I would like to provide an update on Interface’s service given the current situation regarding COVID-19 (Coronavirus). Our management team are monitoring the Scottish and UK government advice. We are meeting regularly to understand and plan for the potential impacts on our service delivery and to minimise the risk that the virus presents to our colleagues, customers and academic delivery partners.
These are uncertain times and I would like to take this opportunity to reassure you that the Interface team is on hand and ready to support you and your business. In addition, keep up-to-date here with the latest advice and guidance from Scottish Enterprise for businesses seeking Coronavirus advice.
The team at Interface continues to maintain and provide quick response times to our customers and academic delivery partners while prioritising the health and wellbeing of our colleagues. We have established a business continuity plan which will allow us to maintain support to our customers in the likely event that social-distancing measures will increase. Our staff are equipped for remote working with access to our secure systems.
Please do not hesitate to get in touch with our team. You can contact us on 0845 013 0536 or by email. We will, of course, update you with any additional, relevant information as necessary.
Kind regards
Dr Siobhán Jordan, Director
An international company specialising in the development of advanced antenna systems will land in Scotland following a grant from Scottish Enterprise.
Celestia Technologies Group UK Ltd (Celestia UK) will establish an innovative project to develop a fully electronic scanning antenna for use with satellite-based aircraft Wi-Fi applications after it received a £2.5m R&D award from Scotland’s national economic development agency.
The company, a UK subsidiary of Celestia Technologies Group headquartered in Holland, will be based initially at Heriot-Watt University while it identifies permanent premises in Scotland. A total of 18 jobs will be created in Antenna technologies, Software Defined Radio, Radio Frequency Engineering and System Design.
Crucial to attracting CTG to Scotland was the country’s growing space sector, which is a key market for the company. It has been estimated that this burgeoning sector could be worth £4 billion to the Scottish economy by 2030.
The R&D award announcement was made during a visit to CTG’s Heriot-Watt University base by the Scottish Government’s Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Fair Work and Culture Fiona Hyslop.
Speaking after the visit, Ms Hyslop said:
“The global space sector is estimated to be worth £400 billion by 2030 and I am determined that Scotland will capitalise on the potential economic opportunities associated with this. That is why the Scottish Government has identified space as a key priority.
“The sector in Scotland has seen strong growth over recent years, which is demonstrated through collaboration and investment such as Celestia Technologies, an international company that has decided to establish a permanent base in Scotland.
“I am determined that Scotland will lead the way in using satellite technologies and applications to make a significant contribution to combatting the climate emergency.”
CTG UK was established in 2017 to take advantage of opportunities in the emerging UK space sector. The company specialises in phased-array, multi-beam, electronic scanning concepts for the advancement of state-of-the-art antenna systems used for tracking satellites, particularly useful for mega constellations.
CTG will use the R&D grant to develop a satellite antenna for aircraft to link with a communication satellite for the in-flight broadband sector, which is experiencing rapid growth. For this project, CTG intends to develop a flat panel antenna incorporating multi-beam and phased-array technology and to test and validate a full prototype as well as setting the basis for ulterior production.
The proposed innovative design will be electronically steered and will offer improved communications and connectivity performance for a new generation of low and medium orbit satellites.
José Alonso, Chairman of CTG, said:
“The grant will allow the company to establish a centre of competence in scanning antennas in Scotland, and have the confidence to continue its expansion in the UK in the supportive environment of the Scottish space sector, where skills and collaborative partners are in good supply.
“We are delighted to contribute to the knowledge-based jobs creation in the Edinburgh area and the economic growth of Scotland”.
Jonathan Wilson, Global Head of Inward Investment Services at Scottish Enterprise, added:
“The decision by Celestia Technologies Group to deliver this innovative R&D project in Scotland is incredibly exciting and one which Scottish Enterprise is delighted to support.
“Scotland is developing a global reputation for our R&D capabilities and our growing technology cluster. Our space sector was also of great appeal to Celestia Technologies Group, highlighting the growing importance of this industry as Scotland seeks to be Europe’s leading space nation.
