“Environmental technologies are all around us... (they) have great potential to improve the environment and, at the same time, boost the competitiveness of companies.”
EU Environmental Technologies Action Plan
This quote was taken from one of the EU’s main policy papers in this area and sets out an ambitious challenge which the environmental technologies cluster has taken up.
The West Midlands region has a strong and highly competent manufacturing base that can take full advantage of new opportunities, for example the regional capability in electrical engineering is one of the strongest in the UK. There are also strong innovation assets in the region’s universities, with the capability to link effectively with business.
Strengths such as these give the region the capability to realise the worldwide potential for future growth in these markets which is reinforced by a strong partnership with UK Trade and Investment.
Achievements
The National Industrial Symbiosis Programme (NISP) is a pioneering, business opportunity programme aimed at using the waste resources of its member companies as input to other businesses. Piloted in the West Midlands, NISP is now a national programme. Companies involved include John Pointon & Sons Ltd who convert animal by-products safely into substances such as fuel substitute for cement kilns. This project reduced costs, safeguarded over 160 jobs and diverted 70,000 tonnes per annum from landfill.
The cluster has also commissioned two bio energy national technology demonstrators, the BIOGEN Greenfinch Waste to Energy plant at Ludlow and the Farming for Energy Project at Eccleshall.
Published the enviroTRADE-WM Directory 2010 - PDF - 3mb, a directory of West Midlands businesses operating in environmental technology markets. The Directory promotes the capabilities of regional businesses that are active in the environmental goods and services area. It has been developed through the enviroTRADE-WM business support programme, which provides support to help regional companies to access environmental marketplaces.
Advantage West Midlands is helping to support businesses that are in, or looking to diversify into the renewable energy technology supply chain, through the Renewable Energy Supply Chain (RESCO) programme. RESCO offers support for accessing new market opportunities in wind and biomass, plus opportunities in markets including domestic scale technologies and electrical networks. It follows on from the successful WindSupply project that operated between 2005-8 to support UK businesses to enter the supply chain for wind energy components.
The RESCO project is worth £1.4m over three years, and is delivered through Staffordshire University, partnered with the University of Warwick and Harper Adams University College. With sound foundations in both engineering and science this is a high growth sector that could prove lucrative for firms in the region. Businesses will be hooked into key networks to work with like-minded businesses and develop key contacts to help them identify appropriate market opportunities. They will also be able to access academic support to help them with market knowledge and support for development of technologies.
Target Markets 2008 - 11
Key markets for the cluster will be those connected with energy production and waste. Both of these bring together substantial opportunity and regional capability. Particular focus will be on renewable energy, waste management, water and waste water treatment, and energy management. Principal actions will focus on:
Supporting relevant innovation in environmental technologies and brokering knowledge transfer from Higher Education Institutes.
Linking regional companies to very specific new markets. Promoting low carbon technologies in the region.
Collaboration in internationalising the region through targeted overseas trade events and through inward investment.