By Rob Eyre, research manager at the Oxford Trust

Oxfordshire is often cited as one of Europe's foremost hubs of innovative business especially, but not exclusively, in the high-tech sector. According to economists, successful hubs are centred on world-class universities and have certain other attributes in common, including pioneering companies and good business infrastructure.

This all sounds good in theory, but on a day-to-day level, does it really give a company a competitive advantage being situated down the road from a world-class institution like Oxford University?

The answer is that it can, if the managers proactively harness the wealth of knowledge and expertise that is available in the university.

One good way to do this is to hire academic specialists as consultants to advise on particular technical or business issues, as and when they arise.

However, Oxford University is a large and complex organisation and it can seem difficult to know how to find the right consultant. Fortunately there is a gateway through Isis Innovation, the university's technology transfer company.

Under the trade name Oxford University Consulting (OUC) Isis provides access to a network of experts that reaches across the full spectrum of the university's departments, including medical sciences, physical sciences, humanities and the business school.

Projects OUC's consultants take on large and small projects for a wide range of businesses, from start-up companies to multinationals. Teams of consultants are assembled where multiple skills and expertise are needed.

OUC also provides access to specialist equipment across the university. This is particularly useful for local companies that cannot justify the investment in a large piece of equipment, but for whom a small number of analyses might be useful.

Isis managing director Tom Hockaday said: "OUC is proving particularly popular with local companies.

"We work with many organisations around the world, of course, but it's particularly easy to build close relationships with companies that have an Oxfordshire presence not only spin-outs from the university, but a whole range of local companies in a variety of sectors.

"Consultants can very easily travel to see local clients so, for example, if a company wants someone to advise on their laboratory set-up, or take part in regular advisory meetings, that is very easy to arrange."

OUC's four project managers receive the requests from companies, make the match with an appropriate consultant and manage the project through to delivery.

What is delivered might be a report, attendance at a meeting, ongoing participation in an advisory board, or experimental results with expert analysis.

The requests are varied and the project managers never know what is going to come through the door next.

Recent examples include technical advice on patents for a lawyer, comments on a script for a drama documentary and help with a company's research and development strategy.

Investment One area that has increased in popularity recently is due diligence for technology investors, where the consultant, an expert working at the cutting-edge of research in a relevant area, investigates the technical side of a business before investment.

One local company that has taken advantage of OUC's consultancy service is Oxford Gene Technology, or OGT, a business based at Begbroke Science Park that develops molecular tools for biological research.

Peter Hotten, OGT's director of licensing and business development, said: "OGT regularly uses Isis to source expert advice from Oxford University academics, for both the technical and strategic aspects of our business.

"We think it gives us a real competitive advantage to be able to access such world-class expertise right on our doorstep."

So by hiring consultants from Oxford University, local companies really can take advantage of the wealth of expertise and facilities that are available just down the road.

In return, the academic consultants enjoy a stimulating interaction with industry that often leads to a longer term relationship, and sometimes even collaborative research.

Furthermore, each time an Oxford University academic consults for a local company, an extra link is added to the web that forms Oxfordshire's innovative business hub.

n For more information, contact Elen Wade-Martins, project manager, on 01865 280859 or e-mail elen.wade-martins@isis.ox.ac.uk n This page is compiled by The Oxford Trust, www.oxtrust.org.uk