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FIRST UK-CHINA SCHEME TO UNLEASH COMMERCIAL POTENTIAL OF RESEARCH

A groundbreaking scheme to fund 'proof of concept' Research and Development (R&D) projects with strong commercial potential was launched today by Science and Innovation minister Ian Pearson and Her Excellency Madam Fu Ying, Ambassador of the People's Republic of China to the UK.

Innovation China UK (ICUK) will help joint research teams in the UK and China to develop and analyse options for commercialising their findings and thereby strengthen their chances of securing commercial investment. It is the first UK-China programme supporting business and academic partners in joint research and technology transfer.

Mr Pearson said:

I particularly welcome the launch of Innovation China UK (ICUK) because of its emphasis on helping to bring ground breaking research to the commercial market. It is also a further sign of co-operation between the UK and China.

Such exciting research partnerships mark a potentially significant step in the capability of both our countries to boost knowledge transfer. With greater knowledge transfer comes a greater ability to innovate.

Both the UK and China are at the forefront of cutting edge science. Together we can benefit from a strong research base that works effectively with business.

Led by Queen Mary, University of London, ICUK is a unique collaboration involving five British, and over ten Chinese, higher education institutions. It will fund activities that are essential to securing business investment but are beyond the scope of a typical science or technology research project. It will enable UK/China research partners to develop answers to the key questions commercial investors ask about production feasibility, manufacturing, marketing, risk management, IPR protection and business planning. In the UK we call such funding 'proof of concept' funding.

The UK is providing £5m funding from the Higher Education Innovation Fund which supports knowledge transfer and increased business engagement in universities. China is providing complementary funding through its Ministry of Science Technology (MoST).

ICUK will focus its main activities in areas of Energy, Climate change and sustainable environment, Infectious diseases, Biomedicine and drug discovery (including traditional Chinese medicine), Nanotechnology and material science and Space technology. These knowledge bases are prioritised as key collaboration areas by the UK and China.

Notes to Editors

ICUK British partners are Queen Mary, University of London (lead institution), King's College London, University of Nottingham, Royal Veterinary College, and University of Southampton.

Examples of ICUK Chinese collaborators include China Academy of Science (over five institutes), Tsinghua University, Beijing University of Aerospace and Aeronautics, Fudan University, Shanghai Jiaotong University, China Ocean University China, Nanjing University, University of Science and Technology China and Xi-an Jiaotong University.

ICUK will have three main activities:

  • A state-of-the-art knowledge network and a complimentary events and dissemination programme
  • An ICUK collaboration development fund into which partner HEIs may submit applications for proof of concept and business development grants
  • Expertise in project management and technology transfer to support commercialisation of joint intellectual property.

For media enquiries only contact Matt Barker in the DIUS press office on 0203 300 8126 or Kate Hunter at Queen Mary, University of London on 020 7882 5378.