“Our world-class workforce, combined with the ‘Team Scotland’ approach we’ve adopted between our public institutions, academia and the private sector, ensures that Scotland continues to punch above its weight when it comes to attracting foreign direct investment. Competition for inward investment is fierce, but Scottish Enterprise will continue to actively promote our international leading sectors, such as our exciting space industry, as we bid to attract companies to Scotland.”
Scotland has a dynamic and growing space sector, which focuses on a number of high-tech, high skill and research and development intensive areas.
The space industry in Scotland has more than 130 organisations, with 7,600 employees at the cutting edge of their specialisms – backed by strong relationships with researchers in Scottish universities and research pools.
Interface worked closely with the team at Scottish Enterprise and Scottish Development International to introduce Celestia Technologies Group to capability and capacity from Scottish academic institutions.
Dr Siobhán Jordan, Director of Interface, said:
“Based on the strength of the Scottish research base, the company was keen to build links to Scottish academia around access to specialist facilities and technologies such as microwave and antenna engineering, signal processing and communications. Through Interface brokerage, the team at Celestia have created a very productive partnership with Heriot-Watt University. As part of their commitment to Scotland, the company has established a dedicated research and development base at the university and are exploring strategic R&D partnerships with the School of Engineering and Physical Sciences.”
After a successful five-month residency at Heriot-Watt University’s Global Research Innovation and Discovery (GRID) facility, brokered by Interface, Celestia UK, specialists in the advancement of state-of-the-art antenna systems used for tracking satellites, has announced that Heriot-Watt University’s Research Park will be its permanent base in Scotland.
Following a £2.5 million R&D award from Scottish Enterprise earlier this year to develop a new electronic scanning antenna, Celestia UK will create 18 new jobs in Scotland, recruiting engineers across several different disciplines. Read more: https://www.hw.ac.uk/news/articles/2020/celestia.htm
Significant benefits to Scotland’s economy and society have been highlighted in a new report regarding business-academic partnerships supported by Interface.
Local, national and international businesses have gained from tapping into Scotland’s universities and colleges through the matching service, which has team members located across Scotland.
The contribution to the Scottish economy from research and development projects between businesses and academics enabled by Interface was £88.9m GVA (gross value added), and supported 1,595 jobs, with expectations to reach £222.3 million GVA and 3,193 jobs.
The findings also captured the wider wellbeing and environmental benefits to society as the collaborative projects tackled major challenges such as health improvement, low carbon, community support, delivering education, helping young people, supporting international development and alleviating poverty.
Carried out by leading independent economic consultancy BiGGAR Economics Ltd, The Contribution of Interface to Sustainable and Inclusive Economic Growth report drew on evidence from a range of sources including the 329 collaborative projects which Interface brokered from August 2019 – July 2020, along with in-depth interviews with businesses who have benefited from the free service.
The report states: “The need to do things differently, to innovate, is crucial for Scotland’s recovery from COVID-19 and to meet its net zero carbon targets. The evidence presented demonstrates that Interface is a value for money service that delivers right across the economy, creating GVA and jobs while also driving sustainable and inclusive growth and well-being.”
Welcoming the report, Karen Watt, Chief Executive of the Scottish Funding Council, said: “Universities and colleges play a vital and effective role in supporting forward-looking businesses across Scotland to create new products and services through innovation. As we look towards economic recovery after the pandemic, this report is another reminder of Scotland’s resilience. It also highlights the part SFC-funded Interface plays as a catalyst for collaborations between businesses and academics.”
Interface has a successful history of business-academic partnerships with business demand for the service increasing consistently since it was established in 2005. Over the past months despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the team have serviced record breaking levels of demand with the need for businesses to co-design new products, processes and services to survive and drive economic recovery. The service has delivered over 2500 business academic collaborations.
Encouragingly, three quarters of businesses reported ongoing relationships with universities because of Interface brokerage, demonstrating the strength of the connections and collaborations made.
One business quoted in the report stated: “With everything I do now, Interface sits at the back of my mind, thinking is there a link with an academic that could help me with this issue?”.
