27 May 2010
Innovation Vouchers: a ticket to business success (Young Company Finance)

A new scheme offers to help small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) drive innovations through collaboration with Scotland's universities.

The Innovation Voucher Scheme offers awards from £500 up to £5,000 and aims to deliver new products and processes that will benefit the business, the institution and the Scottish economy. This is a positive boost at a time when industry is facing tough trading conditions, and research and development (R&D) programmes are often not a top priority.

Scotland's universities and research institutes are home to a wealth of knowledge, expertise and often untapped talent that can help companies to overcome business challenges and stay ahead of the competition. The Scottish Funding Council (SFC) is driving this scheme to help SMEs offset the costs of collaborative projects with the academic community.

Administering the scheme is Interface - The knowledge connection for business. Interface, which offers a free ‘matchmaking' service, connecting companies with a specific business challenge to the relevant academic expertise, has links with leading universities across Scotland.

The awards are specifically to encourage new partnerships that have not jointly received funding from any source previously for the proposed project. Supported projects are relatively short and aim to lay foundations for longer term links between Scotland's Higher Education Institutes and small businesses.

One project that has reaped the benefits of an innovation voucher award is Ballathie Estates Ltd. In 2006 the family launched the Ballathie Good Food Company to enable the estate to retail its own beef, pork and game products directly to its consumer through a farm shop and adjoining café.

With the help of innovation vouchers, the Ballathie Good Food Company is linking with the Scottish Agricultural College (SAC) to help establish a Food Hub to process and pack a range of local produce and market it under the Ballathie brand.

SAC worked with Ballathie to provide business, marketing and food and drink expertise. This will help Ballathie to ensure the quality of the product meets the high standards required to enhance the existing brand image. The hub will also provide an alternative outlet for local producers.

And the possibilities are limitless. Interface has helped companies operating across a range of sectors, from food and drink to financial services. Recent innovation voucher awards include a company looking to devise a programme to measure cognitive decline in ageing cats, and a company looking to develop its athletic training programme through research to biomechanically analyse the stresses on the knee, hip and ankle joints. All registered small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) in Scotland are eligible to partner with a HEI under the scheme.

Collaborative working offers huge benefits to both academia and businesses. Academia can develop the commercial awareness needed to guide future developments, and businesses get the help they need to drive product innovations, new technologies and profitability. Ultimately, this type of partnership can help to ensure that Scottish companies stay ahead of the game in the face of global competition. They have the power to deliver long-term success and a more sustainable economy for the future. 

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