Virustatic selected for BFTT’s prestigious award to accelerate sustainable innovation

Virustatic, protein science innovation SME, has been awarded a prestigious Award of £150,000 funding and intensive mentoring from the Business of Fashion, Textiles and Technology (BFTT) Creative R&D Programme. From over 140 applications, only 10 companies, including Virustatic, were successful.

Virustatic will receive a comprehensive support package, including a part-time sustainable chemist based at University of Leeds to deliver the project, mentoring from leading sustainable chemistry and material technology academics, hands-on specialist creative and technical advice, as well as ongoing project management and strategic business support.

The SME’s cover a range of subsectors and R&D areas, including; surface finishing processes and natural dyeing, embedded use of traceable raw materials, high-value recycling of fashion and textile industry waste, sensing technologies for healthcare, bio-materials, non-woven textiles, on-shoring of state-of-the-art manufacturing, novel digital solutions and, in the case of Virustatic, sustainable chemical treatments of fabrics.

Virustatic will be working with University of Leeds and UAL on a R&D project focussing on developing their innovative textile coating to replace the use of metal-based chemicals for the antimicrobial treatment of fabric and textiles, taking place in 2021 and 2022.

Lucy Hope, Virustatic’s Development Director said: “We are delighted with the BFTT’s recognition of our sustainability-driven, innovative textile coating, and the support and opportunity afforded by this prestigious award. In partnership with world-leading sustainability experts at the University of Leeds and UAL, we look forward to shaping the future of the antimicrobial textiles sector, in order to replace the use of harmful metal-based chemicals across the fashion and textile industry.”

Professor Jane Harris, BFTT Programme Director said: “Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are critical to the economy and critical to the creative sector in particular, making up over 95% of creative businesses in the UK. The BFTT R&D Programme seeks to highlight the value and impact SMEs can have in our sector and on the economy, when provided with the right type of financial support and research expertise.” ​

Nikki Matthews, Creative R&D Programme Manager said: “We are delighted to have Virustatic joining us in the Programme. From the Programme’s first cohort funded in 2020, we have seen how SME’s can be incredibly agile and creative, and the real difference that focused R&D can make to the business. This Programme will provide Virustatic with multi-disciplinary and multi sector expertise, to accelerate the innovation of sustainable business models, processes and products.”

This new award brings the total investment by BFTT - including this Creative R&D Programme, and collaborative research across three additional BFTT projects - to approx £2.8 million across 35 SME’s, with the creation of at least 20 new jobs. 

About BFTT

The Business of Fashion, Textiles and Technology (BFTT) is a five-year industry-led project that focuses on delivering innovation within the entire fashion and textile supply chain. 

BFTT aims to foster a new, creative business culture in which fashion, textiles and technology businesses – from small and medium enterprises to multinational companies – can use R&D as a mechanism for growth, positioning the industry as agents of new technology and materials development. BFTT is engaging with businesses and the Government to develop a pipeline of talent to support the fashion, textile and technology businesses of the future, tapping into STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) expertise, which aims to provide the creative skills and transdisciplinary innovation needed to support the sector.

During its first year, the Business of Fashion, Textiles and Technology reported considerable progress, including 2,500+ organisations reached via partner network, 80 expressions of interest for the first call of the SME Support Programme and 800+ responses to a major national survey of the fashion, textiles and technology industry.

BFTT is one of nine Creative Research & Development Clusters funded by the Industrial Strategy Fund (£80m) and delivered by the Arts and Humanities Research Council on behalf of UKRI as part of the Creative Industries Cluster Programme. The Creative Industries Clusters Programme comprises nine Research and Development (R & R&D) partnerships: the Business of Fashion, Textiles and Technology (BFTT) Partnership and an independent Policy and Evidence Centre led by Nesta with partners. The UK wide programme convenes world-class research talent in a first-of-its-kind R&D investment to accelerate growth in a range of creative sectors and aims to create jobs and drive the creation of companies, products and experiences that can be marketed around the world, significantly contributing to UK economic growth both regionally and nationally.