Venue: APEX City Quay Hotel, Dundee
The Scottish Knowledge Exchange Awards, sponsored by Salix Finance, is the flagship event that celebrates the partnerships between business, third sector or public sector organisations and academia. Now in its eighth year the annual event recognises, rewards, and celebrates the impacts achieved through these exciting collaborations that enrich society and support sustainable and inclusive economic growth.
To discover more about the categories, and how to apply visit our recent article. Read More.
Background
Wanlockhead Museum represents the local social and industrial history of this once important site of lead mining. The museum consists of an underground mine (open to the public); Straitsteps Cottages, representing miners’ lives in 1750, 1850 and 1910; the Miners’ Library and the Visitor Centre; and the Museum. The library holds 2800 books and is the second oldest subscription library in Europe.
Challenge
Restrictions due to Covid-19 have had a negative effect on how the Museum can deliver the visitor experience. In May of 2020, Interface joined forces with VisitScotland and the Scottish Tourism Alliance to launch the Adopt a Business scheme; a new initiative aimed at boosting the sector’s recovery from Covid-19 by connecting tourism businesses to university academics and students for research and development projects, helping businesses to diversify and adapt to the new environment.
Wanlockhead Museum were looking to develop an informed digitisation strategy. They have valuable resources in the library which could be more widely shared on a digital platform. Social distancing would be very difficult to undertake on the mine tour, but a virtual tour could widen their audience and increase access for those not physically able to enter the mine; and, with the inclusion of text, could also be accessible to the hearing impaired.
Solution
The Trust applied to the Adopt a Business initiative looking for academic support. Mari Findlay, Business Engagement Executive at Interface, put Kathryn Linsell, Trustee, Wanlockhead Museum, in touch with Dr Kirsten Cowan from the University of Edinburgh and Dr Alena Kostyk from the University of Glasgow, who had expressed interest in participating in the Adopt a Business initiative. Intrigued by the Museum’s rich history and everything it had to offer, the academics volunteered to work jointly on the project as there was a good fit between their expertise and the needs of the Museum.
Benefits
The academics were able to secure funding for the project that included ESRC (Economic and Social Research Council) Impact Acceleration Account funding from the University of Glasgow; allowing them to create and test digital marketing solutions for the Museum as well as being able to purchase the necessary equipment to do this.
In collaboration with filmmakers “Silly Wee Films” from Glasgow, a static scenes VR tour for the Wanlockhead’s Lead mine, Miners’ library, and Miners’ cottages was created.
Audio narrations for these VR scenes were created in collaboration with “The Big Light” podcast company from Glasgow.
A small pre-Christmas Facebook campaign was tested to facilitate donations to the Wanlockhead’s fundraiser, and to build social media following. It generated 18,000+ post engagements, and 1,575 link clicks. Facebook page following went from 2,300 to 2,700 potential visitors during that brief campaign.
The academics are now preparing (January 2021) to launch a Facebook campaign to build a larger social media following for the Museum as well as generating more traction for the fundraiser. They will be testing out several digital campaign designs to find optimal solutions.
A further student marketing project is currently underway with the University of Glasgow.
Drs Cowan and Kostyk have supported the Museum throughout the course of the project and continue to do so.
The Adopt a Business scheme was shortlisted by PraxisAuril for the 2021 Pandemic Pivot of the Year Award.
Background
The Whithorn Trust was founded in 1988 to inspire the public with the story of Whithorn, which is one of the earliest sites in Scotland where archaeological evidence of Christian practice is found. The site was an early medieval monastery and later a pilgrimage shrine. The Trust operates a visitor centre; museum; guided tours, including its full-scale replica Iron Age Roundhouse; and a café and shop to support its activities. It also promotes wide ranging economic development and educational initiatives, working with bioarchaeologists on dating and population information for the early burials.
Challenge
In May of 2020, Interface joined forces with VisitScotland and the Scottish Tourism Alliance to launch the Adopt a Business scheme; a new initiative aimed at boosting the sector’s recovery from COVID-19 by connecting tourism businesses to university academics and students for research and development projects; helping businesses to diversify and adapt to the new environment.
Julia Muir Watt, Development Manager at The Whithorn Trust, responded to the Adopt a Business initiative saying: “We would be interested in hearing from anyone who can work with a heritage organisation on virtual reality. We already work with archaeologists who are looking to produce an interactive archaeopuzzle with 3D models, but we have lots of resources where virtual reality experiences may be applicable.”