Dr Siobhán Jordan, Director of Interface, said: “This report shows the significant gains right across Scotland, from the smallest community to the largest city, when innovation and ideas flourish through businesses and academic partnerships.
“We are in a unique position to make a real difference to all aspects of society through the connections we catalyse enabling world leading research to be purposeful.
Our regional team members are a bridge to local business and community networks as well as to universities, colleges and research institutes. We are touching all parts of society – from contributing to low carbon targets to making a difference to everyday lives. Crucially we are contributing to more fragile rural economies and across sectors hardest hit by the pandemic such as tourism, food and drink and hospitality.
“The outstanding achievements of the team at Interface is down to their translation of industry led challenges, understanding of how universities interact with industry for mutual benefit and extensive knowledge of funding and wider support opportunities.”
A range of case studies which highlight the economic and societal benefits of Interface-supported collaborations between businesses/organisations and universities/colleges can be found here.
The Contribution of Interface to Sustainable and Inclusive Economic Growth executive summary can be found here.
Note to editors.
The report is based on information provided to BiGGAR Economics Ltd. by Interface including impact data from 414 businesses, in-depth interviews with businesses and stakeholders, and data from previous surveys and consultations carried out since 2013.
Significant benefits to Scotland’s economy and society have been highlighted in a new report regarding business-academic partnerships supported by Interface.
Local, national and international businesses have gained from tapping into Scotland’s universities and colleges through the matching service, which has team members located across Scotland.
The contribution to the Scottish economy from research and development projects between businesses and academics enabled by Interface was £88.9m GVA (gross value added), and supported 1,595 jobs, with expectations to reach £222.3 million GVA and 3,193 jobs.
The findings also captured the wider wellbeing and environmental benefits to society as the collaborative projects tackled major challenges such as health improvement, low carbon, community support, delivering education, helping young people, supporting international development and alleviating poverty.
Carried out by leading independent economic consultancy BiGGAR Economics Ltd, The Contribution of Interface to Sustainable and Inclusive Economic Growth report drew on evidence from a range of sources including the 329 collaborative projects which Interface brokered from August 2019 – July 2020, along with in-depth interviews with businesses who have benefited from the free service.
The report states: “The need to do things differently, to innovate, is crucial for Scotland’s recovery from COVID-19 and to meet its net zero carbon targets. The evidence presented demonstrates that Interface is a value for money service that delivers right across the economy, creating GVA and jobs while also driving sustainable and inclusive growth and well-being.”
Welcoming the report, Karen Watt, Chief Executive of the Scottish Funding Council, said: “Universities and colleges play a vital and effective role in supporting forward-looking businesses across Scotland to create new products and services through innovation. As we look towards economic recovery after the pandemic, this report is another reminder of Scotland’s resilience. It also highlights the part SFC-funded Interface plays as a catalyst for collaborations between businesses and academics.”
Interface has a successful history of business-academic partnerships with business demand for the service increasing consistently since it was established in 2005. Over the past months despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the team have serviced record breaking levels of demand with the need for businesses to co-design new products, processes and services to survive and drive economic recovery. The service has delivered over 2500 business academic collaborations.
Encouragingly, three quarters of businesses reported ongoing relationships with universities because of Interface brokerage, demonstrating the strength of the connections and collaborations made.
One business quoted in the report stated: “With everything I do now, Interface sits at the back of my mind, thinking is there a link with an academic that could help me with this issue?”.
Dr Siobhán Jordan, Director of Interface, said: “This report shows the significant gains right across Scotland, from the smallest community to the largest city, when innovation and ideas flourish through businesses and academic partnerships.
“We are in a unique position to make a real difference to all aspects of society through the connections we catalyse enabling world leading research to be purposeful.
Our regional team members are a bridge to local business and community networks as well as to universities, colleges and research institutes. We are touching all parts of society – from contributing to low carbon targets to making a difference to everyday lives. Crucially we are contributing to more fragile rural economies and across sectors hardest hit by the pandemic such as tourism, food and drink and hospitality.
