Introduction
Innovation Partners Ltd supports the real-world application (or commercialisation) of university-based research capabilities. Universities can achieve this in a number of ways, the main ones being:
- Participating in collaborative research and development projects together with one or more industry partners.
- Building networks with innovative engagement mechanisms together with both industry and academic partners.
- Undertaking contract research or consultancy for specific industry clients.
- Exploiting equipment-based assets through providing industry-relevant services.
- Establishing new entities ('spin-offs') that seek to commercialise a technology or a service.
- Organising thematically-focussed events.
- Providing bespoke, professional training courses.
The rationale for supporting the commercialisation of university-based research capabilities is strong:
- First and foremost, universities can enhance their overall research and teaching portfolios through direct engagement with industry. For example, interactions with industry provide an important platform for the application and validation of research outcomes.
- Secondly, industry-facing activities provide an additional income stream for universities. It is important to emphasise here that these activities should seek to be strategically aligned with the research strategy of the respective faculty, school or centre.
- Thirdly, engagement in these industry-driven activities can be enriching for both academic staff and students alike.
Exploiting the knowledge base of research organisations such as universities through collaboration with external organisations is very much aligned with the 'open innovation' agenda. However, despite this area having seen a greater level of attention and activity in recent years, there is significant scope for improvement, particularly for universities. To meet this challenge, Innovation Partners is dedicated to exploring and developing practical solutions that enable the potential residing in the 'knowledge base' of universities to be fully realised.
Innovation Partners collaborates with universities to make this happen. This simply means that we engage in all activities that underpin the commercialisation of university-based research capabilities. This could include identifying industry partners and building consortia, preparing full proposals to secure funding, engaging in the delivery of projects, and the development of industry-facing commercialisation strategies.
To guarantee high-quality results, our approach embodies the following principles:
- Long-term collaborations that typically span months or years.
- Interdisciplinarity, mainly through bringing together areas of expertise from a number of disciplines: engineering, computing, mathematics, law and healthcare.
- Understanding the science in sufficient depth in order to add real value at all levels.
- Pragmatism to get things done!
- Experience - John Cummins, the founder, has been working in this space for a wide range of universities and research institutes for over two decades.
- International coverage with a strong presence in London and Europe.
© Innovation Partners Ltd