Solution
Mari Findlay, Business Engagement Executive at Interface, put Julia in touch with Dr Kirsten Cowan from University of Edinburgh and Dr Alena Kostyk from University of Glasgow, who had both expressed interest in participating in the Adopt a Business initiative and volunteered to work jointly on the project during their summer holidays.
Benefits
Drs Cowan and Kostyk were able to secure funding for the project that included ESRC (Economic and Social Research Council) Impact Acceleration Account funding from both the Universities of Edinburgh and Glasgow that was used to fund filmmakers, post-production costs, podcasts and 3D headsets; enable the continuance of the collaboration; and support the creation and testing of digital marketing solutions.
In collaboration with filmmakers, Silly Wee Films based in Glasgow, a static scenes VR tour for the Whithorn Trust’s Iron Age Roundhouse and Priory was created and the academics are in the process (January 2021) of creating a 360-degree video VR tour, which is in line with the Trust’s new digital ambitions. Audio narrations were developed in collaboration with The Big Light podcast company from Glasgow.
A Facebook campaign was designed and tested to facilitate the sales of the Whithorn Trust’s “digital ticket” initiative and to build a larger social media following.
An additional student marketing project was also secured by the academics to look at improving the Trust’s general marketing activities for 2021.
The academics continue to support the Trust.
Background
Dr Werner 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.
Dr Kissling was a distinguished ethnologist, particularly taking photographs in the Western Isles of Scotland. He made the first ever film to use spoken Gaelic and is regarded as one of the great photographers of the Western Isles.
Dumfries Museum houses an extensive collection of photographs taken by Dr 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.
Challenge
In 2018, a suitcase of Dr Kissling’s personal possessions was donated to the museum. A great deal of work had been done already in terms of sorting, copying and documenting the contents of this suitcase, but further work was required to archive, digitise and catalogue them.
This inspired the Dr Werner Kissling Project 2019, a project to document the newly acquired collections and collect reminiscences from people who remembered Dr Kissling.
Solution
Mari Findlay, from Interface, put Siobhán Ratchford, curator at Dumfries Museum, in touch with the Scottish Graduate School for Arts & Humanities (SGSAH) Internship/Artist Residency programme, where PhD student Kirsty Kernohan expressed an interest in the project.
Kirsty, who was 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 Future Museum, a resource showcasing the collections of museums in Ayrshire and Dumfries & Galloway. Kirsty’s work on Futuremuseum.co.uk can be viewed here.
Benefits
Company – A Scottish museum’s internationally significant collection of photographs has been expanded and preserved for future generations, thanks to Interface’s connections. The staff at the museum were delighted to see Dr Kissling’s collection finally honoured and become more accessible to the public.
Academic – The Dr Werner Kissling Project 2019 gave the PhD student the chance to take on a multi-faceted project in a museum context, allowing her to put into practice skills she had gained volunteering in other museums and through her PhD research. Previous experience on anthropological fieldwork allowed her to conduct ethical interviews and add to the museum’s records, and research experience allowed her to collate information about Dr Kissling, enhancing the museum’s collection.
Kirsty won the Truckell Prize 2020 for her research paper into Dr Kissling, awarded by the Dumfriesshire and Galloway Natural History and Antiquarian Society.
Background
TransK9 situated in St John’s Town of Dalry, Dumfries and Galloway, is a family run company set up in 2003 by Sharon and Robert Marshall who supply dog cages and transit boxes to be fitted in the rear of vehicles.
The TransK9 boxes are constructed from high grade aluminium, with heavy duty galvanised steel doors. Their customers range from domestic users to the UK’s top gundog trainers and handlers, police constabularies, security companies through to numerous veterinary practices. In addition, they export to the USA and Europe.
Challenge
Manufactured locally in Scotland in aluminium, with a durable powder coated finish, TransK9 transit boxes have been designed to give many years of satisfactory service and are available in a range of sizes to suit most estate cars, 4x4s, double cabs, suburban utility vehicles (SUVs) and vans.
It is very important to the company to provide quality, tested and proven materials and components in their cages and boxes to ensure the safety of their clients’ dogs. Therefore, they were keen to collaborate with a university partner to:
- crash test the safety of the boxes by setting up mock car crash conditions
- identify any damage to the boxes that would be harmful to the safety of the dog(s)
- evaluate the durability and condition of the dog box at various driving speeds
- ensure that after a crash, the doors of the boxes could still be opened, and the dog(s) can be released safely
- measure impact on human passengers sitting in rear seats
Solution
After establishing relevant academic expertise, Interface was able to set up a collaboration with the University of the West Scotland’s (UWS) Engineering Department in Paisley to crash test TransK9’s latest dog cage.
