Meet the Science Incubator: Daresbury Innovation Centre
In just three short years, The Daresbury Science & Innovation Campus has accomplished what science parks can only dream about: it has established a visible and self-regulating network of over 1000 experts and it has completely exceeded the occupancy predictions for its incubation facilities. This has been achieved through a clear and uncompromising strategy based on one critical principle – understanding and measuring value.
Located between Manchester and Liverpool in rural Cheshire, Daresbury Laboratory has been on the scientific landscape since 1962 when it was set up as part of the National Institute for Research in Nuclear Science. Shake ups in Government funded science had a major impact on the Laboratory in the 1990s and the then threat to its future triggered a new era of regional collaboration.
The Science & Technology Facilities Council and three universities (Lancaster, Liverpool and Manchester) joined forces with the North West Development Agency and Halton BC to pursue a strategy to make this location a ‘centre of excellence’ in scientific innovation and entrepreneurial thinking and practise. These stakeholders have been crucial in shaping and delivering the longer- term vision.
NWDA’s investment of £50M and a clear and focused strategy for this once academic community has seen the site transformed into a mixed economy campus. With restaurants, a gym, shops and a scientific library the campus is now home to the national centre for accelerator science and technology – the Cockcroft Institute and a high-end business incubation facility – the Daresbury Innovation Centre. (For those who are curious, Sir John Cockcroft was one of people who split the atom and a Manchester University graduate.) The Daresbury ethos is to be a real entrepreneurial community and there is evidence to support that this is happening.
Today over 60 early stage technology companies have chosen Daresbury as the place to be during their formative stages. Pioneering young companies from across a number of market sectors including digital / ICT, healthcare, electronics, instrumentation and advanced engineering have been attracted – not just for easy access to world-class science, but for the added value of a business support strategy which is entirely focused on growth and acceleration. These companies currently generate over £10 million in sales with a growth rate of over 30% per year.
Daresbury Innovation Centre Manager, Dr Paul Treloar:
“Our business support services focus entirely on a company’s critical path analysis. We are only interested in providing support where it will have most impact. This approach means that services and impact can be measured by both the company and the Centre.”
Paul understands what it takes to turn science into a viable business. He has founded three start-up technology companies – Sensor Solutions, SensAlyse and BioChem Sensors. He draws on this experience and that of his close colleagues to set the agenda for the Campus. Paul performed a number of essential business roles within each of his start ups and in particular raising millions for research and technology development. This is yet another advantage for tenants because Daresbury has a 100% success rate in the government’s GRAND Awards – Grants for Research and Development.
In addition to his role as Innovation Centre Manager, Paul is the Business Development Manager for the Campus as a whole. As well as developing the internal culture, he set out to map expertise in the region and beyond that would act as an essential additional knowledge network.
The rapidly growing Daresbury Network and access2experts programme brings together a powerful community of high tech SMEs, multi-national companies, universities, service providers and other business support organisations. In particular strong links into the Campus’ stakeholders’ organisations has played a significant part in this. The network has no formal structure and this is proving to be a successful approach to managing such a diverse group of individuals. It also means there is no place for those with the deepest marketing budgets to think that sponsoring events is the way to win business within this community.
“We know the members. We know what they do and where they can add value. They also understand that in order to gain in the long term, they need to go beyond talking and theory and actually demonstrate their value-add.” This is where the self-regulation framework operates best.
This approach to engaging a wider community is working because nearly all of the 60 plus tenants have come via recommendation of the network members.
Plans for a multi-million pound “grow-on facility” are already well underway. The Daresbury model for success has attracted the interest of private investors. Watch this space for further news!
Copyright Young Company Finance 2007
