Applying Open Tools & Resources:
towards Accelerating Engineering Biology Innovation in the Cambridge
The EngBio IRC announces launching its new project “Applying Open Tools & Resources: towards Accelerating Engineering Biology Innovation in the Cambridge Cluster”. The project responds to a key challenge of informing the biotech community about existing open resources and seeding intersectoral collaborations to develop them further. The project will elevate the efforts of the University of Cambridge and the EngBio IRC in applying open tools and resources in science in close collaboration with industry.
Increasingly, open access tools and resources are becoming central to new discovery and innovations across engineering and biology. They provide startups, social enterprises and industry with enabling technologies that offer freedom to operate and added value through the contribution of many partners. Tools developed by members of the EngBio IRC such as the Open Enzyme Collection have been used by at least five startups internationally and the open source Loop Assembly technique has been adopted by companies like University of Cambridge spin-out company Colorifix.
Our project responds to a key challenge of informing the biotech community about existing resources and seeding intersectoral collaborations to develop them further. There are numerous examples, including contributions of DNA parts, optimisation of open source protocols and development of modules for open hardware such as the OpenTrons pipetting robot. We will establish connections locally within the Cambridge Cluster by organising two sandpit workshops to bring together local industry and academics (including early career researchers) in i) biomedical technologies; ii) agricultural and sustainability technologies. The workshops will present relevant existing resources from the IRC and beyond and allow for interactive discussions and cross-disciplinary knowledge exchange to develop collaborative academia-industry projects. Seed funding will be offered to four selected projects to apply or further develop open tools. Projects will be chosen for direct impact in terms of application to an industry challenge and be tracked for follow-on activity including additional funding or further collaboration.
We will also produce a compendium of open resources emerging from the University and their existing use in industry, that could be used to entice industry partners to buy into the events and form the basis of longer impact case studies.
Project Aims
Strengthening EngBio IRC industry links within the biomedical, agritech and sustainability fields.
Sharing knowledge about open tools and resources that provide a nucleus for mutually beneficial collaboration.
Increasing the uptake of currently existing open tools and resources from the University, increasing their impact, citation and collaboration opportunities for the relevant research groups.
Bringing together academics and industry, facilitating knowledge exchange, developing contacts, and discussing collaborative opportunities.
Setting the basis for initiating seed projects for open access resources and academia-industry collaborations.
Who are our partners?
The project fosters collaboration between academia and industry, the following partners play an important role in expanding the project’s cross-sectoral and interdisciplinary network in the fields of biomedical technologies, agricultural and sustainability technologies and beyond.
Centre for Global Equality
The Centre for Global Equality (CGE) evolves innovative solutions to global challenges. Bringing together collaborators from civil society, academia, government and business, the centre mobilises intellectual, financial and social resources and focuses these on the interests of the four billion people in the world who live on less than $4 a day.
Connect Health Tech
Connect: Health Tech is a new University Enterprise Zone (UEZ) that builds a highly effective interdisciplinary bridge between two Cambridge research hubs — the West science and technology hub and South biomedical hub. The bridge will bring together and integrate a community from across the University, research institutes, NHS, industry, investors, local and national Government, with a focus on med tech, digital health and therapeutics, to create opportunities that will transform the interface between medicine and technology.
Cambridge Zero
Cambridge Zero exists to maximise the University of Cambridge’s contribution towards achieving a resilient and sustainable zero-carbon world. Cambridge Zero is not just about developing greener technologies or a zero-carbon university. We are harnessing the full range and breadth of the Collegiate University’s capabilities, both in the UK and globally, to develop solutions that work for our lives, our society and our economy.
What are we planning to do?
Output One: Accelerating Engineering Biology: Open Technology Sandpit Workshops
The two sandpit workshops aim to establish connections locally within the Cambridge Cluster through bringing together diverse actors from academia, industry and civil society, facilitating knowledge exchange, developing contacts, and discussing collaborative opportunities. The workshops provide space for exchange between open technology developers and potential users in the fields of biomedical technologies and agriculture and sustainability technologies. The workshops on 17 and 21 July 2023 will introduce Open Technologies Seed Fund Grants which the participants can apply for.
Output Two: Open Technologies Seed Fund Grants
Seed funding will be offered to four selected projects to apply or further develop open tools. Projects will be chosen for direct impact in terms of application to an industry challenge and be tracked for follow-on activity including additional funding or further collaboration. The IRC encourages joint applications which involve diverse specialists and bring academics, industry and NGOs together. Applications for the grant will open in July 2023 and funds are planned to start in October 2023. Please follow this link to access the call HERE.
Output Three: A Compendium of Open Resources
The compendium aims to enhance knowledge exchange on open tools and resources that provide a nucleus for mutually beneficial collaboration. The compendium will present a collection of open resources emerging from the University of Cambridge and their existing use in industry or by other external partners such as charities and NGOs, in addition to relevant impact stories. The compendium is available HERE
Impact
The project will contribute to increasing the effectiveness of the University’s engagement with industry and building an environment to encourage collaboration between commercial organisations and university researchers. It will also elevate the efforts of the University and the EngBio IRC in applying open tools and resources in science in close collaboration with industry. It amplifies the role of the University and the IRC in bringing ideas and transferring technologies to the market. Moreover, matching the small grant for impact and knowledge exchange with the EngBio IRC fund for seed grants will leverage the impact of the two funds in the areas of knowledge exchange, collaborating with nonacademic partners and fostering the application of open tools and resources in science.