This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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SMART ideas win cash for companies
09/05/2005
Up to £550,000 to help small companies research and develop innovative products was announced today under the Executive's SMART: SCOTLAND scheme.
The companies cover a wide range of sectors including life sciences, nanotechnology and new solutions for environmental monitoring and pipeline security.
Developments include:
A rapid and cost-effective environmental monitoring tool to help businesses monitor their operations and comply with European legislation on water quality etc
A lightweight pneumatic demolition tool which reduces the amount of re-coil and vibration experienced by the operator. This will help address current and impending legislative requirements surrounding the use of pneumatically operated demolition tools
A new pipeline coating evaluation system to enable operators to monitor the condition of pipes on-line from their own desk. This will reduce the need for third party survey personnel travelling over the pipelines. The system will also act as a sleeping policeman, alerting operators when any interference - accidental or criminal - is detected on the pipelines
Deputy Enterprise Minister Allan Wilson said:
"Support mechanisms like SMART can help us meet our key aim of continuing to grow our economy, by helping small firms develop new competitive products and processes that have the potential for commercialisation.
"The diversity and range of technologies being developed by today's SMART award winners - from a new business environmental monitoring tool to a pipeline evaluation and security system - is evidence of the leading-edge expertise to be found in Scotland today.
"I wish all of today's winning applicants every success in taking their projects through to fruition and developing cutting-edge technology that can help make a difference to all of our lives."
SMART:SCOTLAND 2005 ROUND 1 WINNERS:
1. Antitope Ltd, Aberdeen
SELECTION OF NON-IMMUNOGENIC ANTIBODIES FOR HUMAN THERAPY
Antitope will use their SMART Award to assess the feasibility of developing a novel platform technology for generating non-immunogenic pharmaceutical antibodies and proteins. The project will provide Antitope with a key competitive advantage in creating non-immunogenic pharmaceuticals and, as such, a platform to establish the basis for a high growth biotechnology company.
Contact: Dr Matthew Baker
Telephone: 07973 778451
Email: matthew.baker@antitope.co.uk
2. C/O Campbell Murray, Glasgow
INVESTIGATION OF THE TECHNICAL AND COMMERCIAL FEASIBILITY OF NOVEL SOLID-STATE LASER SOURCES
The SMART award will enable a new company to assess the feasibility of developing novel solid-state laser sources. This development offers the potential to replace earlier gas and liquid lasers and represents a significant technological advance to industry both in the UK and world-wide.
Contact: Campbell Murray
Telephone: 0141 228 2009
Email: campbell.murray@scotent.co.uk
3. Damon Thompson, Edinburgh
development of A NOVEL EDA TOOL
Damon Thompson has gained a SMART Award to conduct a feasibility study into the development of a novel Electronic Design Automation (EDA) tool for the generation of asynchronous logic circuits for silicon microchip applications. The commercialisation route for the technology, derived from a Scottish Enterprise Proof of Concept Fund project at theUniversity of Edinburgh , is currently being considered. The project, if successful, will result in a software product that designers can use without prior expert knowledge of asynchronous circuit design and at a much reduced cost compared to existing technologies.
Contact: Damon Thompson
Telephone: 0131 650 5665
Email: damon.thompson@ee.ed.ac.uk
4. Darg Engineering Ltd, Fraserburgh
LIGHTWEIGHT PNEUMATIC DEMOLITION TOOL
Darg Engineering will use their SMART Award to assess the feasibility of developing a lightweight demolition tool using a novel approach to counter the re-coil and vibration transmission to operators. The development of this technology will address current and impending legislative requirements restricting operators' use of pneumatically operated demolition tooling.
Contact: Mr Dennis Duthie
Telephone: 01346 513068
Email: dsd@darg.co.uk
Website: www.darg.co.uk
5. Fuel Cells ( Scotland ) Ltd, Lasswade
SOLID OXIDE FUEL CELL (SOFC) - FUEL CONDITIONING AND REFORMING
The unique design configuration of Fuel Cells (Scotland) Ltd SOFC stack can be greatly enhanced by the development of integral fuel conditioning and reforming. The SMART Award will allow the Company to investigate the feasibility of a developing a technology to allow its existing device which currently runs on pure hydrogen to utilise a wide range of readily available fuels such as natural gas, propane, methane and all types of biomass gasses.
