The company manufactures and supplies a range of septic tanks, sewage treatment and rain water harvesting systems for domestic and light commercial applications and has recently received orders from Sierra Leone and Oman. Marsh is now also manufacturing its products on site at its purpose built factories in Little Addington, Northamptonshire, having employed three new full-time staff in its workshops.

In late 2010, Marsh received support and funding worth £7,000 from the Sustainable Construction iNet (iNet) to kick-start the development of a cost effective treatment system that filters waste five times before releasing it back into the ground. As a result of the incentive and support from innovation advisors at iNet, Marsh has received an unprecedented response for the system and has begun shipping overseas.

Steve Boyer, director, Marsh said: “The company has gone from strength to strength over the past few years and we are always developing new ideas for products. The assistance from iNet gave us confidence and a focus in what we were trying to do and has opened up so many more opportunities for the business to expand.”

Charles Meynell, senior business advisor, iNet added: “It is so encouraging when we see innovative companies doing well. Our role is to help companies like Steve’s to innovate and give them the tools to do it themselves; we can’t do it for them. Marsh is a superb example of what the iNet is about; maturing an idea to help it reach the marketplace.”

iNet operates throughout the East Midlands, identifying and assisting businesses developing innovative techniques and services by offering business support and match-funding up to £10,000 per project.

As part of its aim to help East Midlands businesses grow and improve their profitability, iNet, in partnership with International Business Events, subsidised eight innovative firms from the region to exhibit as part of the iNet Pavilion. Businesses joining iNet included: Northamptonshire-based Spraylat and Waste Plan Solutions plus Northamptonshire Enterprise Partnership; Leicestershire-based Metz Architects and Eco Trackway & PRIMA Flooring; Nottinghamshire-based Hertalan and Derbyshire-based Beresford’s Flooring Ltd.

Many companies used the exhibition to unveil new products, including Beresford’s Flooring Ltd, who launched Cobiax, a ‘green’ concrete slab system. The Cobiax system replaces the concrete poured into the central area of a pre-cast concrete slab with hollow plastic spheres; replacing the concrete with air. The system reduces concrete requirements by over 35%, making the concrete slabs 35% lighter and reducing the overall carbon impact on the construction site.

Chris Massey, managing director of Beresford’s said: “Ecobuild was the perfect opportunity to launch the Cobiax system to a wider audience and it gave industry experts the chance to see and feel the system. Our budgets are always tight but at Beresford’s we know that innovation is key and with help from iNet, we are able to move quicker with ideas and get our products in front of the right people.”

Also launching their new product at Ecobuild was LoftZone, which received funding from iNet in May 2011. Loftzone launched its new innovative StoreFloor system; a unique raised loft floor designed to provide safe storage and increased performance from loft insulation. iNet funded LoftZone with £10,000 to explore routes to market for commercialisation.

Charles Meynell, senior innovation advisor said: “Ecobuild 2012 was another gratifying success for all involved with a great buzz around the iNet Pavilion, and a high volume of visitors throughout the event. This was our third year at Ecobuild and we continue to support companies to attend because it exposes smaller firms to the wider construction world; how else could a small business from rural Leicestershire exhibit alongside the big multinationals?  We see further potential in this format and so are looking to do a similar exercise at the ‘Retro Expo’ event at Birmingham’s NEC 14- 16^th October 2012. Interested companies should contact us soon due to expected demand.”

Exhibitor Jonathan Vaughan CEO of Eco Trackway & PRIMA Flooring added: “Ecobuild was a superb experience for ETA, as construction is a relatively new sector for us and one which is highly developable. We have been extoling the sustainable and eco-friendly qualities of our trackway systems for some time but to be ‘preaching to the converted’ at a show like this was really uplifting. We can’t fault the iNet team either, their support was invaluable.”

Ian Hope joins iNet from Connect Midlands, where he was a company relations executive, to take up the role of innovation advisor for Northamptonshire, Leicestershire and Rutland. Ian will assist SMEs to innovate and develop low-carbon products or services for the construction sector, signposting available funding as required.

Ian commented: “I’m looking forward to the challenge of helping SMEs achieve growth through the application of novel and creative ideas. If companies have a bright idea, I want to hear about it and help them develop it.”

Dr Abrar Jawaid takes up the post assisting businesses in Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire, utilising his background in project management and research and development in low carbon innovation technologies. Having previously worked with The Carbon Trust and the East of England Development Agency, Abrar will focus on industrial collaborations with Universities across the region as well as business support to SMEs with a low-carbon concept or project.

