Ivan McKee, MSP, Minister for Trade, Investment and Innovation, visited Interface’s Edinburgh office today (Tuesday, 18 December). He met Interface Director Dr Siobhán Jordan; Louise Arnold, Business Engagement Executive, (Interface); Mykay Kamara, Founder and CEO of Welbot, a company supported by Interface; along with Sam Deere, Chief Technical Officer (Welbot).

Interface introduced Welbot, a wellness management software provider, to multiple universities for a variety of research and development projects for the digital platform, including extracting knowledge and insights from data and machine learning, developing an application roadmap, marketing and incorporating psychological and behavioural sciences.

Read more about Welbot’s collaborations with universities here.  

Businesses will benefit from investment of £5 million into the national Interface programme, helping to match them to Scotland’s world-leading academic expertise.
 

Established in 2005, Interface connects organisations from a wide variety of industries to universities, research institutes and colleges. Funding will come from the Scottish Funding Council, Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise.

Companies supported by Interface contribute an estimated £64.2 million (gross value added) to the economy each year and the programme has introduced almost 3000 businesses to academic partners.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced the funding at the official opening of the Roslin Innovation Centre, where she also met businesses that had benefited from the Interface service.

She said:

“Scotland is home to some of the most highly-rated research institutions in the world and we continue to invest to ensure this leads to practical industry innovation. This further investment from the Scottish Funding Council and the enterprise agencies in Interface will help to amplify our talent and expertise by connecting national and international industry with all of Scotland’s universities, research institutes and colleges.

“This boosts productivity, profits and exports and creates jobs, and many companies that have benefited from Interface funding say their project would not have happened without its support.

“This additional £5 million will help nurture links between world-leading research and innovation, which provide a competitive edge for industry, and support valuable inward investment and exports.”

Dr Siobhán Jordan, Director of Interface, said:

“There is huge potential in partnering businesses with our world-leading academic institutes to develop creative solutions for commercial problems. Businesses don’t always know how to tap into academic expertise; this funding will ensure that Interface can continue to make valuable connections leading to transformational collaborative research and development.  By fostering new connections between industry and academia we can tackle economic and societal challenges in innovative ways.”

Prof. Andrea Nolan, Chair of Interface Strategic Board, said:

“We welcome the new investment in Interface from SFC and the enterprise agencies to realise our ambitious plans for the next five years to increase business-academic collaborations and develop impactful long-term partnerships to bring even greater benefits to Scotland’s economy.”

John Kemp, Interim Chief Executive of the Scottish Funding Council, said:

“Interface plays an important role in supporting an innovative economy to create future jobs and prosperity. I’m delighted that SFC and its economic development partners are able to make this investment and look forward to seeing the benefits it will bring to Scotland.”

Background

The Interface programme is funded by the Scottish Funding Council, Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise. The Scottish Funding Council will invest £4.5 million, Scottish Enterprise will invest £450,000 and Highlands and Islands Enterprise will invest £282, 341.

Case studies are available online.

Photo courtesy of The Scottish Government.

Within the last year, Innovation Vouchers valued at more than £24,000 were awarded to fund five individual collaborative projects between Scottish businesses and colleges who have been working hand in hand to develop something new, innovative and often ground-breaking. 

These projects included:

• developing, constructing and testing a prototype of a programmable drone that will be used to navigate Scottish waterways whilst producing accurate, real-time reports on pollution levels and water condition,
• producing a prototype using different printing filaments which would allow the 3D printing of unique lace designs in a single piece that can be used as a textile,
• using cutting-edge tracking technology to enhance reindeer management.

Douglas Morrison, STEM and Innovation Lead at City of Glasgow College, said:

“The scheme rightly recognises the vital role that colleges play in supporting local businesses to develop their workforce and introduce new products and services.”

Innovation Vouchers have helped to fund three industry-led collaborative projects with City of Glasgow College.

The College is collaborating with Altitude Thinking to develop, construct and test a prototype of a programmable drone that will be used to navigate Scottish waterways whilst producing accurate, real-time reports on pollution levels and water conditions.