Contact: Mr Edward Angus
Telephone: 0131 663 0497
Email: edangus@aol.com
6. Mitecon Limited, East Kilbride
development of COMPLEX CERAMIC PARTS
Mitecon Ltd will use their SMART Award to conduct a feasibility study into the development of state of the art bonding techniques for manufacturing complex ceramic parts made from one material only and containing internal channels. Ceramic materials are widely used in various applications ranging from spark plugs to valve bearings. The technology to be developed will allow the manufacturing of complex shaped parts by bonding simple geometries with a high degree of dimensional accuracy without influencing the properties of the ceramics. This will be advantageous in the growing structural ceramics sector.
Contact: Marcel Michorius
Telephone: 01355 234147
Email: marcel@mitecon.co.uk
Website: www.mitecon.co.uk
7. NiTech Solutions Ltd, Edinburgh
DEVELOPMENT OF AN OSCILLATORY BAFFLED REACTOR FOR CRYSTALLISATION
NiTech Solutions Ltd will use their SMART award to assess the feasibility of developing an oscillatory-baffled reactor system specifically for crystallisation. The system will be significantly different from existing crystallisation processes and will be used for the separation of products from solutions for fine, speciality and pharmaceutical industries.
Contact: Professor Xiong-Wei Ni
Telephone: 0131 451 3781
Email: x.ni@nitechsolutions.co.uk
8. Dr Rayne Longhurst, Aberdeen
SENSORS FOR ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING
Rayne Longhurst's SMART entry builds upon a Scottish Enterprise Proof of Concept project successfully undertaken by the Robert Gordon University and the Scottish Association of Marine Science. Currently, the most appropriate commercial exploitation route for this technology is being formulated and a SMART Award will enable her to conduct a feasibility study into the development of a novel molecularly imprinted polymer technology for use as an environmental monitoring tool for on site environmental monitoring and detection. Use of unique molecularly imprinted polymers may offer a rapid and cost effective solution for environmental monitoring, which will help companies and regulators meet current European legislative requirements.
Contact: Dr Rayne Longhurst
Telephone: 01224 262337
Email: r.longhurst@rgu.ac.uk
9. SiGEN Ltd, Aberdeen
DEVELOPMENT OF AN INTEGRATED FUEL CELL THERMAL MANAGEMENT SOLUTION FOR COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS
SiGEN will use their SMART Award to assess the feasibility of developing a mobile and integrated combined heat and power fuel cell system. This together with the development of associated thermal management systems will offer extensive commercial applications potential, including those in vehicular uses. The project will addresses specific operator needs in the UK, EC and worldwide that may be best met by this highly innovative fuel cell based solution.
Contact: Mr David McGrath
Telephone: 01224 715568
Email: djm@siGEN.co.uk
Website: http://www.sigen.co.uk/
10. Scotia Seeds, Brechin
ESTABLISHING THE FEASIBILITY OF USING NOVEL GERMINATION AND VIABILITY TESTING METHODS ON COMMERCIALLY-TRADED WILDFLOWER SEEDS
Scotia Seeds will use their SMART Award to assess the feasibility of using novel germination and viability testing methods on commercially-traded wildflower seeds. This will be with the aim of delivering treatments to wildflower seeds to break dormancy before sowing.
Contact: Mr Giles Laverack
Telephone: 01356 626425
Email: scotiaseeds@btconnect.com
11. Tuscan Corrosion Control Ltd, Ellon
COATING AUTO SCAN INTEGRITY EVALUATION (CASIE)
Tuscan Corrosion Control will use their SMART Award to assess the feasibility of developing a low cost system for permanently installed monitoring of the coating condition of pipelines. This system will enable real-time and on-line monitoring of pipeline assets, offering improvements over existing systems, particularly in terms of eliminating loss of containment, providing security from third part interference and reduction in down-time.
Contact: Mr John Middleton
Telephone: 01358 727807
Email: john.middleton@tuscancc.com
Website: www.tuscancc.com