Access for three at STFC Daresbury

Innovative start ups PV Glaze, BiSN and Chris Underwood are all winners in a challenge run by STFC’s Futures team, which seeks to exploit scientific research to find solutions to the government’s grand challenges in energy, environment, healthcare and security. Each winner has received six months free access to their own dedicated, fully equipped laboratory at Daresbury’s Innovations Technology Access Centre (I-TAC) along with the benefits of STFC’s scientific expertise and the business development support team I-TAC Manager, Dr Martin Morlidge, said: “When choosing the winners, we were specifically looking for how well their businesses and ideas fit in with STFC’s core challenges in environment, energy and healthcare, and also how STFC can add real value to these companies. “We were really impressed with the calibre of the competition entries and are excited to be welcoming each of them onto the Campus and providing them with all the support they need to get the most out of their time here.”

Dr Chris Underwood is working on a novel design for a Vascular Access Graft, a type of artificial blood vessel which is implanted in the arms of people who require lifesaving dialysis. Incorporating a new type of biomaterial, this product is intended to prevent some of the common complications currently associated with this procedure and has the potential to lead to improved product designs for other cardiovascular applications. BiSN will be carrying out a study on enhanced oil recovery, with a view to enabling better access to oil reserves which have previously been abandoned and facilitating the extraction of oil from them PV Glaze is developing a renewable energy technology using silicon based cells that can convert solar radiation into electricity for use in construction of buildings, motor vehicles and agricultural greenhouses, resulting in less CO2 in the air and less reliance on imported fuels. CCLRC Daresbury Laboratory.