Research Commercialisation - About us
The Research Commercialisation team is part of Durham's 'Business & Innovation Services' (DBIS), comprising expertise in Intellectual property, licensing and spinouts, and a broad experience of working with internal and external clients.
Sharing our Knowledge
Through BIS, The Research Commercialisation team has drawn upon a broad range of industrial, investor and business contacts to take business ideas forward and acts as the key point of contact for businesses to engage with the World Class research outputs of the Durham University. We proactively protect IPR generated by research and currently have interests in over 70 discrete patent families. Healthcare and Life Sciences represent a significant proportion of our portfolio. Projects are taken forward as spin out companies, licensing deals or industrial collaborations.
The Research Commercialisation team supports both main threads of the above strategy, namely research and education as well as the subsiduary theme of regional economic support. (Read more about the University Strategy).
Areas of Support Provided
The team assists in the exploitation of University research outputs and University staff/students IP. We assist staff/students with preparation of business plans; advise other sectors of the University on IPR related issues; where appropriate, assist in establishment of spin out companies; negotiate licenses of University patents, software etc, to external customers; and maintain links with regional/national commercial exploitation 'players'.
"Find the right person in the Business & Innovation Services to deal with your enquiry"
Angel Alliance
Durham and Newcastle Universities have joined forces in a ground-breaking agreement aimed at giving North East England a leading edge in the commercialisation of research.
The two research intensive Universities, have formed the Angel Alliance, a partnership designed to maximise the exploitation of the scientific discoveries being made at both institutions. (Read more about the Angel Alliance)
Regional Blueprint Competition
Jill Flowers is responsible for coordinating Blueprint: The North East Universities Business Planning Competition. Each University hosts its own student competitive process where winners progress into the Regional Grand Final. Staff entries at the Universities are also eligable for the competition, entering straight into the Regional Final.
- Visit Durham Blueprint for more info about Durham's student competition.
- Members of staff who would like the Regional competition should contact a member of the Research Commercialisation team before entering.
- Visit blueprintcompetition.co.uk for more detailed information about the Regional Competition.
Knowledge Transfer Account
The KTA is a knowledge transfer scheme that takes outputs from research undertaken at Durham and Newcastle Universities, funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), and commercialises them in the healthcare sector.
The scheme's unique feature is that we seek to use the clinical base of the Newcastle and South Tees NHS Trusts, which have strong links with the universities, to translate the engineering and physical science research results into a position where they can be exploited by the healthcare industry. (Read more information about the Knowledge Transfer Account).