Centre for Knowledge Transfer - Annual Review 2006

Centre for KnowledgeTransferLondon South Bank UniversityAnnual Review 2006

The Centre for KnowledgeTransfer at LSBU has a longsuccessful history of runningKTP programmes. We are thethird largest KTP partner inthe UK, and by far the largestin the Greater London area.

The Centre is currentlymanaging 37 KTPprogrammes, with a projectvalue of £6.2 million over thenext four years.

The Centre covers a widerange of industry sectors andproject types, as described inthis Annual Review. Thefollowing pages give examplesof new, established andcompleted KTP programmesin seven industry sectors.They highlight the KnowledgeTransfer that is taking placebetween the University and awide variety of companies, andthe exciting benefits andfinancial impacts that theprogrammes bring to allparties involved.

Companies haverevolutionised the way theyoperate, improving efficiency,competitiveness, sales andprofits. Associates havegained exceptional hands-onproject management

experience, leading toenhanced careeropportunities. LSBUAcademics have developedtheir expertise with valuableexperience of real lifebusiness problems andsolutions to transfer to futurestudents.

We hope this Annual Reviewwill stimulate interest in KTPprogrammes at LSBU.

N U M B E R O F A C T I V E K T P P R O J E C T S1 9 9 6 T O 2 0 0 6

The number of active KTP projects at LSBU has tripled over thelast 10 years.

P A R T I C I P A T I N G I N D U S T R I E S

A V E R A G E C O M P A N Y S I Z E

P R O J E C T T Y P E S

Knowledge TransferPartnerships aregovernment-supportedprogrammes,designed to boostUK industry byprovidingbusinesses with theresources theyneed to grow.

Companies haverevolutionised theway they operate,improvingefficiency,competitiveness,sales and profits.

Centre for Knowledge Transfer at London South Bank University

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LSBU AREAS OF EXPERTISE

Arts, Education and Media

Building Services Engineering

Business InformationTechnology

Business Management

Computing and IT

Construction, Architecture andProperty

Energy and the Environment

Food Science and Nutrition

Forensic Science

Health Services

Manufacturing andEngineering Processes

Mechanical Engineering andMechatronics

5-10 EMPLOYEES: 9%11-20 EMPLOYEES: 24%21-50 EMPLOYEES: 35%

51-100 EMPLOYEES: 15%100+ EMPLOYEES: 18%

FOOD MANUFACTURING AND TECHNOLOGY: 19%MANUFACTURING, ENGINEERING ANDMATERIALS: 17%ELECTRONICS, IT AND SOFTWARE: 17%BUILDING SERVICES, ENGINEERING ANDCONSTRUCTION: 11%ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT: 11%CREATIVE INDUSTRIES, MEDIA AND DESIGN: 11%CONSULTANCY, RESEARCH AND PROFESSIONALSERVICES: 6%CHARITIES, NGOS AND VOLUNTARY: 6%

DEVELOPING NEW PRODUCTS: 30%DEVELOPING COMPANY PRACTICES OR EXPERTISE: 24%

INTRODUCING NEW TECHNOLOGY: 22%IMPROVING EXISTING PRODUCTS OR SERVICES: 14%STREAMLINING MANUFACTURING PROCESSES: 11%

“Our experience so faris that we’ve beenpleasantly surprised athow unbureaucratic itis.”

MediaTel, known for its cutting edgeuse of the Internet, aimed to dazzlethe media trading world yet againthrough the development of an onlinemedia management systemdeveloped with the help of a KTPprogramme. This system allows forthe quick and easy management ofmedia and advertising campaignsover the Internet.

This complex system proved to bewell ahead of its time, with theproduct only coming into commercialuse this year, three years after itsdevelopment. KTP Associate SeanFoo’s advanced skills made him aninvaluable member of thedevelopment team. MediaTel iscurrently looking into doing anotherKTP programme with London SouthBank University.

