About InfoLab21
InfoLab21 at Lancaster University is a bold new award-winning international centre of excellence for research in information and communication technologies.
Lancaster University
Consistently rated as one of the top 10 UK universities, Lancaster University has established an excellent track record in its "Third Mission" activities, which aim to bring universities, businesses and communities together.
The University has particular strengths in ICT and has a long and successful history of working with international ICT companies through its prestigious departments of Computing and Communication Systems, including major telecommunications network operators, equipment manufacturers and software providers such as Microsoft, BT Labs, Orange, Cisco, Nokia and Ford.
Collaboration
The University sought to bring the two departments together in one building and to create a new technology transfer department, the Knowledge Business Centre, in order to encourage the commercial exploitation of research.
A further aim was to attract new high technology businesses to co-locate alongside the world-class academic team, for at the very heart of InfoLab21 is the notion that academics and businesspeople can and will work alongside each other, to mutual benefit.
Funders
The Northwest Development Agency (NWDA), the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) recognized how beneficial the unique project would be to the region and their financial contributions enabled the University to realise its vision.
Watch Video
InfoLab21 - An Introduction
Opened in 2005
The Rt Hon Patricia Hewitt (then Secretary of State for Trade and Industry) officially opened InfoLab21 on 2nd February 2005. Over 100 people attended, including representatives from local councils, chambers of commerce, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and the NWDA.
"It is an excellent example of how universities and business can work in partnership to seize the opportunities presented by the global knowledge economy. This facility can act as a real catalyst for economic growth in knowledge-based industries in the North West"
Patricia Hewitt
"InfoLab21 will enable industry to obtain competitive advantage from the research strengths, international networking and links with multinational companies of the University. It will also support growth in the vital ICT cluster, through skills training. The InfoLab21 concept is in line with the City Council's development plans for Lancaster and it also sits within the Government's plans for using Universities as power houses for the economy"
Vice-Chancellor Paul Wellings
"Its distinctive design had to reflect the University's bold vision and provides a visually arresting signpost for the University signalling its confidence as a research-based institution"
NWDA Chairman Bryan Gray
