Enterprise awards
Academic category
- Ovoid Balls (winner)
- Phase Vision (highly commended)
- Zephyr (highly commended)
Knowledge Transfer category
- Cost Calculator for Children's Services (winner)
- Meteorological Development (highly commended)
- Development of vehicle transmissions (highly commended)
Consultancy Enterprise category
- PERsonal perFORmance in Mammographic Screening (winner)
- Simulation Suit (highly commended)
- Cost Calculator for Children's Services (highly commended)
Graduate Enterprise category
- Designers In Residence (winner)
- Barndoor Theatre Company (highly commended)
- Zone 3 (highly commended)
Ovoid Balls
Andy Harland, Chris Holmes, Roy Jones
Sports Technology Institute, Wolfson School
This project stems from the University’s considerable expertise in sports technology. The premise is simple, if a ball is evenly balanced, a skilled player can make it move more accurately. Of course, there is much underlying science, measurement and hard work that is required to develop the idea and turn it into reality. The Ovoid Balls project has achieved just this, taking a concept, obtaining a patent, building prototypes and proving that it works. The project is highly likely to have a major impact on the quality of ovoid balls in sports such as rugby or American football. The technology developed at Loughborough can be cost effectively placed into balls sold at all levels from professional international competitions through to everyday use. This is a technology that has the potential to be used all over the world in a short space of time.
www.sports-technology.com
Phase Vision "world-class optical inspection solutions"
Russell Coggrave, Jonathan Huntley, Ralph Weir
An academic idea has now grown into a successful spin out company, confirming funding of over £1.4M earlier this year. The technology is promoted by the company as "world-class optical inspection solutions" - a statement that is most definitely true. The idea is that a complex three dimensional shape can be measured quickly and efficiently without having to touch the item. The other major strength of the technology is that it can measure very large items such as the entire wing of an aeroplane, saving a huge amount of time over the older traditional methods whilst providing better accuracy. With modern engineering requirements becoming increasingly demanding and the need for measurement and inspection growing, the company can expect to look forward to a future of growth and success. What is particularly exciting is the way that the research and enterprise activity have fed off each other, with three sponsored PhD students and numerous undergraduate and MSc project students benefiting directly from the close links with a dynamic spinout company.
www.phasevision.com
Zephyr "cheaper, greener air conditioning"
Denis Loveday and Harry Salt
The issues of climate change are never too far away. With increasing temperatures comes an increase in demand for cooling, which in turn drives the demand for power even higher. The Cooled Ceilings technology is an innovative idea that uses a much lower power method to provide a level of comfort cooling. Where it differs from conventional technology is that it uses energy efficient fans to drive evaporation of water and cool the ceiling rather than the power hungry compressors used to power conventional air conditioning. There are many areas where this type of technology could be used and the prototype was recently voted into second place of the international Climate Change Challenge competition in the Financial Times to look at new technologies to combat climate change. There is a huge opportunity for this technology to be both a commercial success and to offer something towards an issue that affects us all.
www.lboro.ac.uk/business/Zephyr
Cost Calculator for Children's Services
Harriet Ward, Lisa Holmes and Jean Soper
Centre for Child and Family Research
The Cost Calculator is a computer software application designed to assist local authorities and other agencies to monitor the true costs of services to children who are looked after and for those who are in need. Its application has been extended through two Knowledge Transfer Partnerships with local authorities (Coventry City Council and Cheshire West, Cheshire and Cheshire East Council) to cover education, health and mental health. It is the manifestation of policy-relevant research investigating theoretical and empirical relationships between the costs and outcomes. Its findings are influential both nationally and internationally; they include practical materials for use by social services and other agencies that help them in making decisions about how to deploy scarce resources to secure better outcomes. The Centre for Child and Family Research (CCFR), an independent research unit based in the Department of Social Sciences at Loughborough, has been carrying out research into costs and outcomes since 2000, funded by the Department of Health, the Department for Children, Schools and Families and other public and private organisations.
www.lboro.ac.uk/research/ccfr
Meteorological Development
Dick Saffell, Campbell Scientific Ltd & Jeremy Coupland, Wolfson School
Campbell Scientific Limited specialises in meteorological instrumentation and data logging equipment and has collaborated with the University over a number of years to develop its portfolio of products through Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTP). The latest KTP was to develop a cloud base recorder to measure the height of cloud layers above the ground and give an estimate of cloud cover. As a result, Campbell Scientific now has a prototype product of innovative design that should prove to be highly competitive in the market place and has allowed the company to greatly increase capability in the manufacture and test of optical products.
