Full Name

Rich Adams

Title

Mr

photo

Institution

University of Plymouth

Position

Business Engagement Manager

Department

Research & Innovation

Email

Richard.adams@plymouth.ac.uk

Academic Field

Entrepreneurship, innovation, research and development

Please indicate you will attend the AGM as

□ Senior Management

□ University Representative

□ Academic

X Panel/ Forum Speaker 

□ Staff/ student from member universities

□ Other

If you choose other, please specify_____________________

If you’d like to be a speaker, please choose

□ Presidents Panel

□ Healthcare Panel

□ Advanced Manufacturing Panel

□ Environmental Engineering Panel

X University-Industry-Research Collaboration Forum 

If you’d like to be a host of any session, please choose

□ Presidents Panel

□ Healthcare Panel

□ Advanced Manufacturing Panel

□ Environmental Engineering Panel

□ University-Industry-Research Collaboration Forum

If you’d like to attend as an audience, please choose

□ Presidents Panel

□ Healthcare Panel

□ Advanced Manufacturing Panel

□ Environmental Engineering Panel

□ University-Industry-Research Collaboration Forum

Short Bio

(300 words max)

Rich joined University of Plymouth in 2011 following a career in both public and private sectors. He also established and ran his own successful digital media company after many years of working in a business support environment.

With a background in innovation and business support Rich leads on business engagement activities across the whole university as well as project and partnership development with industry stakeholders. Key responsibilities includes leading student enterprise services, business engagement support, developing innovative business support solutions that enables industry to access the universities skills, facilities and state-of-the-art equipment. Rich also works closely with businesses to explore joint funding and research collaborations and is a Director of Plymouth & Devon Chamber of Commerce.

Please fill in the information below if you are giving a presentation.

Title of Presentation

University of Plymouth Approach to Supporting Industry & University Collaborations 

Abstract of Presentation

Plymouth and the wider South West peninsula have a number of economic and societal challenges that the University, working in collaboration with businesses, has addressed resulting in heightened innovation and entrepreneurship particularly in the fields of healthcare, environmental engineering and advanced manufacturing. This presentation provides an insight into the portfolio of services designed for the needs of the business community that leads to greater university-industry collaboration in these fields.

If you are giving a presentation on the University-Industry-Research Collaboration Forum, please give a brief introduction on the technological advancement, research development, intellectual property rights, benefits, preferred enterprises & collaboration model, etc. 800 words max.

Reflecting the University’s role in addressing the economic and societal challenges of its place our industry engagement strategy outlines our overarching priorities for knowledge exchange and how we will deliver positive growth and regeneration impact locally.

Our activities are focused on two complementary strands:

1) Supporting key growth sectors aligned with local strategy and linked to our inter-disciplinary research, and

2) Driving innovation in our local SME community

The University has always taken its role seriously in supporting the creation and growth of the micro-enterprises and SMEs that characterise the local economy. SME engagement is coordinated by the business-facing Enterprise Solutions Service which helps businesses in access university support to overcome their barrier to growth much. This gateway, supports the Environmental Engineering and sustainability enquiries from our business community and is one of the first of its kind to be established that signposts commercial partners to the most appropriate solution to their business need, including:

•  The Coastal Ocean and Sediment Transport Laboratory (COAST), located in the Marine Building. The COAST Lab offers advanced capability for research and testing of wave and tidal Marine Renewable Energy (MRE) devices, with two large wave basins powered by moveable wave-makers and recirculating currents. The facility is recognised as a major innovation asset for the regional, national and international research communities, and is open for use by commercial and business operators as well as academic researchers from across the UK and overseas. This is in addition to being an active partner in the Supergen ORE Hub that is at the forefront of the development, adoption and export of Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) technologies.

Health Technology and Innovation

Reflecting the challenges and opportunities around healthcare the University has led on industry collaborations to tackle antimicrobial resistance, rapid water resting kits and biodegradable PPE in response to COVID-19 pandemic. In addition the University:

• Has established the Centre for Health Technology bringing together digital health and technology expertise to drive the development, evaluation and implementation of innovative technologies, products, services and approaches to transform the health and social care sector. Focusing principally on digitally-enabled innovations, our researchers work with a network of cross-sector partners, to deliver research and development of international importance, enabled by the unique population and geographical characteristics of the region.

• Has established the Plymouth Health Innovation Alliance, to complement the Health Innovation Campus within which 60% of the City’s healthcare provision is delivered supporting over 6,000 jobs with another 1,000 in the supply chain. Centred around Plymouth Science Park and the largest hospital in the South West, it brings together the NHS Trust, the University’s Derriford Research Facility, Peninsula Schools of Medicine and Dentistry, Peninsula Clinical Trials Unit and Plymouth Allied Health Care, with 27 medical companies based at the Science Park, building a vibrant cluster of real significance for the regional economy.

• Leads the eHealth Productivity and Innovation in Cornwall project (EPIC) – a £6.7M collaboration seeking to help grow eHealth businesses and improve health, wellbeing and enhance care quality. The development of a thriving eHealth sector will not only create new jobs, new products and support the local economy, but will strengthen the existing health and care network in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.

Advanced Manufacturing

A key characteristic of the South West economy is that it has one of the largest concentrations of high value manufacturing in the UK and the second largest in Europe – worth more than £7bn. Specifically, Plymouth has the highest density of manufacturing south of the Midlands with over 30,000 employees. The city’s manufacturing sector represents 12.0 per cent of Plymouth’s total employment (compared to 8.3 per cent nationally).

We are also part of a new joint Partnership Bond between University of Plymouth & Plymouth Manufacturing Group as well as a £200,000 Research and Development Voucher Scheme forging new collaboration between academics and industry. This is in addition to The Advanced Composites Manufacturing Centre (ACMC) which is a leading composites facility constantly active across a wide range of projects, bridging the traditional gap between academic research and development and the needs of industry. The university is also investing £30M in a new School of Engineering & Design facility combining re-equipped laboratories with modern, state-of-the-art resources that will enable engineering research to underpin the fourth industrial revolution.

Please return this form to Cynthia Wang via email  Y.C.Wang@liverpool.ac.uk

For senior management, representative & Panel speaker, please register before 9^th October 2020

For audience attendees, please register before 16^th October, 2020