A pioneering scheme that encourages companies to work with universities and colleges to incorporate new technologies and services into their businesses has returned with £240,000 in grants up for grabs in the West Midlands.
 
The successful “Innovation Vouchers”, backed by Advantage West Midlands and administered by Aston University, were the first of their kind in the UK when piloted in the region last year. They are now going nationwide after revolutionising the way businesses interact with the higher education sector.

The scheme - called INDEX (Innovation Delivers Expansion) – centres on the pooling of resources of 13 West Midland universities and higher education institutions. Since June last year 140 vouchers have been awarded to SMEs and a further 80 are being advertised this month, worth £3,000 each.

News that the project would be rolled out nationwide was revealed in the new Science & Innovation White Paper, entitled “Innovation Nation”, and published by the Government in March. Companies using the vouchers come from all sectors, from manufacturing to creative industries.

Following on from the successful West Midland pilot scheme, the White Paper contains a commitment for the country’s regional development agencies to offer 500 business vouchers, with the aim of increasing this to 1,000 per year by 2011.

“Innovation Nation” argues that innovation is essential to the UK’s future prosperity and the ability to tackle major challenges like climate change.

Dr Philip Extance, Director of Innovation at AWM, said: “The beauty of this scheme is that companies in the West Midlands can tap into the expertise of any of the region’s universities at minimum cost and risk – and then expect to see real improvements in their performance.

“Innovation is crucial to some of the biggest challenges we face, such as global warming and sustainable development. This scheme is successfully building on these challenges to forge links between universities and SMEs and establish a demand led approach to the business community’s approach to innovation.”

John Bailey, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Business Partnerships & Knowledge Transfer) at Aston University, said: “INDEX has really captured the imagination of SMEs in the West Midlands region. We have received a really significant number of applications for innovation vouchers including many from companies who may not otherwise have engaged with universities.

“This is a testament to the strength of the concept, and is a clear indication of the benefit of the scheme. Some of the first projects to be funded through the vouchers are starting to bear fruit, and there will be many more success stories in the near future.

“We are thrilled that it has been such a success, and that the innovation vouchers concept is now being launched nationally. We hope to play a major role in the development of the national scheme, and also to continue to lead the co-ordination of the INDEX project within the West Midlands.”

Companies that have benefited from “Innovation Vouchers” to date include Alcester-based Key Traffic Systems, Electric Lemon Design from Solihull, and internet site developer Sandford Technology, which has a Birmingham base on the Aston Science Park.

Main areas of research covered in the scheme include energy, advanced materials, medical technology, automotive, digital media, construction, the environment, process industries, aerospace, defence, manufacturing and electronics.

INDEX has been piloted in the West Midlands over two years with 40 vouchers allocated in June 2007, 100 vouchers last January as well as the 80 allocated this month. The vouchers are awarded at random to companies which meet the criteria of being SMEs working in one of the above key industry sectors.

Other higher education institutions taking part are: University College, Birmingham, Coventry University, Harper Adams University, Shropshire, Keele University, Open University, Staffordshire University, University of Warwick, University of Wolverhampton, University of Worcester, Newman University College, Birmingham, Birmingham City University and University of Birmingham.

SMEs, with up to 250 employees, can apply for a voucher online at www.indexvouchers.org. The INDEX Advice Centre can be contacted on 0121 204 3883 or enquiries@indexvouchers.org. Companies are expected to supply contact details, an outline of the innovation they are interested in and the type of academic expertise required.