Inch Cape supports next generation of Scottish offshore wind innovators
Ten innovative companies targeting success in the offshore renewables market have secured a place in the inaugural Launch Academy Scotland programme – the Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult’s industry-backed national technology accelerator programme – on this occasion open exclusively to Scottish SMEs and sponsored by Inch Cape.
Each of the early-stage businesses pitched their technology solutions in response to challenges set by Launch Academy Scotland’s industry sponsors. As well as representatives from Inch Cape, the selection panel comprised those from ORE Catapult, and other sponsors: Scottish Enterprise, Highlands and Islands Enterprise, South of Scotland Enterprise, plus global renewable energy developers BlueFloat Energy | Nadara Partnership and Ocean Winds.
The successful companies – Airspection, AJT Engineering, Fathom Group, Fennex, Frontier Robotics, Innovair, Kraken Robotics, Revive Geoscience, Smarter Subsea (Handling) and Subworx – are developing innovative technologies capable of de-risking and reducing costs for the wider offshore wind sector, helping to accelerate deployment of renewable energy and assisting the UK in meeting its ambitious renewable energy targets and net zero ambitions.
Inch Cape’s Innovation Champion and Interface Manager Shane Macken said: “I would like to congratulate the 10 innovators who made it through to the ORE Catapult Launch Academy Scotland programme as they begin their seven-month journey to accelerate the commercialisation of their innovations. As a judge, it was eye-opening to see the strength and creativity within the applications which ranged from ingenious uses of existing technologies to fully original concepts.
“Inch Cape is proud to be a founding sponsor of the inaugural Scottish iteration of this successful national technology-accelerator programme, and we are sure the experience will add value not only to those taking part but also the wider offshore wind sector.”
Since 2020, through both national and regional programmes across the United Kingdom, Launch Academy has supported 57 companies which have gone on to raise £26.7m in private investment, £8.4m in grant funding and had 150 patents filed.
Dr Stephen Wyatt, Director of Strategy and Emerging Technologies at ORE Catapult, said: “The UK is recognised internationally as a global leader and innovator within the offshore wind sector. We recognise that the industry-focused thinking, creativity and collaborative approach demonstrated by Launch Academy supply chain companies will be instrumental in helping the sector deliver its crucial role in achieving energy security and clean renewable energy targets while smoothing the transition towards net zero.
“We are grateful to our industry partners and sponsors who support the Launch Academy mission to strengthen the UK’s offshore supply chain, and will continue working with our cohort companies and expert partners to drive the industry forward.”
This Launch Academy Scotland cohort will enter an industry-focused technology development and business mentoring programme that provides wraparound support, designed to accelerate commercialisation of their products and services which target the UK and global offshore wind market.
Participating companies are:
| Company name | Website address | Location | Technology |
|---|---|---|---|
| Airspection | https://airspection.co.uk/ | Glasgow | Specialists in inspecting offshore and onshore wind, oil and gas, pipeline and rail assets with drones |
| AJT Engineering Ltd | https://www.ajt-engineering.co.uk/ | Aberdeen | Provider of multi-discipline engineering services |
| Fathom Group | https://fathom-group.com/ | Aberdeen | Specialist engineering services and software consultancy: primary focus – the offshore wind sector |
| Fennex | https://fennex.net/ | Aberdeen | Technology company focused on accelerating the digital transformation of the energy sector |
| Frontier Robotics | https://www.frontierrobotics.ai/ | Edinburgh | Precision and reliability in subsea inspections and data analysis |
| Innovair | https://www.innovair.co.uk/ | Aberdeen and Edinburgh | Innovative advanced inspection robotics, making assets safer and more productive |
| Kraken Robotics | https://www.krakenrobotics.com/ | Aberdeen | Synthetic aperture sonar (SAS) technology for underwater surveys and mapping |
| Revive Geoscience | https://revivegeo.com/ | Aberdeen | Geoscience specialists offering bespoke services for subsurface image solutions, seismic data processing, depth imaging, interpretation, inversion and AVO |
| Smarter Subsea (Handling) | https://www.deepsearecovery.co.uk/ | Aberdeen | Energy Transition Services for Deploying, Recovering and Positioning Underwater Infrastructure in the Offshore Energie |
| Subworx | https://www.subworx.com/ | Aberdeenshire | Innovation in underwater engineering |