“We probably wouldn’t have beenable to do the project without KTP.We would recommend KTP to anybusiness out there,” said NicolaMullett, Deputy ManagingDirector of MediaTel.

The results are breathtaking. GMJcreates deceptively simple designsthat captivate the eye and makeviewers wonder what’s real. Withoffices in London and Paris, GMJ isan international leader in designvisualisation for architects anddevelopers that make design ideaslook like the real world.

Architects have used GMJ’s three-dimensional visualisations for somevery high-profile developments. GMJworked closely with Make Architectsto create a series of views of theirproposed Aquatic Centre design forthe London 2012 Olympic Bid Team.They worked with Foster andPartners design team to create thesignature images of theirredevelopment and master-plan

proposal that competed inthe redesign competitionfor the new World TradeCentre building in NewYork City. GMJ is also

working with architectsto design illustrationsof the King’s Cross

Redevelopment,the LondonHospital andWembleyStadium.

With aninternationalreputation foraccurate andrealistic designservices, GMJturned toLondon SouthBankUniversity’sKTPprogrammewhen theydecided theywanted tocreate anambitious newproduct.

GMJ’s newproduct—citymodellingsoftware for

London and Liverpool—will allowusers to type in a London or

Liverpool postcode, andinstantly see a three-dimensional model of thearea, accurate right down tothe graffiti on the walls.

Robert Graves, CompanyDirector and a Supervisor onthe project, said the KTPprogramme has given GMJadditional knowledge to helpbuild the new product thatcould transform the way newdevelopments are planned andmarketed. “KTP has opened upa whole new view of contacts, itis interesting to have thatsupport and that link to theUniversity. It is a greatopportunity for us to do newthings—and a good way to beable to afford it.”

The KTP Associate on the project,Hong Zhou, is pursuing a higherdegree through the programme andsaid the project is giving him workexperience in a new area of expertise.

“The benefit to me has been the workexperience. It is a very interestingproject and there is a lot of newtechnology and new knowledge. It isvery useful to my career, and it hasalso given me the chance to increasemy management skills and training.”Dr Ebad Banissi, the AcademicSupervisor on the project, said GMJhas helped strengthen theUniversity’s knowledge invisualisation techniques. “It isfascinating work,” he commented.

"The KTP gets right to the core of theproblem. Without the KTP, itis highly unlikely that we would havemade it this far already."

“The costs of the KTP are lowcompared to the project’s returns. Yetthe key benefits of the project are notjust financial, it can help companiesget the resources to carry out aproject in a disciplined manner.Anything involved with thegovernment is bureaucratic, yet ourexperience so far is that we’ve beenpleasantly surprised at howunbureaucratic it is.“

If it’s fun, it doesn’t feel like learning.That is one of the mantras thatEurotalk lives by in its development oflanguage-learning software for notjust a few, but 112 of the world’slanguages, from Afrikaans to Zulu.

Eurotalk’s vision is to make theirlanguage-learning softwareaccessible through mobile phones,DVDs and other hand-held devices,so that people without computeraccess worldwide can tap into theirproducts. To help them achieve thisvision, Eurotalk recently started aKTP programme with KTP AssociateOszkar Nagy. “The KTP project bringsin additional help. We couldn’temploy someone from theUniversity on a full-time basis,so it helps bring in externalresources. I would do it again,and I would recommendit,”commented RichardHoweson, Managing Director ofEurotalk.

Although it is still early on in theproject, Oszkar has written ascientific paper on the topic ofMobile Educational Content andpresented it at The 2006 WorldCongress in Computer Scienceheld in Las Vegas, Nevada.

This new KTP programme willcreate new mobile language-learning graphics for thousands ofchildren and adults trying to learn anew language across the globe. "Theprogramme has helped Eurotalkexplore these new platforms withoutspending a lot of money," Richardcommented.

