STFC were thrilled to host the representatives from the 8 CERN Business Incubation Centres (BICS) at Daresbury Laboratory in June. They were joined by CERN’s Knowledge Transfer group for the second annual network meeting which provides an opportunity to exchange best practices to foster entrepreneurship related to CERN technologies.
The BICs are now present in 8 different countries: France, Finland, Spain, Austria, Greece, the Netherlands, Norway and finally the UK, which is managed by STFC.
John Lewis, Managing Director of 2DHeat, a start-up hosted in the STFC CERN BIC in Daresbury, was present at the annual BIC meeting. He reported with enthusiasm his company’s positive experience within the BIC. “Our presence in the BIC was a door opener, and brought many new networking opportunities to our business,” he said.
“The CERN brand is immediately recognisable to relevant leaders in industry, government departments, as well as potential investors,” he continued. “It gives professionals an immediate understanding of the quality of our products and expertise.” The 2DHeat start-up was the second incubatee of the STFC CERN BIC, and has now successfully graduated. It is commercialising its innovative electric heating elements with an initial focus on high vacuum systems.
The 2DHeat Managing Director insisted that the positive benefits of the company’s presence in the STFC CERN BIC would continue beyond graduation, through the professional contacts and experience acquired while they were an incubatee.