www.campbellsci.co.uk
Development of vehicle transmissions
Jamie Pears, Romax Technology Ltd & Stephanos Theodossiades, Wolfson School
Romax Technology Limited specialises in the field of digital simulation tools and engineering design solutions for transmissions and driveline systems. The performance of transmission systems is impeded by frictional and thermal losses leading to inefficiency. A Knowledge Transfer Partnership has helped the Company to consolidate existing products and diversify its services to break into niche industries/applications. New engineering services can now be developed, enabling them to move into the new technological application field of oil flow and heat generation with transmissions.
www.romaxtech.com
PERsonal perFORmance in Mammographic Screening
Applied Vision Research Centre
Alistair Gale*
'PERFORMS' stands for 'PERsonal perFORmance in Mammographic Screening'. It is a self-assessment and training scheme run by the AVRC for the UK's National Health Service Breast Screening Programme (NHSBSP). The PERFORMS scheme is a critical step in improving diagnosis of breast cancer. It enables screeners to witness many more abnormal and malignant variations than they would normally see; to give them immediate feedback both on pathology and on the results from a panel of experts in a safe and anonymous environment. Furthermore individuals can assess where their own performance lies within the national range for the scheme. The PERFORMS scheme is funded by and run for the UK's NHSBSP for its breast screeners. Additionally, variations on the scheme run independently by the AVRC are available on a commercial basis worldwide.
www.lboro.ac.uk/service/publicity/news-releases/2005/99_breast_screening.html
Simulation Suit
Sharon Cook
Ergonomics and Safety Research Institute,
ESRI, the Ergonomics and Safety Research Institute, is a leading international specialist in the research and development of Whole-Body Simulation Suits. The suits simulate physical and sensory conditions, such as reduced mobility and deteriorating vision, to generate empathy within the wearer for those who live daily with such conditions. The work of the ESRI team is critical in improving the quality of life for those who suffer from various conditions including osteoarthritis, by enabling products, environments, transport, and working practices to be designed more sympathetically based on a greater appreciation of constrained capabilities by designers.
www.lboro.ac.uk/research/esri/design-safety/projects/sim_suit/
Cost Calculator for Children's Services
Centre for Child and Family Research
See Winner - Knowledge Transfer Award
Designers In Residence
Alister Fraser and Rebecca Lawson*
Designers In Residence are on a mission to secure the future of design in the UK. By placing young motivated designers into schools to run workshops - linking Design and Technology as a subject with some of the most inspirational products, designers and careers in British industry – they are raising the profile of design education and encouraging industry to re-invest in emerging design talent. Design and Technology graduates Alister and Rebecca set up Designers In Residence in 2007, basing themselves here at Loughborough Innovation Centre. To date they have worked with more than 3000 pupils nationwide in around 250 schools. They maintain strong links with the University and their former department, employing students and offering a full time internship.
www.designersinresidence.co.uk
Barndoor Theatre Company
Chloe Hampson
This venture is the brainchild of English and Drama graduate, Chloe Hampson, which earlier this year won her first prize in the University’s student business plan competition. Barndoor Theatre delivers drama workshops in the community to develop team working and build confidence. As schools re-open their doors this Autumn, Chloe is busy giving primary age children their first taste of drama in after school clubs. Chloe has been asked to deliver Creative Consultations to pupils across the region as part of the national Find Your Talent scheme and has also run workshops in residential homes to help those with dementia.
www.lut.ac.uk/service/publicity/news-releases/2009/82_BusinessPlanCompetition.html
Zone 3
James Lock
In 2006, James Lock celebrated a first class degree in Architectural Engineering and Design Management and victory in the World Biathle and World Amateur Aquathlon Championships. Last year he upped the stakes in Triathlon when he started racing as an elite, finishing seventh in the Elite Grand Prix. On top of achieving academic and sporting success, and spending around 16 hours a week in training, James has also found the time to set up Zone3, a high performance sportswear business at Loughborough Innovation Centre. Already worn by some of the world’s top athletes, James has big ambitions to see Zone3 on the world map by 2011 and for his sportswear to have a high-profile presence at the 2012 Olympics.
www.racezone3.com