Creative Industries, Media and DesignG M J E U R O T A L K M E D I A T E L

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From KTPAssociate to theyoungest BrandManager forNestle in NewZealand, MatthewJones is proofthat a KTPprogramme canbe the beginningof a great career. “For me, KTPwas anopportunity tofast-track mycareerdevelopment.The KTP schemereally jump-startsyour career. Mycurrent role is abig step up fromRaj Foods, and itis exactly what Iwant to be doing,”Matthew commented.

Matthew worked at Raj Foods on aKTP project aimed at increasingbusiness efficiency, developingmarketing strategies and creatingmore commercial visibility. Before the KTP programme, majorbusiness decisions at this family-owned Asian food business were oftenmade informally. Yet this practice wasno longer sufficient at Raj, which hassupplied Halal and ethnic foods to theNational Health Service and othersocial services sectors since 1983.

“We saw a gap in our marketing; wehad some ideas, but nothing concrete.The market continues to grow and wewanted to be able to keep up withdemand. People are definitely more

familiar with Raj Foods than theywere before the KTP programme,”commented Raj Radia, ManagingDirector of the company.Anna Zacharewicz, the AcademicSupervisor on the project, said it iseasy to see the impact of the KTPprogramme at Raj. “If Raj hadn’tdone a KTP project, they would havebeen fire fighting every step of theway. It is very difficult because thesector they are in is very professionaland very competitive. The KTPprogramme has put them a stepahead.”

“For me, KTP was anopportunity to fast-track my careerdevelopment.”

something, and why we say you can’tdo another,” Sophie commented.

The hand-sampling exercise is justone example of how Sophie is tryingto communicate the importance ofcleanliness to Ferrari staff as sheembarks on her two year KTP projectthat will help Ferrari achieve BRC(British Retail Consortium)accreditation and develop newproducts. By interacting and teachingstaff the importance of highstandards, Sophie is helping thissmall business grow. “We want tosuccessfully achieve accreditation andimplement a quality system, but notjust on paper, to make sure it will

work and be noticed by customers.”

It is something she might not havedone without her partnership withLondon South Bank University.Sophie Phanor, a KTP Associateworking at Ferrari Caterers, is using ashop-floor approach to helpguarantee the cleanliness and qualityfor a full line of Ferrari’s sandwichproducts.

To show staff the benefits of hand-washing, Sophie initiated amicrobiological test of each staffmember’s hands. Hands wereswabbed and sampled, then staffmembers were able to view, in a Petridish, the everyday micro-organismsliving on their hands. Resourcesavailable to Sophie through LSBUwere used to perform thisexperiment. “I think ourstaff have a betterunderstandingof why wesay youcan do

Food Manufacturing and TechnologyR A J F O O D S F E R R A R I C A T E R E R S

Providing software to two dynamicindustries drastically affected bytechnology—the travel and courierindustries—Metafour UK knows thatcustomers want something quick,simple, and as easy to use as an iPod.

“People expect to see very easy touse, very attractive, very slim thingswhich are just fantastic. Five yearsago, people got a black box. People’sexpectations are increasingenormously quickly, and our softwarehas to improve dramatically for everyregeneration that we do,” observedMark Rogers, Managing Director ofMetafour.

In 2005, Metafour set out on a missionto double its size. Yet as a smallbusiness, they didn’t have an overflowof resources to help them reach thisambitious goal. A KTP programmebecame the tool to help the companygrow. “Our first attraction to KTP wasthe grant funding. It allowed us to domore than we would have otherwisebeen able to do,” Mark commented.

Metafour recently hired KTP AssociateDavid Ullmann who is now working toimprove NetCourier, one ofMetafour’s existing software systemsused by international air couriers.David is working to make NetCouriermore intuitive and simple forcustomers in this niche market. Thecompany’s aim is to improve thesoftware and expand it for use by thefreight and logistics market. Theproduct is virtually complete and willadd yet another opportunity for profitat Metafour. “We would advise ourcompetitors not to do a KTPprogramme!,” Mark quipped.

“We would adviseour competitorsnot to do a KTPprogramme!”