As a result, TransK9 was successfully matched with Dr Bob Bailey, Senior Lecturer at the School of Engineering and Computing at UWS who led this project.
The School of Engineering and Computing at UWS is home to a vibrant research community carrying out high quality applied research relevant to the research community and industry which underpins and extends the quality of the student experience. UWS is one of the leading players in computing and IT, offering professionally recognised engineering degrees and cutting-edge physics programmes with practical applications.
Business benefits
TransK9 Director, Robert Marshall said:
“The benefits were noticed immediately, in our first full year since undertaking the crash testing our UK sales rose by a staggering 39%; we are now into our second year and we are anticipating another increase in sales of at least 20% for this period.
We would without any hesitation collaborate again with the University of the West of Scotland, their expertise has greatly benefited our business, not only here in the UK but worldwide.”
Additional support
TransK9 Director, Robert Marshall added:
“We are fortunate to have Allan McNaught at the end of the Business Gateway phone line; Allan helped us recently with the part-funded acquisition of a new forklift, for what is becoming an ever increasingly busy loading bay in our warehouse.
We are most grateful to Business Gateway for all their assistance over the last few years, be it financial or just sound advice, particularly on exporting which has been another growth area for us.”
Follow on activity
The company are looking to expand their premises over the coming months to support their logistics, expand the product range and provide smoother operations.
Background
Plansafe Solutions Ltd is a leading expert in health and safety legislation, solutions and services. Based in Dumfries, the company has customers throughout the UK, Ireland and Europe. Plansafe is also a UKAS accredited asbestos surveying body and has extensive experience across a wide range of properties in this field.
A third division of the company provides Engineering Services and a key aspect of this team is inspecting plant and machinery to ensure that it is fit for purpose, and issuing certificates, similar to a car MOT. This is a statutory requirement for all types of equipment such as cranes and forklift trucks, construction plant and farm machinery, and also minor pressure systems such as air compressors and ventilation equipment.
Challenge
The company had outgrown its manual method of recording the inspection results, and producing client reports and certificates, all of which are a legal requirement, and wanted to move to a streamlined online system. There was nothing commercially available in the present market which met all their needs, so the company, through a referral from Scottish Enterprise, turned to academic expertise to help develop their own tailor-made solution.
“What we needed was a bespoke and innovative IT system that cut down on data inputting time, reduced administrative burden, and offered customers a web-based, easily accessible and streamlined service,” explained Robert Burton, Senior Engineer Surveyor at Plansafe Solutions.
“The new system also had to be compatible with tablets, so that our engineers could input the information as they were out and about visiting client premises and businesses throughout the region. The system also had to be designed so that the information would be fully protected at all times,” he added.
Solution
Mari Findlay, Business Engagement Executive at Interface, met Robert Burton, Senior Engineer Surveyor and Plansafe Solutions’ Managing Director, David Wood to discuss the company’s specific needs and a brief was developed for circulation to universities across Scotland for consideration.
After selecting two universities to speak to in more detail about their proposals, Plansafe chose to collaborate with Dr Robert Kukla and Dr Alan Cannon at The Institute for Informatics and Digital Innovation (IIDI) Edinburgh Napier University to develop the new innovative IT system.
A Scottish Funding Council Innovation Voucher for £5,000 was awarded to fund the initial collaborative work, with Plansafe making a financial contribution towards the final first phase software programme.
Benefits
Robert Burton, Senior Engineer Surveyor at Plansafe Solutions, said:
“Thanks to Interface, Plansafe found the ideal collaborative partner in Edinburgh Napier University whose team were quick to grasp exactly what the project requirements were and to offer a suitable solution.
“The system developed has enabled Plansafe to increase efficiency, rationalise resources and provide clients with a reliable, cost effective service, in order to satisfy their legal obligations.”
Dr Alan Cannon, Research Fellow at Edinburgh Napier University’s Institute for Informatics and Digital Innovation, said:
“The funding from the SFC allowed us to transform a very good idea into a commercially viable system to assist safety engineers in their working practice.
Using an iterative methodology, we were able to explore, develop, refine and expand the system whilst addressing the practical conditions of conducting robust safety inspections in the field. The research has shown the system can free up highly valuable time for inspectors allowing them to further concentrate on utilizing their safety expertise.
