This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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SMART Scotland funding
01/11/2004
More than £1 million to help small companies commercialise their innovative products was announced today from the latest round of funding from the Executive's SMART:SCOTLAND programme.
The winning projects cover a wide range of sectors such as environmental, biotechnology and information technology, together with new solutions for sport and healthcare applications.
Developments include:
- a sensor which could help detect harmful chemical emissions on oil rigs
- a radiation sensor to help tailor cancer treatment more closely to patients' exact needs
- an anti-ageng ingredient for cosmetic products
Deputy Enterprise Minister Allan Wilson said:
"Growing the economy is our top priority. That is why we are committed to promoting the exploitation of innovation and research by Scottish businesses. We want to ensure that Scotland benefits from Scotland's creativity and enterprise.
"Support mechanisms like SMART:SCOTLAND can help achieve these aims by stimulating the creation of new, innovative businesses. It can help small businesses improve their competitiveness by developing new products and processes that have the potential for commercialisation."
The SMART awards help new and existing businesses with fewer than 50 employees gain a competitive edge in the market by funding the development of highly innovative and commercially viable products or processes.
In this funding round, 21 companies throughout Scotland are to receive a share of just over £1 million.
The funding will allow the companies to undertake technical feasibility studies. A further £3.15 million is available under the Executive's SPUR scheme to take projects to pre-production stage.
SMART:SCOTLAND 2004 ROUND 2 WINNERS:
1. Ace Aquatec, Dingwall
DEVELOPMENT OF HIGH CONDUCTIVITY FISH STUNNING TECHNOLOGY
Ace Aquatec will use their SMART Award to develop the knowledge to humanely stun/kill three commercially farmed marine species: sea trout, salmon & cod. A machine to demonstrate this novel technique will be built during the project. This system will offer significant advantages over current slaughter methods.
Contact: John Ace-Hopkins
Telephone: 01349 863319
Email: john@aceaquatec.com
Website: www.aceaquatec.com
2. Advanced Display Solutions, Hillington
MOBILE NARROWCASTING (WIRELESS LAN)
The SMART Award will enable Advanced Display Solutions Ltd to develop wireless LAN media transfer technology for challenging, outdoor environments, specifically digital signage on moving passenger transport vehicles.
Combining low voltage wireless media players with Flat Panel Display products, the technology will primarily be used for the digital delivery of visual content through a network of displays in mobile, out-of-home settings.
The principal applications will be advertising and public information media transfer with content delivery centrally managed and controlled via Wide Area Networks.
Contact: Mr George McBride
Tel: 0141 585 6425
Email: george@adscomm.co.uk
Website: www.adscomm.co.uk
3. Aktina Limited, Lasswade
DEVELOPMENT OF NOVEL METAL INTERCONNECTS ON GLASS SUBSTRATES
The SMART Award will enable this company to apply their novel nanotechnology to devise improved methods of precisely depositing high-resolution metal interconnects onto glass (and ceramic) substrates.
This technology offers excellent solderability, and has a wide range of potential applications, including flat panel displays and RoHS-compliant surface-mount electronic devices.
Contact: Professor James Cairns
Tel: 01382 344 401
Email: james@aktina.co.uk
Website: N/A
4. Aristos Scientific Ltd, Cardenden
DEVELOPMENT OF A SYNTHETIC CHEMICAL VACCINE AGAINST HERPES SIMPLEX VIRUS
The SMART Award will enable this company to apply their novel lipid-based technology to develop a synthetic chemical vaccine, of the type epitope - carrier - adjuvant. This technology will be applied for the production of a preventative vaccine specifically against Herpes Simplex Virus Type I.
