Technology SMEs to target growing global wellness market
A project has been launched to help Scottish companies take advantage of the huge potential of the worldwide Wellness market.
Innovation Centres Scotland (ICS) will manage the Wellness Innovation and Technology Initiative, which will provide the necessary support to Scottish SMEs enabling them to make their mark in the sector.
The project will encourage businesses to investigate ways to adapt existing technologies. It will also aim to build robust knowledge sharing through a collaborative community of academics, partners, stakeholders and companies that will drive the commercialisation of relevant research.
The ICS team has drawn up a four point action plan for the project that will:
- Identify new market opportunities
- Attract global partners to collaborate with Scottish companies
- Encourage and support SMEs to develop and support new products and services or transfer existing technologies to the Wellness and Health sector
- Promote innovation throughout the supply chain
ICS recently completed a pilot study into how to grow the market in Scotland. Some companies are already utilising innovative technologies for the purposes of healthcare. Those operating in Life Sciences, Material Centres, Communications, Electronics and IT are well placed to benefit.
Innovations in wearable technologies, wireless sensors to monitor a person’s health or movement, communications for remote diagnosis or even delivering prescriptions are at the cutting edge of this vast sector.
The Scottish Government recently published its E-Health Strategy for 2008-2011, which aims to improve patient health through technology. The ICS drive will support this strategy.
Tom Ogilvie, CEO of ICS said: “We are delighted to have been given the opportunity to continue our work in helping identify and deliver the next generation of technology–driven healthcare products that will give Scotland a lead in enhancing the care and lifestyle of people here and worldwide.”
The demands of providing healthcare in the 21st Century require innovative technologies. People are living longer and the strain this will put on healthcare providers is likely to lead to a stronger emphasis on home management of conditions and the shift towards a preventative lifestyle.
It is estimated the global Wellness market is worth around $200 billion a year with projected growth to three times that figure by 2012. Funding for the three-year project will come from Scottish Enterprise and an application has been made to the European Regional Development Fund.
Elsewhere, ITI Life Sciences is to invest some £9.3 million to develop technologies and provide proof of concept for a drug discovery venture. The University of Edinburgh is already engaged on the programme which will focus on the Ubiquitin Proteasome System (UPS).
The UPS, which regulates multiple cellular control mechanisms and has been implicated in key diseases, was identified by ITI Life Sciences as a rich source of future drug targets which have, until now, been relatively unexplored.
ITI has also created a Programme Advisory Group to ensure the project maintains its commercial and technical focus. The initiative is modelled on the highly successful Kinase drug discovery research market, which was a major international success for Scotland.
It is hoped this programme will help in the treatment of cancer, inflammatory and infectious diseases. Eleanor Mitchell, Managing Director of ITI Life Sciences, said: “Scotland has, throughout the history of modern medicine, been at the forefront of new developments, and we want to carry on that tradition.”
For more information visit the Innovation Centres (Scotland) website or the Life Sciences website