World Patent Information 27 (2005) 37–41

www.elsevier.com/locate/worpatin

Empowering innovation: extending services regionally

Chris Brown

Information Officer Intellectual Property Services, Manchester PATLIB, Central Library, St. Peter�s Square, Manchester M2 5PD, UK

Abstract

An outline is provided of the practical assistance and support being given to innovators and entrepreneurs in the North-West of

England by Technet North-West, a project funded by the North-West Development Agency and the European Regional Develop-

ment Fund. The article shows the benefits and service improvements achieved through partnership and collaboration. Identifying

successful models, such as the Manchester patent clinic, and rolling them out into the region, ensures the sharing of best practice.

Establishing inventors� information points as satellites to Manchester PATLIB provides a local base for inventors, gives a higher

profile for IP services and also enables the growth of a network of business support agencies. Technet-NW thus helps inventors

and innovative businesses to get their idea from concept to marketplace by putting them in touch with the relevant support agency

at the right time in the innovation cycle.

� 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Partnership; PATLIB; Manchester; Inventors� information point; Patent clinic; Intellectual property services; Inventors group; Technet-

NW; Business support

1. Introduction

‘‘Manchester is Britain�s answer to San Francisco,beating London and 38 other places for creative and

economic potential. Manchester also has a high number

of patent applications—Leicester and London share sec-

ond place’’ [1].

‘‘According to specially commissioned Patent Office

figures, Manchester comes top of the ranking for patent

applications, which is accounted partly for its concentra-

tion of higher education institutions and technologycompanies. This is the first time the Patent Office has

ranked the innovative capacity of cities by number of

patent applications’’ [2].

Manchester PATLIB (PATent LIBrary) [3] is provid-

ing support and assistance for this creativity through

participation in a project called Technet North-West

(Technet-NW). Technet-NW is part funded by the

0172-2190/$ - see front matter � 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

doi:10.1016/j.wpi.2004.09.002

E-mail address: chrisb@libraries.manchester.gov.uk

European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and

the North-West Development Agency (NWDA) and

runs until December 2004. It is a project of partnershipand collaboration, sharing best practice to provide a

new mechanism of support to develop innovative ideas

into new business success stories. It brings together busi-

ness advice and information support agencies, which

have a longstanding record of success in supporting

entrepreneurship and innovation.

The participating organisations include Manchester

City Council Digital Development Agency, BlackburnInnovation and Technology Services, the Centre for

Construction Innovation, Chamber Business Enter-

prises, Universities in the region, Ideas North-West

(inventors group), Blackburn College Centre for manu-

facturing, Campus Ventures (business incubation), and

Manchester PATLIB.

The project fills a real gap by adding value to the cur-

rent support for innovation, complementing, rather thanduplicating, the services of existing agencies. It aims to

put inventors and innovative businesses in the North-

West of England in touch with the relevant support

38 C. Brown / World Patent Information 27 (2005) 37–41

service in the region, at the right point in the innovation

cycle. England�s North-West has delivered some of the

world�s leading edge ideas and breakthroughs from the

world�s first test tube baby to the splitting of the atom.

It has the largest concentration of universities in Europe

and has one of the strongest research bases in the conti-nent. The region�s strengths and business sectors include

Aerospace, Biotechnology, Chemicals, Environmental

Technologies, Food processing, Nuclear Energy and

Textiles.

Manchester Library and Information Service has a

wide range of business resources in the Commercial

library, and the Central Library is the home of Man-

chester PATLIB. Before the Technet-NW project, Man-chester Libraries provided a patent library and

information service; hosted a patent clinic (free advice

from a patent agent and business adviser); and provided

guidance on how to search for patents. However, there

were no full time dedicated staff for the patents collec-

tion (patents were part of the Technical reference ser-

vice) and consequently, through lack of staff time, no

patent search service.

2. Service improvements

The project provides the opportunity to improve and

extend the services of Manchester PATLIB and roll out

successful models into the North-West region.

At Manchester PATLIB two full time IP specialistposts have been funded for the duration of the project.

We have enhanced the services at the patent clinic by

providing a pre-clinic telephone interview and sending

out information packs prior to a clinic appointment.

In July last year we set up an IP search service for

inventors in the region, which has been extremely suc-

cessful and well used. We now recommend a prior art

search before attending a patent clinic, which has re-sulted in more focussed, informed and relevant enquiries

for the patent agents and business advisers. This has

provided a more productive appointment for all

participants.

We have established an inventors� group in Manches-

ter and as a result of feedback from this group have

started some training workshops in patent searching.

We are also extending and developing our network ofagencies and contacts useful to inventors.

In the North-West region we are extending and

improving services by

• establishing satellite inventors� info points in the

region;

• rolling out our successful patent clinic model;

• assessing demand for more inventors� groups;• developing a regional network of inventors and busi-

ness support agencies.

