Working to help businesses in the region is nothing new for Sheffield Hallam University  indeed, we have a long and successful track record of working with many organisations from a wide range of industries and sectors.

Our approach involves working with businesses to help identify multidisciplinary solutions for whatever challenge they face  and that's now been backed with a major investment of £3.2 million aimed at boosting the innovation and the creative potential of regional companies, through access to expert consultancy, and support for research and development (R&D).

Innovation Futures will bring together experts from across the University to advise on a range of business areas, including materials and sports engineering, new technologies, organisational development, design solutions, as well as sector specific support. The project is being led by Sheffield Hallam, and supported by Yorkshire Forward and the European Regional Development Fund.

The new project is headed up by Alex Prince, a specialist in business investment and project management, who began his new role in June.

Innovation Futures creates a fantastic opportunity for businesses in the region to take advantage of the vast amount of expertise and experience within the University, helping them not only to tackle the immediate difficulties of the current economic climate, but also to innovate and prepare for growth in the longer term. We are really looking forward to hearing from any business with a challenge they'd like us to help them meet!

Innovation Futures will focus on specific areas of the business, providing practical advice and recommendations that will have a real impact on the company's future - be it through boosting productivity, increasing profitability, developing new products or improving existing ones, or assisting with organisational and individual change.

Professor Mike Smith, pro-vice chancellor for research and knowledge transfer at Sheffield Hallam University, explains. Innovation Futures is an exciting project that will allow regional businesses to access all of our expertise in one place.

We have already run similar projects on a smaller scale, including working with the food industry and hosting two of the region's Centres of Industrial Collaboration (CICs) in materials and design. These have been a resounding success and we are delighted that regional businesses across a wider range of sectors will now be able to benefit from this innovative approach.

During the difficult economic climate it is crucial that businesses continue to develop and innovate in order to ensure their survival, and Sheffield Hallam University is making every effort to provide the expert support that can help organisations to flourish.

Jim Farmery, assistant director of business for Yorkshire Forward added, Connecting our academic centres and businesses in the region is essential in ensuring that companies, who wouldn't necessarily put R&D at the front of investment priorities, can gain the help they need to resolve issues and ensure their products and services continue to be competitive. This is especially important in today's challenging marketplace.

Visit the Innovation Futures site