HEIF 2011-15 commended knowledge exchange strategies and partnerships

Cranfield University

For its work towards creating an ‘innovation habitat’ with strong links to the HEI; for its efforts to make it easier for firms to 'do business with' Cranfield; for its approach to strategic collaboration involving a much deeper understanding of the needs of their partners; and for its efforts to increase the value for money of investments through a mix of continuous reviews of effectiveness/efficiency, outsourcing and streamlining. 

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University of Exeter

For its commitment to open innovation; for creating a suite of vouchers for partners at different points in the relationship process (Link Vouchers to support development of new links with industrial partners; Innovation Vouchers for feasibility studies and shorter projects to build relationships; Partnership Schemes to promote the development of strategic partnerships); and for its Research and Knowledge Transfer Service receiving ISO9001 accreditation. 

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University of Hertfordshire

For engaging with small/medium sized enterprises (SMEs): building on successful learning from its Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) experiences to launch the Knowledge for Business scheme which can be flexibly applied to many types of business; for its launch of an in-house innovation voucher programme to engage with small enterprises; and for its use of impact case studies as light touch audit to identify areas of research and further KE potential to promote to partners and other stakeholders. 

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University of Manchester

For its support for student employability and enterprise through the Manchester Leadership Programme, Manchester Graduate Internship Programme, and the Manchester Enterprise Centre. 

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Newcastle University

For its commitment to building its Professors of Practice scheme that brings industrial experts into the academic sphere; for exploitation of its own infrastructure to demonstrate the viability of technologies with the aim of attracting inward investment to the region. 

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University of Oxford

For its strength in balancing the demands of knowledge exchange with the research, teaching and wider community roles of a global research powerhouse; for its engagement of students in knowledge exchange through the Oxford Student Consultancy to support employability/enterprise; for its continued development of ISIS Innovation and its commitment to working with others to develop and disseminate good practice both within UK and abroad; for its continued strategic development of Begbroke Science Park to bring companies into close contact with HEI; for its use of HEIF funds to stimulate creative thinking on how to best engage in KE; and for the Oxford Research and Development initiative to identify best practice and sources of efficiencies gains in KE. 

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Staffordshire University

For its contributions to local economic development through its innovative collaboration with Keele University, North Staffordshire Chamber of Commerce, Keele University Business and Science Park to create a Special Purpose Vehicle to manage and direct their complement of innovation infrastructure targeting local high growth SMEs; for its efforts to strength the success of the commercialisation process with Commercial Edge and the Venture Panel. 

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Partnerships

The expert group would also like to make special mention of the following collaborations: 

Special Purpose Vehicle to manage innovation infrastructure – a collaboration between Staffordshire University, Keele University, North Staffordshire Chamber of Commerce, Keele University Business and Science Park, to undertake shared services and collaborative bidding for innovation support funding for Stoke on Trent and Staffordshire Local Enterprise Partnership. 

Easy Access Innovation – a collaboration between the University of Bristol, King’s College London and the University of Glasgow, as a good example of both working in partnership and the desire to identify methods and techniques that simplify and accelerate the transfer of knowledge to partners.