Production Park hosts Innovate UK Local

 

Jane Lambert

Production Park which hosted yesterday's Innovate Local West Yorkshire was a very different venue from the Great Victoria Hotel in Bradford or Dean Clough Mills in Halifax where previous Innovate UK Local events had been held.  Production Park describes itself as "a curated community of studios, technology and talent," It claims to have "helped the world’s biggest artists, brands, companies and channels produce world tours, shows, product launches, films and more." It is also an educational institution offering courses leading to first and postgraduate degrees in subjects relating to Production Park's activities,

As it is located on an industrial estate in South Kirkby, Production Park is not easy to find. Google Maps led me through residential streets and country lanes before delivering me to my destination. By the time I arrived, every space in the car park had been taken, so I parked in the widest and quietest part of the street, several hundred yards from the entrance.   

However, the moment I entered the room where the plenary sessions were taking place I could see why that venue had been chosen.   The room was cavernous.   It seemed as big as an aircraft hangar.  Tables lining the walls were occupied by exhibitors and caterers.  Several flights of stairs led to the ceiling,   An enormous screen projected images of the speakers who were seated on a dais overlooking the audience. Two years ago I attended the opening of Aria Studios just outside Llangefni (see Jane Lambert Aria Studios - its Importance to Northwest Wales 29 Jan 2023 NIPC Wales). Production Park was on a completely different scale.

The day began with a welcome from Megan Kearns, Knowledge Transfer Manager - Place (Local Partnerships), Jim Farnery, Director of External Affairs at Production Park, Sarah Bowes, Head of Business Innovation and Inclusive Economy at West Yorkshire Combined Authority and Lee Viney, Regional Manager at Innovate UK (Yorkshire & Humber and the North East).  They were followed by representatives of business support agencies in a session called "The Power of the Ecosystem in West Yorkshire."

In a Q&A session, my former MP, Jason McCartney, observed that the increase in defence spending announced by the Prime Minister was a business opportunity. He set up a company earlier this year that trades as Innovate Yorkshire,  According to its LinkedIn page, "Innovate Yorkshire is dedicated to helping businesses, charities, and organisations across Yorkshire and the North of England navigate complex challenges and unlock new opportunities."  He said that local companies were already winning defence business.

The last plenary session before lunch was called "My Business Innovation Journey,"  A panel of local business owners who had been assisted by Innovate UK were interviewed by a moderator about their dealings with Innovate UK.  They also took questions from the floor,   The industries represented ranged from medical devices to digital marketing. 

Our buffet lunch was tasty,   I chose couscous, prawns, salmon, mackerel strips, vegetables and onion bhajis.  I shared a table with Thierry Delange, Business Development Director of RTC North.  In Rise & Design in Marshall Mills on 28 Feb 2024, I noted that RTC North describes itself as "one of Europe’s leading technology transfer companies with a trusted reputation for delivering services in innovation and business growth."   During the lunch break, I visited the stands of ClimbUK, Leeds University Nexus, Leeds Beckett University's Knowledge Exchange, Trio and Innovate UK.  I was particularly interested to learn about Innovate UK's "No Limits" programme.

After lunch, we were offered the choice of three breakout sessions between 14:00 and 14:45:

• Driving Your Business Forwards: Innovate UK Business Growth;
• Financing Your Business Innovation Journey; and 
• No Limits To Innovation: Breaking Barriers and Building Futures.

I chose "Financing Your Business Innovation Journey" which turned out to be yet another panel discussion.

 

One of the speakers was Hana Hussein, Investment Director of Big Issue Invest, which is part of the Big Issue Group,  The Group exists to lift the most unfortunate members of the community out of poverty.  Big Issue Invest supports social enterprises, social-purpose businesses and charities that create core solutions to poverty.  

Another panel member represented Leeds Angels which was formed towards the end of 2024. While chatting to her after the session I learned that she was a patent attorney and that Leeds Angels had already held several dinners and pitching sessions.  We spoke about pitching and I mentioned my Tips for Pitching to Business Angels which I posted to NIPC Wales on 26 Feb 2025.