The £5,000 Innovation Voucher will allow the partners to look at engineering development for subsequent drones with enhanced capabilities to remove litter and other pollutants from waterways using suction pumps.

New College Lanarkshire and charity New Rhythms for Glasgow also received £5,000 through the scheme to develop an online service platform for disadvantaged and excluded people who wish to either use or contribute to the creative industries in the local deprived area.

The charity in North Glasgow provides music and arts workshops and opportunities for people living in areas of high deprivation who experience a range of barriers to accessing creative industries.

John McNair, Head of Regional Business Development at New College Lanarkshire, said:

“This is a great opportunity for the College and NRG to collaborate and co-create a targeted digital technology solution that supports the charity’s aim of providing a more sustainable and innovative service.”

Fashion designer Karen Hamilton was able to collaborate with the Learning Lab at Dundee and Angus College, which is a facility promoting the use of innovative technology through hands-on learning, after £5,000 was awarded to the collaboration. She was provided with guidance, expert knowledge and practical supervision of the use of equipment as she endeavoured to develop innovative lace fabric using 3D printing.

Brian Riley, Business Advisor, Dundee and Angus College, said:

“The project has provided an excellent opportunity to engage in applied research – something not normally associated with the college sector – using internal resources and academic staff with expertise in digital and related areas of work activity. It represents a fine example of commercial and academic partnership and will serve as a good model for future such collaborations”. 

A very different kind of collaboration between The Reindeer Company Ltd and Inverness College UHI is that of “The Secret Lives of the Cairngorm Reindeer”. This collaborative project, which has recently been granted a £5,000 Innovation Voucher, will use cutting-edge tracking technology to enhance reindeer management and to enhance the experience of people visiting the reindeer herd in the Cairngorms as well as the online experience. The collaboration is in its early stages, so it is a case of “watch this space”.

James Frew was awarded a Scottish Funding Council Innovation Voucher to collaborate with West College Scotland (WCS) to develop a new innovative training planning process, including monitoring certification renewals, developing individual training plans and measuring the impact of training through AMI (Achievement Measurement Indexing).

Andrew Fogarty, Head of Energy and Engineering, West College Scotland, said: “The SFC Innovation Voucher has allowed James Frew and WCS to positively collaborate to implement business improvements and develop more meaningful relationships that are mutually beneficial. In doing so, our staff at the college have been able to use this knowledge to work with other organisations to help them improve and enhance the products and services that they offer.”

The impact of the project will lead to improved training interventions linked to individual training plans and business process improvements. It is envisaged that whilst improving the relevance of training interventions, significant cost savings and improved efficiency will be realised through a more planned and systematic approach to training.

By taking a more structured approach to developing people through training, the project will impact on the motivation of key staff and will increase employee satisfaction.

Dr Siobhán Jordan, Director of Interface, said:

“Funding through Innovation Vouchers can be beneficial for college lecturers and staff enabling them to work with businesses and organisations on real-life challenges as they research and develop products, services and processes.

“We can help colleges by giving assistance on how to access Innovation Vouchers and guide them through the process of applying for this important source of funding.”

The approval process normally takes only three weeks from the date of submission to the Funding Panel’s decision.

Information on Innovation Vouchers can be found here: https://interface-online.org.uk/how-we-can-help/funding

Digitising workflows will bring transparency to the supply chain.

Edinburgh Napier has joined forces with Eyecademy to use blockchain technology to develop verifiable records for the supply journey of ethically-sourced food.

The collaboration with the Glasgow-based leading data and analytics provider will be among the first projects undertaken at the university’s new Blockpass Identity Lab, which uses cutting-edge blockchain research to drive innovation.

A blockchain is a growing list of records or blocks, which is secured using cryptography and resistant to modification.

The new research project aims to use the technology to overcome difficulties around the provenance of organic produce, reassuring consumers of ethical sources, countries of origin and producers in the journey from farm to table. In this application, blockchain technology can be used by countries like Scotland to protect and promote national brands on the international stage.

