Innovation Centres
SFC’s Innovation Centre programme
SFC is working in partnership with Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise, to support transformational collaboration between universities and businesses.
The Centres aim to enhance innovation and entrepreneurship across Scotland’s key economic sectors, create jobs and grow the economy.
Innovation Centres (ICs) have backing from industry and draw on all of Scotland’s research expertise in the relevant sector to work on problems and opportunities identified by industry. They add value through secondments, industrial studentships, spaces for collaborative work and shared access to equipment.
Innovation Centres (ICs) also support skills and training to develop the next generation of researchers and knowledge exchange practitioners through masters and post-doctoral level provision.
Innovation Centres - Key Documents
SFC’s funding to Innovation Centres
We committed £120 million for the Innovation Centre programme over five years (2013-18) to support the university infrastructure. Each Innovation Centre is expected to lever further investment from industry and other sources of public funding.
Digital Health and Care Innovation Centre
The Digital Health and Care Innovation Centre's focus is innovation in digital health and care that will help the people of Scotland live longer, healthier lives, while providing sustainable and inclusive growth for the country's economy.
Precision Medicine Scotland
Precision Medicine Scotland (formerly Stratified Medicine Scotland) supports economic growth through the transformation of the management of chronic disease by accelerating biomedical research and high quality health care provision.
Centre for Sensor and Imaging Systems
The Centre for Sensor and Imaging Systems (CENSIS) is a centre of excellence for Sensor and Imaging Systems (SIS) technologies and aims to enable leading industry innovators and world-class university researchers to collaborate at the forefront of market-focused SIS innovation, developing products and services for global markets.
Industrial Biotechnology
Industrial Biotechnology (IBioIC) will accelerate and de-risk the development of commercially viable, sustainable solutions for high value (speciality & commodity) manufacturing in chemistry-using and life science sectors. Its vision is to establish an innovation and growth engine yielding substantial economic impact and delivering increasing and sustainable wealth creation, prosperity and employment in Scotland.
Sustainable Aquaculture Innovation Centre (SAIC)
The core function of the Sustainable Aquaculture Innovation Centre (SAIC) is to release the potential for growth through effective collaboration between the industry and the Scottish research community. This will include, coordinated problem solving via Priority Innovation Actions to address the major constraints to growth and development, support for new businesses and ensuring effective knowledge exchange. The resulting growth in production will bring with it investment in Scottish jobs, infrastructure and research, while underpinning food safety and security and an improved diet for the Scottish population.
Built Environment – Smarter Transformation (BE-ST)
Formerly called Construction Scotland Innovation Centre (CSiC), Built Environment – Smarter Transformation provides the connections, infrastructure and culture needed to solve the sector’s most pressing challenges. They bring together world-class academia, government bodies and industry at all levels to future-proof the commercial and environmental road forward for the sector.
The Data Lab
The Data Lab enables industry, public sector and world-class university researchers to innovate and develop new data science capabilities in a collaborative environment. Its core mission is to generate significant economic, social and scientific value from data.
Independent Review of Innovation Centres Programme – Chaired by Professor Graeme Reid 2016
The review focused on the delivery of the original vision, aims and objectives of the Innovation Centres Programme. It was chaired by Professor Graeme Reid and supported by an Advisory Committee and economic assessment consultants, EKOS Ltd.
Innovation Centre Infrastructure Assessment Process 2023
Our Review of Coherent Provision and Sustainability recommended we relaunch our flagship investments, including Innovation Centres (ICs), as stable long-term infrastructure. We have developed a process for assessing the current ICs and their suitability for SFC Infrastructure Investment which will make recommendations to the
SFC Board in summer 2023. An Assessment Panel has been formed to support this process with the current 7 ICs (only) being invited to submit plans.
Further information.
Subsidy Control Scheme
The SFC’s Innovation Centre Scheme operates under the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation agreement (TCA) and within UK Subsidy Control requirements.