I asked about the advice and assistance that was available to companies that had made good use of private equity investment and were looking to expand still further through flotation.  I had previously raised that issue at Innovate UK's Regional Investment Spotlight in Liverpool on 26 June 2024 and at the Northern Powerhouse Roadshow at the Royal Armouries in October.  As in Liverpool and Leeds last year I was told that I had asked a good question but I did not get any good any good answers.  I believe that this is a vulnerability in our business support system which hurts our economy.  In my very modest way, I proposed a solution in From Startups to Scaleups in NIPC Wales on 19 Oct 2021.

The choice for the last breakout session between 15:00 and 15:45 was:

• Creative Innovation Powering West Yorkshire; 
• Empowering Innovation: Meet the Associates; and 
• Powering HealthTech Innovation: Unlocking West Yorkshire’s Ecosystem.

Having attended Huddersfield Health Innovation Partnership's first conference in September 2024 I chose the latter.

Instead of a panel discussion, the session convenor asked the contributors to the session who included John Cooper, Innovation Relationship Manager at West Yorkshire Combined Authority, Richard Hall of pd-m International, Lindsay Georgopoulos of Medipex and the representatives of Leeds University Nexus and Leeds Angels whom I had mentioned earlier to position themselves around the meeting room.  Attendees were encouraged to buttonhole the contributors and mark each meeting with a cross on a feedback form.  The whole session was called healthcare bingo.  It worked a lot better than it sounds.  I found myself in several meaningful conversations where I made or reinforced a connection or learned something new.

Production Park has its own fully licensed pub on its premises,  ClimbUK extended the networking until 17:00 by hosting a free bar for attendees.  As in Innovate UK Local's previous events in Bradford and Halifax, this gathering was well worth attending.  It would have been even better had the names and contact details of the speakers appeared on the Agenda.  A list of attendees would also have been useful.  Anyone wishing to discuss this article can call me on 020 7404 5252 during UK office hours or send me a message through my contact page at any time.

Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund's First Investment in Yorkshire

Author Daderot  Licence CCO  1.0  Source Wikimedia Commons

Harlow Carr Gardens Harrogate

 

Jane Lambert

On 24 March 2024, the British Business Bank announced the launch of a £660 million fund to invest in businesses in the North of England known as the "Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II" (see the British Business Bank's press release Launch of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II provides £660m boost for small businesses of 21 March 2024).  I wrote about the launch in Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II on 4 April 2024 in NIPC Northwest.   I learnt more about the fund at Innovate UK Regional Investment Spotlight – Liverpool which took place at the Liverpool Science Park on 26 June 2024 and I got the chance to question the funders at Daresbury on 12 July 2024 (see Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II - Meeting the Funders 14 July 2024 NIPC Northwest).

The British Business Bank has recently announced the Fund's first investments In Yorkshire, the North East and North West.  According to the Bank's press release of 18 July 2024  the first investment in Yorkshire was £2 million to Worthenshaws Ltd trading as Kirsty's in Harrogate from Mercia Equity Finance.  The investment will be used to fund the development of new products and is expected to create 15 new jobs. Another aspect of the transaction is that Ian Kent will chair the company.

Worthenshaws Ltd.' first came to the public's notice when the company's founder, Kirsty Henshaw appeared on the BBC's Dragons' Den in 2010.  On that occasion, she raised investment to produce a frozen dessert alternative to ice cream.  According to Megan Dansby, that product was not sufficiently profitable. The company rebranded as Kirsty’s and introduced a range of oven-ready meals (see Megan Dunby Dragons’ Den success stories: Worthenshaw’s (and what you can learn from them) 23 March 2023 Startups). The post contains a link to Ms Henshaw's arrival at the Dragons' Den. 

Anyone wishing to discuss this article may404 5252  call me during office hours on 020 7404 5252 or send me a message through my contact form.  