As researchers, we found it highly satisfying to apply our skills to working closely with such an innovative company with a vision for the future of their industry.“
Follow on opportunity
Following this successful collaboration, Plansafe completed a Follow-on Innovation Voucher to further develop the second phase of their software development with Edinburgh Napier University which allowed the refinement of the system to be a viable potential product for other companies in the safety engineering field to adopt. To address the needs of Plansafe and the wider industry other features were investigated and incorporated such as: the inspection of other types of equipment; protected online access for clients to their inspection certificates; the managing of the full inspection lifecycle.
Please note that Interface administers the Innovation Voucher Scheme on behalf of the Scottish Funding Council. All funding applications are reviewed on a case by case basis by the Scottish Funding Council, guidelines can be found here.
Tsarina Imperial Dacha, launched in 2007, is the only company in the UK that designs and manufactures real log cabins and homes from solid round logs.
Managing Director Michael Dutton uses sustainable grown Scottish timber and traditional techniques learned when he lived and worked in the Arctic Circle as a soldier and also in Russia where he lived for several years after leaving the Army.
Although the core business is the design and manufacture of log cabins and log homes, the company has expanded its range of products and uses different parts of the timber to create everything from garden furniture, children’s play equipment and hot tubs to decking boards, telegraph poles, bridges, fencing and even solid wood sailing masts.
Challenge
To complement and protect their existing timber products Tsarina developed a range of natural preservatives from natural oils which they engineered to protect the wood, highlight the products’ natural aesthetics and also act as a fire retardant.
Before they could market and sell these new preservatives, however, they needed to demonstrate their efficiency and performance.
Unfortunately Tsarina lacked the necessary in-house expertise and needed access to industry standard equipment and techniques to test the new wood preservative.
Solution
Tsarina approached Mari Findlay Rural Project Executive at Interface to find out if academia could provide a solution.
Mari worked with Michael to understand the project objectives, translating the initial brief to make it relevant and appealing to an academic audience.
Mari Findlay explains, “With established connections in each of Scotland’s Universities and Research Institutions Interface are able to identify the most applicable expertise, the most relevant facilities and, in doing so, find the most suitable solutions for any number of business challenges.”
“Our service is free and impartial and can save businesses a huge amount of time and money when searching for academic support. We work with hundreds of businesses each year supporting them through their project and helping them to achieve their project aims and objectives.”
Tsarina received a number of responses from their initial search but decided that Dr John Liggat at the University of Strathclyde was able to provide the most suitable solution.
Dr Liggat is a leader in the field of polymer durability and fire response with a proven track of responding to industrial challenges in the chemical manufacturing arena and his experience and expertise proved an ideal fit for Tsarina.
Having met with Tsarina and exploring the project in more detail Dr Liggat performed a scientifically controlled study where Tsarina wood samples, alongside samples from two international market leaders, were subjected to an accelerated aging process which mimicked solar irradiation and water inundation within a controlled laboratory setting. Where Tsarina’s sample passed the tests, the comparative samples failed and although Dr Liggat is still in the process of compiling a full report of his findings it is already evident that Tsarina’s wood preservatives have far exceeded all expectations.
Benefits
Dr Liggat and Tsarina are already planning the fire testing stage of the project and if successful it will mean that Tsarina will have developed the world’s first single wood preservative and fire retardant made completely from natural ingredients and oils.
Michael Dutton, Managing Director at Tsarina said “Interface opened the doors to academia giving us at Tsarina a unique opportunity to test our products with industry experts. This has not only allowed us to legitimise the unique properties of our preservatives but it has also proved to be extremely time and cost effective – ideal for a small business like ours.”
“Our company has already received huge benefits from this partnership and there are plenty of other opportunities; we’re already planning the fire testing stage with Dr Liggat but the University have also suggested that we start a student project with the Marketing School allowing students to assist in getting the product to market.”
Tsarina are now actively seeking manufacturers who would be interested in licensing these preservatives, and Michael believes that the revenues from this could be used to grow the company further, increasing staff levels and production capabilities.
For more information on Tsarina Imperial Dacha, to see their products or to contact Michael please visit www.tsarina-imperial-dacha.com
The company has a strong environmental and sustainability policy and ensures that every part of the tree is used, resulting in zero waste. Even the grindings from the trees goes as cattle bedding which is then recycled back into the land as fertiliser.
It has been Michael’s aim to create local employment opportunities for others within his business as it grows, and to also train others in the art and skills of Log Building, a very unique and skilled profession which is known as a Log Smith.
