Buckinghamshire Business First joins forces with EU partners

Published by

Nicky Godding

Buckinghamshire Business First has joined forces with nine countries across the EU to work jointly on a new initiative called Inno Industry, which seeks to better understand if and how current regional and national strategies are helping businesses to become more digitalised, or to use the jargon – prepare for the ‘fourth industrial revolution’ known as ‘industry 4.0’.

Heather Dean, Head of Skills and Business Support at Buckinghamshire Business First, said: “We are delighted to be part of this innovative project to help businesses embrace the benefits of digital technology.”

The key aim of the project is to increase the number of business clusters that are supporting the transition to Industry 4.0, and to create a blueprint of best practice to support businesses in clusters to take up new digital technologies, such as Big Data and Artificial Intelligence.

Heather added: “In Buckinghamshire we have strong business clusters, including high performance engineering, assistive technologies and the creative industries clustering around Pinewood Studios, which could benefit greatly from this initiative.”

The project partners aim to improve local, regional and national policies in order to increase the rate of clusters that develop activities to support digital transformation.

Inno Industry is funded by Interreg Europe, a programme funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

(BBF) is the Growth Hub for Buckinghamshire and is backed by Buckinghamshire-based entrepreneurs, thousands of SMEs, Buckinghamshire LEP and Local Authorities. Buckinghamshire Business First provides the link between public policy and the business community in Buckinghamshire and works with partners to create a dynamic business environment in the Entrepreneurial Heart of Britain.

Nicky Godding

Nicky Godding is editor of The Business Magazine. Before her journalism career, she worked mainly in public relations moving into writing when she was invited to launch Retail Watch, a publication covering retail and real estate across Europe. After some years of constant travelling, she tucked away her passport and concentrated on business writing, co-founding a successful regional business magazine. She has interviewed some of the UK’s most successful entrepreneurs who have built multi-million-pound businesses and reported on many science and technology firsts. She reports on the region’s thriving business economy from start-ups, family businesses and multi-million-pound corporations, to the professionals that support their growth and the institutions that educate the next generation of business leaders.