Innovation studio
ATI News

Exhibitor Reveal

27 January 2020

Celebrating InnovATIon Showcase 

In December (2019), all clients that have pursued an innovation project with ATI were offered the opportunity to compete for 10 exhibition spaces at our upcoming ‘Celebrating Innovation’ event (13th Feb 2020). We had lots of applicants, all were of an extremely high standard and the following were picked to reflect the diverse array of businesses that we work with, as well as demonstrate the full suite of support services available through the ATI programme. 

With that said and in no particular order, we are delighted to announce the following 10 businesses as our Innovation Showcase exhibitors for Celebrating Innovation 2020: 

Triangular Pixels

www.triangularpixels.com 

Triangular Pixels are an award winning games developer. Although the business is based in Bude, their development team work remotely from all around the UK. They have a passion for fun, light-hearted gaming and love using the latest technology for exciting, new gameplay. 

ATI have supported the development of their most recent game, Unseen Diplomacy 2, by helping to port and test it on Oculus Quest – a new VR kit that uses inside out tracking, no cables, and can be used both indoors and outside. 

In innovation terms, what sets this game apart is the platform they are using and how it scales to the users spaceNo other game scales in this way and it’s this unique ability that makes the game as accessible as possible, enabling all sorts of users with a variety of abilities and spaces to be able to play. 

Image above: A mock-up of Triangular Pixels new game, Unseen Diplomacy 2.

Ultramed

www.ultramed.co 

Ultramed work with healthcare professionals to deliver cost and time effective solutions for preoperative and pre-procedural assessments.  

Their principle product, an app called MyPreOp, is enabling patients to complete their preoperative assessment online using their smartphone, computer or other compatible device. 

Since being awarded an ATI grant to help towards the initial development costs of MyPreOpUltramed have gone on to win the Association of Anaesthetists of Great Britain and Ireland’s Innovation Award 2019.  

To date, the business is approaching 20,000 patients having used the MyPreOp app. Of these, 30% of users report avoiding a face-to-face preoperative visit, saving journey time, carbon and car parking says Dr Paul Upton, CEO and Co-founder of Ultramed 

All of which is great news for hospitalspatients and the planet!

Image above: An advertisement for Ultramed’s MyPreOp app, following their innovation award win. 

Flora Drainage  

Flora Drainage is a start-up business founded by Barry Julian. Having worked at a public utility organisation for almost 40 years, Barry noticed a number of problems in the way in which drains were cleared and had many ideas of inventions which looked to increase the efficiency of drain clearing, as well as improving the health and safety for employees tasked with clearing drains. 

After meeting with an ATI Business Innovation Advisor, who helped him put his idea of an ‘extendable gully grabber’ down onto paperBarry commenced his innovation project. 

ATI was able to assist by providing Flora Drainage with specialist consultancy, innovation and product development support, as well as a grant, which helped towards the design costs and fabrication of Barry’s drain clearing invention. 

As a result, Flora drainage now have a working prototype and it is the first of its kind.

Image above: This photo was taken whilst Flora Drainage were working with ATI’s specialist consultants to develop their prototype.

Bellyphants

www.bellyphants.com 

Bellyphants create interactive toys and storybooks that introduce young children to the basic concept of breath-awareness, a technique that can be used as a tool for self-calming emotions. 

The idea behind their innovation is to familiarise children with fun, mindfulness-based breathing techniques that help calm unwanted emotions from an early age (4-6 years). In doing so, they hope to instil positive coping mechanisms within a post-millennial generation, that are reportedly experiencing increased levels of stress and anxiety. 

Through the ATI programme, Bellyphants received research, consultancy and innovation expertise, as well as gaining access to attend our renowned masterclasses – all of which helped them throughout their early stage development.  

More recently, Bellyphants have received a consultancy grant towards the prototyping of their initial Bellyphant design, which will be on display within our innovation showcase for you to view. 

Image above: An illustration taken from the Bellyphants website.

Odyssey Innovation

www.odysseyinnovation.com 

Odyssey Innovation retrieve marine plastic waste from around the Cornish coastline and recycle it into kayaks. These kayaks are then used to paddle for plastics along Cornwall’s inaccessible coves and beaches, and are also sold to help fund the growing operation. 

Following the success of his initial innovationOdyssey Innovation founder, Rob Thompson wanted to introduce a new product into the market that had a wider market appeal, and was both family and ocean friendly. As a result, he came up with the idea of producing a marine recycled handplane 

ATI have provided Odyssey Innovation with research, design and prototyping expertise, as well as an innovation consultancy grant that assisted with the costs of product design and the development of the handplane 

Working collaboratively with our specialist consultant at Dynamic Edge Innovation Ltd, as well as undergoing testing with a number of local surfers, Odyssey Innovation have refined and perfected their handplane design – something that they now boast is “designed by surfers, for surfers” says Rob. 

