APPENDIX 15
Memorandum from Mr Nigel Peacock, University
of Wales, Bangor
INTRODUCTION
The University of Wales, Bangor (UWB) has, as
a key part of its mission, a role to play in developing the economy
of Wales and North Wales in particular. This is demonstrated through
the activities of our academic departments and specialist units,
supported centrally by the European & Industrial Programmes
team. Our WDA Centres of Expertise have been identified as having
considerable potential for commercial development, and many DTI
"Teaching Company" (TC) schemes have been successfully
established by the University. The University is now one of the
top ten universities in the UK by number of TC schemes; this is
a remarkable achievement for a University located in the predominantly
rural area of North-West Wales. Last year our Chemistry Department
and our School of Electronic Engineering and Computer Systems
were each nominated by the DTI/OST for awards for working with
business. Bangor was the only University in the UK to be nominated
for two of these awards.
One guide to the University's progress in developing
its research and technology-transfer activities is to consider
the figures for "research grants & contracts" and
"other services rendered" over recent years. These figures
do not include core funding from the Higher Education Funding
Council for Wales (HEFCW).
| 1993-94 | 1994-95
| 1995-96 | 1996-97 |
| £ millions | £ millions
| £ millions | £ millions
|
| | |
| |
| Research grants and contracts: | 5.6
| 6.3 | 6.9 | 7.7
|
| Other services rendered: | 4.9
| 4.5 | 5.1 | 6.3
|
| | |
| |
| Total: | 10.5 | 10.8
| 12.0 | 14.0 |
| | |
| |
| year-on-year growth: | —
| +3 per cent | +11 per cent
| +16.7 per cent |
| | |
| |
These figures show encouraging trends not just in the monetary
amounts but in the rate of growth in this income.
This progress encourages us to believe that more can be done,
and we welcome the invitation to submit our views to the Welsh
Affairs Committee. Many of these views have also been submitted
in our response to the Welsh Office Consultation Paper "A
Know-How Centre for Wales?".
2. EFFECTIVENESS OF
EXISTING TECHNOLOGY
TRANSFER ACTIVITIES
IN WALES
We believe successful technology transfer programmes should:
(a) deliver clear benefits to the business people and
to the academics involved
(b) support growing companies providing high-skill, high-value
jobs
(c) support the commercial development of University products,
skills and services
(d) be few in number, but each with substantial budgets
(e) be simple to understand, to apply for, and to manage
(f) provide a quick response to applications for support
(g) meet the needs of regions such as North Wales
The Teaching Company (TC) scheme is a good example of a scheme
which meets these criteria. A particular benefit of this scheme
is that it combines high-level academic expertise with graduate
employment in Small-to-Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs), thereby
ensuring that the expertise becomes embedded in the SME partner
during the programme. We believe that a larger budget should be
allocated to TC schemes, as the scheme is popular both with SMEs
and with academics. The current budget is insufficient to meet
the demand and becomes exhausted part way through the year.
We have some concern that the DTI "LINK" programme
has not yet been taken up by a significant number of companies
in Wales. This is because this programme is aimed at large companies,
and there are few of these in Wales. We believe that some reallocation
of the LINK budget to the TC programme would benefit Wales; we
understand that a redistribution of ten percent of the LINK budget,
transferred to the TC programme, could double the funds available
for the TC programme.
Other successful technology transfer programmes include the
HEFCW TACS (Training & Consultancy Services) initiative, the
CRAFT scheme (this enables SMEs to participate in research contracts
awarded by the EU's Framework IV programme), and the WOTT (Welsh
Office Technology Transfer) programme. We believe that the Cymru
Prosper Wales database and related graduate placement schemes
also play a valuable role in introducing graduate-level skills
to the SME sector.
We would like to see support provided for development of
the Centres of Expertise. Funding could be supplied to each of
the Centres in exchange for a commitment to achieve revenue (and
other) targets. The provision of, say, £40k per Centre to
provide start-up funding for a specialist marketing manager for
each centre would cost less than £1.5M; this investment would
enable Wales to develop another thirty or so successful high-tech
enterprises, each creating high-skill, high-value jobs. If each
of the Centres was able to create five jobs as a result of these
marketing activities, this investment would cost only £8k
per job created. This would provide much better value for money
than subsidising large inward investors. In addition, developing
the Centres of Expertise would benefit all parts of Wales; spending
much larger sums of money on attracting inward investors has notably
failed to achieve this.