Abrar said: “SMEs are in a tough position and at iNet, we believe innovation is the key to their success. They must innovate to stay competitive but many require help to do so. In my role as innovation advisor I want to offer all the support necessary to overcome barriers to market and accelerate progress.”

Charles Meynell, senior business advisor, iNet added: “Both Ian and Abrar are refreshing additions to the iNet team. Their commitment and enthusiasm for innovation and technology fits with iNet’s ethos and as a support organisation, we aim to cover the whole region and reach the farthest corners of the East Midlands and with our expanding team; we are now able to do this.”

iNet, based at the iCon Centre in Daventry, identifies and assists businesses developing innovative techniques and services by offering business support and match-funding up to £10,000 per project.

The Sustainable Construction iNet (iNet), the Daventry-based organisation which identifies and assists businesses developing innovative techniques and services, provided the Innovation Support Funding (ISF) for the fledgling company as part of the R&D project with TBAT Innovation Ltd. Green Roof Systems, established in 2006, started out in North America installing ‘garden roofs’ and after some projects with a Nottingham-based lead works firm, began installing green roofs professionally in the UK.

David Scott, director, Green Roof Systems said: “The research project was invaluable to the company and we are now in a much stronger position to be competitive in the marketplace. Long-term, the company would like to be in a position to cultivate its own sedum and this project has stood us in great stead to bring that process closer to reality.”

Charles Meynell, senior innovation advisor commented: “To be able to assist an innovative and sustainably responsible company at its early stages is testament to the integral work that iNet is doing across the East Midlands. David and his team are highly enthusiastic about their work and are advocates for green roof technology.”

iNet has funding available up to £10,000 on a 50% match basis per project for companies with an innovative product or service idea and is holding networking events around the East Midlands to offer one-to-one support for SMEs.

iNet is based at the iCon Centre in Daventry, a purpose-built business hub featuring best-practice design with sustainability. Interested parties should contact the iNet on info@construction-inet.org.uk or telephone 01604 892326.

We only have a limited number of spaces left on our stand, offered at the highly discounted rate of just £1,500 plus VAT per SME, providing your company with its own unique area to exhibit alongside us within the iNet pavilion.

Our attendance at Ecobuild 2011 was a huge success with 17 part funded SMEs gaining far greater exposure as part of a bigger stand. These enterprising firms were given the platform to exhibit their latest innovations to the marketplace at the biggest sustainable construction showcase in the world. With over 50,000 visitors to the event and more than 1,820 visiting the iNet stands, many SMEs secured valuable business at the show with over 380
leads generated.

Here’s what some of last year’s SMEs said…

Beresford’s Flooring Ltd “Ecobuild was a brilliant show and there is potentially lots of business to come from this. Without the iNet we would not have considered such an exhibition.”

LED Inlight “Attending Ecobuild was definitely a worthwhile exercise and we hope there will be a space for us next year too.”

Responsible Solutions “We have been really very busy and we are pleased that the iNet prompted us to do something like this, we can already see the benefits.”

InterLED “We have been exceedingly busy since Ecobuild and have visited an NHS regional trust with 84 buildings and are looking to trial our products in their headquarters.”

UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) will also be offering the opportunity for Ecobuild attendees to secure a meeting with commercial officers from China, Russia, Brazil, India, Hong Kong, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Mexico, Turkey and Indonesia, without leaving the UK. Click here to find out more about UKTI at Ecobuild.

Can you afford not to join us at Ecobuild?

For more information or to book your space please contact: Claire Finch on 0207 560 4463 or email cfinch@ibeltd.com

Morgan Tucker utilised the ISF to develop a modular system which helps remove some of the technical unknowns relating to working underground, which can be a very costly and time consuming part of any build programme. The company identified that a modular system would not only save construction firms time and money but also reduce the carbon impact of unnecessary excavation work and subsequent onsite traffic.

“The iNet funding has given the whole company a renewed confidence and allowed us to allocate resources to the R&D project. Innovation requires a helping hand and iNet was able to help us develop the idea and talk to potential manufacturers and end users”, said Matthew Tucker, managing director, Morgan Tucker.

Barrie Billinghay, innovation advisor, iNet added: “Matthew and his colleagues at Morgan Tucker are an inspiration to innovators and it’s encouraging to see a busy practice investing in innovation and R&D.”

iNet assists small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) involved in sustainable construction to develop innovative construction products and services that will help the construction industry reduce its CO2 impact. Having assisted over 100 businesses since its inception in 2008, iNet is in a strong position to offer funding, business advice or networking opportunities for SMEs in the East Midlands.

iNet is based at the iCon Centre in Daventry, a purpose-built business hub featuring best-practice design with sustainability. Interested parties should contact the iNet on info@construction-inet.org.uk or telephone 01327 304800.