Initial Advice and Signposting

Crown copyright
Open Government Licence V1.0

Jane Lambert

On 9 Oct 2017, I wrote about How to Access Specialist IP Services in Yorkshire for Free.  Shortly after that article appeared I received a message through my contact form that began with the words:

"Hi Jane, I noticed some information that you posted on http://ipyorkshire.blogspot.co.uk/.I am looking for some advice and feel like I am trying to find my way in the dark."

I have every sympathy with that person. There is no shortage of intellectual property advisors in Yorkshire or anywhere else. The problem is knowing whom to approach and where to start.

That's where I can help. In my many years of practice at the intellectual property bar (most of which have been spent in the North of England) I have come across most of the patent and trade mark attorneys in Yorkshire as well as many of the solicitors who specialize in IP work. I also know many of the other professionals who can help you such as product development consultants and specialist IP insurance brokers. Having run patent clinics at one time or another in Barnsley, Bradford, Halifax, Huddersfield. Leeds, Rotherham and Sheffield and the Leeds and Sheffield inventors' clubs I have worked closely with the Business and Intellectual Property Centres at Leeds, Sheffield and Hull Central Libraries. They provide all sorts of useful services such as patent searching, lots of useful courses on such matters as basic intellectual property rights and business planning and most if not all of the technical and marketing resources that you are likely to need.I can introduce you to those services and resources.

Here is how I replied to the enquiry I mentioned above:

"The main free resources that exist in Yorkshire are the Business and IP Centres in Leeds, Sheffield and Hull, the IP clinics operated by the Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys in various parts of the country including Leeds and Sheffield and my clinics at Barnsley Business and Innovation Centre which take place on the second Tuesday of every month between 16:30 and 18:00 (see Supporting Enterprise, Innovation and Creativity in South Yorkshire 7 Sept 2017 IP Yorkshire)."

I also gave some initial advice on IP strategy:

"The best way to identify the IP protection you need is to consider your business plan and ask yourself the following questions:

• What are likely to be my main sources of revenue during the period of the business plan?

• What are the main threats to those revenue streams? These are likely to be commercial like competing products or changing tastes and fashions but there may be legal threats like plagiarism.

• What are the main countermeasures that I can take against those threats? Most of those will be commercial such as reducing prices or developing new product ranges or markets but there may be some legal measures such as a patent for a vital new product or a design registration.

• Remember that there is often a choice of legal countermeasures. A new product, for example, can be kept under wraps for a while and disclosed in confidence only to those who need to see it or you can publish it to the world in exchange for a patent.

• Make sure you can fund an infringement claim or revocation action. That usually requires specialist IP insurance but there are other options."

I then addressed the specific issue and invited the enquirer to make an appointment to attend my next pro bono clinic in Barnsley on 14 Nov if he still had questions.

The first step is to fill in this form:

Now I don't know the answer to every intellectual property question but I can help with a lot of them (see "My Services in Yorkshire"). However, if I can't resolve a problem by myself the chances are that I know someone who can.

I will not charge for this initial advice or signposting though there may be a charge if you want to instruct me for any of my other services. There may also be a charge from any of the other professional service providers to whom I may refer you. If there is, I and all the other service providers will agree the charge or charging basis before starting work.

If you want to discuss this article call me on +44 (0)20 7404 5252 or send me a message through my contact page.

What's happening to Yorkshire?

A Wooden Spoon

Author David Jackmanson
Source Wikipedia

Creative Commons Licence

Yorkshire and the Humber have a population of nearly 5.3 million according to the 2011 census which is 8.4% of the population of the UK and larger than the populations of Norway (5.2 million), the Irish Republic (4.6 million and New Zealand (4.2 million) but the region contributed only 6.5% of the nation's UK patent applications in 2014 (see page 7 of the IPO's Facts and Figures for 2013 and 2014). Whereas there was a slight increase in the number of UK patent applications from 14,946 in 2013 to 15,187 Yorkshire's share actually dropped from 983 in 2013 to 980 in 2014. Yorkshire was 7th in the number of patent applications trailing London (2,766), South-East England (2,701). East of England (1,938), South West (1,510), North West (1,239) and the West Midlands (1,144).