“The outstanding achievements of the team at Interface is down to their translation of industry led challenges, understanding of how universities interact with industry for mutual benefit and extensive knowledge of funding and wider support opportunities.”
A range of case studies which highlight the economic and societal benefits of Interface-supported collaborations between businesses/organisations and universities/colleges can be found here.
The Contribution of Interface to Sustainable and Inclusive Economic Growth executive summary can be found here.
Note to editors.
The report is based on information provided to BiGGAR Economics Ltd. by Interface including impact data from 414 businesses, in-depth interviews with businesses and stakeholders, and data from previous surveys and consultations carried out since 2013.
A face mask prototype that is aimed to help prevent the spread of coronavirus is being developed by Stirling based tensARC, a fabric engineering company specialising in precision production of bespoke tailored fabric solar control solutions. This prototype is an alternative to surgical masks which may be in short supply. The Face Gaiter resembles existing sport face coverings but is engineered specifically for source control*. It is also durable, machine washable and can be reused hundreds of times.
The company were looking for an academic partner to study and validate the efficacy of Face Gaiter in infection control, reducing the risk of community transmission by service workers and the general public; a matter of imperative importance in the COVID-19 pandemic.
After being referred by Scottish Enterprise, Laura Goodfellow, Head of Business Engagement at Interface, was able to translate tensARC’s enquiry, issue their expertise request to various universities within Scotland, match them up with their chosen university (University of the West of Scotland (UWS)), and secure a Scottish Funding Council Innovation Voucher to fund the project – in just over a week!
“The support from Laura Goodfellow was amazing. The Face Gaiter concept is quite radical and can be a little hard to grasp but she jumped on it straight away, worked on it through the Easter weekend, and found us the perfect partner at UWS. The Scottish Funding Council fast tracked the Innovation Voucher application in just 24hrs because it was COVID-19 related and it has allowed us to start the work while we wait for other funding to be approved. The grant will save us at least three weeks on the testing program and we hope to have initial results by the end of May. In 18 years of running a design-based SME, this is the easiest and most effective support I have received – exceptional!” said Dr Paul Baglin, Managing Director, tensARC.
This project will see researchers from UWS’s School of Health and Life Sciences validate the Face Gaiter’s effectiveness in preventing transmission of the virus at the University’s microbiology facilities. Specifically, UWS will assess the face covering’s ability to limit the passage of pathogens, including viruses and bacteria. This will provide quality control and assurance to the product and ensuring it is fit for purpose. This is not only important for the commercial launch of the new product but it will also inform and feed back to improve the manufacturing and optimization of Face Gaiter.
It is expected that the use of this product will be immediate in preparation of the Government’s exit strategy on restriction of movement.
*Source control is a medical term used for preventing an infected person passing on their infection to others. With COVID-19 there are asymptomatic and pre-symptomatic cases that could pass the infection on without realising they were sick. This would be dramatically reduced with effective source control.
Our recently published Annual Review for 2018-19, gives a flavour of the many faces of knowledge exchange, where businesses and academics collaborate for research and development to prove early stage concepts or gain valuable information to deliver a competitive edge.
The review is peppered with case studies highlighting different ways in which small and medium-sized businesses (and organisations) have been connected with universities and colleges by Interface to progress ideas into something tangible. Often, the resulting product, process or service has a powerful impact on the environment, society or the economy, or all three.
I would encourage you to read the full review to get an overview of Interface’s activities in the past year.
One of the stand-out statistics is that 100% of companies surveyed were extremely satisfied or satisfied with the support they received from Interface. This is due to the passion, diligence and knowledge of the team which make up the sales force for Scotland’s universities, research institutes and colleges. This feedback demonstrates that we are making a difference, by matching businesses to the right academic partners for ground-breaking projects.
Of course, we know that many more companies and organisations could benefit from our impartial (and free) service and we are working hard to inspire as many small and medium sized enterprises as we can as to the art of the possible. Academics – whether researchers, PhD students, groups of undergraduate students or professors – are ready and willing to share their knowledge and expertise.