Both businesses received Innovation Support Funding (ISF) from the Sustainable Construction iNet (iNet), the Daventry-based organisation, which operates throughout the East Midlands,
specialising in providing funding, support and an invaluable network of professional bodies – including universities – to SMEs involved in the development of new products and services for the sustainable construction market.

Barrie Billinghay, innovation advisor, iNet said: “Our aim is to help innovative companies in the East Midlands achieve success with their projects. We are so pleased that these firms have grown and are flourishing and they are testament to the work that we do. iNet has more funding available and is currently seeking SMEs across the East Midlands that require support or funding to assist in the development or research into a new product, system or process for the construction sector.”

As well as bolstering its team, Freewatt has invested in new plant and machinery and extended its premises at its base in Stow, Lincolnshire to accommodate the increase in deliveries and vehicles on site. In late 2010, iNet helped Freewatt develop a teacher training package for primary school children on solar PV in a collaboration project with Bishop Groesseteste University College.

Julian Patrick, managing director, Freewatt commented: “Freewatt is a family owned and operated company and has an enviable reputation for installing solar PV on churches, colleges, industrial and domestic buildings. The business has grown as a result of the increase in demand for solar PV and we have been able to employ new staff on the back of this. iNet’s help on the teacher training package project was invaluable in giving the company a boost and confidence to pass on our expertise to primary school children.”

Spalding-based GlenFarrow has brought in the new engineers to help support increased demand for the company’s services over the past two years. iNet supported GlenFarrow in 2010 to design, manufacture and test its range of batch-fed biomass boilers for the agricultural and rural domestic market. GlenFarrow was awarded the Best Innovation Award at LAMMA 2011 for its Biomass Boiler.

Paul Kitchen, managing director, GlenFarrow said: “We’re delighted to have been able to take on additional staff. GlenFarrow continues to grow and expand across all our divisions and our range of biomass boilers plays a key part in our plans for the future.”

iNet is based at the iCon Centre in Daventry, a purpose-built business hub featuring best-practice design with sustainability. Interested parties should contact the iNet on info@construction-inet.org.ukor telephone 01604 892326.

iNet will be holding its Innovation Clinic events in venues across the East Midlands, from Kettering to Mansfield, with seminars on industry hot topics such as Green Roof Technology, Retrofit and Passivhaus from expert speakers in each field. As well as seminars, SMEs can book in for one-to-one business advice with Innovation Advisors at the Innovation Clinics and receive impartial, no nonsense guidance and support for their businesses.

One-to-one advice from experienced iNet advisors is crucial in helping businesses bring new and better products to the sustainable marketplace and this type of support is becoming increasingly difficult to find elsewhere.

John Liddle, director, Sustainable Construction iNet, commented: “The Sustainable Construction iNet is committed to helping East Midlands companies develop innovative products and services and feel this new series of Innovation Clinics will provide an excellent arena to make that vital connection with the marketplace. To date, iNet has helped over 1000 companies and has supported 100 of those companies with £350,000 worth of funding support. We are a success story helping to support businesses and create jobs in the region and we are in a strong position to continue with this vital work with £1m funding secured from ERDF with the support of The University of Northampton.”

iNet is based at the iCon Centre in Daventry, a purpose-built business hub featuring best-practice design with sustainability. Interested parties should contact the iNet on info@construction-inet.org.uk or telephone 01604 892326.

Developers require robust, cost effective solutions to deliver energy efficient homes under the 2010 Building Regulations and Code for Sustainable Homes and the Fabric First approach could well prove the best solution. Presentations from the Sustainable Construction iNet, the Building Research Establishment and house builder Southdale will give delegates an overview of the technical options available, real life examples of Fabric First in action and discuss the opportunities for companies pursuing this approach.

The morning’s clinic will also give the opportunity to network with other construction focussed businesses from across the East Midlands and companies will have the opportunity to book in for a one-to-one clinic with an iNet Advisor for help and advice to progress their innovative products and ideas.

Programme:
08:30 – Registration and sign up for one-to-one clinics
09:00 – Welcome from the Chair
09:15 – Introduction from the Sustainable Construction iNet by Charles Meynell, iNet
09:45 – Fabric First Approach to Design by Adam Tilford, BRE
10:15 – Fabric First Case Study by Trudie McCormick, Southdale
10:45 – Q&A session
11:15 – Networking and one-to-one clinics
12:30 – Event close

To book or for more information, contact Gemma Davis at BRE on 01923 664547 or email davisg@bre.co.uk.