Many of the less-successful technology transfer programmes
fail because they do not address the criteria listed above. Many
of them are too fragmented; we believe this is particularly true
of the information technology programmes. A recent study, the
North Wales Technology for Learning Project, carried out
by the University, identified fifty-nine separate IT programmes
related to technology for learning in North Wales. Thirty-two
of these projects provided infrastructure, while 27 are specific
projects on flexible learning. This study only concerned itself
with projects involving technology for learning; the total number
of IT-related projects is significantly greater. While this level
of activity is encouraging, it is difficult to believe that this
fragmentation facilitates effective management or provides value
for money.
3. THE "ECONOMIC
POWERHOUSE" AND
THE DEARING
REPORT
The "economic powerhouse" should take particular
account of the needs of North Wales. This can be achieved by working
in partnership with the North Wales Economic Forum, provided that
the University is represented as a full member of the Forum. We
believe that, in the absence of University representation, the
regional economic fora, and therefore the "economic powerhouse"
and the assembly, are unlikely to contribute fully to the economic
development of their regions. We understand that English universities
have been invited to join the equivalent bodies in England.
4. GREATER EXPLOITATION
OF EXPERTISE,
AND GREATER
COHERENCE IN
THE PROVISION
OF SERVICES
We agree with the desire to increase the extent to which
universities work with businesses in Wales. We also believe that,
in addition to their role in promoting the economic development
of Wales, the University has a part to play in promoting the skills
of people in Wales, and in North Wales in particular, to businesses
in other parts of the UK, in Europe, and across the world. Many
of our departments have significant contacts outside Wales. Any
proposals to increase their links within Wales should be designed
and resourced to promote additional links rather than to replace
existing UK-wide and international activities.
There should be greater coherence between the organisations
involved in service provision, to promote minimum duplication
and maximum value for money. This coherence should extend not
just across organisations but also across initiatives. At present,
for example, there is a Regional Technology Plan (RTP) which rightly
promotes the development of Wales as a high-skill, high-value
economy. However, the revised scoring system for European Social
Fund (ESF) regional projects in Wales has exactly the opposite
effect, by concentrating on low-level NVQs and thereby decreasing
the funding available for the development of high-level skills.
The inclusion of the principles of the RTP in the scoring system
for objective 2 funding is welcome, although this has little impact
on North Wales. We believe RTP principles should also be included
in scoring systems for objectives 3, 4 and 5b, and for the new
structural fund programmes when they are introduced.
5. SUMMARY
The University of Wales plays a key role in technology transfer
and in the economic development of the nation. If Wales is divided
into the four sub-regions of North, Mid-, South-west, and South-east
Wales, the major universities in Bangor, Aberystwyth, Swansea
and Cardiff can play a part, in co-operation with other partners,
in this development. In each sub-region, the regional University
is the major supplier of internationally competitive technology,
of high-level skills training, and of highly-skilled people. In
three of the four sub-regions (the exception being the South-east)
there are few other sources of high-level business, technology,
or skilled people; this makes it even more important for those
Universities (Bangor, Aberystwyth, Swansea) located in the western
half of Wales to develop this part of their role.
Further technology transfer programmes should build on existing
strengths rather than adding new structures; they should respond
to the identified needs of businesses and promote opportunities
identified by Universities; they should be managed by those with
experience of both business and of higher education; and they
should be responsive to the needs of each region within Wales.
Each University, including Bangor, possesses a specialist
industrial liaison team. Each of these teams is responsible for
the effective development and management of technology transfer
and links with business. Each has direct contact with the academics
in its own institution, with the major businesses and business
sectors in its region, and with other parts of Wales through the
WILOs (Welsh Industrial Liaison Officers) network.
Technology transfer is only one part of the development of
a high-value modern economy. It should be considered alongside
two other aspects of equal importance: skills transfer (training,
consultancy and related activities) and people transfer (supply
of graduates and postgraduates). The universities are the only
organisations equipped to provide all parts of this trinity. Strengthening
the activities of the universities would provide a coherent strategy
and a coherent delivery mechanism for economic development.
To meet the needs of businesses in North Wales, at least
some of whatever resources are allocated to this activity must
be provided to North Wales. The University of Wales, Bangor has
made significant progress in developing its technology transfer
processes and services, and would welcome the opportunity to broaden
and strengthen this area of its work.
Nigel Peacock
Director, European & Industrial Programmes
University of Wales, Bangor
June 1998
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