Facts and Figures
With established links to thousands of world-class leading experts, Interface finds and introduces companies to the perfect academic partner.
Discover the 2020-2021 Interface Annual Review in a new interactive format which showcases the outcomes and impacts from a very busy 12 months.
Key Stats March 2022
Now in its sixteenth year of operating, Interface’s success story is reflected in the following:
- 6143 business-led expertise searches sent to academic partners
- Facilitated 3352 business-academic discussions
- 3036 collaborative business-academic projects initiated
- 97% of businesses said that their project would either not have happened or taken longer without support from Interface
- 92% of expertise searches identified capability and capacity within partner universities, research institutes and colleges for consideration by the companies
- 83% of businesses recorded reduced operating costs, increased productivity, profits, export, turnover and new or safeguarded employment
- 71% of first-time company/university collaborations involved companies seeking expertise in a discipline different to their own business sector
The contribution to the Scottish economy from research and development projects between businesses and academics enabled by Interface was £88.9m GVA, and supported 1,595 jobs, with expectations to reach £222.3 million GVA (gross value added) and 3,193 jobs.
- Interface is crucial to Scotland’s economic resilience
- Interface’s place-based approach means that all rural and urban businesses and communities can access innovation support
- Interface delivers right across Scottish Government priorities including health, environment, communities, education, young people, and international development
- Interface brokers projects that deliver short term impacts, e.g. responding to COVID-19, as well as contributing to longer term targets, like net zero
- 75% of businesses have ongoing relationships with universities through Interface’s service
- The Interface team creates enduring and effective R&D relationships between businesses and universities
- The Interface team are effective, knowledgeable and build trust with businesses
- 85% of businesses felt their projects had the potential to transform lives either locally, nationally or internationally
- 100% satisfaction with Interface service