Communications have changed morein the last two years than they have inthe last 20 combined, according toMichael Biggs, Managing Director ofKenton Research. The advent ofbroadband communications haswiped out entire product lines forKenton and many othertelecommunications companies. “It’sa huge revolution—it is really herewith us, and it is only going to grow.We’ve had to start from a clean sheetof paper.”

Kenton Research providetelecommunications hardware andsoftware to big-name customers likeBT and the BBC, and are now workingto stay

Electronics, IT and SoftwareM E T A F O U R U K K E N T O N R E S E A R C H

ahead in this area with the help ofKTP Associate, Tony Sheppard.

Tony and the team at Kenton areworking to create the HDCommunicator (HDC), a newtelecommunications product that willallow communications via broadbandfor numerous industries including theroad, railway and petrochemicalindustries.

Michael said he hopes this will carryKenton through this revolution. “TheHDC will replace some of the dyingproducts. If we start shipping nextyear, we expect it to account for 4-5%of turnover in its first year, and it willhave a major impact.”

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“It’s great having tomanage the wholeproject as opposed tobeing assigned asmall area to workon.”

Cynthia is finding new ways to sellAnton Paar’s scientific equipmentthrough market research. “We wantto find new places to use theinstruments, but not in a factory chainkind of way. We’ve had excellentresults in terms of profit. In terms of

publicity, the company is known alot more after

my first sixmonthscomparedto the six

months before. It’snot just what I have done, but

what everyone has done.”

followed by Cynthia Egwuatu who isnow marketing them. “We thought wehad to do something with the newproduct once we had it,” said PaulJiggens, Managing Director of Anton

Paar.

The days of walking through thecorridors at Blues Clothing, holding apaper copy of the latest Spider-ManT-shirt design, are now a thing of thepast at this children’s clothingmanufacturer. Each new T-shirtdesign, along with company financialinformation, manufacturing status,royalty payments and more, are nowavailable at each employee’s desktopthrough the integration of newsoftware by KTP Associate, MasonChallinor. “What was happening waswe were typing the informationourselves, and then retyping it atdesign, retyping it at manufacturing,and retyping at finance when doingan invoice,” Mason commented.

This less-than-ideal businesspractice wasn’t good enough forBlues, who provide children’s clothingto some of the UK’s biggest retailerssuch as Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Next.To stay on top in this competitiveinternational business, Blues neededsomething faster and smarter,according to Blues’ Finance Director,Steve Bennett. “Through the KTPprogramme, everything now goes onto one system, once, by the personwho is best qualified to do that.Previously, everyone was in their owncompartments using spreadsheets orvarious other basic old order-processing systems. It didn’t allowthe information to travel.” Dr SueBlack, the Academic Supervisor onthe project, said that Mason hasexcelled in this project. “A big part ofMason’s role has been managingrelationships with people, managingthe software and helping thecompany Project Managers. He hasdone extremely well.”

The new software hashelped Blues preventthe double-handling ofinformation andhas increasedcommunicationacross Blues’officesworldwide.“Informationis nowavailable toour office inthe Far East,for instance.Everything isautomatic,whereasbefore,everyone waswanderingaround,waiting touse the faxmachine tosend things,”Steveobserved.

Although Steve said he was reluctantto begin a KTP programme at first,he said it has been a very fruitfulrelationship. “I liked the KTP idea inprinciple, but we wondered howmuch it would mean we were in a dryacademic situation, but the Universityhas actually fired us up very well. TheKTP is involved in improving uscommercially. It has given us morereadily available commercialinformation, which is making ussmarter and sharper and more easilyable to respond to the trends withinthe business.”

Alasdair, who is also pursuing ahigher degree as part of the project,recently took a course in intellectualproperty at London South BankUniversity, which taught studentsabout patent applications, just asCableduct was applying for a patentfor their new product. Alasdairremarked: "It's great having tomanage the whole project as opposedto being assigned a small area towork on. It provides great diversityand a sense of satisfaction seeingyour creation come together."

