UNIVERSITIES MEAN BUSINESS

13 Feb 2004 04:00 AM

Research shows UK Universities are driving business success

Universities are generating more wealth and creating more jobs than ever before, according to the latest available figures published by the Government today.

The third annual Higher Education Business Interaction (HEBI) survey shows that during 2001-02 the amount of turnover made by spin-off companies increased from £212m to £289m, and the number of people employed by spin-offs increased from 10,500 to 12,000.

The amount of income that Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) receive from Intellectual Property has increased by 83%, up from £18m to £33m, and the number of new patents filed by HEIs rose by 8%, up from 896 to 967.

Science and Innovation Minister, Lord Sainsbury said:

"UK Universities have risen to the challenge of transferring their knowledge into industry and are becoming increasingly
entrepreneurial. Their pioneering work is being turned into practical applications and is making a valuable contribution to the economy and society.

"We have made large investments in knowledge transfer over the last few years and it is good to see it bearing fruit. The trend from the three surveys shows a dramatic improvement."

The main findings are:

- 213 new spin-off firms set up in 2001/2002. There were 248 in 2000-01 and 203 in 1999/2000, compared to 70 a year on average in the previous five years;

- the amount of turnover generated by spin-off companies increased from £212m in 2000-01 to £289m in 2001-02. In 1999-2000 the total was £133m;

- the number of people employed by HEI-owned spin-offs is up from 10,500 in 2000-01 to 12,000 in 2001-02;

- new patents filed by HEI's in 2001-2 was 967. There were 896 in 2000-1 and 725 in 1999/2000;

- 54% of HEIs offered incubation or "start-up" facilities; and

- UK universities' spin-off performance is comparable with US universities when adjusted for their size. UK universities identified one spin-off firm for every £15 million of research expenditure, compared with one for every £44million in the US.

On 1st October 2001, Patricia Hewitt announced the allocation of £120m for 2001- 04 to more than 200 universities, colleges and hospitals across the UK to enable them to further exploit their research and development potential, and forge even stronger links with industry. An additional £171m was allocated under Spending Review 2002 for supporting knowledge transfer in HEIs for 2004-06. HEIs are currently submitting their bids for this funding this month, and grants will be made later this year.

Alan Johnson, Minister for Lifelong Learning, Further and Higher Education said:

"Such encouraging results demonstrate what universities and business can achieve when they work together. We have always maintained our commitment to encouraging effective university-business
collaboration. I am confident that the increased resources we are providing through the Higher Education Innovation Fund will go a long way in boosting and increasing the success already recorded in this area."

Sir Howard Newby, Chief Executive of the Higher Education Funding Council for England, said:

"These results clearly demonstrate the high level of commitment which higher education institutions have to their business partners. This confirms the findings of the recent Lambert report that shows a marked culture change in the UK's universities over the past decade. And that most of them are actively seeking to play a broader role in the regional and national economy.

The survey also shows that:

- HEI income in the UK from contract research for business increased from £266m in 2000-01 to £328m in 2001-02

- HEI income in the UK from consultancy has increased from £103m in 2000-01 to £122m in 2001-02

Notes for editors:

1. A 'spin-off' is an enterprise that has one or more of the following attributes;

- an HEI or HEI employee(s) possesses equity stakes;

- it has been created by the HEI; or has been set up by HEI employees to enable the commercial exploitation of knowledge arising from academic research.

2. This report was produced by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) on behalf of several stakeholders including - the DTI, DfES, Scottish Higher Education Funding Council, Higher Education Funding Council for Wales, Department for Employment & Learning in Northern Ireland. It is the third year that it has been carried out. Copies of the report are available from HEFCE; Tel: 0117 931 7035 or www.hefce.ac.uk/pubs

3. The report is based on data supplied by Universities for the academic accounting year August 2001 to July 2002. 100% of UK HEIs responded.

4. The £171m funding for HEIs is known as the Higher Education Innovation Fund 2 (HEIF2). Further information on Government funding of knowledge transfer schemes can be found at
www.ost.gov.uk/enterprise/knowledge/index.htm

5. The Lambert review into business/university collaboration was published in December 2003 and can be found at;
www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/consultations_and_legislation/
lambert/consult_lambert_index.cfm

6. Spin-off businesses 2001-02 compared with 2000-01- Statistics by nation

Nation Number of spin-offs Number of spin-offs 2000-01 2001-02

England 168 159
Northern Ireland 19 8
Scotland 37 24
Wales 24 22
Total 248 213

7. Spin-off businesses 2001-02 compared with 2000-01 - Statistics by English Region

Region Number of spin-offs Number of spin-offs 2000-01 2001-02

North East 15 10
North West 24 27
Yorkshire and Humberside 29 19
East Midlands 11 14
West Midlands 18 17
East of England 12 11
South West 12 11
South East 20 12
London 27 38
Total 168 159

