Innovation In Action

Innovation In Action is a collaborative, business-led network that empowers South Yorkshire companies to tackle real challenges, implement practical solutions, and achieve measurable results. By connecting businesses with cutting-edge technology, experienced industry mentors, and regional innovation specialists, we help companies innovate, grow, and thrive in an ever-evolving marketplace.

Our approach focuses on identifying common challenges and co-designing bite-sized projects to explore practical solutions. This collaborative model simplifies the process of adopting innovation, demonstrates tangible benefits, and unlocks new opportunities for businesses across various sectors, including manufacturing, life sciences, health and wellbeing, and green energy.

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Two people standing on an upper-level walkway inside a large industrial building with exposed brick walls and blue-painted steel beams. The walkway overlooks a spacious factory floor filled with workstations, machinery, and shelving units. The area below is organized with tables, equipment, and workers in high-visibility clothing. Large arched windows line the brick walls, allowing natural light into the space.
A person wearing protective work gloves and a dark industrial uniform stands in a warehouse aisle lined with metal shelving and stacked materials. The individual is holding a tool and a cable, with safety goggles resting on a cap. Bright lighting from the background highlights the organised rows of shelves and the industrial setting.

About Innovation in Action

What is the Innovation In Action Network?

Innovation In Action is a dynamic, business-driven network designed to identify and implement practical solutions to real-world challenges and opportunities faced by businesses in South Yorkshire. The network fosters collaboration, helping companies to innovate, grow, and thrive in an ever-evolving marketplace.

Who is it for?

The network is open to businesses of all types and sizes. Through peer-to-peer networking, collaborative challenges, and knowledge-sharing opportunities, participants can tap into a wealth of expertise and insight.

A growing community of forward-thinking companies from sectors such as manufacturing, life sciences, health and wellbeing, and green energy are working together regionally to gain a competitive edge both nationally and internationally.

Who is involved?

We connect businesses with cutting-edge technology, pair local SMEs with experienced industry mentors, and leverage the expertise of regional innovation specialists to drive transformative change across industries. Together, we are building a stronger, more innovative business ecosystem for South Yorkshire.

A diagram showing overlapping shapes representing four groups: “Business Community” in a large green teardrop shape, “Solution Providers” in a black circle, “Project Partners” in a smaller black circle, and “Industry Experts” in a light green circle. Arrows around the diagram include text: “Collaborate to innovate” at the top and “Collaborate to compete” at the bottom, indicating cyclical collaboration between these groups.

The Challenge Blueprint

The Challenge Blueprint focuses on tackling the current issues facing the South Yorkshire business community. Through collaboration, we identify shared challenges, develop practical, actionable solutions, and facilitate knowledge-sharing across industries. By co-creating manageable, supported projects, we help businesses overcome obstacles, simplify the process of adopting innovation, and unlock new opportunities.

These challenges provide a safe environment for exploring fresh ideas, testing emerging technologies, and mitigating risks associated with change—ultimately delivering measurable benefits to businesses and fostering long-term success. 

A flowchart with five connected boxes showing an innovation process. First box: “Community of businesses converge, common themes identified, a pilot challenge created.” Second: “SMEs matched with industry experts to guide energy reduction and capitalise on opportunities.” Third: “Technology connected and tested to provide data and analysis.” Fourth: “Learning, benefits and solutions shared.” Fifth: “An Innovation in Action blueprint for the future created.”
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Current Challenge

Productivity Challenge

The Energy Challenge

Ten South Yorkshire SMEs with energy cost challenges participated in a coordinated project to address rising energy expenses. Partnering with FourJaw's plug-and-play machine monitoring platform, the initiative focused on data-driven solutions to reduce waste and costs.

This initiative offered a new model of collaboration, innovation, and practical energy solutions.

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A group of people standing together in a modern meeting room with exposed beams and brick walls. There are orange chairs arranged around the room and a wooden podium on the right. A large screen displays a colourful bar chart with multiple data points. The setting appears to be a business or training event.
Two people standing inside an industrial workshop with large multi-pane windows in the background. The space contains heavy machinery, metal workstations, chains, and equipment, including a red tool cabinet and yellow safety blocks. The floor is dark and worn, and the overall setting suggests a manufacturing or engineering environment.

“We’ve replaced 2 old compressors and a boiler which will save us £20k in energy per year. Going forward we are looking at a new laser, saw, and laser welder informed by the FourJaw machine monitoring tech. Hopefully over the next year or so we will see further reductions in our energy usages and costs based on new machine upgrades.”  

