Representing Lord Lieutenant Lady Haughey CBE , Vice Lord Lieutenant Gavin Whitefield CBE DL attended
CST Global’s technology day which allowed local photonics businesses; MPs and MSPs; innovation and funding bodies; university professors; and press and media, including the BBC; to join CST Global to celebrate the expansion of its III-V, compound semiconductor manufacturing site at Hamilton International Technology Park
The following extract from the Company’s media release provides further information on the event :
Neil Martin, CEO of CST Global, addressed the guests with a speech entitled ‘The Photonics Gold Rush of 2019.’ He covered the size and growth of the photonics market; the significance of enabling technology to dependent industries and its impact on society; the challenges faced in recruiting international talent; and the importance of funding to accelerate entry into new technology sectors and markets. He described the current photonics industry opportunity as a modern-day gold rush, likely to peak during 2019. This time the urgency is to prove feasibility and own new technology. He stressed how critical the photonics industry will be to the UK economy and GDP over the next ten years.
Neil went on to launch Technology at CST, or ‘T@CST’ as it is now known, stating, “We plan to facilitate a collective voice for photonics companies in Scotland through the T@CST think-tank. Industrialists, professors, engineers, funders and the government will all be invited to help to identify the steps necessary to commercialise new photonics technologies being developed.
“The first meeting of T@CST will look at the key steps necessary to take Quantum Technologies out of the lab and into everyday life. Sir Peter Knight, Professor of Quantum Optics at Imperial College, London, will host.”
Carol Monaghan MP, Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Photonics and a Member of the House of Commons Science and Technology Select Committee, provided CST Global’s Technology day, keynote address. Carol graduated from Strathclyde University with a degree in laser physics and optoelectronics and is MP for Glasgow North West.
Carol stated, “I set up the All Party Parliamentary Group on Photonics to increase understanding of this key, but often unknown industry.
“The central belt of Scotland is a hotbed for photonics research, from Glasgow and Strathclyde universities in the west to Heriot-Watt, Edinburgh and St Andrews in the east. These industry-facing universities allow great and rich partnerships between industry and research that allow SMEs to flourish. In Scotland, the presence of a number of major multinationals, combined with this outstanding research base, has enabled the central belt to become a world leader in the design, development and manufacture of high-value lasers.
“Across Scotland, photonics currently provides employment for around 3,000 people. Laser sales are in excess of £200 million per annum, and 90% of those sales are exports. It enables other industries to be competitive and 10%
of UK jobs depend on it. “The shortages in science, technology, engineering and maths skills may pose a threat to the photonics industry.
Carol’s address was well-received by attendees. She confirmed the importance of the photonics industry to the UK economy; expressed her disappointment that international staff are still concerned about job security; and stated that we must also create an academic environment where top engineering talent, both male and female, can also be home-grown.
CST Global’s technology day was attended by Ged Killen MP, Monica Lennon MSP and Carol Monaghan MP; Professors of Glasgow University and Strathclyde University; Innovate UK; Technology Scotland; Scottish Enterprise; UK Compound Semiconductor Catapult; Compound Semiconductor Magazine, Optical Connections magazine, the BBC and local paper, the Hamilton Advertiser; and leaders of five photonics-based companies in Scotland – Compugraphics, Gas Sensing Solutions, Kelvin Nanotechnology (KNT), Pure LiFi and Renishaw.
CST Global is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sivers IMA Holdings AB.
Contact CST Global, a Sivers IMA subsidiary, on 01698 722072, or visit www.CSTGlobal.uk for more information.
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