Not only has the KTP programmeresulted in a new patent, improvedturnover projections and reducedcosts at Cableduct, it has alsochanged the way Managing DirectorCaroline Wrinch views her company.“It has helped me focus more on thefuture—this is not really a tangiblebenefit, but KTP has provided me witha lot of extra resources,” Carolinecommented.

An engineer, Caroline bought the 57-year-old business in 1997 with plansto make the company grow.Cableduct has steadily increased

profits over the last 8years, but Caroline

turned to theKTPprogrammewhen shedecided tocreate newproducts tohelpCableductreach its fullpotential. Carolinehired herfirst KTP

Associate,Alasdair Convery,in 2005. In his firstyear on the job,Alasdair is nowwriting patentapplications for anew and uniquecablebox that

Caroline said could more than doublegross profits. “This is the first productthat will allow us to compete withother manufacturers head on—it willhave a huge impact.”

Manufacturing, Engineering and Materials

If your toothpaste comes out of itstube every morning, you can thank arheometer. Anton Paar is a leadingmanufacturer and distributor ofscientific equipment that measuresthe flow and viscosity of awide range of everydaymaterials from toothpasteto ink and petroleum tobeer. Anton Paar recentlyhired two consecutive KTPAssociates: Dr Ying Yang Hou to

research and test newproducts,

B L U E S C L O T H I N G C A B L E D U C T A N T O N P A A R

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It all seems a bit too real for acomputer screen. Watching blacksmoke billow through a future DubaiMetro train station, it becomes clearjust how useful fire modellingsoftware can be. Locke Carey hasmade its business predicting whatmay seem to be the unpredictable intrying to keep buildings and peoplesafe from the destructive force of fire.

A recent KTP programme creatednew fire modelling software which isnow readily available to a largermarket. The sophisticated softwarevividly displays the likely path of fireand smoke through buildings—beforethey are built—so designers andarchitects can work to create saferspaces.

Glenn Horton, Technical Director andIndustrial Supervisor of the KTPprogramme, said business hasdoubled since the start of the project.“It has allowed us to sell fire

modelling software to a largeraudience and it has increased ourturnover significantly.” The new firemodelling software has led to twomajor contracts: the upcomingDubai Metro, and a multimilliondollar shopping centre, the Mall ofArabia, also in Dubai. “This project isnot just important in the financialsense. Technology, fire precautionsand building regulations—all thesekinds of issues are reducing thenumber of fire deaths,” Glenncommented.

The two Associates, Ben Whitakerand Dominic Way, have helped tomake Locke Carey a leader in the useof fire modelling software anddramatically improved the value ofthe company. Ben remained withLocke Carey for nearly three yearsafter his project was complete andearned his PhD in Fire Engineeringduring the programme. He recentlyleft Locke Carey to take a seniorposition with a similar company. “It’sbeen good for me. I’m using CFD(Computational Fluid Dynamics)software which is commercially usedall over the world,” Dominiccommented.

After two successful KTPprogrammes, Locke Carey are nowconsidering their third.

“It has allowed us tosell fire modellingsoftware to a largeraudience.”

A recently approved KTP programmeat BSRIA (Building Services Research& Information Association) aims tocreate new technical standards and acertification scheme for analysing thepermeability of common constructionproducts, like bricks and mortar. Thiswill ultimately create more energyefficient and carbon-friendly buildings.

BSRIA is a consultancy, test andresearch organisation that works withconstruction and building servicescompanies to provide them withvaluable information to help thembecome more energy efficient.Traditionally, a large part of BSRIA’sincome has come from individualresearch projects, which have notalways been sustainable orpredictable.

The KTP programme will developpermeability test standards forconstruction materials andconstruction methods, to help reducethe large amount of energy waste thatcomes from air leakage. Despitecurrent regulations, air tightness inbuildings is still a significant problem,

with some gaps and cracksequivalent to 13 mm wide,according to BSRIA.

