Heriot-Watt Says Proposed Brewing Center Could Add £53.4m a Year to Scotland’s Economy

Heriot-Watt University said on Monday that a proposed £35m Centre for Advanced Brewing and Distilling at its Edinburgh campus could add £53.4m a year to Scotland’s economy, citing a new economic impact assessment by BiGGAR Economics as the school seeks public and industry backing for the project.

The proposed facility, known as CABD, would expand the university’s long-running work in brewing and distilling education, research and innovation. According to the report, the center could support a total annual economic impact of £324.8m in Gross Value Added across Scotland within 10 years and help sustain 1,570 jobs. The assessment also said that every £1 of public funding could generate £20.80 in economic benefit.

The project has not yet been funded. Heriot-Watt said it is trying to secure £25.3m from industry and £9.7m in public investment to move the plan forward. The university said the new site would provide more space and equipment for research, training and joint work with companies in brewing, distilling and related supply chains.

The assessment comes as brewers and distillers in Scotland face pressure from several long-term issues, including the shift to net-zero emissions, water use, higher input costs and shortages of skilled workers. In that context, the proposed center is being presented not only as an academic expansion but also as a shared research and development base that could help drinks producers test lower-carbon processes, improve production methods and train future staff. If it is built, that could matter well beyond a single campus, especially for small and midsize companies that often lack the resources to develop new technology on their own.

BiGGAR Economics said the facility could strengthen the industry’s competitiveness by bringing together plug-and-play brewing and distilling equipment, advanced research laboratories, space for low-carbon technology development, a raw materials lab, a product quality and innovation lab, sensory testing facilities and infrastructure to support carbon capture and renewable energy integration. The report said that type of setup could increase research activity and make broader collaboration across the sector easier.

Heriot-Watt has tied the case for the new center to the record of its existing International Centre for Brewing and Distilling, or ICBD, which has operated for nearly 40 years. BiGGAR Economics estimated that in 2024/25 the current center generated £240.1m in GVA for the Scottish economy and supported 1,180 jobs. The university also said graduates from the ICBD have founded nearly 30 active brewing and distilling businesses in Scotland. According to the figures cited by Heriot-Watt, those businesses added an estimated £79.4m to the economy in 2024/25 and supported 520 jobs.

Professor Chris Turney, Heriot-Watt’s deputy principal for research and innovation, said the findings support the university’s argument that a larger and more modern center would build on results it is already delivering. He said the next phase would be focused on sustainability as well as maintaining Scotland’s standing in brewing and distilling.

Industry leaders are also backing the fundraising effort. Ewan Andrew, Diageo’s president of global supply chain and procurement and chief sustainability officer, who is also co-chair of Heriot-Watt’s fundraising committee for the project, said the report showed the potential value of the facility for Scotland and the wider U.K. if government support is secured. He said a combination of private investment, philanthropy, public funding and academic expertise could help the industry respond faster and at greater scale than any one group could alone.

Shona Glenn, a director at BiGGAR Economics, said the existing ICBD has been important in maintaining a pipeline of skilled workers and helping create new businesses in the sector. She said the proposed center would be designed to meet current research and development needs more directly and give the industry a place to collaborate on common problems.

The university said the timing is important because student demand and industry demand are outgrowing its current facilities. That capacity issue is central to the argument for the new center. Heriot-Watt says the proposed site would allow it to expand teaching, applied research and technical support at a time when brewing and distilling companies are under growing pressure to cut emissions, manage resources more efficiently and keep product quality high while controlling costs.