A Dumfries and Galloway-based construction innovator has appointed a senior industry figure to its board as it ramps up efforts to address the housing crisis.
VASO Global, which designs and manufactures structural composite panels made from recycled glass, is targeting both the housing and wider construction markets with its low-carbon technology.
The company recently invested in a new 60,000 sq ft manufacturing facility in Dumfries, a move expected to create up to 70 jobs over the next five years.
Its approach – converting waste glass into high-performance structural panels – has been positioned as a potential contributor to easing housing shortages across Scotland and the wider UK, following the Scottish Government’s declaration of a national housing emergency in 2024.
The latest board appointment sees Douglas Morrison, Deputy CEO of Built Environment – Smarter Transformation (BE-ST), join VASO Global as a non-remunerated Strategic Advisor. BE-ST is focused on accelerating Scotland’s transition to a zero-carbon built environment.
On joining the company, Douglas said: “I’m delighted to be joining the board of VASO Global. The company shares my vision to reduce carbon in the built environment, which is why I’m so pleased to advise this talented, innovative and passionate team.
“VASO Global has the potential to revolutionise the construction business not only across Scotland, but also across the UK and beyond, and I’m very excited to be able to play my part in that transformation.”
Eddie Black, co-founder and managing director of VASO Global, said the appointment comes at a pivotal moment for the business.
He said: “We are delighted to have someone of Douglas’ calibre on board to help with what is a hugely exciting phase in the delivery of VASO Global products which will revolutionise housebuilding methods across the UK and abroad.
“Douglas is a highly-regarded strategic leader with vast experience of how construction, advanced manufacturing and skills transformation combine to deliver real meaningful change.
“With a career spanning craft apprenticeship, technical education and national innovation leadership, he brings a systems level perspective on modernising construction and supply chains which will be hugely valuable to VASO Global’s roll-out.”
At BE-ST, Scotland’s national innovation centre for construction and the built environment, hosted by Edinburgh Napier University, Morrison has led programmes aligned with United Nations and European Union sustainability goals, alongside strategic initiatives for both the Scottish and UK Governments.
His work has included collaboration with the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB), sector-wide leadership groups and national transformation programmes aimed at improving productivity, skills and the adoption of innovation. He also co-chairs the Digital and Data Group of the Construction Accord Transformation Board and serves as chair of South Lanarkshire College.
VASO Global’s panels are engineered to deliver high levels of thermal performance and durability, enabling homes to be built rapidly and at scale while significantly reducing embodied carbon.
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The company says buildings constructed using its system create optimal conditions for technologies such as heat pumps, solar power and battery storage to operate at maximum efficiency, helping to lower both energy costs and carbon emissions.
