The Best Knowledge Transfer Partnership Award celebrates the most outstanding overall partnership; the KTP which has brought the most significant benefits to all three participants, and which best exemplifies innovation through collaboration.

The judges look at which partnerships demonstrate excellent achievements across all three partners – Business; Academic; Associate. They should demonstrate how they have gone beyond the aims and objectives stated in the original proposal.

Read on to see who made it to become finalists at this year’s awards.

Mersen UK/ University of Strathclyde / Dr Declan Bryans

About Mersen

Mersen at the Holytown site in Scotland is a graphite long and short fibre manufacturer for thermal insulation applications and recently has entered the market with electrode materials for energy storage applications.

Due to the development of battery electrode materials as a deliverable of the KTP, new facilities have been invested in promoting the manufacture of the long fibre, soft felt products.

The KTP

The partnership aimed to develop and evaluate the performance of carbon felts as both positive and negative electrodes in an all-vanadium redox flow battery which can be used in medium to large scale energy storage systems.  This project has produced leading-edge battery electrode developments and successfully transferred these into the market. The company has invested in new manufacturing facilities and are supplying an international customer base.

Red Whale (GP-Update) / University of Reading /Dr Blessing Mbipom

About Red Whale (GP-Update)

GP-Update Ltd and its 54 employees provide medical education to over 15,000 primary care clinicians each year including GP’s, Doctors, Practice Nurses and Practice Managers.

Their mission is to provide the best quality medical education in the UK (and abroad through their Social Enterprise) that engages and inspires clinicians to undertake CPD (Clinical Professional Development) and translates to immediate patient benefit through a unique combination of humour, action plans, and up-to-the-minute medical research.

The KTP

This project set out to develop an engaging and effective online teaching platform to compliment the current face to face offering. The key to the project was to make sure that the new courses meet the unique selling point of being relevant, challenging and fun. In undertaking this KTP project the business has been able to drive forward its digital transformation strategy, build resilience, become more agile in working practices and improve customer experiences

SureScreen Diagnostics/ University of Nottingham /Dr Yasin Kurmoo

About SureScreen Diagnostics

Established in 1996, SureScreen Diagnostics have been providing proactive, bespoke diagnostic solutions for 25 years.

Recently, the company has developed rapid testing products for COVID-19, which have sold in over 50 countries worldwide. The success of these kits has prompted the UK government to sign a deal with SureScreen to provide them with COVID-19 testing products.

The KTP

The challenge of this KTP project was to develop, transfer and embed analytical bioscience expertise in the areas of diagnostic technology. The initial target was a blood alcohol test which was successfully delivered. In addition, the company reacted to the pandemic by applying these new skills to develop a COVID-19 diagnostic kit. SureScreen’s workforce has increased significantly to meet demand.

The Awards 

Join these finalists and others at the KTP Awards show taking place on September 23rd between 16:00 – 18:00 online. 

The ceremony will include keynote speeches from:

• Indro Mukerjee, Chief Executive of Innovate UK,
• Professor Dame Ottoline Leyser, Chief Executive of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) 
• Alicia Greated, Chief Executive of KTN 
• Richard Lamb, KTP Programme Manager at Innovate UK

Join us by registering here