Contact: Dr William Gibbons
Tel: 07733 031233
Email: gibbonswa@aol.com
Website: N/A
5. BID Instruments Ltd, Aberdeen
DEVELOPMENT OF A VISUAL FIELD TESTER
The SMART Award will help BID Instruments Ltd to assess the feasibility of developing a novel system for measuring the field of vision of eye patients. If successful, the technology will offer improvements over existing visual field testers used by high street optometrists in terms of speed, accuracy and ease of use. This will help in the early detection of eye disease
Contact: Dr Blair Donaldson
Tel: 01224 641166
Email: wbmdonaldson@doctors.org.uk
Website: N/A
6. BlueSky Telemetry Ltd, Aberfeldy
DEVELOPMENT OF SPORTRAX GPS PERFORMANCE TRACKING SYSTEM
The SMART Award will enable BlueSky Telemetry to develop a SporTraX GPS performance tracking system. This technology will be used in performance sporting applications including horse training/racing and adventure sports.
Contact: Dr Ian Hulbert
Tel: 01887 820816
Email: i.hulbert@blueskytelemetry.com
Website: www.blueskytelemetry.com
7. Cascade Technologies Ltd, Glasgow
DEVELOPMENT OF A HYDROGEN SULPHIDE SENSOR
The SMART award will enable Cascade to investigate the feasibility of developing a low cost Quantum Cascade Laser (QCL) gas sensor. The technology is likely to be ideally suited to health and safety applications on oil rigs by detecting harmful chemical emissions such as hydrogen sulphide and hydrocarbons from oil wells. Such a sensor would provide a step change in technological performance combining ultra high reliability with long term stability and fail safe operation.
Contact: Richard Cooper
Tel: 0141 303 8381
Email: r.cooper@cascade-technologies.com
Website: www.cascade-technologies.com
8. Detector and Sensor Technologies Ltd, Glenrothes
DEVELOPMENT OF AN IMPROVED RADFET SENSOR AND READER TECHNOLOGY FOR RADIOTHERAPY DOSIMETRY
The SMART Award will enable this company to develop a miniaturised, silicon-based radiation sensor and dose monitoring system. This device will be used to monitor the dose of radiation applied during cancer treatment. The development of an in-vivo monitor will allow treatments to be more closely tailored to patients exact needs.
Contact: Jim Sweet
Tel: 01592 630630
Email: jimsweet25@yahoo.co.uk
Website: N/A
9. Eolas Research Ltd, Edinburgh
DEVELOPMENT OF AN ANTI-AGEING COSMETIC INGREDIENT
The SMART award will enable Eolas to investigate the action of a plant extract as a cytokine inhibitor and its potential use as an anti-ageing ingredient for cosmetic products. If successful, commercial production of the extract may be desirable over other products due to the extract being a natural component of a known 'safe' plant.
Contact: Iain Forbes/Bill Forbes
Tel: 0131 667 4203
Email: N/A
Website: N/A
10. Greenward Environmental Technology, Milnathort
RECYCLING OF PVC RICH WASTE
The SMART Award will enable this new company to develop a catalyst for the destruction of PVC waste. This novel technology will result in the cleaning up of chlorinated hydrocarbon emissions and converting these into marketable products.
Contact: Dr David Hutson
Tel: 01577 861 852
Email: david@greenward.com
Website: N/A
11. Nordeng (Scot) Ltd, Aberdeen
DEVELOPMENT OF A WAVE ENERGY CONVERTER
The SMART Award will help this company to assess the feasibility of developing a novel wave energy machine, which will generate electricity from wave power. If successful, this technology aims to offer much improved power to unit mass outputs together with low construction costs when compared to existing systems.
Contact: Mr George Smith
Tel: 01224 865325
Email: george@nordeng.co.uk
Website: N/A
12. Ovisor Technologies, Glasgow
VIABILITY OF INTEGRATION PLATFORM
The SMART Award will enable this company to undertake a feasibility study to identify the optimum configuration for the reduction of cross-talk effects for integration platforms in datacom and telecom networks.
Contact: Dr Jim Bonar
Tel: 0141-229 1414
Email: jim.bonar@ovisor.com
Website: N/A
13. Paravox Ltd, Edinburgh
AUTOMATIC SPOKEN LANGUAGE IDENTIFICATION SYSTEM (ALIS)
The SMART award will enable Paravox Limited to develop an innovative technique for identifying languages from speech. If successful, this technology will revolutionise current speech based systems by making them multilingual. The applications include multilingual call-centres, speech recognition systems, multimedia databases, service-centers, security, automatic conference and meeting suites, speech to speech translators to name a few.
