Iain Gulland, Director, Zero Waste Scotland; with Environment Secretary Richard Lochhead
The report, from Zero Waste Scotland and Scottish Enterprise, examined how “valuable” the remanufacturing industry could be to Scotland.
Click Green reported on the release of the report, which estimates remanufacturing “could add nearly” £2 billion ($3 billion/€2.7 billion) to the Scottish economy, with Environment Secretary Richard Lochhead speaking at the Holyrood Waste Conference to launch the report. The industry already employs around 17,000 people in Scotland, and is valued at this time at £1.1 billion ($1.6 billion/€1.5 billion), but this could grow to £2 billion in the next few years.
Lochhead noted that remanufacturing “is a key area with momentum in Scotland”, adding that “it is clear that creating more opportunities in this area will be a huge benefit to the economy”, and stating that by 2020 “remanufacturing activity in Scotland could grow by up to £620 million ($/€), and bring up to 5,700 new jobs to the country”.
He also reflected on the opening of the Scottish Institute of Remanufacture earlier this year, and stated that “there are many specialists working in remanufacturing in Scotland”, with the government “determined to pursue this opportunity”. A UK report on remanufacturing launched earlier this week was also referenced by Lochhead, who noted that the “the rest of the UK is lagging behind [Scotland] on remanufacturing”.
He also spoke of the sectors beyond the “major areas of remanufacturing activity in Scotland”, such as “ICT and medical equipment”, that “could also support significant remanufacturing activity”, and addressed the need for the government to “ensure that we put in place the structures and support to nurture this promising activity”.
In turn, Iain Gulland, CEO of Zero Waste Scotland, added that the report “is a landmark in providing evidence of the fantastic economic potential of remanufacturing in Scotland”, while Nick Shields, Director of the Scottish Manufacturing Advisory Service at Scottish Enterprise, stated that “remanufacturing is an exciting opportunity for Scotland’s manufacturing sector”, as it can “stimulate innovation, boost productivity, create jobs and promote increased resilience to price spikes in raw materials”
The Recycler previously reported on calls for remanufacturing subsidies in Scotland, while a remanufacturing workshop was also announced last month.