3. Empowering innovation

The framework we are using to enable these improve-

ments involves running roadshows and networking

events ‘‘Empowering Innovation’’ in the region. These

are advertised widely through the partnership networkin the North-West and have been well attended. They

enable the project to

(a) assess demand in an area;

(b) provide an introduction point to the service for

inventors and innovators;

(c) extend our network of useful contacts and

organisations;(d) maintain a high profile in the region.

Three events have been held so far. The first was in

Blackburn, where we already knew there was a huge de-

mand for support for innovators, from feedback sup-

plied by the local inventors� group (Ideas North-West)

and the local business support network. The format

decided on was as follows

• an exhibition with stands from local partners, support

organisations, e.g., prototype specialists, successful

local inventors, professional agencies etc.

• presentations and speakers on topics of interest to

innovators.

Furthermore there is the opportunity to book anappointment for

• a patent clinic (free confidential advice from a patent

agent);

• a free prior art search for patents or trade marks;

• a confidential appointment with a business adviser.

The aim is to provide a one stop shop for inventorsand innovators, giving them access to a range of experts

in one place. We keep a record of those attending, so

that follow up support can be provided. This also helps

to assess demand for establishing further services in the

area e.g. inventors� information points.

4. Inventors� information points

Inventors� info points are being set up in localities

that have been identified by

(a) the response to the roadshow and

(b) local information gathered from partner

organisations.

There are some similarities to the Italian Patent

Information Points (PIPs) [4], however one of the main

C. Brown / World Patent Information 27 (2005) 37–41 39

differences is that the PIPs are generally situated in the

Chambers of Commerce, whereas the inventors� info

points are to be sited in public libraries.

There are significant advantages gained by using pub-

lic libraries

• community centred;

• evening and weekend opening;

• seen as impartial, no commercial bias;

• Internet access available;

• business information already there.

The information provided is at a basic level with

referral contact details for more in depth and expert ad-vice. Typically the inventors� info point has

• a core stock of about 30–40 books covering the basics

of IP, how to exploit your ideas, business start up,

funding etc.

• a dedicated computer giving access to search dat-

abases with links to useful websites;

• Patent Office leaflets;• a loose leaf binder with fact sheets e.g. on searching

for patents, listing local contacts, useful organisations

both regional and national;

• staff who are trained in the basic principles of IP,

searching on esp@cenet�, and who have a general

background on the network and referrals for further

advice.

We have also designed a basic self help guide for

inventors, providing a simple portal to useful websites

at www.inventorsinfopoints.co.uk. This is still in the

early stages, but it is intended to provide a first step

for inventors unsure of how to proceed. It does not

duplicate the information already available on the web

but recommends and links to specific websites without

overwhelming the inventor. The regional contacts arealso a useful addition.

Monitoring the use of the service and feedback from

staff, users and local inventors� groups will enable us to

maintain a viable and well used service.

0

100

200

300

last 2 years

Total clients assisted

Further assistance requested

Substantial follow up support requested

Businesses started or in process

Fig. 1. Patent clinic—from advice to business start-up.

5. Manchester patent clinic

There are two successful models, the Manchester pat-

ent clinic and Ideas North-West (Blackburn inventors�group), which we plan to roll out into the North-West

region.

The Manchester patent clinic meets on the third

Tuesday of each month from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. Free con-

fidential advice is provided by a patent agent and also by

business advisers. This combination of IP with businessadvice is a vital part of the success of the patent clinic,

an improvement planned in the inaugural stages of the

clinic [5]. The business advisers provide impartial advice,

referrals, funding information and assistance for busi-

ness start-up. They challenge the idea commercially,

asking the inventor to think about the exploitation side

of the idea. Is there a need for the product? Can the

inventor make money from it? How can a patent beturned into money? They signpost the inventor to rele-

vant support agencies that can assist with the next stage

in getting the idea to the market place [6].

Over the last two years more than 250 inventors have

been advised at the patent clinic. 175 requested further

assistance from the business advisers and 69 of those re-

quired substantial follow up support. As a result of this

help, eight are now in business and a further three inven-tors are in the early stages of business start up (see

Fig. 1).

The business advisers also provide feedback on some

of the success stories from the patent clinic, which we

would otherwise be unaware of. The following three

case studies (confidentiality restricts some of the details)

are amongst our recent successes.

1. An inventor came to the clinic with an innovative

technical idea related to the filming of sporting

events. He was advised and given assistance to apply

for a Department of Trade and Industry SMART

award for entrepreneurs. He received the award

and direct support in starting a business from Cam-

pus Ventures (business incubation). He is now work-

ing with one of the faculties of the University ofManchester to prove the feasibility of his idea and

develop it further, with the possibility of a patent

when worked through.