A great example of how our matchmaking service has brought benefits to a company comes from one of my colleagues, Shelley Breckenridge, Business Engagement Manager. She has supported Scotland’s largest independent manufacturer of beds, headboards and soft furnishings, Elite Contract Furniture over the past four years, with ongoing advice and access to expertise which cannot be bought off the shelf.
What started as a short-term project with a student from the University of Strathclyde’s Design, Manufacture and Engineering Management (DMEM) department, after a referral from Scottish Enterprise in 2015, led to a nine-month industrial challenge regarding manufacturing methods and materials used in Elite’s mattress production. A year later, a second nine-month project saw a student from DMEM investigate business processes to improve scheduling agility. In 2019, a two-year Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) was agreed – a recent graduate from the university will become a KTP Associate with the company. Building on Scotland’s drive towards a circular economy, Elite are focussing the KTP on launching a commercial subscription-based furniture package to the hospitality and care industry, allowing the company to take control of the furniture and furnishings they sell whilst extending the life cycle of their products. The overall objective is to make quality products that last, challenging the current “throwaway society” ethos. The KTP will also look at the designs of the products Elite manufacture by investigating ways of extending their lifespan and how they can be dismantled easily and effectively at the end of their life.
Elite’s production director, Greg Winston, said:
“Another key advantage we have found is that it brings fresh pairs of eyes to the business allowing you to see new solutions to problems you might not have even known existed and new ideas that you may not have even considered.”
As Dr Anup Karath Nair from the University of Strathclyde, pointed out:
“The University of Strathclyde believes in being a ‘Place for useful learning’ and Knowledge Transfer Partnerships, like those with Elite, play a significant role in ensuring that DMEM upholds that motto. Such industry-academia collaboration helps ensure that research and subject matter expertise at the University are aligned with the needs and demands of British businesses and the wider UK economy and society.”
As in the case of Elite Contract Furniture, when a business, organisation or entrepreneur and an academic team find a mutual interest, they both reap the rewards – the university or college gains valuable industry knowledge, which makes the teaching experience more realistic, while the business gains new ways of thinking, fresh ideas and input and a resource they possibly wouldn’t otherwise be able to access to solve a business issue.
Greater support for these deeper, longer-term partnerships is a priority for Interface. Feedback from companies we have supported showed that 50% of them plan to continue working with their academic partner once they have completed an initial project. There are a number of ways of achieving this, as illustrated in the Elite case study, KTPs being one vehicle for deeper collaborations. In many cases the KTP Associates have gone onto work permanently for the company, which recognises that keeping the knowledge built up during the duration of the collaboration will continue to bring benefits and impact the business.
In this uncertain world there is much to celebrate and so in February 2020, we will once again host the Scottish Knowledge Exchange Awards, celebrating the people at the heart of ground-breaking and innovative partnerships between businesses and academics. The deadline for applications is 5pm on Friday 29th November, 2019.
For anyone who owns a supermarket loyalty card, the concept of being sent special offers and discounts for exactly the kind of food and drink that you already buy, is not new. This is using customer data at its simplest, but it is a powerful way to keep track of who’s buying what and of keeping customers loyal.
Of course, there are many more applications of data in the food and drink industry, aiming for enhanced food safety and welfare for animals, waste reduction, better energy use, predictive maintenance, increased transparency and optimising staffing.
When I think about data and the food manufacturing industry, I used to think about the information coming into the business from ingredients and packaging, the information required for projects and different departments to work together, and the information going out about the products. These were ingredient specifications, certificate of analysis, packaging specifications, project briefs, project critical paths and final product specification and artwork.
Now, when I think about data and the food & drink industry, I think about the whole supply chain from farms or fishing right through to the processing and the consumer. I think about sensors, imaging and the Internet of Things. About robots, augmented reality and virtual reality, block chain and QR-codes, machine learning and predictive analytics, drones and precision farming. These are not just for the sci-films anymore, they are reality.
Agritech is underpinning many new developments and farmers of the future will work closely with data scientists. The type of data captured, and its applications are constantly evolving as a result of developments in sensors, scanners, cameras and storage and processing capabilities.