It is the same story in trade mark applications (2,872 compared to London's 14,308, the South East's 12,484, North West's 4,676, South West's 3,597, East of England's 3,415 and West Midland's 3,127) and registered design applications (310 compared to London's 1,120, South East England's 988, North West's 585, West Midland's 505, South West's 452, East of England's 389 and Scotland's 326) though to be fair the region's registered design applications increased from 69 in 2013 to 310 in 2014).

With some of the nation's greatest research universities at Leeds, Sheffield and York, a highly developed financial services industry including business angel networks and private equity investors, Business and IP Centres in Leeds and Sheffield and strong cultural institutions, Yorkshire and the Humber should do better. In the next few months we shall investigate why our region under-performs and what can be done about it. We shall consult local enterprise partnerships, local authorities, chambers of commerce, universities and professionals throughout the region to see where (if anywhere) we have been going wrong and what (if anything) can be done to put it right. In the New Year we plan a day long conference to coordinate our activities. If you want to be involved email me or call me during office hours on 01484 599090.

Leeds Ice Cream Van Makers lose Design and Trade Mark Infringement Claim

In Whitby Specialist Vehicles Ltd v Yorkshire Specialist Vehicles Ltd and Others [2014] EWHC 4242 (Pat) (17 Dec 2014) a company in Leeds which converts commercial vehicles into ice cream vans and the individuals behind it were sued in the Patents Court by Whitby Specialist Vehicles Ltd for registered design, design right and trade mark infringement. I have discussed the case in detail in Designs in Ice Cream Vans: Whitby Specialist Vehicles Ltd v Yorkshire Specialist Vehicles Ltd and Others 27 Dec 2014 NIPC Law.

The case was unusual in that it proceeded in the Patents Court which is a specialist court within the High Court for the trial of patent, registered design, semiconductor topography and plant breeders' right claims worth over £500,000. The case against the defendants was that they had bought one of the claimant's vans and used it as a template for making parts that they used to convert other vans. While any copying is serious it is unlikely that the damages or accountable profits will come close to the £500,000 figure. The usual forum for disputes of this kind is the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court ("IPEC") which I mentioned in Holding your Own - How to stop others from ripping you off if you are a Private Inventor 5 April 2014. There trials are completed in one or at most two days and the costs of  trial on liability are limited to £50,000. The costs in the Patents Court will be much higher.  Why the case was not transferred to IPEC is curious and that may be because nobody asked for such a transfer. That could be because the brothers and their company were unrepresented and the father, who was represented by Leeds solicitors and Manchester counsel, contested only his personal involvement in the infringement.

This case is worth reading for Mr Justice Arnold's analysis of the law relating to registered designs and unregistered design right infringement and the meticulous way in which he dissected the factual evidence against the father.  It is likely to be referred to in future cases on registered design and design right infringement. Finally, the claimant company has nothing to do with the seaside town. It is actually based in Crewe. It takes its name from its founder whose surname was Whitby.  If anyone wants to discuss this case or registered design and unregistered design right law with me after the Christmas holidays, call me on  01484 599090 or use my contact form.

Well at least a Yorkshireman invented Cats' Eyes

Source Wikipedia

The former Manchester Guardian listed Percy Wood of Halifax as one of the top 50 Yorkshire folk of all time. He invented the reflective road market known as cats' eyes in 1933. Apparently, he got the idea after seeing a real cat's eyes while negotiating the still hazardous road from Clayton Heights to Halifax. Reflectors based on Shaw's invention are found all over the world.

