Scottish laser innovation centre receives £8M from UK Government

09 Dec 2025

Contribution to industry made by Fraunhofer CAP recognized in deal spread over next 4 years.

The contribution to industry made by Scotland’s world-leading laser innovation centre, Fraunhofer Centre for Applied Photonics (CAP), has been recognised by the UK government in a new deal that will see the CAP receive £8 million ($10.6 million) over the next four years.

The Fraunhofer group of research institutes, named after German physicist Joseph von Fraunhofer, is a network of independent research organisations across the world playing a leading role in accelerating technology development.

Established Glasgow in 2012, the not-for-profit CAP’s specialist team carries out research and development for a wide range of industrial clients of all sizes – ranging from SMEs to global corporations.

The UK Government’s Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) had previously given £2 million of capital equipment support to Fraunhofer CAP in a recent competition to bolster the research and technology community capability.

CAP objectives

CAP develops complex lasers and optical systems targeting pressing challenges across key areas such as space, security and defence, healthcare, renewable energy and communications. Its new funding statement noted, “The importance of Fraunhofer CAP as a UK, not just a Scottish asset, has been recognised by influential UK bodies including the Royal Academy of Engineering and UK Government strategies in Innovation, Quantum and Semiconductors.”

The latest funding will be in addition to the £1.3 million granted annually by the Scottish Government and Scottish Enterprise. The Glasgow center has a track record of leveraging this core support more than ten times over in R&D activity across its customer base. This national support also mirrors the established model of national and local support used in Germany and confirms Fraunhofer CAP’s place in the UK innovation landscape.

Simon Andrews, Executive Director of Fraunhofer UK Research said, “Over the last nine years, support from Scottish Government and Scottish Enterprise alone has been invaluable. Fraunhofer CAP leverages that support for student training, strategic R&D, and subsequently wins contracts and grants. In the last year alone, our team has delivered more than £6 million of applied R&D projects for industry.”

“While we have a strong local customer base – 45% of our business comes from the central belt of Scotland – funding from the UK government will enable us to meet the growing demand for our services in a world increasingly turning to photonics and quantum technologies to solve problems across a variety of critical fields,” said Andrews.

UK Science Minister Patrick Vallance said, “To unlock the potential of quantum – which will bring transformative benefits to fields like encryption, navigation, and medicine – we are relying on cutting-edge photonics. The funding we are announcing for Fraunhofer’s center in Glasgow will cement the UK's place as one of the global leaders in the development of this crucial technology.”

The CAP announcement also stated, “Evidence of growth, delivery and efficiency has led to the UK Government to back this world-class center, which has delivered more than 300 projects to more than 200 industrial customers and collaborators, with many projects culminating in field demonstration of cutting edge hardware, giving industry the evidence to pursue commercialisation.”

Scotland’s Minister for Business, Richard Lochhead said, “The Scottish Government, with Scottish Enterprise, has provided core funding to Fraunhofer CAP since its inception in 2012. I welcome this additional core funding from the UK Government which will enable further growth for our critical technologies supercluster.”

Furthermore, Prof. Stephen McArthur, Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Strathclyde, added: “Strathclyde values our longstanding partnership with Fraunhofer UK, which has helped drive growth in the UK’s photonics and quantum sectors.”

In August 2025, the CAP announced its expansion into the second floor of the neighboring Inovo Building, doubling its lab and office capacity. This was made possible thanks to The Scottish Government’s decision to give Fraunhofer CAP an additional £500,000 of funding in the year, with Scottish Enterprise giving an additional £300,000 to further develop its pioneering work in rapidly growing markets.