Through the KTPprogramme, LondonSouth Bank University

will provide BSRIA withthe expertiseassociated withpermeability testingand modelling, as wellas non-intrusivetesting, which BSRIAdoes not have.

Building Services and ConstructionL O C K E C A R E Y & A S S O C I A T E S B S R I A

A paperless insurance industry is nowa possibility after the impact of a KTPprogramme at Acturis, a majorprovider of IT solutions to big-nameinsurers.

David McDonald, CEO of Acturis, saidthat just a few years ago, theinsurance industry was still acting inan inefficient, paper-guzzling way.“The whole thing was documentsflying all over the place with veryunstructured data.”

Acturis knew this slow and out-of-date business practice wouldn’t lastlong and pounced on theopportunities of the Internet andimproved technology by beginning aKTP programme.

Prior to the KTP programme, clientdata at Acturis was hosted by third-party servers. Acturis saw the obviousadvantages of bringing this networkinfrastructure under internalownership and control. This wouldgive increased visibility of networkingissues, more efficient response tochange requests, fast fault mitigationand a reduction in external paymentsof around £50,000 per annum.

To help them do this effectively,Acturis hired KTP Associate andNetwork Engineer Peter Makin, whohelped successfully lead thechangeover from a hosted to an in-house system. “We completed thechangeover without any issues. Over 4kilometres of cable were re-wired andthere were two and a half weeks ofsolid preparation time, all for a hair-raising six-hour period of changeoverfrom which there was no turningback. If it didn’t work, the only option

we had was to replug 622 networkconnections again Monday morning.”

The changeover was a success, and itis now leading to the work of secondKTP Associate, Colin Thurgood. He ishelping build a monitoring system forthe new in-house network that willhelp the company predict andanticipate network problems beforethey affect their clients.

“We don’t want to wait for brokers tocall the Helpdesk and tell us that theycan’t connect or access theirinformation – we should be able todetect and solve issues before thebroker even knows there is aproblem,” commented Shay Bhatia, ITManager and Company Supervisor.

The KTP programme is helping leadthis innovative company through aperiod of rapid change, according toProfessor Allen Long, the AcademicSupervisor on the project. “We areseeing network solutions in the realworld where there are financial,physical and time constraints; it isshowing us theory in practice.”

“It has given us anextra product andtaken us outside justthe oil industry.”

After integrating GIS (GeographicalInformation Systems) software intothe digital mapping services for the oilindustry through their first KTPprogramme, Wave Technology wereready to take their project one stepfurther. Wave hired their second KTPAssociate, Elvis Vaz, to help build aweb presence to begin selling the GISproducts and services developedduring the first project.

After serving the oil industry withvaluable paper-based and digitalmaps, Wave’s Managing Director, WynRoberts, said the company wanted toexplore the use of their mappingservices in other industries.

“It has given us an extra product andtaken us outside just the oil industry.It was too much of a niche market,and it has given us something we cansell to other companies.” Now Wavecan easily sell their maps and digitalinformation to numerous industriesand develop new consultancy

projects, helping theirbusiness grow.

A C T U R I S W A V E T E C H N O L O G Y

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Consultancy, Research and Professional Services

Renewable energy has gone frombuzz word to building requirementover the past 10 years. ECSC (EnergyCentre for Sustainable Communities)is currently working on a KTPprogramme that could help boostrenewable energy consumption in theUK.

ECSC is developing a new softwaredesign tool for architects so they caneasily design low-carbon buildings.John Thorp, Managing Director ofECSC, said he was attracted to doing

a

KTPprogramme

because of thegrant funding it

provides.

“After I heard about KTP, Idecided it was a win-winsituation because we getthe ability to increase our

stock of expertise and we get adiscount on the people required to do

it. It is one of the few governmentsponsored initiatives that actuallyworks for both sides of theequation.”

