A contract has been awarded for the design of a new building at the Inverness campus which will boost the city’s life sciences sector.
The building will sit next to the existing Aurora House which houses Aqua Pharma, a leading company in the industry when it comes to fighting sealice.
Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) has awarded the new contract, worth up to £120,000, to Inverness-based architects ThreeSixty Architecture.
It is thought the new building will comprise a mix of office and or laboratory space once it has been fitted out.
Design details are still at an early stage and there has been no confirmation how much the development will cost and when it will be open and ready for use.
However, a HIE spokeswoman said: “Inverness Campus is one of Scotland’s most ambitious projects. Its development is being led by HIE to support the further expansion of some of the region’s key sectors, particularly life sciences.
“The site has been specifically designed to encourage collaboration, within the campus and neighbouring organisations such as LifeScan Scotland, Raigmore Hospital and the Centre for Health Science.”
The campus has been billed as the ideal base for businesses who are looking to take advantage of shared resources, a collaborative environment, and innovative organisations all working together in one location.
UHI fosters learning through a range of life science courses which it is hoped can be used to achieve employment in the industry locally.
It is also strengthening its nurse training, recently announcing it will take over two nursing courses from Stirling University in the next academic year.
The pre-registration nurse education programme for BSc mental health nursing and BSc adult nursing are currently delivered by Stirling Uni staff in Inverness and Stornoway.
But the Nursing and Midwifery Council has given the final approval required to allow the transfer of the programmes to the north.