- £134m government investment to keep UK’s greenest, most
innovative businesses thriving during coronavirus pandemic and
could help to secure and create new jobs across the country
- Projects to service offshore wind turbines autonomously,
using AI to reduce beer waste in the brewing process and
converting seaweed into compostable packaging to tackle plastic
waste set to benefit
- Investment part of the government’s commitment to build back
better by supporting the UK’s risk takers to bring their novel
ideas to market
Robots that patrol UK roads to detect and repair cracks and
potholes, using Artificial Intelligence (AI) that will help to
reduce beer waste and converting seaweed into compostable
packaging are just some of over 1,000 projects that will today
(Wednesday 4 November) receive £134 million of government
investment.
Businesses right across the UK, from Glasgow to Devon, are set to
benefit from the investment, enabling 1,069 ground-breaking clean
growth projects develop new technologies, secure and create new
jobs, drive productivity and tackle climate change.
This includes marine company Rovco in Bristol, which is
developing unique technology allowing for autonomous underwater
inspections of large offshore wind turbines. This will be crucial
in assisting human operators carry out effective maintenance of
one of the UK’s cleanest, renewable energy sources, which can
often be dangerous, while ensuring it is carried out in
accordance with social distancing measures.
KegTracker in Pontypridd, Wales, is aiming to reduce the amount
of waste in the UK’s brewing industry by using artificial
intelligence (AI) to turn kegs into ‘smart containers’ that will
provide real time data to accurately monitor the condition and
contents of kegs as they travel from brewery to pub and back
again. This will help reduce the amount of liquid that is thrown
away annually, currently costing the UK an estimated £5 billion a
year.
Another company, Oceanium in Argyll, Scotland, is developing an
advanced bio-refinery which will turn seaweed into food and
compostable packaging products, tackling plastic waste and
creating new jobs in the local area, while supporting the UK’s
target to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050.
These ideas could transform whole industries such as
manufacturing, hospitality and the automotive sector by helping
them respond to the unique challenges presented by the pandemic,
while supporting risk takers to bring their novel ideas to
market.
Business Secretary said:
“The UK’s response to coronavirus has demonstrated the very best
of British ingenuity, and it is this resourcefulness that will
help us navigate our way through this pandemic.
“Today’s investment will ensure that our innovators and
risk-takers can continue to scale up their ideas, helping the UK
to build back better and ensure we meet our clear commitments on
tackling climate change.”
An additional company receiving funding today includes Robotiz3D
in Manchester, which is developing autonomous technology which
will enable robots to be deployed to patrol UK roads to detect
and repair cracks and potholes as soon as they appear. This
approach will speed up the time taken to make repairs and will
lower overall costs, while reducing the carbon footprint caused
by road maintenance vehicles; and
The Sustainable Innovation Fund, delivered through Innovate UK,
is a cornerstone of the £1.25 billion investment package
announced by the Chancellor in April to help ambitious,
innovative businesses survive and thrive during the current
pandemic.
Innovate UK Executive Chair Dr said:
“Yet again we see the exciting range of business innovation
taking place across the United Kingdom, despite these difficult
times.
“Every initiative we’ve supported here represents an important
step forward in sustainable economic development, but also one
step nearer dreams becoming reality for ambitious hard-working
company owners and their staff.”
The investment forms part of the government’s commitment to
support the UK’s entrepreneurs and start-ups to scale up their
innovations, set out in its ambitious R&D
Roadmap in July this year.
Notes to editors
- The £134 million funding comes from Innovate UK’s Sustainable
innovation Fund, which was launched as part of the £550 million
package of measures to support innovative SMEs respond to
Covid-19.
- Each business will receive up to £175,000 from the £134
million funding.
- For a smaller number of recipients, their award is the first
phase of a two-part competition under the Small Business Research
Initiative (SBRI) that addresses specific net zero and clean
growth challenges as part of the Government’s pledge to tackle
climate change.
