THE Chinese buyer behind the purchase of part of collapsed computer company Kaiam has pledged to make West Lothian a tech innovation centre.
More than 300 people were made redundant on Christmas Eve after the Livingston firm fell into administration.
Staff were not given their pre-Christmas pay and a fundraiser set up to help struggling households raised almost double its £10,000 target within three days.
Now administrators KPMG have confirmed the sale of Kaiam’s Planar Lightwave Circuits (PLC) division to Chinese-owned Broadex UK in a deal which secures 20 jobs.
The agreement follows a two-month sales process and operations will continue from the existing Livingston site.
KPMG said Broadex – a newly formed division of its Shanghai-based parent company – had been PLC’s biggest customer.
Under Kaiam, the Livingston facility was one of the world’s highest volume PLC production sites.
It is hoped that the acquisition could lead to the creation of further specialised tech posts.
Joint administrator Blair Nimmo, KPMG’s global head of restructuring, stated: “We are very pleased to have concluded the sale of Kaiam Europe’s PLC division to Broadex UK – a sale which preserves 20 highly-skilled jobs and knowledge within Scotland.
“The new owners have expressed a keen desire to grow the PLC business, which could lead to new jobs being created. We wish the new owners every success.”
Wei Zhu, chief executive officer of Broadex Technologies, commented: “We are excited to have the opportunity of acquiring this world class manufacturer and working with talented engineers to re-establish this place as a PLC powerhouse.
“This Livingston site has historically made significant contributions to the development of PLC technologies, and we intend to make this place the centre of technological innovations again by new investment and adaption to new market conditions. We are committed to making this happen.”
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