Hull Forward leverages development funds for local innovator

Hull Forward has helped an innovative local company to secure major funding to develop its revolutionary agricultural technology.

Liquid Lever Solutions Ltd, a start-up company launched in Hull in 2008 by development engineer Mike Brown, has been awarded a Grant for Research and Development (GRD) of £141,000, for its micro-irrigation system.

The system, called Liquid Lever, allows food producers to carry out controlled watering in orchards, groves and vineyards without the need for expensive energy inputs or computerised control.
 
Hull Forward assisted with the company’s application for research funding, provided by regional development agency Yorkshire Forward, for the next stage of the product’s development. The money will allow Liquid Lever Solutions to carry out extensive testing and field trials of the new technology at sites in Spain, Turkey and Kenya ahead of the product’s commercial launch in 2011.

Mike Brown, Liquid Lever Solutions’ managing director, came up with the idea for Liquid Lever to solve the problem of watering his office plants in Hull when he was at home in Scotland. Using a combination of elastic polymers, which bend or straighten depending on water conditions, he devised a valve that adjusts water flow automatically to suit the moisture level.
 
However, he soon realised that his hobby could have a much wider application in agriculture, helping to improve irrigation and increase food production for millions of farmers in some of the world’s driest environments.
 
Mr Brown said: “After the market research it quickly became evident that the irrigation industry was becoming ever more dependent on electricity and complexity as it strove towards ever larger economies of scale. At the other end of the spectrum, the needs of small commercial and subsistence farmers were not being adequately met.”
 
John Holmes, chief executive of Hull Forward, said that technological innovation should be celebrated and supported to give the city a competitive edge.
 
“We want to help turn entrepreneurial vision into commercial reality, and this financial support plays an important part in that process” he said.

“We are extremely pleased that we will have been able to help Liquid Lever Solutions to bring its exciting new product to market.”

Early versions of Liquid Lever, which provides a scaleable tank-fed system suitable for small plots of trees, shrubs or vines, have been well received and the product has twice won the prestigious IET (Innovative Engineering Technologies) Award for sustainability and product design.
 
The company will now use the GRD funding to adapt the prototype for mass production, in anticipation of high demand from the commercial, charitable and educational sectors.
 
Mr Brown said that being Hull based had provided definite competitive advantages for the business.
 
“The city is compact with a university and a port, so it is relatively easy to get started and to network with business services and support,” he said. “There is a high proportion of owner-run businesses and this speeds up the decision making process and results in better value for money.”
 
Alex McWhirter, assistant director of business at Yorkshire Forward, said: “This business is a perfect example of one man’s idea being turned into a successful business reality, and I hope that Liquid Lever Solutions Ltd goes on to fulfil its potential by exploiting the market opportunities it has spotted.
 
“We are always keen to promote and assist innovative new businesses, particularly those with prospects in global markets, as their sales not only contribute to the regional economy, but their very presence on the global stage promotes the region as a hotbed of innovative technologies.”