However, there have not been so many inventions from our county recently. According to the Intellectual Property Office's Facts and Figures for 2012 and 2013, some 984 British patent applications were filed from Yorkshire and the Humber in 2013 compared to 1,025 in 2012.  In the same year there were 2,822 applications from South East England, 2,588 from London, 1,802 from the East of England, 1,368 from the South West, 1,259 from the North West and 1,180 from the West Midlands. However, Yorkshire was ahead of Scotland (900), the East Midlands (742), Wales (539), North East England (314) and Northern Ireland (237). Yorkshire was also 7th in the number of grants: 171 compared to 437 from South East England, 346 from London, 340 from South West England, 337 from Eastern England, 204 from North West England and 192 from the West Midlands.

There were 2,744 trade mark applications from Yorkshire in 2013 compared to 12,699 from London, 6.197 from South East England, 4,222 from North West England, 3,407 from South West England, 3,227 from the East of England and 2,885 from the West Midlands. With 2,305 registrations in 2013, Yorkshire trails London (10,583), South East England (5,258), North West (3,521), South West (2,951), Eastern England (2,651) and the West Midlands (2,329).

With 78 registered design applications and 59 registrations in 2013 Yorkshire was last but one from the bottom. Only Northern Ireland had fewer applications (19) and registrations (16).  The top three regions for designs were London (1,153 applications and 720 registrations), South East England (1,066 applications and 883 registrations) the North East (548 applications and 484 registrations). North West England had 471 applications and 397 registrations.

We can assist artists, designers, inventors, entrepreneurs and investors in Yorkshire and the Humber with our IP clinics at Barnsley BIC, talks and publications all of which are free of charge. For our chargeable services see "IP Services from Barristers" 6 Apr 2013 4-5 IP. If anyone wants to discuss his article or any patent, trade mark, design or other intellectual property matter he or she should call us on 01484 599090 or get in touch through my contact form. You can also tweet me, write on my wall or send me a message through G+, Linkedin or Xing.

The Tour de France and ambush marketing

Holmfirth - the Tour de France passes through my home town

The Tour de France is of particular interest to me this year because the route passes a few hundred yards from my front door. Crash barriers have already been erected along Chapel Hill in Huddersfield and the route is festooned with yellow, green, white and polka dot flags. As everyone in this county knows, the Tour is setting off from Leeds and two of the stages are taking place in Yorkshire with a third in the East of England. There has been an arts festival since the 27 March 2014 and an international business festival in Leeds this week.

Like all major sporting events the Tour is dependent on sponsorship but sponsorship is vulnerable to ambush marketing. To protect the sponsors of the London Olympics from ambush marketing new intellectual property rights were created, namely Olympic association right by the Olympic Symbol etc. (Protection) Act 1995 and London Olympic association right by the London Olympic Games and Paralympic Games Act 2006. HM government was obliged to enact this legislation by the host city contract which it signed with the International Olympic Committee. Such feather bedding for the Olympic sponsors was criticized by many at the time including me (see "Olympics Association Right and London Olympics Association Right" 31 July 2012 NIPC law).

There has been nothing like those association rights for the Tour with the result that there has been a blossoming of yellow bicycles, assorted coloured flags and tea rooms and pubs throughout the county have broken out in measles (or is it polka dots). No doubt this decoration has been with the permission of the tour organizers but could anything be done about it if it was not? La Société du Tour de France has registered a number of Community and UK trade marks for the words "Le Tour de France" and some of the Tour's symbols for a large number of classes but it does not seem to have registered the colours of any of the maillots or indeed the polka dots. There is the the law of passing off, of course, but I would not like to argue that yellow, green or red spots is associated with the Tour and none other. In any case, by the time an application for an injunction came before the courts the cyclists would be well on their way to Champs-Élysées.

So tant pis as our friends across the channel would say, but does it matter?  I would reply "ce n'est pas grave",

If Yorkshire were a country ......

