CPI works with small businesses to accelerate commercialisation of new formulated products

CPI has today announced a new project to work with enterprising SMEs across the Leeds City Region (LCR) to accelerate the commercialisation of new formulated products. The project, entitled ​‘Formulation Technology applied to Materials and Products’ (ForTaMP), is supported with funds from the European Regional Development Fund. The project will provide the opportunity for SMEs to engage with CPI’s extensive capabilities within formulations, helping local companies to develop and launch innovative new products by enabling them to enhance up-scaling, prototyping and applications of their technology.

The ForTaMP project will be delivered from existing CPI facilities within the North East Technology Park (NETPark) site. Over the three-year project, CPI will assist SMEs active in – or seeking access to – the health/personal care, consumer goods, materials and food & drink sectors via the application of colloid chemistry, nano-technology, powder processing and materials science.

The percentage of SMEs currently engaged in research and innovation activities within the LCR and Leeds Local Enterprise Partnership area is well below the national average. Using CPI’s expertise and formulation chemistry facilities, businesses can enhance product performance, enabling better product stability while improving the properties of manufacturing processes. The ForTaMP project’s product-led approach will help translate the region’s strong science base into valuable intellectual property, including patents, know-how and registered designs.

To underpin this programme, CPI has developed a wide range of business support tools to promote innovation, product design and business excellence. The ForTaMP project will establish strong links between SMEs and the knowledge base, helping to enhance the ability of businesses to respond to new market opportunities through the development of new products and processes.

Dr Robin Brinham, Project Manager of the ForTaMP project at CPI, said: “This project aims to support small businesses who work in a range of markets to develop new and exciting formulated products. CPI’s state-of-the-art scale-up and testing facilities will provide a powerful springboard for the growth of these formulated products within the Leeds City Region, something the ForTaMP project is proud to be a part of.”

Image: ‘Scientist at work in CPI's National Formulations Centre'.