Business Weekly - Cambridge, UK

Over the next few weeks, students with language and/or technical skills will be receiving training from Dr Alex Smeets and his team at the East of England Innovation Relay Centre, before setting off to work in various European locations.

Their work will involve searching for new technologies which could be of major interest to companies and organisations in the East of England, as well as identifying demand for new technologies developed in the East of England.

Before leaving the UK, these entrepreneurial students meet with various local companies, which have technologies to offer to potential European partners.

Local company TecMark Ltd has found the programme beneficial in the past and managing director Harley Farmer said: “Leads generated by International STEP students over the past two years have proved to be a very useful and cost effective method of finding European partners for my company.”

Ruth Puddick who project manages the programme, added: “The students are based with Innovation Relay Centres around Europe and this year two are already in Lithuania, one is in Spain, and another in Poland.

“At the end of July, six more students will complete their training and leave for Belgium, Cyprus, France, Ireland, Norway and Sweden.”

The scheme is co-funded by STEP Enterprise Ltd and the East of England Innovation Relay Centre.

Alex Smeets, manager of the EEIRC, believes that “the scheme is a useful way for local companies to seek potential partners for R & D projects and technology transfer collaborations, especially if they propose to apply for some of the substantial grants which are available from the European Commission under the Framework Programme.”

• Further information on the work of the East of England Innovation Relay Centre can be obtained from www.innovation-east.co.uk