Many local councils across the UKare now implementing planningpolicy that requires developers toconstruct buildings with a target of10% (or more) renewable energy use,which is forcing planners anddevelopers to consider renewableenergy.

Aidan Dunsdon, the KTP Associateworking on the project, said thatgetting developers to think aboutrenewable energy in the designprocess, rather than later on indevelopment, will help make

renewable energy designconvenient andaccessible. “The currenttools are not reallyinfluencing designbecause by the time the

engineer becomes involvedin the process it is too late

in terms of the design.”

Phil Jones, AcademicSupervisor on the project, said

planners and developers are hungryfor the new software tools beingdeveloped at ECSC. “Planners anddevelopers are wandering aroundlooking for help in meeting the newplanning requirements; they areactually very receptive to this sort ofthing. Aidan is giving planners a lot ofhelp and they are saying, ‘fantastic,thanks for doing that.’”

ECSC also recently hired KTPAssociate, Princess Ogumka, tohelp continue this work as well

A KTP programme at EAA (EnergyAuditing Agency) is not only helpingreduce carbon usage, it is alsohelping businesses save a significantamount of money on their energybills. KTP Associate KumarSamiyappan analysed the energyusage and wrote case studies for 85buildings in the first few months of hisproject.

Kumar analysed the electricity, gasand water use at the MaritimeMuseum, built in 1830. The age of thisbuilding presented unique energychallenges, yet Kumar and the teamat EAA helped implement advancedmetering techniques that read andcollect energy usage data every half-hour (or more frequently) and transferand store the data so that it can beevaluated.

“They had a financial saving of£17,800 in seven months,” Kumarcommented.

The analysis also helped create a 24%saving in gas usage, 9% saving in

electricity and an amazingsaving of 143tons of carbonin the first

seven months.The project will continue to createbetter tools for efficient energymanagement in a variety of buildingtypes.

A KTP programme at FulcrumConsulting is bringing the first aquiferthermal energy storage system to theUK.

“No one else in the UK has this now,and it is a direct result of the KTP,”commented Andrew Ford, ManagingDirector at Fulcrum. Although the useof ground-source heat technology toheat and cool commercial andresidential buildings has existed inHolland and other European countriesfor over 20 years, it has yet to beadopted in the UK. Andrew said he ishoping that this efficient energy sourcewill be more widely used by buildingdesigners and architects to help reducethe negative environmental impact ofcarbon consumption. “It is such a goodopportunity to improve efficiency andreduce carbon dioxide,” Andrew said.

In order to measure the feasibility ofusing ground source heat pumps, oneof KTP Associate Fuqiao Wang’s firstaccomplishments at Fulcrum was tocreate a map of aquifers suitable forthermal energy systems in the UK. Thisvaluable map gives Fulcrum anadvantage over other energycompanies by showing the exact areaswithin the UK where usingunderground aquifers is feasible.

But the positive results of this KTPproject aren’t just on paper. Fulcrumare currently working to install the newtechnology for the first time in the UKat the Westway Beacons, a newdevelopment in West London.

“In 10 years, we hope to have anoticeable impact on the carbonfootprint of this country,” Andrewcommented.

The project at Fulcrum is also helpingLondon South Bank University stayinvolved with cutting-edge ground-coupled energy developments.Professor Graeme Maidment, theAcademic Supervisor on the project,said the University’s partnership withFulcrum has resulted in the publicationof four papers and two successful grantapplications. One of these grants wasawarded to Fulcrum to investigate thefeasibility of ground-coupled energy atLondon’s Natural History Museum.“For a company trying to decidewhether or not to do a KTPprogramme, it is a no-brainer,”Graeme said.

The KTP programme has allowedFulcrum to explore this new technologywith little financial risk, according toAndrew. “The KTP programme hasbeen a responsibly managedprogramme and it has allowed us tomove directly towards something.We’ve made a lot of progress in a veryshort time. ”The new technology isgiving Fulcrum new opportunities forbusiness and profit. “We want to benumber one in the UK, and that’s whatwe are going to do,” Fuqiaocommented.