The collaborative technology could also be used in further applications to follow supply journeys for raw materials from a variety of industries, connecting producers, distributors, regulatory bodies and consumers.

The collaboration is supported by the Scottish Funding Council’s Innovation Voucher scheme, which is administered by Interface, who work with businesses to translate their ideas into dynamic briefs for academics.

Professor Bill Buchanan, Director of the Blockpass Identity Lab, said:

“Edinburgh Napier is keen to work with innovative companies like Eyecademy around blockchain to take full advantage of this new world we are creating.

“The application of blockchain and tracking methods will allow us to create a trustworthy trail for food and thus support both the providers and their customers.”

The Blockpass Identity Lab was built at Edinburgh Napier’s Merchiston campus as part of a £600,000 collaboration between the School of Computing and Hong Kong-based Blockpass, who are using blockchain technology to develop platforms which allow users to retain control of their personal data.

Liam Bell, the lead blockchain researcher in the lab, said:

“We are delighted to integrate Eyecademy into the lab, and will continue to work with them in the development of their product.

“They have a long track record of success in the industry, and see great potential in the integration of blockchain and advanced cryptography with food provenance.”

Brian Rutherford, Operations Director of Eyecademy, said:

With more than 10 years of experience providing data and analytics solutions in Scotland and nationwide, we are excited to be working with the world-leading collaboration of the Blockpass Identity Lab.”

“Using innovative technology to provide and develop business solutions is at the heart of what we do, and we are confident that our combined efforts will continue to push the boundaries of Scotland’s technological growth.”

Edinburgh Napier has a strong track record of success within the Scottish Funding Council’s Innovation Voucher programme.

Dr Siobhán Jordan, Director of Interface, said:

“There are numerous mutual benefits to business partnering with academics as demonstrated by Edinburgh Napier University and Eyecademy. Through tackling real-life challenges and opportunities, they can learn from each other and grow their knowledge and expertise.

“Funding through Innovation Vouchers can be pivotal for companies as they research and develop products, services and processes, enabling them to tap into our world-leading universities.”

Photo from left to right:  James King, Petra Crocker

Knowledge Transfer Partnerships have been helping UK businesses innovate for over 40 years and are one of a range of initiatives which support knowledge sharing between universities and industry.

A Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) is a three-way collaboration between a business, university/research institute and graduate who leads a strategic project aimed at tackling a particular challenge within the business.

KTPs are open to business in all sectors, and usually last from one to three years. The partnership can bring many benefits to the business, including solutions to long-standing issues they may not have had the expertise, resource or time to tackle, major cost savings and innovative developments which can support the company with additional revenue streams, new machinery or breaking into new markets.

Embedding knowledge into an industry setting in this way has many advantages for all three parties. Apart from the company benefits mentioned above, having a graduate, known as a KTP Associate, based in the business can bring about a change in the culture and attitudes towards innovation, inspiring other employees to share and exchange their knowledge and ideas. The company not only gets a KTP Associate but access to an academic expert and the host university department.

For the KTP Associate, valuable hands on in-depth project experience in a relevant sector is gained over the course of the project, and in some cases permanent employment with that company at its completion. For the academic institute, apart from being a source of funding, it opens another route to graduate employment and builds valued relationships directly with industry.

KTPs are one of the vehicles which Interface promotes to support businesses which want to partner with academic expertise in a longer-term partnership, often following an initial feasibility or proof of concept project funded by an Innovation Voucher.

Through Interface support, over 40 KTPs have been enabled with various Scottish university partners across different industry sectors. In fact, one of the companies we’ve supported is working with their fourth KTP Associate, having realised the benefits of bringing academic expertise into the workplace. There are currently around 100 KTP Associates in Scottish companies and with the continued backing of the programme from UKRI opportunities to expand this number in the next year.

