Source: www.meetingsclub.com
IDM’s work supporting English Cities Fund on the Salford Crescent project in Greater Manchester, helped create a more sustainable and successful development, Muse’s Phil Mayall told the audience at the IDM Business Manchester launch event.
He said: “We were originally looking at health innovation with our partners at the University of Salford for the Innovation Zone, but when we spoke to the IDM guys, and looked at the actual story of the business landscape in Salford, we were able to pivot the offer.
“The data told us that just 10 minutes away in Salford there were some exciting businesses and innovations happening in automation, robotics and AI. We hadn’t been aware, and this insight really helped inform our thinking when we were looking at the positioning of the development.
“Having this input – almost like having a mirror held up by the IDM guys – has made the Innovation Zone a big success. IDM’s ability to help us see the story the data was telling us around the innovation in Salford was very compelling.”
Neil Murray added: “We were delighted to work with Muse and their colleagues in ECF to identify a clear opportunity for Salford to develop its economic growth and social impact. We were determined that the solution would not simply recommend ‘another science park’. The city and university have globally-relevant expertise, so the development should therefore be able to command the attention – and respect – of organisations from the UK and beyond.
"As one example, hearing from Muse that they have been able to transform the Salford Innovation Centre from a failing asset with historically low levels of occupancy, to a thriving innovation hub by targeting the offer at tenants based on the vision that we developed for the project, simply shows the power of the insights that we can generate.”