Energy and Environment

“No one else in theUK has this now,and it is a directresult of the KTP.”

F U L C R U M C O N S U L T I N G E C S C

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E A A ( T E A M )

The Centre for Knowledge Transfer

Head of Centre Nathan Burgess

Deputy ManagerBarbara Ellis

Marketing OfficerJill Kovacs

Contributing WriterStephanie Luxmoore

Finance OfficerMariam Sher

AdministratorSally Eserin

Telephone: 020 7815 6922Fax: 020 7815 6915Email: [email protected]: www.ktplondon.co.uk

ProductionWave, LondonTelephone: 020 7935 3741

2006 Centre for Knowledge Transfer, LondonSouth Bank University

This report covers the year1 August 2005 to 31 July 2006

A B S C O N S U L T I N GBusiness: Providers of strategicconsultancy services to owners,managers and occupiers of buildingsand estates. Project: To develop a new technicalservice for building managers, whichwill analyse and benchmark KeyPerformance Indicators (KPI’s) inenergy efficiency and theenvironmental impact of commercialbuildings.

A L A R A W H O L E F O O D SBusiness: The production and sale ofspecialist muesli.Project: To develop packaging andprocesses to reduce waste, energyuse and environmental impact, andgain environmental accreditation.

A S P P A C K A G I N GBusiness: Producer of flexiblepackaging films, primarily for thefood packaging industry.Project: To research and develop newpackaging technology for the foodindustry and develop and implementintegrated production planningsystems.

B L U E S C L O T H I N GBusiness: Clothing manufacturerspecialising in the design andproduction of children’s clothing.Project: To develop and implement adata mining system coupled with acustomer relationship managementsystem in order to support businessforecasting and strategic planningacross the company.

B S R I ABusiness: Strategic consultancyservices within the building industry.Project: To develop new technicalstandards and a certification schemefor analysing the permeability ofcommon construction products andair tightness in the construction ofnew buildings, to aid energy efficiencyand reduce carbon emissions.

F E R R A R I C A T E R E R SBusiness: Producer and distributor ofpremium sandwiches and snacks.Project: To develop a new process forfreezing and packaging to improvethe shelf life of microwavable snacks.To optimise quality systems to allowvolume increase and additional shifts.

K E N T O N R E S E A R C HBusiness: Manufacturer oftelecommunications equipment.Project: To design the first of a newrange of telecoms products for ultra-secure communications applications.

Q U E S T M E D I ABusiness: Business communicationand media company, publishingbusiness magazines.Project: To develop a KeyPerformance Indicator (KPI)benchmarking service in call centreoperations for current major clients,to support their strategic decision-making in the customer servicesfield.

R I P M A XBusiness: Manufacturer anddistributor of radio controlled models.Project: To develop a sophisticated e-commerce system and software-based customer relationshipmanagement systems.

S I M M O N S B A K E R SBusiness: Producer and distributor ofbread and baked products.Project: To develop new and healthybaked products, improve efficiencyand implement systems for energyand water monitoring and wastereduction.

S U N R I S E B A K E R YBusiness: Wholesale manufacturerand distributor of baked goods.Project: To improve the company’smanufacturing process efficiency andtechnical management, minimisingwastage and environmental impacts,and to obtain BRC accreditation.

Z U T E C U KBusiness: The provision of buildingmanagement software and services.Project: To develop a state-of-the-artsuite of software-based modellingtools that will analyse and identifyenergy usage within commercialbuildings.

New KTP ProjectsP A R T N E R S ( 1 A U G U S T 2 0 0 5 - 3 1 J U L Y 2 0 0 6 ) C O N T A C T S

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KTP Partners

Centre for Knowledge TransferLondon South Bank University90 London Road, London SE1 6LNTelephone 020 7815 6922Facsimile 020 7815 6915Email [email protected] www.ktplondon.co.uk