Allowing world-class knowledge to be embedded into a business can bring about impressive results, which are celebrated annually to showcase the valuable contribution of all forms of knowledge exchange including KTPs. The Scottish Knowledge Exchange Awards, hosted by Interface, recognise the impacts from final year students, postgraduate students or Knowledge Transfer Partnership Associates in increasing innovation in business through a dedicated category.

Winners have included Lee-Anne McGee, KTP Associate from Abertay University, who helped to redesign and validate an innovative starch filtration system, Peel Tech, which also won the Innovation of the Year in 2017. Malcolm Wood of Ivan Wood & Sons, a Fife-based fruit and vegetable wholesaler, came up with the idea of a compact and affordable filtration system as new legislation was brought in preventing fast food outlets from disposing of starch in drains.  

The project Lee-Anne led on reduced waste materials and generated sales of the system within the UK and Europe. Lee-Anne also implemented a Food Quality Management System for Ivan Wood & Sons, which resulted in significant cost savings to both the company wages and packaging. She impressed the judges by developing a high quality vegetable stock from the recovered starch to be sold as a new product to the food service industry. Lee-Anne continues to work with Ivan Wood & Sons and Peel Tech as a Technical Manager since the KTP finished in early 2017.

The previous year, Laura Kreiling, a KTP Associate from University of Strathclyde, won the Building Skills Through Knowledge Exchange Award after she undertook a 24-month long project to significantly improve engineering resource estimation at Alexander Dennis Ltd, the UK’s leading bus and coach manufacturer. The new tool she developed reduced the amount of time spent on forecasting resources from several days to just 30 minutes, saving the company thousands of pounds.

This year’s winner was Petra Crocker, a KTP Associate from Edinburgh Napier University, who worked with Multiply UK Ltd in Edinburgh to create a real-time digital consumer tool to drive both the expansion and reputation of the company as industry experts in planning and insight.

KTPs are one of a range of funding initiatives available through Innovate UK, the UK Government’s innovation agency. The cost of a project is shared by the business, and public sector funding which in Scotland can include a contribution from the Scottish Funding Council.

If improving competitiveness and productivity are important to a business, then working with a graduate in this way could be a clever connection to make.

University links with Hypervine to explore potential of blockchain

A new collaboration aims to develop blockchain solutions to the data recording problems which can jeopardise complex construction projects.

Edinburgh Napier University is teaming up with newly-formed Hypervine Ltd following a series of industry scandals which have highlighted the need for strong audit trails for undertaken work.

A blockchain is a growing list of records or blocks, secured using cryptography and resistant to modification; technology which can reduce the risk of problems like documents being lost or actions not followed up.

The new Blockpass Identity Lab at the university’s Merchiston campus uses cutting-edge blockchain research to drive innovation.

Technology company Hypervine, based in Glasgow, focuses on digitising construction to improve the reporting and recording of data, enabling companies to adapt to fast-changing economic, environmental and governmental policies.

The university’s collaboration with the company will investigate ways in which blockchain can incorporate security into complicated construction processes, create trust, build compliance and boost productivity.

Professor Bill Buchanan, Director of the Blockpass Identity Lab, said:

“The nature of the construction industry is that there are many stakeholders involved, and making sure that each part of the process is working as it should can be difficult.

“A blockchain solution will aim to integrate digital signing into the key parts of the process.”

Liam Bell, the lead blockchain researcher in the lab, said: 

“The application of blockchain into the construction industry – where strong levels of trust in the process are required – is a natural one.”

The collaboration comes after the sector was hit by negative headlines locally and nationally following events like the Edinburgh PFI schools crisis and the Grenfell Tower tragedy in London.

The annual spend due to construction errors is estimated to be around seven times the total annual profit of the UK industry.

Paul Duddy, CEO and founder of Hypervine, said:

“Digitising infrastructure, construction and facility maintenance industries through blockchain technologies will yield significant improvements across the sector that will have wide ranging positive economic and social economic impacts for both private and public sectors.”