Image above: This photo is of Rob Thompson (left) after testing his handplane prototype on Polyjoke beach.

The Cake Professionals

www.thecakeprofessionals.com 

The Cake Professionals Ltd was set up in 2019 to provide events and services that help custom cake businesses and their owners flourish. Currently, there is nothing in the UK that meets this particular need and the Cake Professionals plan to fill the gap for the 6,000 small businesses that fall into this category. 

Their initial 2019 Conference and Awards launch proved very popular, with over 400 businesses connecting. Following this success, the start-up has managed to secure over £50K of sponsorship for from a range of businesses, including Tate & Lyle.  

In the last year, The Cake Professionals have received ATI business innovation and research support, as well as specialist consultancy to help them get some proper legal terms and conditions set up for their awards. The new terms and conditions have meant that both the business and the entrants to the awards are appropriately protected, and the research has provided a clear direction for future international expansion. 

Image above: The Cake Professionals founders Phil and Christine Jensen.

The Big Beanbag Company

www.bigbeanbagcompany.com 

The Big Beanbag Company all started with “with a love of beanbags and a dislike for what goes into them”, explains David Crawford, one of three founding directors at the Big Beanbag Company. David searched everywhere for a eco-friendly alternative, but none existed. 

Taking matters into their own hands, The Big Beanbag Company wanted to explore how they could make beanbag as sustainable as possible. After surveying the business support available to them via the Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Growth & Skills Hub, The Big Beanbag Company were referred to ATI seeking research and innovation expertise to help identify the best materials to back up their eco-friendly credentials.  

Working closely with their Business Innovation Advisor and Innovation Champion, who have access to world-class research and resources at the University of Plymouth, ATI were quickly able to highlight the BioFoam® filling as a potential solution for their beanbag – a material which completely changed the final outcome of their product. 

Image above: The Big Beanbag Company’s bestselling Dove and Oyster range.

Dynamic Edge Innovation

www.dynamic3dge.com  

Dynamic Edge Innovation offers a broad range of design and prototyping services to the engineering sectors, including expert knowledge of emerging technologies and new manufacturing techniques.  

Founded by Sam Baynham, a MEng qualified technical consultant, Dynamic Edge Innovation have been supported in a number of ways; from attending our IKE Masterclass and numerous networking events, to making use of the hotdesking and meeting room facilities within various Pop-up Innovation Centre locations. 

“The Pop-up Innovation Centres are very useful. Meeting there is a great excuse for networking. Especially for people like me, who usually work from home, it’s good to get out of the house to increase productivity and bounce ideas around with other innovators”, explains Sam. 

Visit him in our innovation Showcase to find out more about the projects he has been working on and discuss the cuttingedge manufacturing techniques that he’s embracing. 

Image above: An over-the-shoulder shot of Sam at work designing.

The Online Book Company

https://digitalbooks.theonlinebookcompany.com  

The Online Book Company help to create unique books online. From celebrating a notable event, commemorating the memory of someone special or engaging with a group of supporters, their digital books are increasingly being used in dynamic and novel ways. 

ATI have supported the business by assessing innovation readiness and introducing them to our IKE Masterclass, ultimately leading to an Innovation Grant to assist with the costs of creating a platform able to be accessed by the book “owner” and allowing them to manage, create, edit and administer their book from concept to completion.  

Whilst the company’s staff input and assist in producing these digital creations, the new platform offers flexibility of service, expands the product range and enables the business to provide “software as a service”, diversifying pricing and income.  

From a small start-up based in Penryn, The Online book Company are now about to launch their new products with the United Nations, underlining the international appeal of the company and its products. 

Image above: A screenshot of the Online Book Company’s website. 

Hi9

https://hi9.io/ 

Hi9 is a Cornish tech business specialising in creating voice user interfaces (VUI) with smart speakers and chat bots, such as an Amazon AlexaGoogle Home Hub and smartphones 

The capabilities of audio digital assistants are growing day by day and Hi9 is one such company that is innovating within VUI, to help support both the public and private sectors. 

ATI have worked with Hi9 in a number of ways; from providing the business with fully-funded hotdesking space in Penzance, to receiving specialist Intellectual Property work which was paid for via our consultancy budget.  

In addition, Hi9 also attended our ‘Managing an Innovation Project’ and ‘IKE Masterclass’, which are full-day workshops departing innovation knowledge and skills to help ensure positive innovation project outcomes. 

This ongoing work has led Wo and Josh King, co-founders of Hi9, to the launch of the South West Internet of Things Network (SWIN), a free open data network with planned regional coverage. 

Image above: Wo King, Co-founder of Hi9.

Tickets for ATI’s Celebrating Innovation event (13th Feb 2020) are limited, follow the link to check availability and to book: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/celebrating-innovation-tickets-85797335139 

More Insights

Virtual Reality Networking with Cornish Partnerships
Innovation Champion Series: Stakeholder Mapping