As part of our role to develop academic to business collaborations, Interface were recently involved in pulling together a partnership between mathematicians from the University of Stirling and the agriculture sector. As a result, the Scottish pig sector and the university have been working to link up sensor data on a pig farm, with the abattoir data for the same farm. The analysis carried out will give the farmers a greater insight into rearing methods and the effect on the end product. The dissemination of this project will enhance the efficiency and sustainability of pig farming across Scotland.
Another area of growing interest to the industry is blockchain technology. What started as the technology that fuelled cryptocurrencies, the blockchain revolution is pervading food and drink production, improving traceability, transparency and food safety across the supply chain. A good example of this is where Walmart conducted an experiment trying to trace the source of sliced mangos. It took seven days for Walmart employees to locate the farm in Mexico that grew the fruit. With the blockchain software, the mangos could be tracked in a matter of seconds, which, in the event of a health and safety problem, will mitigate the impacts and allow targeted products recalls.
Wearable devices also have great potential for the food and drink industry. Smartgloves, smartwatches and other wearable scanners make processes faster and easier for employees with barcodes and QR codes being scanned without interruption during workflow processes. Smartglasses, vests and helmets can eliminate the need for separate computers or manuals saving time and ensuring more accuracy in the work place. Smartglasses also have a communications interface and internet connectivity that could allow employees to discuss issues with an expert, even one who is off-site.
The 4th Industrial Revolution is already encompassing nine distinct areas; autonomous robots, simulation, system integration, Internet of Things, cybersecurity, cloud computing, Additive manufacturing, augmented reality and big data. Data can be simple, it can be complex – there is always a requirement to record, store and process it, and if necessary publish it, but also there is an opportunity to learn from it and make changes which improve products and processes.
Technology has advanced rapidly in the last few years, so embracing how it can streamline systems, introduce efficiencies, upskill staff from manual, repetitive jobs to new roles ready to make a difference as part of the Industry 4.0 movement is crucial to how the Scottish food and drink industry collectively reaches the target of being worth £30bn by 2030.
“Workforce Innovation” is high on the agenda of those outward looking businesses with a focus on growth and is key to addressing the evolving and ever-changing market environment in which the food and drink sector operates. It’s more than just human resource – it’s about the workplace, its operation and the challenge of inspiring the workforce of the future.
A Scottish museum’s internationally significant collection of photographs has been expanded and preserved for future generations, thanks to Interface’s connections.
Dumfries Museum houses an extensive collection of photographs taken by German photographer Dr Werner Kissling between 1935 and the 1970s. Many show images of crafts people and agricultural workers from New Zealand to the Western Isles of Scotland at work, some practising crafts which have since died out.
Dr Kissling was a German aristocrat who was born into great wealth but ended up living as a tenant of a bedsit in Dumfries. He left the German diplomatic service whilst posted to London in 1931, unwilling to work for a Nazi government. Instead, he pursued academic research in the UK even after anti-Hitler activities cost his family their fortune.
He made the first ever film to use spoken Gaelic and is regarded as one of the great photographers of the Western Isles.
In 2018 a suitcase of Dr Kissling’s personal possessions was donated to the museum. When Mari Findlay from Interface approached the museum to tell them of the Scottish Graduate School for Arts and Humanities opportunities, Siobhan Ratchford, the Curator, was able to provide Dr Kissling’s suitcase as a possible project. Mari was then able to source academic expertise to catalogue the contents which included new images, documents and postcards.
PhD student Kirsty Kernohan, who is studying anthropology at University of Aberdeen, created over 500 new catalogue records for the museum’s collection and developed a record identifying Kissling collections in other institutions, available for future research by public and experts. She also compiled three online information pages including around 120 digitised photographs for http://www.futuremuseum.co.uk/ a resource showcasing the collections of museums in Ayrshire and Dumfries and Galloway.
Dr Kissling died in 1988 and Kirsty, who was funded through the Scottish Graduate School for Arts and Humanities (SGSAH) Doctoral Internship programme, said the most fascinating part of her work at the museum was interviewing people who had known him.