Hypervine and the university’s School of Computing were brought together by Interface – which works with businesses to translate their ideas into dynamic briefs for academics – and the collaboration is supported by the Scottish Funding Council’s Innovation Voucher scheme, which Interface administers.

Ruth Oliver, Business Engagement Executive at Interface, said:

“Edinburgh Napier’s School of Computing was a natural choice for Hypervine Ltd; Professor Bill Buchanan is one of the world’s leading lights in blockchain technology and, together with researcher Liam Bell, offers a wealth of experience in supporting businesses and organisations in the practical application of this technology.

“Hypervine is helping construction companies build faster, safer and more cost efficiently through digitising the industry. Exploring how to incorporate secure methods of recording data in complicated supply chains and transactions is a key element of this.”

She added:

“Partnerships with academia can propel companies onto the next stage of their development, enabling them to enter new markets, win additional business and grow their business.”

The collaboration runs until the end of November.

Lorraine Thomson, Business Engagement Manager at Interface for the Highlands and Islands, was invited to meet First Minister Nicola Sturgeon today (Monday, 6 August).

The First Minister was visiting the recently opened Tomintoul and Glenlivet Discovery Centre, which received funding from Highlands and Islands Enterprise to develop a fully immersive visual experience focusing on the past local illicit whisky industry.

Through Interface, the Tomintoul and Glenlivet Development Trust, which owns and manages the centre, accessed expert academic support from The University of St Andrews. Virtual reality technology is being developed as well as a 360 degree experience of an illicit still.

Previously, Interface connected the Trust to Abertay University and Edinburgh Napier University during the early development of the centre’s digital and marketing plans.

Lorraine said: 

“This was a fantastic opportunity to share with the First Minister a great example of  Interface’s support for an organisation in an economically fragile part of Scotland, which is tapping into our world-class academic expertise to enable it to develop and capture the imagination of potential visitors, young and old. The centre welcomed its 4,000^th visitor recently and is expanding its workforce, which is great news for the area.”

For more information on how Interface can help business connect to Scotland’s academic community contact the regional team member in your area.

(Pictured, left to right): Lorraine Thomson (Interface), First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, Catherine Cassidy (University of St Andrews) and Amy Woolvin (Tomintoul and Glenlivet Landscape Partnership).

Innovate or stagnate: it’s a blunt message, however one that Scotland’s business community shouldn’t need to hear quite as often as it did 13 years ago.

So, what has changed in that time? Firstly, the Scottish Government’s Scotland CAN DO Innovation Action Plan’s priorities include encouraging more business innovation and making best use of university and college research, knowledge and talent to drive growth. Streamlining the experience for businesses from our enterprise agencies and business support services is vital to that: creating the right environment will lead to more conversations, more ideas, more solutions, more invoices and more jobs, ultimately enriching Scotland as a place to live and work.

The environment for businesses partnering with universities to develop products, processes or services, or to carry out collaborative research, is easier to navigate. From simplifying intellectual property agreements to guiding businesses in identifying relevant expertise, the wrinkles have been ironed out instilling more confidence in businesses looking to enter into academic partnerships.

In addition, the willingness of small and medium sized businesses (including micro businesses employing one or two people) to partner with academic expertise is greater now than ever before. The pain points of not having enough time or resource to find the right academic expertise or how to fund initial projects have also been eradicated with the introduction of accessible funding schemes like Innovation Vouchers and free and impartial brokerage and support services such as Interface.

Scottish universities are now more receptive to welcoming industry for co-creation of new research or indeed, into the classroom or lab for teaching purposes (previously the focus was on licensing technology or spinning out companies). They have recognised the enormous educational gains from presenting real-life business issues to students and researchers as well as meeting the demand from funders for a return on their investment in terms of economic and societal benefits, such as safeguarding and creating employment and breaking into new markets.

Thousands of business-academic projects have been established across Scotland by Interface since 2005 which have generated £64.2 million gross value added (GVA) a year for the Scottish economy, supporting around 1,060 Scottish jobs.

