EW talks to Tony Harker is CEO of the ISLI about Scotland's place as a centre for design
EW: Following Scottish Enterprise’s decision to sell its stake in the Alba Campus, can the ISLI take up the mantle as Scotland’s leading IP and training organisation?
Tony 
Harker: SE’s decision to sell its stake in the Alba Campus is of no real consequence to iSLI. In simple terms, all we have is a new landlord. Outside of the Universities, I believe we are already one of Scotland’s leading high technology training organisations. Indeed, if you include our four university partners one could argue that iSLI and its network is the single biggest high technology training and education provider in the UK. We recently registered our 1000th CPD 
student from industry so I am confident in our ability to claim this lead.
EW: Why is it still important to support and develop the semiconductor design community in Scotland?
Tony Harker: ISLI was originally set up to primarily service the SoC design community in Scotland, we have adapted to changing markets, as have the majority of our customers. We no longer concentrate 100 per cent upon chip based design. Our MSc and Engineering Doctorate degrees are in System Level Integration. This does not just mean Soc or SiP. An appreciable amount of teaching and research includes such things as embedded software, FPGA based and mixed signal design. We are servicing a spectrum of technology based companies throughout Scotland and the greater UK who works with chip based design through to FPGA and complex multi component based boards and systems.
EW: What are the main opportunities for designers looking to develop their careers in Scotland?
Tony Harker: Scotland has a strong presence in analogue, mixed signal and systems design. Companies such as Atmel, EPSON, Nallatech, National Semiconductor, Selex, ST, Thales, Wolfson and Xilinx are all testimony to this. Complimenting this is a healthy start-up culture which feeds from strong universities. Opportunities are there for talented individuals who can demonstrate an ability to work in multifunctional organisations. The niche engineering challenges offered by the mixed signal and embedded systems worlds are still there and promise to stay as we move further into the realms of deep sub micron and higher level integration.
EW: Has the local industry learnt any lessons from SE’s Alba project?
Tony Harker: Alba as a whole was an ambitious, long term project which unfortunately became a victim of global economics. It suffered as did most of the high tech world from the dotcom bubble. Additionally nobody involved in its formative years could have foreseen the incredible acceleration and technological rise of the emerging economies, coupled with the drive towards offshore cost savings. Significantly iSLI, one of the major building blocks of the original experiment, has grown to the point that it can exist in its own right.
EW: What is its legacy to the local industry?
Tony Harker: Local industry has shifted emphasis away from huge inward investment towards that of SMEs. Scotland is acknowledged as one of the major start-up hotspots in the UK. Alba and all the support behind it was instrumental in sowing the seeds for this growth. Young companies such as Elonics plus established groups from larger companies such as Epson and Plexus are all local Alba Campus successes. Add to these, the plethora of startups being helped by our new Incubator Centre and you can easily see Alba’s legacy.