This month’s Wider Outlook is now avaliable to read, this edition is focusing on innovation and enterprise, please click here to view: Wider Outlook March 2013
Wider Outlook March 2013
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Tag Archives: innovation
Supporting Innovation in the UK Retail Sector – full briefing released
The ESRC and TSB have now released a full briefing document for ‘Supporting Innovation in the UK Retail Sector’, the new targeted call for KTP proposals aiming to “help retail managers address the major economic, social and environmental challenges that they face, leading to new opportunities and tangible outcomes for business”. The document can be downloaded at: http://www.innovateuk.org/content/competition/ktp/supporting-innovation-in-the-uk-retail-sector.ashx
The specific aims of this call are to:
o increase knowledge exchange between retailers and economic / social scientists*
o develop a greater understanding of the changing nature of the UK High Street and retail spaces to drive growth, innovation and efficiency within the sector
o stimulate and support innovations in e-commerce, m-commerce and omni-commerce, to maintain and strengthen the UK’s position as a global leader in internet retailing
o promote and enable innovations in the use of ‘big data,’ providing insights into consumer behaviour, increasing efficiency and growth within the retail sector
o support other innovative projects, addressing one or more sectoral challenges
*It’s well worth academics working outside of these disciplines submitting expressions of interest, though. As the briefing makes clear (p.4) – if the ESRC doesn’t fund them, another KTP funder might (and see also the last of the five aims, above – “other innovative projects” will be funded). Interdisciplinary and cross-faculty approaches can also be considered.
Partners should be businesses in the retail sector that:
- need further support to understand and respond to the challenges facing the sector;
- are looking to access social and economic science skills and knowledge (see above) to help them innovate in dealing with these challenges;
- want to build and improve their capability in innovation.
The application process is essentially the same as that for a ‘normal’ KTP and the deadline for submission is 21st August, 2013. Please contact Dominic Collins (01785 353404 / d.collins@staffs.ac.uk )if you’re interested.
Technology inspired innovation
The Technology Strategy Board is to invest up to £2m in technical feasibility studies to stimulate innovation across four enabling technology areas. This will help to ensure that small and micro businesses in the UK are well equipped to respond to market opportunities across a range of economic sectors.
TSB are seeking projects in the following fields: advanced materials; biosciences; electronics, sensors and photonics; and information and communications technology.
The competition is open to small and micro companies only, working either singly or in collaboration with one partner. Projects can last up to four months and total project costs must not exceed £33,000.
This is a single-stage competition. It opens on 18 February 2013 and applicants need to register before noon on 27 March 2013.The deadline for applications is at noon on 3 April 2013. Successful projects must be completed by 30 November 2013.
A briefing event for potential applicants will be held in London on 21 February 2013.
New report finds high performing Catapult centre features
This report aims to establish what a well performing UK Catapult centre looks like, reviewing evidence from similar initiatives in other European countries. 32 international technology and innovation centres were surveyed to provide the evidence base for this report.
The research was carried out by the Big Innovation Centre between May 2012 and January 2013 with support from the Technology Strategy Board, the Institution for Engineering and Technology (IET) and the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC).
Technology Strategy Board (TSB) – Technology Inpsired Innovation
The Technology Strategy Board is to invest up to £10m in fast-track and collaborative research and development projects that stimulate innovation across the key enabling technology areas of advanced materials, biosciences, electronics, sensors and photonics and information and communications technology.
Additional funding from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) may be available for projects in line with the scope of this competition that contain a significant, high-quality academic research component and demonstrate added value by building on or being complementary to their existing research programmes and portfolios.
We are seeking innovative proposals that focus on projects that advance the development of a recent technological discovery or breakthrough in the context of significant and identifiable technological risk, which can be broadly applied across a wide range of market opportunities and needs.
Projects must be collaborative and business-led.
For clarity please note that ESP stands for Electronics, Sensors and Photonics; ICT stands for Information & Communication Technologies.
The competition has two strands:
Strand 1 is a single-stage fast-track process. Projects must be led by a small or medium-sized enterprise (SME) and must last between six and 12 months.
Strand 2 is a two-stage competition. Consortia should include at least one SME partner and projects must last between 12 and 24 months.
The competition opens on 3 December 2012.
Open date: 03 December 2012
Registration close date: 23 January 2013
Close date: 10 April 2013
For more Information please contact Naomi Arblaster on N.Arblaster@staffs.ac.uk or call 01785 353519
Wider Outlook December 2012
December’s edition of Wider Outlook, the funding and research Newsletter produced by the External Projects Team is available to view, please click on the link to access this months latest news. Wider Outlook December 2012
Design across Europe
A group known as the European Design Leadership Board has formulated a series of recommendations for the European Commission on how to incorporate design as a driver of user-centred innovation across Europe in order to contribute to the Europe 2020 Strategy’s goals for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. The aim of the report is to enhance design’s long-term contribution to the Europe 2020 goals through increased competitiveness and the pursuit of a better quality of life for EU citizens, with design embedded in Europe’s innovation systems. The recommendations in the report cover aspects including differentiating European design on the global stage, positioning design within the European innovation system and design for both innovative and competitive enterprises and an innovative public sector. On Horizon 2020, the report states that design research must be better embedded in the programme and in particular, that Horizon 2020 work programmes should have sufficient flexibility to enable the formation of multidisciplinary consortia in which design is one essential element. One possible output of projects could therefore be new, meaningful applications with a better design content, better technology usability and better value for users. http://europeandesigninnovation.eu/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/Design_for_Growth_and_Prosperity_.pdf