The Construction Scotland Innovation Centre has announced the appointment of Helge Hansen as its business development manager for the North of Scotland region.

The Innovation Centre, which was launched in October 2014, was set up to transform the Scottish construction industry by encouraging companies to innovate. It provides Scotland’s 31,000+ construction businesses with a ‘one-stop shop’ for accessing a team of experts and public support. The Centre is supported by Scottish Funding Council, Scottish Enterprise, Highlands and Islands Enterprise and 12 Scottish university partners.

Mr Hansen will be based in Muir of Ord, near Inverness but will cover the whole of the Highlands and Islands and Grampian. His role will be to work with construction companies to help define their innovation needs, encourage their ideas and help overcome any challenges they face when developing innovative projects.

Mr Hansen studied forestry and wood technology in Germany, New Zealand and Canada. He then worked in research and development at universities in Switzerland and Germany before becoming international project manager for one of Europe’s leading off-site manufacturers, Renggli AG. He then became managing director of Renggli Ltd UK, before moving on to Alexanders Timber Design where he was business development manager.

He said: “I am very excited to be working with the CSIC team to make a contribution towards a more innovative and sustainable Scottish construction industry. My aim is to use my experience and knowledge to encourage and stimulate innovation amongst construction companies. I am very much looking forward to engaging with a variety of businesses, from small start-up companies to large scale industry leaders to help unveil the great potential for innovation that exists in the north of Scotland.”

CSIC’s head of business development, Gillian Fleming, said: “I am delighted to welcome Helge to our team at what is a very exciting time for the Construction Scotland Innovation Centre. He has a wealth of relevant experience and talent which he will use to help uncover the hidden gems of innovation which we know are out there. I’d encourage any construction business with a bright idea to get in touch with us to see what assistance and support we can offer to make that idea become a reality.”

Morven Cameron, head of academic development at Highlands and Islands Enterprise said: “Highlands & Islands Enterprise is delighted that CSIC has recruited a Business Development Manager to work in our region. We have some very innovative businesses operating in this sector who have real opportunity to grow and drive forward through the development of exciting new products and processes, which could influence the competitiveness of the Scottish construction sector. Collaborating with Scotland’s universities is important to the sector’s future success and CSIC will be crucial to helping make that happen. We very much welcome Helge Hansen into this role and look forward to working with him.”