St Andrews set to cash in on business drive

Andrew Murray-Watson, The Scotsman, 21 August 2002

The University of St Andrews announced its intention to spin out 30 companies over the next decade after securing a "significant, six-figure" partnership deal with Scottish Enterprise Fife yesterday.

As part of the "St Andrews World-Class" agreement, the size of the university’s commercialisation team will double from five to ten.

First Minister Jack McConnell, who announced details of the deal, said: "This partnership will help us capitalise on our first-class academic research and turn this into business results."

St Andrews is keen to catch up with other Scottish universities in exploiting commercialisation opportunities.

In March, it spun out Photosynergy, a joint venture with Ferranti, to develop low-cost laser technology. The firm is currently seeking a chief executive to pursue a funding deal.

The St Andrews World-Class agreement builds on a long-standing relationship between the university and Scottish Enterprise Fife.

Ewan Chirnside, director of research and enterprise services at St Andrews, said: "The deal is a significant, six-figure sum and will put us on a par with research-active universities in Scotland, such as Glasgow and Edinburgh. We have undoubtedly been behind the game in the past for various reasons."

He added: "The private sector contributed about 8 per cent of the total research budget for last year."

St Andrews has a large number of patents for its research, which it aims to commercialise. The university specialises in research into optoelectronics, lasers, fuel cells, fuel catalysts and medical devices.

Joe Noble, chief executive of Scottish Enterprise Fife, said: "Our partnership with the University of St Andrews has the potential to make a significant impact on both the regional and Scottish economies.

"The aim would be to take their research and existing work to a commercial level and produce some truly innovative companies."

Earlier this year, South African fuel giant Sasol said it intended to establish a multi-million pound research laboratory at the University of St Andrews.

The Fife institution beat eight other sites in Europe to house the £5 million facility, which will create 25 jobs.