The long-term economic impact from these companies could increase to more than £195.3 million GVA/year, supporting almost 3,500 jobs if future expectations of businesses within the next three years are realised. 

One of these companies is Edinburgh-based snap40, an ambitious start-up which is creating employment opportunities and having a positive impact on the economy. The company has developed a wireless wearable device for monitoring patients’ health in hospitals and communities, which is currently being rolled out by several NHS trusts and US hospitals.

Whilst a medical student, snap40 co-founder Christopher McCann noticed that the existing manual systems of gathering data on vital signs meant that deteriorations in patients were not seen until long after they had started. Together with co-founder Stewart Whiting, who has a PhD in Computer Science, snap40 was born.

snap40’s simple device is worn by patients in either hospital or their home. The device’s sensors monitor vital signs including respiratory rate, oxygen saturation and movement. Dehydration is also a significant problem, so the founders wanted the armband to incorporate a low-power ultrasound sensor to monitor hydration levels. After a referral from the Digital Health & Care Institute Innovation Centre (DHI), Interface sourced expertise in University of the West of Scotland and advised on funding (a Scottish Funding Council Innovation Voucher). The collaboration with the university created proof of concept data around use of ultrasound to monitor hydration levels.

Detecting deterioration earlier will save patients’ lives. The potential cost and time savings to NHS Trusts are also obvious – snap40’s wearable armband will mean nursing staff can be freed from the manual task of collecting vital signs as automatic alerts are generated when the warning signs of deterioration begin – saving two hours in every twelve-hour shift, while length of stay and readmissions can also be reduced.  

Businesses often ask why Scotland’s world-class universities and academic talent would want to work with them – new collaborations, access to additional sources of funding, the chance to test research in a real-life setting, the opportunity for developing impactful academic papers and case studies, and the potential to continue the collaboration with the business are a few reasons.

We need many more people like Christopher, who have a clear vision, are facing a challenge, and are open to collaborating with academic partners as part of their business journey.

This article first appeared in The Times

Research and development is sometimes thought of as the territory of large, multi-national corporations, however one organisation is helping thousands of Scottish small and medium sized businesses access world-leading academic expertise.

Interface was established in 2005 to bridge the gap between the worlds of business and academia.

With a team located across Scotland, the organisation works with all 19 universities in Scotland, as well as research institutes and colleges, finding academic partners for companies in all sectors.

The impacts of business-academic projects are many and varied, ranging from increased turnover, creation of new jobs and identifying new areas of research and product development.

Here are Interface’s Director Dr Siobhán Jordan’s top tips for creating successful business-academic collaborations:

1. Finding the right academic partner is key to a successful partnership. We often call it a “meeting of minds” where the business and academic champions have real synergy and almost become one team. We have seen partnerships grow into a synergistic flow of knowledge and ideas from the business to the academic institution and vice versa with significant benefits for both partners.
    
2. Be clear about what you want to achieve from collaborating with a university – the team at Interface can help produce a brief outlining the scope and details of the proposed project.
    
3. Speak to a business support agency such as Interface, Scottish Enterprise or Business Gateway about funding for collaborative projects. Standard Innovation Vouchers up to £5,000 which is matched in cash or kind by the business, are a great way to fund small-scale projects such as feasibility studies or validating benefits of a product which can then lead to larger scale projects and other areas of R&D.
    
4. Keep an open mind – the expertise which could help your business may not be in the same sector as you and could in fact be a discipline that had not occurred to you. We have matched cake manufacturers with hyperspectral imaging experts, and aerospace research with high performance bicycle chain manufacturers, with impressive results.
    
5. Establish intellectual property rights from the start. All collaborative projects produce intellectual assets so it is essential to have a discussion about whether ownership will be with the business or academic institution. The Intellectual Property Office has a free online guide to help with the basics of IP.
    
6. Look around your business to see what else could benefit from academic input. Better waste disposal? Quicker processes? Improved products? As they say, two minds are better than one and you never know where a new collaborative partnership might lead.

More information on partnering with universities, research institutes and colleges can be found here.