Matrix Unveils High Tech Business Sector Action Plan
MATRIX, the NI Science Industry Panel, has put forward an ambitious plan of action, which it says could position Northern Ireland among the world’s most successful high-tech economies.
Its recommendations are the result of the largest collaborative work of high-tech industry leaders and academic experts ever assembled in Northern Ireland.
MATRIX, which brought together more than 80 of the biggest names in local business, including Bombardier Aerospace, Randox, DuPont, Almac and Moy Park among many others, said its proposals would exploit the region’s strong science and technology base and kick-start an exciting new era of enterprise and innovation.
They include a recommendation to set up industry-led communities engaging business, academia and government and directly aimed at capturing emerging market opportunities.
Crucially, MATRIX believes that by establishing these new industry-led ‘communities’, targeted research and business insight will allow companies in Northern Ireland to effectively utilise their skills and ideas for maximum commercial gain.
MATRIX identified five key areas to make the region’s technology and innovation buoyant - ICT, Advanced Engineering (Transport), Agri-food, Advanced Materials and Life & Health Sciences. Each sector was represented by a separate ‘HORIZON’ panel of industry experts.
MATRIX also recommended that:
- Industry-led communities create roadmaps which demonstrate and create specific goals for all members – thereby driving effective knowledge and technology exchange among partners.
- A world class Intellectual Property (IP) infrastructure is set up to enable companies to better exploit opportunities quickly and easily.
- A flexible and responsive skills system is established that leads Europe in its ability to meet changing demands and reflects the specific requirements of industry.
- The regulatory regime is transformed to allow Northern Ireland to take and manage a higher level of risk.
Damien McDonnell, Chair of MATRIX, said: “The contribution made to this process by local companies is overwhelming. Their unprecedented involvement has made these recommendations directly relevant to the needs of the business community. They put industry in the driving seat.
We are proposing here a set of key steps towards a cultural shift that could lead to the creation of a world class knowledge-based economy. Innovation communities are central to this goal. The way we work together has to change. The way business collaborates with academia has to change. If approved, these communities will facilitate that change.
Northern Ireland is brimming with ideas, talent and skills. What we now need is the muscle of business and academia to take these recommendations forward and the foresight of government to facilitate them. It’s time for all of us to put our foot on the accelerator and move on to the next phase.
The MATRIX panel has proposed a number of recommendations that will kick-start, embrace and foster innovation in Northern Ireland, with business taking a leading role and academia providing the inspiration for innovative research.
MATRIX is confident that if these recommendations are implemented they will go a long way to ensuring that Northern Ireland’s economy is healthy and wealthy for the decades to come. Our key objective is to encourage businesses to become more innovative and creative in order to compete in the global marketplace. These business-driven proposals meet that requirement.”
The report was presented to Arlene Foster, Minister for the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment (DETI) in Belfast.
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