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Harness the power of collaboration.Knowledge Transfer Partnerships

A Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) is a very cost effective way to develop a partnership between your business and the University of Southampton, enabling you to access new knowledge, skills and technology to help your company develop. The partnership will involve a recently qualified graduate working within your company on a project central to your needs, with their work jointly supervised by a senior academic with expertise in your area of strategic importance.

What can KTP offer my company?By participating in KTP you will gain access to highly qualified experts to spearhead new projects, develop innovative solutions to increase your competitive edge, increase profitability, and help your business grow. The opportunity to link with academia and a high calibre graduate will transfer new knowledge and expertise, helping to embed a culture of innovation within your organisation.

What benefits does the company get?Business performance outputs vary from case to case. Latest research shows that the benefits that can be expected by a KTP (lasting 1-3 years) are, on average, an increase in annual profit of over £290k, and the creation of eight genuine new jobs.

What type of projects can we carry out?Our expertise has already helped a wide variety of businesses improve their performance. For example, we work with companies to improve existing products, or develop new products or technology to take to market. We can help plan and implement new marketing strategies to address the needs of entirely new sets of customers, and establish new systems to improve efficiencies and competitiveness in staff and business processes.

What will it cost?A KTP is part-funded by a Government grant. A small to medium-sized enterprise (SME) with less than 250 employees can expect to contribute about a third of the project costs, with larger companies about half. The average annual costs of a project for an SME are currently around £20,000.

The SMMI is the world’s largest centre for education, research and innovation in marine and maritime studies. We are having a transformational impact on society globally through our research, innovative ideas and solutions, as well as supplying highly skilled graduates for the marine and maritime sectors.

Kittiwake Developments

Kittiwake Developments is a leading global provider of machinery condition monitoring, fuel and lube oil analysis and marine water testing. Kittiwake worked with us to investigate the feasibility of developing a sensor that could determine the detergent levels in the scrape down oil from marine two-stroke heavy diesel engines.

CJR Propulsion

CJR Propulsion is a world leader in the design and manufacture of shafts, propellers, rudders and other associated stern gear for a variety of marine vessels, such as larger pleasure boats, ferries and other working boats. CJR worked with us to develop improvements in boat speed and fuel efficiency, as well as reduce the noise and vibration felt on board due to propellers.

Victor Marine Ltd

Victor Marine Ltd are specialists in the design and manufacture of tank washing machines, gas freeing fans and oily water separators. Victor Marine worked with us to apply finite element analysis and computation fluid dynamic design tools to a new product being developed, and to re-establish Victor Marine as the world leading supplier of container shipping tank cleaning solutions.

British Safety Council

The British Safety Council is one of the world’s leading occupational health, safety and environmental organisations with 10,000 members and turnover of £9m. They worked with us to develop an e-commerce platform to achieve efficiency gains and improve market effectiveness, along with a new e-learning solution to extend global access to their training and qualifications.

TSL Technology

TSL Technology provides market-leading electromechanical, instrumentation and micro-hydraulics equipment, power electronics and motors for the energy and marine industries. They are working with us to investigate and develop new power electronic converters for electric motor drives and interfacing of renewable energy sources, including wave and marine turbines, to the grid.

The RNLI

The RNLI is a UK charity which provides a 24-hour lifesaving service around the UK and Republic of Ireland. The RNLI worked with us to develop computer models to decide how frequently their boats and their equipment need maintenance, and to manage the costs of building and timings to maintain their lifeboat fleet.

Examples of related case studies