DTI
Public Enquiries: 020-7215 5000
Textphone (for people with hearing impairments): 020-7215 6740 http://www.dti.gov.uk

HEFCE - General Enquiries 0117 931 7438

Examples of Business Interaction

University of Oxford
Oxford's technology transfer office, Isis Innovations, has spun out 44 companies to date. Isis files, on average, one patent per week and seeks to license technologies to companies all over the world. One spin-off example is NaturalMotion, whose proprietary virtual stuntman software was used in the final Lord of the Rings film and will be seen again in April in Hollywood epic Troy. Another example is Mirada Solutions Ltd, a leading developer of analytical tools for medical imaging workstations. Mirada is working in collaboration with Oxford University and IBM on a cutting-edge e-Science project which will improve detection of breast cancer. See www.isis-innovation.com or contact the Oxford University Press Office, 01865 280532.

University of Leeds
University of Leeds spin-off company Photopharmica Ltd was set up in 2001 by Professor Stan Brown of chemistry and molecular biology and Professor John Griffiths of colour chemistry. The company is working with drugs known as photosensitisers, which harness energy from light to kill unwanted tissue or other organisms, and have great potential in the treatment of cancer and superbugs. For further information please contact Richard Keegan, Knowledge Transfer Unit, Tel: 0113 343 6583 r.j.keegan@adm.leeds.ac.uk

University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology (UMIST) Dmist Technologies Ltd is a UMIST spin-off, established by Prof Nigel Allinson and Dr John Oakley, both of the UMIST Electrical Engineering Department. Dmist has developed unique and patented technology which enhances the quality of video images (live or recorded) made under adverse environmental conditions; such as in the presence of fog, haze, rain or smoke. Dmist has already received strong interest from a wide range of sectors; shipping, ports, airports, aircraft, general security surveillance, traffic monitoring, defence, outside broadcast television and underwater applications. For further information visit www.dmist.co.uk or contact David Eales, UMIST Ventures Ltd, Tel: 0161 200 3153, email: d.eales@umist.ac.uk

University of Newcastle
Orla Protein Technologies, a spin-off from research at Newcastle University, is designing and manufacturing proteins for use in a wide range of fields including the medical and diagnostic industries. It was one of only eight in the UK to receive a 2003 Small Business Research Award from the DTI and has also received substantial venture capital funding. Orla is now employing three full time staff recruited from the University. For further information contact: Claire Jordan, Newcastle University Press Office 0191 222 6067.

University of East London
Manufactured Aggregates Research Centre (MARC), is a national industrial-scale pilot plant set up by UEL with industrial partners including Nustone and RTAL Ltd to develop energy-efficient and eco-friendly processes to convert waste materials such as ash, sludge and organic wastes into high-performance aggregates for the building industry. Researchers at UEL, led by Darryl Newport, have teamed up with partners at Imperial College London and the University of Leeds to investigate the engineering and economic feasibility of a range of inputs and end products. The team is also working with partners in The Netherlands, Brazil, Greece, Spain and South Africa. For further information contact: University of East London press officer, Patrick Wilson, Tel: 020 8223 2061, Mobile: 07951 797975.

University of Dundee
The University of Dundee has spun off 12 companies, 8 of these since 2000. These have emerged from Dundee's strengths in life sciences, engineering and applied computing. One example is Cyclacel, a biopharmaceutical company involved in the discovery of drugs for cancers and other diseases with abnormal cell proliferation, which has raised over $123 million in funding in the last 6 years. The funding will support a growing clinical pipeline and preclinical programs. The company has entered academic collaborations with universities in the UK and into corporate alliances with

AstraZeneca, CV Therapeutics, Lorus, Sankyo and a top 5
pharmaceutical major all in the oncology field. For further information contact Jenny Marra, head of press, 01382 344910. Out of hours 07968 289585, email j.m.marra@dundee.ac.uk.

University of Plymouth
P E Simmons & Son, Cornwall grows, packs and distributes vegetables nationally as a wholesale and retail service to major national retail groups. Supported by expert academics from the University of Plymouth, plant biology graduate Ellis Luckhurst supported the development and implementation of a leading edge tool for crop maturity prediction, contributing to an increase in company turnover of 28% and profitability of 14% during the 2 year programme. A further £100k saving was achieved through improved labour planning and reducing waste through converting volume peaks to sales, and the graduate has been retained by the company as Technical Manager.

For further information please contact Emma Hewitt at the University of Plymouth on 01752 233504

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