In the week of October 16 – 22, the third of the internationalisation mission was completed, organised within the framework of the Accelerate Izmir programme, as part of the İzmir NIC Project, implemented by Teknopark İzmir.
The mission was arranged as part of the “Internationalisation” support offered by Plus Services of Accelerate İzmir Programme. Two selected Accelerate İzmir companies, Maritime Trainer ( “MTR”) and Be Right Back (“BRB”) were the participants of the second visit held in the UK. For each company, different connections were made in the UK. The selected companies, Maritime Trainer, – which offers innovative solutions to the evaluation, training, and development needs of human resources for the maritime industry, and Be Right Back, – an online platform that enables under-equipped players to access the powerful equipment they need over the internet, attended various meetings and events throughout their mission.
The first destination of the mission was in London on October 17, where the İzmir NIC Project Team and Accelerate İzmir companies were accompanied by Investment Project Expert Zhi Dong. In the meeting, Ms Dong provided information to the companies and İzmir NIC Project Team about the UK Technology Ecosystem.
Following the visit, a meeting was held with the representatives of the Department for International Trade in London. At the meeting, the companies had the opportunity to talk about their businesses, while Teknopark Izmir General Manager Prof. Dr Metin Tanoğlu introduced Teknopark Izmir and Izmir NIC Project. The meeting was honoured with the participation of DIT Project Manager Mark Anthony Fevrier and DIT Operations Manager Michele Davidson Jones and concluded with the presentations of the representatives.
As part of the second day of the cooperation visits, a meeting was held with SRM Business with the participation of representatives of BRB and Teknopark Izmir on October 18. In the meeting where SRM Business UK Director Anıl Sürmeli shared his experiences, providing BRB representative Onur Can Kılıç with extensive information regarding entering in the UK market.
Following the visit, representatives of MTR and İzmir NIC Project held a meeting with the officials of Informa, an international marketing company, in London. At the meeting, it was agreed that MTR would present its success story at the fair to be held in October, which will be organised by Informa, while many possibilities were discussed on behalf of MTR about marketing.
On the third day of the cooperation visits, representatives of İzmir NIC Project held discussions at Surrey Research Park, a technology development centre and science park. The meeting was held with Mr Grant Bourhill, CEO of Surrey Research Park and Caroline Fleming of SETSquared.
Furthermore, within the programme of the UK mission, meetings were held at Creative Destruction Lab – Said Business School, Oxford, which is a free mentoring and investor promotion programme, and steps were taken for new collaborations and connections to be established.
On October 20, meetings continued at St John’s Innovation Centre (with David Gill and his team) and Cambridge University Entrepreneurship Centre (with Ann Davidson and Sayara Thompson). On behalf of Teknopark Izmir, important business associations were discussed and important information exchanges about the ecosystem were carried out. At the meeting held at the Cambridge University Entrepreneurship Centre, İzmir NIC Project Team Leader David Tee gave a detailed overview of the project, which was followed by a presentation on Teknopark İzmir, given by Prof. Dr Metin Tanoğlu and Miray Şanlı Taşkın.
Following the meeting at the Cambridge University Entrepreneurship Centre, MTR representative Ahmet Özgür Alemdağ participated in the HR & Crew Management Summit organized by ACI Maritime, where he gave a presentation on MTR successfully.
On October 21, Accelerate İzmir companies and İzmir NIC Project team held meetings with representatives of successful Turkish companies, namely VOXAL Consulting and Faradai. As part of the visit, Turkish Embassy in London was visited, where the companies and İzmir NIC Project Team met with the Turkish Ambassador to the United Kingdom, Ümit Yalçın and Trade Advisor, Devlet Selim Paslı.
Throughout the one-week mission in the UK, project activities and the İzmir entrepreneurship ecosystem were introduced, important cooperation steps were taken in line with internationalisation and potential partners were acquired.
İzmir NIC – İzmir Network and Innovation Centre Project
İzmir Network and Innovation Centre (İzmir NIC) Project, is implemented by Teknopark İzmir within the scope of the Ministry of Industry and Technology Competitive Sectors Programme, realised with the financial support of the European Union and the Republic of Turkey, aiming to enhance the commercialisation and internationalisation of innovative products, by fostering networks and strategic partnership among relevant stakeholders. The project, focusing on ICT and RE sectors, which are among the pioneers of economic development; aims to increase the capacities of innovation ecosystem actors (SME, Start-up, TTO, TGB, R&D Centres, etc.) in İzmir through training, Acceleration programmes, mentoring support, and networking activities.
The project, implemented with partners İzmir Institute of Technology (İYTE) and the Software Industrialists Association (YASAD), will run for 3 years.
