Wounded Warriors bring British inventor’s dreams to life

It is rare to witness the moment when an inventor sees his dreams realised; the culmination of years of testing, adapting and perfecting inventions suddenly paying off. I had the pleasure of witnessing one of those extraordinary moments while attending the 33rd National Veterans Wheelchair Games last month in Tampa, Florida. When I visited Tampa to attend the Games, I also wanted to take a look at the local economy. Most of all, I was curious to see if the UK could learn from Tampa’s expanding tech and life sciences sectors and how we could take part in that growth.

My first stop was the University of South Florida (USF) Campus to learn more about the Tampa Bay Technology Incubator (TBTI). The programme has helped support around 40 companies, and I was pleased to hear that some of their companies have already been working with UK industry. We will keep an eye on the companies as they expand, and our offer of advice on how to set up UK subsidiaries of the businesses was well received

I also visited the CAMLS Centre which is an organization that helps to train healthcare professionals and develop medical devices.  It had some impressive new kit and was clearly a great environment for its students. This centre could be helpful for UK companies looking to get US regulatory approvals.

The visit to Florida was timely, as on the other side of the Atlantic the UK has seen growth in these sectors. The engine of this economic activity will be further helped by the UK’s 10% tax on IP related profits (the Patent Box), increased R&D tax credits, and the NHS improving the speed and ease of access to a great patient pool for trials. The UK is also streamlining regulatory processes so product approvals are quicker and the latest innovations can benefit patients sooner.

The UK has a strong track record of universities creating IP and “spinning out” businesses. With four of the world’s top six universities located in the UK this is hardly surprising. Our universities have been focusing on how to translate research into business for years. UKTI’s upcoming Entrepreneurs Festival in Manchester is an exciting development related to this. It will help attract the brightest brains to setup businesses in the UK.

The visit to the University was inspiring but there is nothing like seeing innovations gaining the approval of users.  We attended the Games to meet with firms that were exhibiting products. The breadth of the inventions was staggering – there were special devises to aid entering cars, adapted clothing, electric wheel chairs and medical devises.

The second aspect of my trip involved attending the exciting Veterans Wheelchair Games. We invited and supported the UK-based Mountain Trike’s attendance at the show. Tim Morgan is the company’s managing director and also the inventor of the All-Terrain Wheelchair. Tim wanted to build a wheelchair that could operate effectively on terrains like beaches and cobbled streets. His design was so revolutionary it was awarded the Silver Medal for outstanding commercial success from the Royal Academy of Engineering earlier this year. The wheelchair is made from robust mountain bike parts and is available in the UK, Europe and the US.

The reactions to Tim’s wheelchair at the exhibition were terrific. Wounded Warriors surrounded the wheelchair and remarked on the machinery in tones usually reserved for admiring luxury cars. Tim was beaming as he was asked how it would enable fishing, shooting and other sports. A couple of warriors switched chairs to drive it! It was fantastic to see a young entrepreneur’s garage invention garnering approval from some of the world’s greatest athletes.

It is still early days for Tim and the Mountain Trike Company but the positive endorsements will keep him motivated for a long time and the UK’s wins at the games no doubt kept our own warriors smiling all the way home.