Qi3 Accelerator launches UK's first manufacturing bootcamp
Cambridge is to play host to a three day bootcamp that aims to help up to ten engineering and manufacturing companies across a range of sectors hone their business plans and prepare themselves for investment.
The Cambridge High Value Manufacturing (HVM) Bootcamp is a collaboration between Qi3 Accelerator and ideaSpace and is open to companies operating in the cleantech, security, healthcare technology, instrumentation, printing and other industries. It is being billed as the UK’s first ever bootcamp for HVM companies.
The bootcamp is a three day residential programme taking place at Madingley Hall from July 23 to 25. The subsidised cost is £300 + VAT for teams of between two and three people and they have until May 30 to apply.
Cambridge has been successful in applying the bootcamp concept to industries outside the traditional sweet spots of web and mobile apps. Cutec recently collaborated with The Humanitarian Centre on its second open innovation medtech hack programme, while ideaSpace hosted the first of One Nucleus’ European BioEntrepreneur Boot Camps last June.
Alex Cubitt of Qi3 said: “Engineering and manufacturing is more complex and capital intensive. These areas have been out of fashion in the UK for some time. Most opportunities are business to business, so market adoption is more complex.”
The bootcamp programme provides a combination of mentoring, networking and expert discussions with “key stakeholders” from the HVM sector. According to the press release, “successful applicants will benefit from Qi3 Accelerator’s objective evaluation of the business proposition, identification of major gaps and remedial actions, a strengthened business and investment proposition and an expanded network of potential customers and investors.”
Cubitt added: “We’d love to do a full 13 week Accelerator Programme, but a three day army style bootcamp will produce some significant advances in the companies we work with.”
Qi3 Accelerator is the investment arm of tech transfer and business development consultancy, Qi3. It provides interim commercial and technical management and cash investment in exchange for an equity stake or in some cases, a convertible loan. An angel investor in its own right, Qi3 Accelerator works with angel networks and private individuals to participate in seed and early stage / series A funding. Qi3 says it has allocated a “significant” fund to support a limited number of projects.
Qi3 Accelerator’s investment portfolio includes companies operating in inspection instrumentation, LED lighting systems, medical diagnostics and printing.
Idea Transform’s weekend bootcamp for startups takes place in Cambridge between April 20 and 22.
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