“My time in Dumfries has been invaluable. This chance to take on a multi-faceted project in a museum context has allowed me to put into practice skills I had gained volunteering in other museums and through my PhD research. My experience on anthropological fieldwork allowed me to conduct ethical interviews and to add to the museum’s records. My research experience allowed me to pull together information about Dr Kissling to enhance the museum’s collections.
“I also learned a whole new set of skills involving press releases, radio interviews, and museum documentation practices. I can now take forward all these skills into a future career in research or the museum sector. I thoroughly enjoyed undertaking this project whilst working within the supportive environment of Dumfries Museum, getting advice and support from almost all members of staff at various points.”
Siobhan Ratchford added:
“Dr Kissling’s archives are a very valuable insight into Scotland in times gone by. Without Kirsty we would never have had the capacity ourselves to do what she has achieved. We always knew that the collection was important, the fact that more of it is available and accessible to the public through better documentation will help preserve images of crafts which we have lost.”
Interface’s Business Engagement Executive for Dumfries and Galloway, Mari Findlay, said:
“It was great to be able to set up the relationship between Dumfries Museum and the University of Aberdeen which allowed Kirsty to work on such a historical and interesting project to safeguard Dr Werner Kissling’s legacy. The partnership has enhanced the visitor experience and ensured that the collection will be enjoyed more widely.”
Kirsty’s work on Futuremuseum.co.uk can be viewed here.
Kirsty will give a public talk on her work at Dumfries Museum on Thursday, 14 November, 2019 at 6.30pm.
A funding programme which helps business collaborate with Scotland’s universities and colleges has awarded over £6 million to boost innovation.
Funded by the Scottish Funding Council and administered by Interface, Innovation Vouchers offer a range of grants to help businesses offset the cost of collaborating with Scotland’s higher and further education institutes.
The funding can lead to positive impacts on business development with new products, processes and services. It also enhances university research through its application in real-world scenarios.
This month marks a key milestone for the funding programme, where more than 1,200 Standard Innovation Vouchers, with a value of up to £5,000 each, have been paid over the past seven years to support company-led innovations developed in partnership with a college or university. On top of this, 57 follow-on projects funded by the Scottish Funding Council, Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise, have resulted in additional funding of £700,000 in the same time period.
Minister for Further and Higher Education Richard Lochhead said:
“Research and innovation are fundamental to create sustainable and inclusive growth. I very much welcome this milestone as evidence of the key role Innovation Vouchers and Interface play in creating additional value from the Scottish Government’s investment in our universities, colleges, innovation centres and research institutes to the benefit of businesses.”
Karen Watt, Chief Executive of the Scottish Funding Council, said:
“Innovation Vouchers play a vital role in connecting small and medium sized businesses with the knowledge and expertise in our colleges and universities. Across key industry sectors like energy, food and drink and tourism collaborations brought about through these vouchers have created new products, provided new services and supported new jobs.”
Dr Siobhàn Jordan, Director of Interface, said:
“This funding has enabled these businesses to further develop or enhance a commercial product or service or improve productivity through the creation of a new business process. That’s an incredible £6.7 million that has been paid out to support business innovation in Scotland over the past seven years alone.”
Recent changes to the Innovation Voucher Programme – including a new Workforce Innovation Voucher to support innovation to develop a company’s workforce – have introduced greater flexibility to all eligible Scottish Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) and a greater financial incentive to businesses to deepen their collaborations with their academic partner.
One such business that has benefited from the funding stream is Welbot, which was created to combat the ill effects of sedentary computer-bound working practices, in particular reducing employee stress and fatigue and helping manage musculoskeletal issues and general health through positive behaviour change. The company were matched by Interface to three universities to look at occupational stress, wellbeing in the workplace, and behaviour change in a technology setting, which helped the business develop and launch a commercial product.
Commenting on the level of support they have received from Interface, Welbot CEO Mykay Kamara, said:
“It’s amazing how much Interface have achieved in supporting us, especially with links to universities, across all the areas of expertise.”
Further information on Innovation Vouchers can be found here.
A full case study on Welbot’s collaborations with universities can be found here.