Turning great science into great business
24th June 2008
The potential for Plymouth’s marine science to make a
significant commercial contribution to the UK economy has been
further recognised by the Government’s Department of Innovation,
Universities and Skills (DIUS) with an award of £1million to i-G
Peninsula, the entrepreneurship and enterprise arm of Plymouth
Marine Laboratory (PML). The award is made under the Public Sector
Research and Exploitation Fund (PSRE) to “support the transfer of
knowledge generated and held in public sector research
establishments to the wider economy and to enhance economic
growth”.
Speaking yesterday (23/06/08) at London’s Natural History
Museum, the Science and Innovations Minister, Ian Pearson announced
grants totalling £68 million to a wide range of projects including
£1 million to the i-G Peninsula Project led by PML.
Mr Pearson summed it up by saying: “Top quality research
is carried out within the public sector to meet the needs of
Government Departments in areas such as health, defence,
environment, agriculture and food. But it’s vital that we also
maximise the economic impact of this research to meet the
challenges of the 21st century. That’s why the Public Sector
Research Exploitation Fund is so important in taking great research
and turning it into great business.”
Dr Bob Huggins, leads the i-G Peninsula team and was at the
awards event: “This is really good news for the South West.
We now have the opportunity to take some of the high quality marine
science research and develop commercial applications that should
bring jobs, increase economic activity, and make a real difference
to people’s lives. Again, the innovative approach in PML is being
recognised at the highest level of Government and I look forward to
making this grant work for all of us in bringing significant
investment into the region. The award of this further funding
recognises the considerable progress we have already made and the
potential for the future.”
Bob Huggins and his team have already identified research areas
that have great commercial potential and positive environmental
impact: “We’ve looked at the whole range of research
activities at PML and many areas show great potential, for example,
we see the production of biofuels and other products from
single-celled algae using the sun’s energy as a key area for
development; then there’s the whole question of how we can offset
carbon emissions and reduce footprints, so a two pronged approach
to a global challenge. The next stage is to bring the science to
market; looking for markets and opportunities and carrying out the
necessary background studies to ensure that our ground breaking
research can be turned into an economic benefit.”