WIREDGOV

New centres that offer UK based businesses flexible and affordable access to cutting-edge scientific equipment and laboratory space for high-tech research and development work have opened at STFC Daresbury Laboratory, part of the Daresbury Science and Innovation Campus in Cheshire.

Through the Science and Technology Facilities Council’s (STFC) new Innovations Technology Access Centres, businesses can develop their innovative businesses by making use of more than £3 million of cutting-edge equipment in fully-equipped biological, imaging, materials and physical science laboratories.

The laboratories provide a range of flexible and purpose-built research accommodation to suit the needs of a wide range of businesses from ‘lock and leave’ exclusive use laboratories to multi-user laboratories available on an hourly basis.

As well as having access to high-end laboratory sample preparation and analysis facilities, the centres give businesses the opportunity to work alongside STFC’s own highly skilled scientists and leading academic institutions as they carry out their research and development.

The Innovations Technology Access Centres also complement the facilities that businesses can receive from the nearby Daresbury Innovation Centre, which offers high-quality offices and larger leasable space suitable for businesses wishing to set up their own laboratory. The Innovation Centre is already home to over 90 high-tech small businesses employing more than 300 people with specialist expertise in instrumentation, control engineering, medical devices and diagnostics, mobile telecoms technologies and software development.

Professor Keith Mason, STFC’s Chief Executive said: "These centres are great news for businesses and for Daresbury Science and Innovation Campus. In the current economic climate it can be difficult for innovative businesses to access affordable, ready to use, high specification laboratory space to carry out the much-needed research and development to make them competitive.

"The access centres have been made possible by re-using the high-end equipment that once formed part of Daresbury’s Synchrotron Radiation Source. I am delighted that that we are able to keep this equipment in the north-west and create a facility that will stimulate the local economy.

"This is another significant step forward in the further development of the Science and Innovation Campus as a place which encourages businesses, scientists and academics to work in collaboration with each other."

Businesses interested in finding out more about the Innovations Technology Access Centres can contact Paul Vernon at the Science and Technology Facilities Council on 01925 603822, email paul.vernon@stfc.ac.uk.

ENDS

Images

Images of scientists using the equipment available in the Innovations Technology Access Centres can be supplied by the STFC Press Office on request.

Contacts:

Karen Coles

Press Officer

STFC Daresbury Laboratory

T: +44 (0)1925 603232

E: karen.coles@stfc.ac.uk

Paul Vernon

Head of New Business Opportunities

STFC Innovations Ltd

T: +44 (0)1925 603822

E: paul.vernon@stfc.ac.uk

Science and Technology Facilities Council

The Science and Technology Facilities Council ensures the UK retains its leading place on the world stage by delivering world-class science; accessing and hosting international facilities; developing innovative technologies; and increasing the socio-economic impact of its research through effective knowledge exchange partnerships.

The Council has a broad science portfolio including Astronomy, Particle Physics, Particle Astrophysics, Nuclear Physics, Space Science, Synchrotron Radiation, Neutron Sources and High Power Lasers. In addition the Council manages and operates three internationally renowned laboratories:

- The Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Oxfordshire

- The Daresbury Laboratory, Cheshire

- The UK Astronomy Technology Centre, Edinburgh

The Council gives researchers access to world-class facilities and funds the UK membership of international bodies such as the European Laboratory for Particle Physics (CERN), the Institute Laue Langevin (ILL), European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF), the European organisation for Astronomical Research in the Southern Hemisphere (ESO) and the European Space Agency (ESA). It also contributes money for the UK telescopes overseas on La Palma, Hawaii, Australia and in Chile, and the MERLIN/VLBI National Facility, which includes the Lovell Telescope at Jodrell Bank Observatory.

Daresbury Science and Innovation Campus

In 2006 the Government announced two locations, Daresbury and Harwell, as campuses for the focus of government science research and innovation investment as a key part of its 10 year UK Science and Innovation Investment Framework.

Daresbury Science and Innovation Campus (Daresbury SIC) was formally opened in September 2006 by Lord Sainsbury, the then Science and Innovation Minister.

Daresbury SIC is an internationally recognised location for high-tech businesses and leading-edge science. It represents a fundamentally new approach to driving UK competitiveness in global science and innovation. Daresbury SIC was formed by the Northwest Regional Development Agency and the Science and Technology Facilities Council, Lancaster University, the University of Liverpool, the University of Manchester and Halton Borough Council. For further information please visit www.daresburysic.co.uk.