Understanding Innovate UK

Dr Ian Brotherston is Head of Government Levers at Innovate UK. Ian is responsible for the delivery of Innovate UK’s ‘Government Levers’ strategy, specifically the role of procurement in stimulating innovation, including delivery of the SBRI Programme, and the role of regulation, standards and NQI in innovation. Ian is also responsible for Innovate UK’s relationships with other UK Government departments, and other strategically important stakeholder organisations. Previously Ian was responsible for Innovate UK’s relationships with colleagues in Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, their governments & agencies.

Ian joined Innovate UK in February 2015 as KTP Programme Manager. In this role Ian led a major operational overhaul and strategic realignment of the programme.

Prior to Innovate UK Ian was Head of Enterprise at Heriot-Watt University where he was responsible for the industry sponsored research, commercial exploitation of IP, and enterprise creation.

His commercial background includes spells working for QinetiQ and DERA, and Ionic Polymer Solutions, a chemical start-up company which developed novel high-temperature proton conductive membranes for fuel cells.”

Rayner Lim is the Commercialisation Programmes Support Manager at Innovate UK. He is currently responsible for the development and deployment of ICURe, including the operational management of its multiple national delivery partners. ICURe exists to de-risk emerging technologies, upskill entrepreneurial leads and create societal and economic impact from academic IP.

Rayner has several years of experience at Innovate UK across a breadth of operational roles in the financial, skills, and commercialisation arenas. Consequently, he has a deep understanding of the challenges that innovative businesses and academics face.

As a Knowledge Transfer Adviser, Mark is responsible for developing and managing a portfolio of KTP projects between businesses and academia. These high impact, commercially focussed projects, leverage sector-leading innovation from UK universities, to drive and accelerate growth in ambitious businesses. He has a passion for applied R&D excellence, particularly with SMEs, where he believes ordinary people can make a massive difference, if given a little help.

A Chartered Mechanical Engineer by profession, he has held various positions in different industry sectors, as well as undertaking sensitive work in Government.

As Knowledge Transfer Manager for Digital Economy and Internet of Things, ‘Foggie’ works with IoT and future comms in the Digital & Creative team.

He works with colleagues across Innovate UK KTN’s sector teams including manufacturing, health, energy and infrastructure helping companies and people accelerate their ideas into real-world solutions by guiding them through innovation funding opportunities, obtaining expertise and forging connections with new clients and investors.

His background is in science including chemistry, biochemistry and device physics in businesses of all sizes. Before joining KTN, he led on ‘electronics innovation’ in Whitehall.