Inventors and businesses with innovative ideas in Skye and Lochalsh are being offered a helping hand to turn their ideas into reality.

Innovation experts will visit the area next week to give local businesses and inventors advice and guidance on how to capitalise on their concepts.

The Innovation Support Seminar at the Aros Centre in Portree, on Thursday 23rd March, has been jointly organised by development agency Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) and Skye and Lochalsh Enterprise (SALE).

HIE's Innovation Support Manager Pat MacLeod said: "Many good ideas are never realised because people are worried about how to finance their project or they fear their ideas may be stolen.

"To help people overcome those concerns, members of HIE's Innovation Support team will be on hand next Thursday to outline the range of advice, guidance and financial assistance that is available to help good ideas get off the ground."

This includes specialist consultants who can be called in to examine a company's ideas or production processes, making suggestions on possible improvements. This can help cut business costs and boost productivity.

Companies in the Skye and Lochalsh area have already demonstrated how innovative ideas can be transformed into successful businesses. Angus MacRuary, managing director of the Isle of Skye Brewery, will be at the seminar to tell delegates of his own experiences and how the Innovation Support Team helped him, he said: "For us, the innovation is in the ingredients we use. Assistance from the Innovation Support Team has enabled us to successfully produce a range of bottled beers. If we had to do it on our own, the risks would have been too great due to the unusual nature of our ingredients".

The Highlands and Islands as a whole has a good track record in innovation. Each year around 200 projects receive HIE support of some kind through a variety of programmes.

Next week's seminar will also target banks, accountants, financial advisors and training companies who can help highlight to local businesses the support schemes available through the HIE network.

The seminar will be held in the Aros Centre, Portree on Thursday 23 March between 6.30pm and 8.30pm. Anyone wishing to attend should contact Graham Campbell at Skye and Lochalsh Enterprise on tel: 01487 612841, or Pat MacLeod at Highlands and Islands Enterprise on tel: 01463 244 343.