Stephen Good named Innovation Centre CEO

Stephen Good, CEO Construction Scotland Innovation Centre
Stephen Good, CEO Construction Scotland Innovation Centre

STEPHEN Good has been appointed CEO of the Construction Scotland Innovation Centre – the £9.5 million project to connect industry and academia to drive innovation in the construction sector, ensure long term sustainability and generate a greater economic impact for Scotland.

Currently Director of the iQ Building Futures Lab (a CCG company) in Glasgow, Stephen has worked with CCG since 2007 when he joined to help lead delivery of their £12 million offsite timber closed panel production facility which opened in 2010. In 2011 he established the company’s iQ Building Futures lab which provides low carbon/energy design, analysis and certification amongst other specialist services.

An architect by profession, Stephen – who at 42-years-old is now one of the youngest CEOs in the construction sector – spent nine years, latterly as an Associate, with Glasgow-based architects Anderson Bell + Christie before joining CCG.

Since March 2014 he has been carrying out the role of interim CEO of the Innovation Centre, alongside wider roles as a member of the Construction Scotland Industry Leadership Group; the Scottish Forest & Timber Technologies Industry Leadership Group; a member of Homes for Scotland Technical & Environmental Advisory Group; and trustee of Skirmishes Ltd, the Glasgow charity which runs MAKlab.

Bill McBride, interim Chair of the Innovation Centre said, “I am delighted to be able to announce Stephen’s appointment and have no doubt that when he takes on the role in a full-time capacity at the end of September he will immediately make a positive impact on moving the implementation phase of the Centre forward.

“This is one of the most important influencing roles in the Scottish construction industry – and one of the most exciting opportunities to have come along in the sector for many years. Recent projects delivered in Scotland prove that we have the innovation and capability to deliver collaboratively and creatively on exemplar schemes such as the Commonwealth Games Athletes’ Village, the M74 completion and the Forth Replacement Crossing – but these are not the norm and it’s that mindset we need to move towards.

“Our CEO has a key role to play in contributing towards the industry achieving this culture change, bringing academic experts, professions and trades together to work towards a more innovative, sustainable and profitable sector here in Scotland and beyond – and Stephen is undoubtedly up for the challenge.”

Established in March 2014, the Construction Scotland Innovation Centre’s focus is on connecting industry and academia to boost growth through innovation across all construction-related professions and trades.

Working with 11 of Scotland’s higher education institutions and covering the whole of Scotland, the centre will provide the 31,000 plus businesses involved in the sector with a one-stop shop for accessing a team of academic experts and industry support, helping to maximise long-term economic growth.

Stephen Good said, “Having been involved for the last 18 months as part of the industry group which compiled the bid submitted to the Scottish Funding Council to establish the Innovation Centre, and more recently having acted as Interim CEO alongside my current role, I am looking forward immensely to the new job and maximizing the opportunities for the industry that come with it.

“Since the Innovation Centre’s establishment in March this year, significant progress has been made in getting it off the ground, and the fact that we will formally launch it next month as part of the Construction Scotland Annual Conference in Glasgow is a perfect opportunity to outline initial plans to progress the Centre’s five year plan – and to do this in front of an audience that will include many of the key decision makers and influencers in the Scottish construction industry.”