Working through Interface and with the University of Strathclyde is helping this to happen much faster than would have otherwise been possible.
Whisky making is a long established industry normally associated with the distilleries spread around the Highlands of Scotland, but a local entrepreneur in Dumfries & Galloway has set his sights on breathing fresh life into a distillery which was last in use nearly 90 years ago.
David Thomson and his wife purchased the long-derelict Annandale Distillery based in Lowlands, near Dumfries, which first opened in the 1830’s and remained at the forefront of lowland whisky production until it closed in 1919. Now, almost 90 years later, a newly formed Annandale Distillery Company Limited is a step closer to restoring the historic distillery buildings to its former glory with its new whisky brand and an integral online visitor ‘experience’.
The Business Challenge
Financial assistance secured from Historic Scotland and The Scottish Government through a Regional Selective Assistance (RSA) grant initially helped to get the project off the ground, but of prime importance to David was academic help to undertake historical research pertaining to the locale of the distillery and the culture of its area. This would involve delving into areas such as the evolution and history of the lowland Scots language and emigration patterns from the region.
All this research was central to the brand ethos that he plans to develop and is also important in the context of developing a memorable online visitor experience.
Understanding David’s ‘day job’ was key to sourcing the level of high quality research he required. He is founder and CEO of MMR Research, one of Europe’s largest, independent consumer research businesses. Additionally, he is visiting Professor in the Department of Food Biosciences at University of Reading, UK, where key interests include sensory branding and the development of understanding consumers’ choice behavior.
The Solution
With his knowledge, David identified Interface – The knowledge connection for business, as an excellent source to tap into, partly because the team can access academics with key knowledge pertinent to his project and partly because in David’s own words ‘as well as the quality of whisky, it is important that the brand has some meaning and value’.
Interface rapidly understood and immediately grasped the key elements of David’s requirement and arranged collaboration with three academics specialising in quite distinct areas that would support his aims. The key was to convey much of the evolution and history of the lowland Scots language and written in a style which, in David’s words, had to be light and witty, but also comprehensive and credible, with the scope to offer further enhancement and development.
Interface put him in touch with renowned linguist, John Corbett, Professor of Applied Language Studies at the University of Glasgow with specialism in Scots language studies. Professor Corbett wrote on the development of the Lowland Scots language and used the language to add descriptions of historical whisky and whisky-related events.
Interface also brokered collaboration with Dr Billy Kenefick, a lecturer in modern Scottish and British history at the University of Dundee, who looked at the history of the area and its migration patterns to other regions throughout the world. This is of particular importance to David, since the Single Malt Lowland Scotch whisky produced at the Annandale Distillery will be sold globally (either through the website or an international network of drinks distributors) and he has identified that a key target will be consumers around the world with Scots heritage and ancestry.
By populating the website with historical facts and figures around the history of emigrant Scots, these consumers could relate to their forefathers migration to the colonies such as Australia, New Zealand, Canada, USA and South Africa. Indeed, the migration from the borders was of special significance, since David’s home town of Annan was a significant emigration port in the 1700s and 1800s, either offering direct sailings to the colonies or as a ‘feeder service’ to larger vessels bound from Liverpool.
The third academic Interface brokered a partnership for was through Dr Malcolm Lochead, a fellow in design, based at Glasgow Caledonian University who contributed to the initial ideas on brand design and development and is designing a signature plaid for the distillery.
“I am so grateful to Interface for bringing together this resource of extraordinary academic talent. Each project has its own challenges and the information and research has been pivotal to keeping the developmental phase on track. I was intrigued to see if the academic teams were up to the demands of the task, and so far I have been very impressed. Trying to lay my hands on all this information myself, would have taken me a significant amount of time, but the Interface team pulled out all the stops to surpass my expectations.”
Shelley is a knowledge exchange professional brokering award winning collaborative R&D projects between Scottish businesses and academia for over a decade. As part of the Interface management team her focus is on raising awareness of the value of our world class academic base, building relationships and identifying opportunities to support university, college and research institutes priorities and their role in delivering prosperity for Scotland.
Shelley is also a co-opted Committee Member of City of Glasgow College’s Board of Management where she provides insight and analysis to the Management Board on commercial and international activities, assessing and managing risks and opportunities.
Shelley graduated from the University of Strathclyde with a BA Honours degree in International Business and Modern Languages. Following a stint spent working and travelling around North America she moved back to the UK to start her career in sales and business support.
Outside of work Shelley is passionate about fitness and is most often found at CrossFit or having a swim in the North Sea!