Contact: Mr Fahd Baig
Tel: 07800763184
e-mail: fahdbaig@yahoo.com
Website: N/A
14. Phytobiotics Ltd, Edinburgh
ANTIVIRAL DRUG HYBRIDS
The SMART Award will enable Phytobiotics to develop its antiviral drug hybrid concept to an advanced pre-clinical stage. The technology is based upon a plant-derived compound which can be attached to certain antiviral drugs to form hybrids with two separate modes of action and therefore improved clinical efficacy where drug resistance is a problem.
Contact: Mr Tom Prescott
Tel: 07791149322
Email: T.A.K.Prescott@sms.ed.ac.uk
Website: www.phytobiotics.co.uk
15. Red Spider Technology Ltd, Aberdeen
CONCEPTUAL FLOW CONTROL DEVICE
Red Spider Technology Ltd will use their SMART award to develop and design a conceptual flow control device for use in oil or gas wells. The tool will remove the need for well intervention during the installation of a completion string. This will increase safety and reduce operating costs for customers.
Contact: Chris Oliver
Tel: 01224 330537
Email: sales@redspiders.com
Website: www.redspiders.com
16. SAFC Ltd, St Andrews
DEVELOPMENT OF A SOLID OXIDE FUEL CELL MARK II
The SMART Award will enable this new company to develop a Mark II design for Solid Oxide Fuel Cells. This technology will improve the power density of single cells and enhance electrical performance reducing the number of cells required for a fuel stack.
Contact: Professor John Irvine
Tel: 01334 463817
Email: jtsi@st-and.ac.uk
Website: N/A
17. SMAR-Azure Tech, Edinburgh
INTEGRATED SAIL AND MAST DESIGN
This project aims to investigate and assess the technological and commercial viability of integrating the design of semi-rigid structures, such as masts/poles in the design of thin large and flexible surfaces e.g. sails.
This technology will have application within the marine industry and can also be used for the design of any other structure utilising cloth and poles.
Contact: Dr Sabrina Malpede
Tel: 07919 888654
Email: smalpe10@caledonian.ac.uk
Website: N/A
18. UVPS Environmental Solutions Ltd, Aberdeen
DEVELOPMENT OF A NOVEL PHOTO-CATALYTIC REACTOR FOR WATER TREATMENT
The SMART Award will help UVPS Environmental Solutions to assess the feasibility of developing a novel reactor technology for the destruction of harmful micro-organisms in water cooled air conditioning units. If successful, this technology will address the increasing need for sustainable and effective methods for the removal of dangerous bacteria from water.
Contact: Mr Neil Foster
Tel: 01224 262024
Email: nfoster@oldmilldesign.co.uk
Website: N/A
19. Voicekwik Ltd, Edinburgh
SPEAKER DEPENDENT ISOLATED WORD RECOGNISER
This SMART award application is for a technical and commercial feasibility study into the development of a novel and highly innovative speech recognition solution for elderly personal alarm systems. Significant Proof of Concept work has been carried out during a Scottish Enterprise funded project, in terms of market research and speech interface requirements.
Contact: Mark Cowper
Tel: N/A
Email: mark_cowper@yahoo.co.uk
Website: N/A
20. Whole Life Consultants Ltd, Dundee
WHOLE LIFE COST ESTIMATOR
The SMART Award will enable Whole Life Consultants Ltd to develop unique software for optimising whole life costs and revenues more quickly and accurately than their competitors.
Contact: Prof. R. Malcolm W. Horner
Tel: 01382 344350
Email: r.m.w.horner@dundee.ac.uk
Website: N/A
21. XiPower, Torpichen
EMBEDDED BATTERY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM
The SMART Award will enable Xipower to prove the concept of a new embedded battery management system. If successful the technology will increase the available useful energy from Lithium chemistry battery packs, provide greater accuracy of 'State of Charge' and 'State of Health' data and offers adaptable configurations to accommodate different cell connectivity.
Contact: Mark Huggins
Tel: (01506) 630449
e-mail: mark.huggins@xipower.com
website: www.xipower.com