STEAMlab is a free, two-day workshop designed to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), micro businesses, and sole traders to develop new ideas. The workshop will explore a real live challenge around perceptions, encouraging explorations on the potential uses of arts, creativity and digital technologies.

The two-day, intensive workshop will give you the opportunity to address and negotiate different challenges in a supportive, experimental learning environment. The workshop will help you look at new ways of researching and developing innovative solutions to new ideas, new business or artistic products, and services.

To take part, you will need to email your interest, detailing a proposed product / concept. A panel will then select the projects based upon the published criteria, and will be looking for a balance of the most inspiring projects that can be tested with an interdisciplinary team of participants each with their own expertise, knowledge, skills and experience.

To be eligible for our free workshop, you must meet the following criteria:

• Seeking to be innovative and willing to share ideas
• Must be available during the published workshop dates
• Be considered as a business / enterprise – sole trader, micro business, SME (employing fewer than 250 people)
• Based within the GBS LEP area (Birmingham, Solihull, North Worcestershire and South Staffordshire)
• Be a business with an annual turnover of less than €50 million or a balance sheet total of less than €43 million
• Operate in at least one of the following sectors – arts and creative industries, health and life sciences, advanced manufacturing, low carbon (specific sector requirements are detailed in each programme call)

Supporting projects that focus on building learning and knowledge with the skills and technologies of the future. There is a thematic focus based on growth areas of low carbon, health and life sciences, advanced manufacturing, and creative and digital.

The workshop will be broken down into the following:

Day One

• Work collectively to tackle a real world, active challenge set by Meridian Technologies UK. Through doing this you will be introduced to a number of collaborative, iterative strategies which draw on open innovation and design thinking methodologies.
• Learn about application methods of emotional intelligence for business use.
• Learn about intellectual property (IP) models.

Day Two

• Building on techniques introduced during Day One, you will present your product, concept or challenge to the group and receive facilitated critical analysis and feedback as we work collaboratively to find new ideas and find solutions.
• By the end of day two you will have refined your initial idea and will develop and present a new pitch for your concept.

There is no fee or payment required for participation in the workshops (the workshop is equivalent to £2,384 worth of business support. Lunch and refreshments will be provided.

How you will benefit:

• Explore and develop your concepts, products and services
• Learn about open innovation, or design thinking methodologies and how you can exploit this for your business needs
• Support from industry experts, academics, creative and technologists
• Research collaborations with academics
• Network and build relationships
• Financial assistance to prototype products and services within STEAMhouse
• Access to STEAMhouse facilities (from autumn 2017)

Proposals should be ambitious and original, but realistic and possible to achieve. Proposals will be reviewed by a panel comprising of workshop leaders, representatives from Birmingham City University and the STEAMHouse teams. We will respond to all applications  Monday 20 March.

STEAMlab is part of STEAMhouse Phase 1, a creative innovation centre in Digbeth with the aim of brokering collaborative relationships between businesses, academics, arts and creative industries. The centre will demonstrate how arts and creativity can be combined with STEAM subjects (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) to drive innovation, skills, research and economic growth. It will provide support to SMEs and new enterprises from the GBSLEP region of Birmingham, Solihull, North Worcester and South Staffordshire to develop new products and services through workshops, grants and research cooperations with academic from the university.

STEAMhouse is a partnership between Birmingham City University and Eastside Projects, supported by the European Regional Development Funding (ERDF) and Arts Council England Creative Local Growth Fund.

Venue: Fazeley Studios191 Fazeley Street, Digbeth, Birmingahm, B5 5SE

FREE to attend

You can register to attend here