Yesterday's Independent carried an article about the success of sportsmen and women from Yorkshire in the London Olympics: "London 2012: Yorkshire - the county that's trouncing Australia in the Olympic medal table" Independent 7 Aug 2012. It continued

If Yorkshire were a country....
1. China: 31 Gold, 19 Silver, 14 Bronze = 64 medals
2. USA: 29 Gold, 15 Silver, 19 Bronze = 63 Medals
3. Great Britain (minus Yorkshire): 14 Gold, 10 Silver, 11 Bronze = 35 medals
4. South Korea: 11 Gold, 5 silver, 6 bronze = 22 medals
5. France: 8 Gold, 9 Silver, 9 Bronze = 26 medals
6. Russia: 7 Gold, 17 Silver, 18 Bronze = 42 medals
7. Italy: 7 Gold, 6 Silver, 4 Bronze = 17 medals
8. Kazakhstan: 6 Gold, 0 Silver, 1 Bronze = 7 medals
9. Germany: 5 Gold, 10 Silver, 7 Bronze = 22 medals
10. Yorkshire 5 Gold, 2 Silver, 1 Bronze = 8 medals
Meanwhile sporting powerhouses Australia, South Africa and Japan languish behind....
16. South Africa: 3 Gold, 1, Silver, 0 Bronze = 4 medals
18. Japan: 2 Gold, 12 Silver, 14 Bronze = 28 medals
19. Australia: 2 Gold, 12 Silver, 8 Bronze = 22 medals

Now that is all well and good but you can't eat gold medals. It is innovation that brings in the brass.  So how do we do in that league?   Not very well, I'm afraid.

According to the Intellectual Property Office's Facts and Figures: 2010 and 2011 Calendar Years Yorkshire lies fifth from bottom in the number of patents granted in 2011:

Region                                                     Number

South East England                                    591

East of England                                          409

London                                                      401

South West England                                   363

North West England                                   246

West Midlands                                           216

Scotland                                                    207

Yorkshire                                                  175

East Midlands                                             155

Wales                                                            82

North East England                                      70

Northern Ireland                                            16    

(page 1).

We do even worse in trade mark registrations:

London                                                     7,089

South East England                                    3,992

North West England                                  2,628

South West England                                   2,047

East of England                                          2,029

North East England                                    1,962

West Midlands                                           1,727

East Midlands                                             1,282

Scotland                                                     1,237

Wales                                                            621

Northern Ireland                                            201

Yorkshire                                                     186 

(page 16)

And we are bottom of the list in design registrations too:

London                                                        649

South East England                                       563

West Midlands                                             416

North West England                                     399

South West England                                      346

North East England                                       330

Scotland                                                        229

East of England                                              213

East Midlands                                                171

Wales                                                            116

Northern Ireland                                               29

Yorkshire                                                        25

(page 26).

Bearing in mind that we have great universities like Bradford - one of the first with a business school and arguably the first to offer a degree in computer science - the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre in Rotherham, Digital Region in Sheffield, the Northern Technology Institute in Leeds, the Leeds College of Art and PatLib libraries in Leeds and Sheffield we really ought to do better. We can't afford to be complacent.

Mentoring in Yorkshire

On 4 July 2011 the Business Finance Taskforce launched mentorsme.co.uk, an on-line gateway for mentoring services for small and medium enterprises ("SME"). I discussed it in "Oh me. Oh My, I hope the Little Mentor comes by."

One of the menu choices on the home page is "Find the Right Mentor". If you click on that link you find an interactive map of the United Kingdom. I clicked on the map of Yorkshire and the Humber and I found Success Doncaster and Business & Education South Yorkshire.

The website also listed the following national organizations that operate in our county:

• Business in the Community;
• ibd Group;
• Prime Business Club;
• Exigent Mentoring Services;
• The Prince's Trust;
• Institute of Enterprise and Entrepreneurs; and
• horesmouth.co.uk.

The last two organizations are on-line only.

Business & Education South Yorkshire describes itself as "the leading strategic body established to develop education and business links activities in South Yorkshire." It provides companies with a one-stop-shop service for developing links with education.

Success Doncaster is an initiative of Doncaster MBC whose activities can best be discerned from its brochure.

Early days I suppose.