2. A doctor approached us through Technet-NW for

advice on an idea he had been developing for an

alternative medicine diagnosis and cure system. We

did a patent search for him and referred him on to

the patent clinic for further advice related to his idea.The most appropriate protection for his idea was

40 C. Brown / World Patent Information 27 (2005) 37–41

secrecy rather than disclosure, and advice was taken

about technical protection which could be built into

his system. His company has now been formed, a

prototype made and he is currently presenting his

idea to interested investors.

3. An inventor with a small software company, SpartaTechnologies, came for advice on an innovative idea

enabling e-government, which would be attractive to

local authorities. A patent search was done and

advice given at the patent clinic. Several Greater

Manchester local authorities are now in discussion

with him to take his idea on board.

One of the problems in reporting on successes is thefact that we at Manchester PATLIB are involved in

the early stages of an idea, and the process of getting

an idea into the marketplace, through all the various

stages, can be quite lengthy. Confidentiality is also a ma-

jor consideration in the early stages of the process which

further restricts the details that can be given.

6. Ideas North-West

The second successful model is Ideas North-West, the

Blackburn inventors� group. The group is extremely

popular, with upward of 100 members, some of whom

travel a considerable distance to the meetings. The size

of the group and the catchment area of members show

that there is obviously a need for more inventors� groupsin the region.

Ideas North-West is a self help group with three main

strands of activity

1. events and speakers;

2. workshop facilities for prototyping, and access to

rapid prototyping;

3. brainstorming with confidentiality.

The final strand was agreed between the inventors

themselves as a useful way forward when progress was

difficult with a particular idea. If the problem was tech-

nical, it was possible that with the variety of skills and

experience in the group, a solution would be forthcom-

ing. A confidentiality agreement is in place, that all have

agreed to, to protect the IP rights of the inventor.Apart from the obvious benefits to the inventors

themselves—e.g. providing a self help and advice re-

source for new and experienced inventors, contact net-

work and skill base of peers—there are additional

benefits for support agencies. The inventors� group is

useful for feedback on

• successes and routes taken by inventors;• further resources needed;

• gaps in support mechanisms.

7. Project progress to date

An inventors� info point and patent clinic has been

established in Blackburn, with a further three to be set

up in the NW region. There are also six inventors�info points being set up in Manchester districtlibraries.

The Manchester inventors� group is now established,

although it is still in the early stages. Three events with

speakers have been arranged by Technet-NW to enable

the inaugural meetings. However, the aim is for the

group to run autonomously and to evolve according

to the wishes of the membership.

Patent search training workshops have been re-quested by the Manchester inventors� group and are

ongoing.

In conclusion, the partnership project has provided a

linked network of support organisations and agencies to

help inventors, micro enterprises and SMEs. The

Empowering Innovation roadshows enable us to assess

demand, attract those needing IP and business advice/

support, and also extend our range of contacts in the re-gion. We can then identify areas to provide extra regio-

nal services e.g. inventors� info points, patent clinics and

inventors� groups. We also provide, maintain and devel-

op links to relevant national or regional services for

expertise and advice, to ensure that support is available

at the right point in the innovation cycle. There are sev-

eral more steps to fulfil before the end of the project and

we are identifying areas where further assistance couldusefully be given. We are actively seeking further fund-

ing to continue with the project, as the results so far

have shown there is a definite need for this type of assis-

tance in the North-West of England.

Acknowledgment

This article has been developed from a presentation

by the author at the PATLIB annual conference in Por-

tugal in May 2004.

References

[1] Daily Telegraph 26/05/03. p9 Britain�s cities �need hip and gay areas

to prosper�.[2] Media: Manchester is favourite with ‘‘new bohemians’’. Available

from <http://www.demos.co.uk/media/_page266.aspx>.

[3] What is PATLIB? Available from <http://patlib.european-patent-

office.org/welcome/whatis/>.

[4] Czajkowski Andrew R. Patent information points Italy—the way

forward. World Patent Information 2001;23(2):193–6.

[5] Connor D. Supporting business and innovation—PATLIB part-

nerships for the next generation. World Patent Information 2001;

23(1):39–43.

[6] Connor D, Muirhead R. Modern patent clinics reality check for

innovators. World Patent Information 2002;24(3):229–32.

Information 27 (2005) 37–41 41

Chris Brown is the Information Officer forIntellectual Property Services at the PATLIB(Patent library) in the Central Library, Man-chester (UK). She is a chartered librarian withover 10 years experience in patent and busi-ness information and is one of the key peoplein the Technet-NW project. She provides thesearch service for inventors, a vital part of theinnovation cycle, and administers the suc-cessful patent clinic at the Central Library. AsChair of PATLIB UK she is keen to developmore local access to relevant business and IPinformation for inventors.

C. Brown / World Patent