A project offering funded support for regional SMEs is proving to be so popular across the region, it has recently been granted an extension to deal with demand. The University of Wolverhampton is leading a consortium of universities in delivering a support programme designed to help businesses that are in the early stages of developing new products.
The £1m Innovative Product Support Service (IPSS) project, part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), will now run until December 2015 and is open to Small to Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) based in the West Midlands.
The programme is particularly interested in businesses developing environmental, digital, electronic or medical technologies. IPSS offers eligible businesses up to six days of free assistance in areas such as product design, market research, electronics development and intellectual property rights protection. In some cases, SMEs can also access possible grant support for businesses to continue the development of their innovative products.
As part of the IPSS programme each beneficiary will receive an objective review of their product. For those businesses with a viable proposition, the programme aims to offer assistance regardless of whether it is a concept design model, a review of the IP status of a product or the development of an electronics based prototype
Professor Andrew Pollard, Director of the IPSS programme, said: Through the IPSS project businesses within the West Midlands area will have access to the expertise offered by four universities from across the region. It is a great opportunity for West Midlands SMEs to get a helping hand in getting their new products to market and will make a real difference to the growth of their businesses
Since the project started in early 2013, over 100 companies have signed up to access the wide range of support. Project Manager, Abi Hopkins said The demand for support has been fantastic and new applications are received almost daily. We have established strong referral links with other University projects and external agencies to highlight the support available which has been effective. Regional SMEs are able to access a wide range of new product development support not only through the IPSS project but also through other funded programmes, therefore offering added value
The programme has attracted high profile keynote speakers and manufacturing enthusiasts such as TV presenter and
historian Adam Hart-Davis, TV star and innovation enthusiast Robert Llewellyn and Martin McCourt, ex CEO of Dyson and additional events are being planned for later in 2014.
The project will continue to run until December 2015. For more information about the project and events, please contact Abi Hopkins on 01902 321105 or at ipss@wlv.ac.uk or visit www.wlv.ac.uk/ipss