Strategy for Scotland sets out our vision of how, over the next ten years, Scotland will become one of the most innovative small nations in the world – projects such as this are going to be crucial in fulfilling that ambition.”

The Hub will help to initiate development of the wider Edinburgh Innovation Park on land adjacent to the QMU campus. The development was granted planning permission in principle in March 2019, as part of a wider mixed use development, including new homes and a new primary school, business & industry use and community facilities.

More information on the Edinburgh Innovation Hub is on the website.

The National Robotarium wins Project of the Year at Learning Places Scotland Awards

Heriot-Watt University’s National Robotarium facility for robotics and AI took home the Project of the Year prize at this year’s Learning Places Scotland awards, held on 14 November in Glasgow. The awards, delivered in partnership with the Scottish Government as part of Scottish Learning Estates strategy, are an annual celebration of Scotland’s growing learning estate, recognising facilities that are making strides in sustainability, technology and student experience.

Supported by £21 million from the UK Government and £1.4m from the Scottish Government as part of the £1.3bn Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal, the National Robotarium officially opened in September 2022. Since then, the facility has been a catalyst for bridging knowledge between science and business, delivering sustainable economic benefit to Scotland and the UK through its expanding portfolio of industry partnerships that are developing new robotic technologies to address real-world and sectoral challenges.

Designed with sustainability at its heart, the 40,000ft² facility itself offers unrivalled learning spaces, allowing Heriot-Watt to maximise its AI and robotics strengths and lead the field in research. It boasts a variety of flexible spaces and test beds for specialist research, student projects, public engagement, and industry collaborations across three distinct themes; Robotics and Autonomous Systems (RAS), Human-Robot Interaction (HRI), and Precision Laser Applications (PLA).

The estates and projects team at Heriot-Watt, along with external consultants Michael Laird Architects and Atkins Realis, who collected the award on the night, were recognised for their collaborative efforts in creating a cutting-edge, sustainable centre for the advancement of research and learning in robotics and Artificial Intelligence.

The success of the project and its construction, enduring challenges such as the Covid pandemic and Brexit, was the result of extensive stakeholder engagement, ensuring the building met the requirements of individual teams and research areas, and accommodated emerging technologies through its flexible, fabric-first design.

More on the awards

Fife Council Commits To ESES City Region Deal Community Wealth Building Pledges

Fife Council on behalf of the Fife Industrial Innovation Investment (i3) Programme, have become the first City Region Deal project to commit to the ESES CRD Community Wealth Building (CWB) Pledge.  

Fife’s Industrial Innovation Investment programme (i3) is being delivered as part of the ESES City Region Deal, with an aim to provide much-needed serviced employment land and new industrial, office and business spaces, as well as creating new skilled permanent jobs, short-term construction jobs over the 15-year lifetime of the City Region Deal. 
 
“Committing to these pledges demonstrates our dedication to accelerating inclusive growth and removing barriers to growth in our inclusive economy.” Gordon Mole, Head of Business and Employment, Fife Council.  
 
Fife Council have been proactive on their own community wealth journey and instil the core values of the 5 pillars of CWB in their day-to-day activity.  

Read the press release to find out more information about why committing to the pledge was important to Fife Council and how this will influence their activity going forward.

For more information on the Community Wealth Building framework and pledge, visit the Community Wealth Building website