HP to create 700 jobs at Erskine

Hewlett-Packard is planning to open an IT services centre at Erskine in Renfrewshire, which could create 700 jobs.

The Erskine facility - now home to the global firm's sales and customer support operations - cut about 700 manufacturing jobs last year after a restructure led to the transfer of production to the Czech Republic.

The announcement of developing the Erskine site came after the firm received a £7 million grant from government agency Scottish Enterprise.

Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond said: "HP's decision to make this investment at Erskine reflects the quality of Scotland's skilled workforce to perform and deliver success.

"The Scottish Government, Scottish Development International (SDI) and Scottish Enterprise work hard to promote Scotland as a key location to live, work and do business, and these 700 new jobs highlight our strengths as a first-class destination for technology."

Marc Waters, HP's head of strategy in the UK and Ireland, said: "Our clients look to HP to support their business goals by offering innovative, secure and highly-available services.

"HP has a strong heritage in Scotland and I am delighted to confirm our investment to develop the Erskine site as a hub for delivering industry-leading technology services."

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