18 July 2001
Embargo until 001 hours Wed 18 July
Scottish Higher Education Funding Council today announces a new £6 million funding scheme the Knowledge Transfer Grant to help researchers at all of Scotland's universities and higher education institutions to turn their projects into a commercial reality. (REF SHEFC PR HE 10/01)
Principal of the University of Dundee Sir Alan Langlands today welcomed the University of Dundee allocation of £433,000:
"Dundee is already playing a significant role in driving Scotland's Knowledge Economy - highlighted recently when the university was named the fastest developing for innovation and enterprise in the LaunchIT 2001 awards in London. This new funding will allow us to improve further by building on initiatives which will bridge the gap between research and industry for the benefit of society."
"Among those initiatives are plans to develop the Teaching Company Scheme which allows for placements between business and academic departments; the Centre for Enterprise Management which is poised to launch a series of courses to encourage entrepreneurship in students and staff and the numerous activities of our Research and Innovation operation.
"University research has already led to seven spin out companies employing 75 people. At any one time the university is engaged in negotiations, consultations and commercial explorations across a wide range of activities. The intellectual property portfolio includes more than 80 live patents ranging across life sciences, creative digital media, civil engineering and materials science. More than 30 projects are currently licensed, many to Scotland-based companies. Last year alone 34 new inventions were disclosed. Dundee is one of Scotland's top three universities for attracting research income - 25% of which comes from industry. This latest allocation from the Scottish Higher Education Funding Scheme will allow the University of Dundee to further tap its potential for catalysing commerce while maintaining its fundamental research base which is so vital to the future of the knowledge economy."