The AMRC is making a direct a contribution to the transformation of the national economy, and its understanding of the value of Intellectual Property (IP) is critical to that success, according to the government’s Intellectual Property Office.

Dan Anthony, a national expert for the UK IPO, praises the Sheffield Process, saying the AMRC approach has been ‘visionary’ and builds on a centuries’ old tradition of assaying and hallmarking and trade marking.

Anthony points out that the “AMRC’s success is not limited to the site between Rotherham and Sheffield,” and cites a recent Institute for Public Research North, which shows that Yorkshire and the Humber make up 6.9 per cent of the national economy.

“In the ten years before 2014 Sheffield’s economy expanded by 41 per cent. The AMRC makes a direct contribution to this transformation and an understanding of IP and its value in exemplifying success, targeting research and building value is crucial,” Anthony says.

The AMRC’s Executive Dean, Keith Ridgway is quoted as saying: “We tend to share IP with our partners. The AMRC/University owns all IP generated from jointly funded projects i.e. projects funded by partner organisations as a group. Where a company pays for specific research they own the IP. IP is always resolved before a project starts.”

Anthony notes that Professor Ridgway studies the science of innovation. “Through his work on Darwinian evolution applied to manufacturing transformation he is developing our understanding of the linkages between tiny changes and game changers,”

Anthony concludes: “Perhaps the success of the AMRC shows that Sheffield is a city where the evolution of IP is in the DNA.”

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