City Region Deal investment grows Fife-based garden pod business

RUMIPOD is housed within new business units at Queensway Technology and Business Park, built as part of Fife Council's Edinburgh and South East Scotland’s City Region Deal (ESESCRD) Industrial Innovation Investment programme.

RUMIPOD is part of a new hub for innovative and future focused businesses, where a diverse range of companies are now thriving in their new premises.

Fife's Industrial Innovation Investment programme forms part of the £1.3 billion ESESCRD, a partnership of the Scottish and UK Governments, the region's local authorities and universities that is transforming the regional economy.

Designed and built by local architect Alasdair Baird and project manager Stewart Thomson, all components and materials are UK sourced.

The garden rooms offer comfort for homeworkers looking to balance their work and home life, or those seeking an inspiring space for creative or leisure pursuits.

Stewart Thomson, RUMIPOD co-founder, said: “Our business location offers a quality, clean new unit sized to our needs and is good value.

"Our company ethos is to source and manufacture a product that employs part-recycled materials without compromising looks or performance.

"The connection to a combined heat and power system further complements the company’s eco-credentials.

“Our Fife design and manufacturing facility allows us to create precision made components, which, in turn, improves quality and reduces on-site installation time.

"With innovative engineering, featuring a highly insulated twin shell design, energy consumption is correspondingly very low.”

Councillor David Ross, Fife Council leader, said: “Fife’s ten-year £50m Industrial Innovation Investment programme is being delivered as part of the City Region Deal’s innovation theme, and is providing much-needed serviced employment land and new industrial, office and business space.

"Our focus in Fife is on fairer economic growth, where everyone benefits from good employment opportunities and regional investments.

“The programme is creating 1,000 new skilled permanent jobs and almost 600 short-term construction jobs over the 15-year lifetime of the City Region Deal.

"Joint working between the region’s universities, Fife businesses and Fife Council means more high value, better paid, skilled jobs locally.”