This July, the final showcase of IdeaLab 2017 took place at Sensor City, the impressive Liverpool-based technical innovation centre and University Enterprise Zone. The Centre for Entrepreneurship at Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU) is behind IdeaLab, a pilot accelerator programme for technology-driven ideas, which is supported by the Bathgate Start-up Fund.
The IdeaLab 2017 showcase involved five teams of student entrepreneurs pitching their business plans to a panel of experienced judges with the goal of being selected as IdeaLab 2017 winners.
Gary Laverick (CEO, Bathgate Group) and Steve Bennett (Finance Director, Bathgate Group) showed their support at the event and were involved in judging the presentations. The wide range of ideas included an augmented reality camera application, software for Taekwondo Poomsae judging, a health surveillance system, a local music mobile application and a food waste management system.
Out of the five presentations, it was Myau Technologies with their health surveillance system that won. The owners of the winning business, Mohammed Al-khafajiy and Umar Yisa, collaborated to create a system which monitors workers’ activities and vitals. In the event of an emergency or incident, the surveillance system helps to improve emergency response times in a variety of industries, such as oil, gas, construction, demolition and logistics.
Emma Robinson, LJMU Head Student Entrepreneurship said: “The Bathgate Start-up Fund partnership and funding packages offer a significant opportunity to broaden the reach of the Centre for Entrepreneurship and to increase the number of Merseyside based start-ups emerging from LJMU. With mentoring to support business and social enterprise start-up where appropriate, the number of student start-ups and students developing careers as freelancers will increase, with additional opportunities for all students to develop an ‘entrepreneurial mind set’ no matter what their discipline.”
Bathgate Group comprises a range of companies including Bathgate Silica Sand, Arclid Transport, Bathgate Flooring, Bathgate Business Finance and Databax Hosting Solutions. Each Bathgate company shares a common objective to provide customers with the highest level of trust and confidence in all of their products and services.
develop an ‘entrepreneurial mind set’ no matter what their discipline.”