Terry Lee, Managing Director at EE Ingleton 

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Success Stories

Seven Hills Fabrication
Industrial workshop with two large press brake machines labeled ‘Bystronic Xpert 80.’ Workstations with metal parts, tools, and a computer monitor displaying technical diagrams are positioned in front of the machines. Overhead beams and shelving with materials are visible in the background.
Arden Winch & Co LTD
Person wearing ear protection and a padded jacket operating a row of embroidery machines in a workshop. Bright red garments are laid out on the machines for stitching. Another person is visible in the background, and the workspace includes tables and equipment under bright indoor lighting.
EE Ingleton Engineering
Two people standing in front of a large industrial machine with a bright orange and black exterior in a factory setting. One person is gesturing with hands while the other stands near a control panel attached to the machine. The background shows metal beams, shelves, and equipment under a high roof with skylights.
Maher
Two people wearing bright orange safety vests with the Maher logo stand in front of a large interactive screen in an industrial setting. One person is pointing at charts displayed on the screen, while the other observes. The background includes a red cabinet and blue storage units.

Current Challenge Ideas

Artificial Intelligence

Ten SME manufacturers to take part in a three-month program to enhance their tendering skills using AI. The aim is to upskill participants for all tenders, explore machine capacity sharing, and provide support from technology partners and experienced mentors.

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Productivity Challenge

The Productivity Challenge seeks to boost manufacturing productivity in South Yorkshire by 10-25% within three months. Ten SME manufacturers will utilise advanced monitoring equipment and receive guidance from specialists. The program includes a masterclass, gamification to motivate employees, and data-driven improvement plans developed with mentors, promoting shared learning among participants.

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Addressing skills shortages

Ten SME manufacturers that are struggling to recruit skilled engineers. This initiative will create a database of underutilized engineering skills in South Yorkshire, focusing on underemployed individuals, including marginalized groups. A six-month development program will prepare potential engineers for employment, using digital tools to match them with companies. Mentoring will support successful transitions into sustainable jobs, aiming to increase the availability of skilled engineers and enhance social and economic benefits in the local community.

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Quality management systems

Starting a new business is exciting but challenging, especially for early-stage companies. Establishing a quality management system is crucial, particularly in regulated fields like life sciences and health & wellbeing. South Yorkshire’s Health and Wellbeing partners are launching a pilot project to demonstrate the benefits of early Quality Management adoption, offering practical advice and accessible resources. To tailor the initiative, a five-minute survey will gather insights on the needs of local businesses in this sector.

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Partners and collaboration

AES Seal

"We are transforming into a powerful advocacy group for South Yorkshire business, shaping new and innovative ways of working collaboratively and in partnership." - 
Martin McKervey, Director, AES SEAL, Chair of AMID Business Reference Group. 

AESSEAL logo featuring a stylized triangular design with alternating red and blue stripes and a solid red apex. Below the triangle, the text “AESSEAL” appears in bold red and blue letters, and underneath is the tagline “ENVIRONMENTAL TECHNOLOGY” in red uppercase letters.

Amodo

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Business Sheffield

Logo with the word “amodo” in a modern, rounded font featuring a gradient color scheme transitioning from red to blue. The final letter “o” is stylized with a diagonal line crossing through it, and a horizontal line runs beneath the text, extending from left to right.

FourJaw

"We never tire of seeing manufacturers benefit from using our technology in their factory to drive productivity, sustainability and profitability." - Chris Iveson, CEO & Co-Founder of Four Jaw & Energy Challenge Pilot Tech Partner. 

FourJaw logo featuring two overlapping triangular shapes in shades of purple on the left, followed by the text “FourJaw” in bold dark font. Beneath it, the tagline “Manufacturing Analytics” appears in a lighter gray font.

Gripple

"South Yorkshire is a thriving place for academic and industry led innovation." - Gordon Macrae, Special Projects Manager, Gripple

Gripple logo featuring a bold, stylized “G” icon in dark blue followed by the word “GRIPPLE” in uppercase letters, also in dark blue, on a white background.

Made Smarter - Yorkshire and Humber

Logo with bold black text reading “MADE SMARTER” in uppercase, stacked on two lines. Below, in smaller gray text, it says “Yorkshire & Humber.” The design is simple and modern, using a monochrome color scheme.

South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority

Logo for South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority. It features the text “SOUTH YORKSHIRE” in gray, “SY” in bold gray, and “MCA” in bold black. Below, the words “MAYORAL COMBINED AUTHORITY” appear in black uppercase letters. A white rose with green leaves and a yellow centre is positioned to the left of the text.

University of Sheffield AMRC

"The challenge has provided plenty of evidence for the SMEs to make small wins and larger business cases. This is another benefit of the initiative investment decisions are now based on data and facts." - Shirley Harrison, SME Engagement Manager, AMRC.

Logo of the University of Sheffield Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC). It features a dark blue shield with a white rose and crown emblem on the left, followed by the text “University of Sheffield” in black. To the right, “AMRC” is in bold dark blue with a light blue diagonal line, and below it reads “Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre” in smaller gray text.
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