The critical economic importance of creating a world-class ICT infrastructure across Scotland was highlighted at a business event in Aberdeen.

Integrated communications specialist Arrowdawn supported the seminar on which explored how quality connectivity can bolster business growth, particularly in rural and remote areas. The Scottish Council for Development and Industry (SCDI) event – part of North East Business Week – featured a presentation by Donald McLaughlin, Scottish Director of global technology company Cisco.

Donald McLaughlin of Cisco outlined how businesses in the North East could use technology to improve productivity, competitiveness and create growth in an increasingly global market. He also explained how Scotland could improve its productivity through innovation and collaboration.

Donald McLaughlin commented: “We are 18% behind the US on productivity and are a geographically remote nation. However we have highly skilled people and good foundations for growth. Technology shrinks the world, so businesses in the North East can compete just as effectively as businesses in other locations around the globe. It is important to highlight this is within the reach of SMEs so affordable and practical for businesses of all sizes. ”

“AGR in Aberdeen is a great example of this. Rather than send one of their employees around the globe to undertake training face to face they now deliver this online. As well as eliminating travel costs completely, this also reduced three weeks’ work to just a few days.”

According to Scotland’s ICT trade body, Scotland could add £12bn to its economy, create 20,000 additional high value jobs and create over 1,000 new businesses over the next five years by embracing digital technologies. The UK is now the world’s leading economy for ecommerce, creating a lucrative opportunity for exporting, particularly in geographically remote areas like the North East of Scotland.

“We’re delighted to support a seminar that puts one of the big strategic business issues of the day centre stage,” says Gordon Adie, Managing Director of Aberdeen-based Arrowdawn.

“The message at the heart of the seminar was that a competitive ICT infrastructure, both in terms of capacity and coverage, is crucially important to sustainable economic recovery and growth.

“The concept of ‘borderless networking’ – the ability to operate from anywhere at any time using the spectrum of modern communication devices – is growing all the time and indeed is no longer the preserve of large, international corporations.

“The same capabilities can today be equally deployed by one-person operations in the most remote of locations, if the infrastructure is in place.

“Equally, of course, the benefits in terms of minimising travel and reducing your carbon footprint is an important consideration in today’s business environment.”

The seminar – entitled Driving Growth Through a Connected Scotland – was held at the Hilton Treetops, Springfield Road, at 7pm on Monday, April 18, 2011.

It also featured a question-and-answer session, while the Cisco Network on Wheels bus was at the venue to provide hands-on demonstrations of the latest technologies.

The SCDI is one of several organisations involved in North East Business Week (April 18-22), an initiative designed to highlight the key role the area plays in the national economy. For further details about the events visit www.northeastbusinessweek.co.uk.

Arrowdawn, which was named Cisco Scottish Commercial Partner of the Year 2010 and is a Cisco Premier Partner, provides and supports a portfolio of communications products, from voice over IP telephony to data network infrastructure and security.

For further information about Arrowdawn’s services contact Gordon Charlton on (01224) 573366, or email gordon.charlton@arrowdawn.com