Research England has invested £67 million in 14 collaborative projects between universities and with other partners to drive forward world-class university commercialisation across the country. The fourteen successful bids, funded under Research England’s Connecting Capability Fund (CCF), will support development of the largest UK formal technology transfer office collaboration to increase impacts on the area, through the Midlands Innovation alliance led by the University of Birmingham.
This follows announcement of four winning CCF projects in October 2017, and completes allocation of the £100 million provided by the Government to support universities to help deliver the Industrial Strategy.
Overall these projects involve 54 higher education institutions collaborating with each other and directly with more than 120 individual businesses and investors, as well as wider business and investor networks. More than 12 different local enterprise partnerships will benefit specifically. The projects are attracting over £322 million of additional investment from universities, businesses, investors and other partners.
With five Catapults and some Research Councils involved, the projects also build on partnership working across many of the organisations that make up UK Research and Innovation.
The Midlands Innovation Commercialisation of Research Accelerator (MICRA) sees University of Birmingham partner with Aston University, Cranfield University, Keele University, University of Leicester, Loughborough University, University of Nottingham and University of Warwick. Their award of £4,990,00 will establish the UK’s largest, formal technology transfer office collaboration, across the eight Midlands Innovation (MI) alliance universities. Will provide a shared knowledge exchange network and ‘gateway’ to the MI alliance’s collective intellectual property (IP) resources, develop the alliance’s entrepreneurial academic capacity, showcase the MI’s collective IP to business and investors and drive a connected Midlands incubator and accelerator ecosystem. Aims to create a joint pipeline of scalable investment opportunities that will attract major private investment funding and increase the number of Midlands spin out jobs generated from research investment.
The CCF was first announced by Government at Autumn Statement 2016 (as part of the National Productivity Investment Fund).
Business Secretary, Greg Clark, said:
“Britain is famous for its innovations. From the humble toothbrush to hip replacements, the ATM to the World Wide Web – these inventions have had a huge impact on our daily lives. Up and down the UK, some of the brightest and best talent are undertaking research which can deliver extraordinary innovations that will transform our society for the better.
“Through the Industrial Strategy, Grand Challenges and the funding announced today, we are helping turn innovative new ideas into products and services which could help change our lives and keep the UK as a world leader in developing the products of tomorrow.”
David Sweeney, Executive Chair of Research England, said:
“These projects demonstrate the commitment of universities to work together to strengthen the R&D and technological capabilities of the UK, building upon our successful Higher Education Innovation Funding (HEIF). In the Industrial Strategy, the Government asked us to improve our ability to turn exciting ideas into commercial products and services. Universities have stepped forward in these projects to show that they can do world-class commercialisation, alongside world-class science.
“I believe these projects present important innovations that should inform our strategic approach to commercialisation in UK Research and Innovation for the future.”
Professor Trevor McMillan, Vice-Chancellor of Keele University, and Chair of the CCF steering group, said:
“The new projects show the extraordinary potential of universities to deliver not only national but regional and local value. Universities are unique in having the reach to support technological and commercial development right across the UK’s industrial base. They are also deeply embedded in their local economies and communities, but with international networks to draw in talent, partners and investment.
“The Connecting Capability Fund is a great showcase of how higher education can change the prospects of communities and places.”
The Connecting Capability Fund supports universities in working together, and with businesses and other partners, to commercialise research and share good practice and capacity. The Fund is highlighted in the Government’s Industrial Strategy and will help achieve its aims of enhancing UK industrial competitiveness and productivity. It builds on established processes and success of Research England’s HEIF programme.
