This panel gave us the pleasure of hearing from four professionals, each involved in hugely important projects currently underway in the West Midlands that have potential to act as test-beds for innovative technologies and approaches. Panellists were: Andy Welch, Technical Director of West Midlands 5G; Andrew Pestana, Head of Innovation for HS2; Martin Sutherland, Chief Exec … Continue reading Venturefest Blog Series: Part 7 – Big West Midlands opportunities as Innovation Test-beds (Panel 2)
Customers Project duration May - August 2019 The Project The West Midlands Local Industrial Strategy(WM LIS) was published in May 2019 and is a long-term plan aimed to increase productivity. It is locally led and developed in partnership with government, based on clear evidence and aligned to the national Industrial Strategy. One of the identified … Continue reading Case Study: Providing innovative building blocks for the construction industry
The British Government recently announced its plans to become entirely carbon neutral by the year 2050, as many of you will know. It seems clear that reaching this milestone will require systematic change on many levels. On an individual basis we can (and should) recycle our household waste, use reusable cups and bottles and turn … Continue reading Venturefest Blog Series: Part 6 – Sustainable Business Support Hub: Opportunities for your organisation
Graham Malley, Principal Director at Accenture opened the workshop by highlighting how important manufacturing still is to the UK. A recent public survey suggested that the UK ranked 56th in the world for manufacturing, when in fact we are placed 9th or 10th. In Europe, we currently vie for third place with France, after Germany … Continue reading Venturefest Blog Series: Part 5 – Made Smarter
The first panel of VenturefestWM 2019 centred on ‘Diversity in Innovation and Entrepreneurship’, a topic that is becoming increasingly pertinent for the West Midlands as a region with a growing richness of diversity. The region is home to one of the youngest populations in the UK, with over 108 languages spoken and more than 12% … Continue reading Venturefest Blog Series: Part 4 – Diversity in Innovation and Entrepreneurship
What's it all about? Are you interested in designing a more inclusive economy, finding and developing people with highly sought after skills or addressing the West Midlands high unemployment rate? Birmingham City University, the Department for Pensions and Work (DWP) and Microsoft are hosting DataJam West Midlands, a highly practical 48-hrs ideas and data … Continue reading Event: DataJam West Midlands
Mike Wright, Chair of West Midlands Innovation Board and the 1st Keynote speaker started by saying what an important annual event VenturefestWM is for the region. He then drove right into the main theme of his presentation by stating that economic balance can only be achieved if innovation is at the forefront. His extensive business … Continue reading Venturefest Blog Series: Part 3 – Stimulating Business Innovation in the West Midlands
Four students from the University of Warwick were chosen to work closely with Innovation Alliance for the West Midlands to explore the world of innovation. We were allowed to do this in-depth by being a part of Venturefest West Midlands 2019. Venturefest WM is a platform for entrepreneurs, investors and innovators to meet, exchange … Continue reading The Venturefest Effect!
The Midlands Energy Hub is a BEIS funded initiative, managed by Nottingham City Council, as part of the Clean Growth Strategy. Its mission is to support the capacity of LEPs and Local Authorities to deliver local low carbon energy projects, reduce carbon emissions, tackle fuel poverty and create new green jobs. Its key objectives are … Continue reading News: Introducing the Midlands Energy Hub
Introduction and Background SQW, in collaboration with and Cambridge Econometrics (CE), City-REDI at the University of Birmingham, Nottingham Trent University and the Black Country Consortium, have been commissioned by the Midlands Engine (ME) to develop the first ever Independent Economic Review (IER) for the Midlands region. This exercise forms part of … Continue reading News: Midlands Engine Independent Economic Review – Deep Dive Research