University of Warwick and Akron, Ohio’s Polymer Industry Cluster join forces to fast-track polymer innovation across the Atlantic
A new transatlantic collaboration is opening doors between Warwick’s research base and one of America’s most established polymer and advanced materials hubs – creating faster routes from lab to market and stronger research and commercial connections on both sides of the Atlantic.
For researchers and innovators working in polymers and advanced materials, the science is often only part of the challenge. The harder question is what comes next: finding the right pilot-scale facility to prove an idea beyond the lab bench, identifying a licensing or industry partner who understands the technology, or entering a new market without months of cold outreach and guesswork. Commercialisation routes can be slow, fragmented and heavily dependent on access to the right people, facilities and networks.
That’s the gap a new collaboration between the University of Warwick and Greater Akron’s Polymer Industry Cluster (PIC) ecosystem is designed to close. Importantly, this is a two-way partnership: Warwick researchers and spinouts will be able to tap into Akron’s industrial, scale-up and commercialisation ecosystem, while PIC companies, researchers and innovators will be able to access Warwick’s research expertise, facilities, talent and wider innovation network.
Akron, Ohio, is building on its legacy. Once the “Rubber Capital of the World”, it is one of the most concentrated polymer and elastomer clusters in the United States. The region is home to a dense network of manufacturers, start-ups, training and scale-up facilities, and specialist expertise built up over decades. For Warwick researchers working in sustainable and advanced polymers, that provides a ready-made US ecosystem that would otherwise take years of relationship-building to access from a standing start. Equally, PIC partners will have a clearer route into Warwick’s research and innovation ecosystem, creating opportunities for joint R&D, co-development and commercial partnerships in the UK.
“We are very excited and committed to developing this novel partnership with a centre of excellence in polymer and advanced materials innovation. This is not an institutional research collaboration; it’s about accessing resources from complementary ecosystems to accelerate commercialisation and strengthen our respective regional knowledge economies. We hope this sector-focused transatlantic innovation ecosystem partnership will be one of many to drive collaborative commercialisation between the UK and US.” – Dr Tim Hart, Director, Warwick Innovations.
“This partnership creates a powerful bridge between two globally recognized polymer and advanced materials ecosystems,” said Hans Dorfi, Executive Director and Chief Innovation Officer of the Polymer Industry Cluster. “Connecting Greater Akron’s industrial and commercialisation capabilities with Warwick’s world-class research, talent and innovation network will help companies and researchers find the right partners faster, enter new markets and turn promising ideas into commercial impact. This two-way relationship expands opportunities for both regions and strengthens their global competitiveness.”
What the collaboration could unlock
Getting beyond the lab bench. Promising materials science can stall at the pilot and scale-up stage, where the right specialist facilities are not always available locally. The collaboration will explore access to pilot-scale capability and infrastructure in Greater Akron that could help Warwick researchers prove out ideas at a scale investors and industry take seriously, while also creating routes for PIC partners to engage with relevant research, testing and technical capabilities at Warwick.
Finding the right commercial and research partners. Turning IP into impact means navigating licensing, venture creation, co-development and translation routes – work that’s easier with the right introductions. The partnership will help identify and develop innovation and commercialisation opportunities in both directions, connecting Warwick teams with relevant US companies, investors, incubators and innovation hubs, while linking PIC member organisations with Warwick researchers, technologies and collaboration opportunities.
Breaking into a new market. Entering North America can be one of the biggest barriers for UK researchers and spinouts, from regulatory unfamiliarity to simply not knowing who to talk to. The collaboration will explore soft-landing support to help Warwick spinouts and companies build a presence in the US and tap into PIC innovation programmes, accelerators and pilot schemes. At the same time, PIC member organisations will be able to draw on Warwick’s ecosystem to build connections in the UK, identify research partners and explore commercial opportunities.
Staying visible in a crowded field. Polymer, rubber, elastomer and advanced materials research competes for attention across a global landscape. Working across two established ecosystems will increase visibility for research, technologies and companies on both sides, creating more opportunities to be seen by relevant industry partners and investors.
Building the right connections, not just more of them. Joint workshops, showcase events and reciprocal visits are planned to give researchers, companies and innovation teams from both regions direct, structured access to each other’s networks, creating the conditions for relationships, projects and commercial opportunities to develop more quickly.
What’s on the table
The collaboration will explore opportunities spanning:
- Sustainable and advanced polymers research and co-development
- Joint research collaboration and technology licensing
- Venture creation and routes to translation and impact
- Scale-up, pilot-scale and specialist research activity
- Access to expertise, facilities and innovation networks across both ecosystems
- Support for organisations seeking to access UK and US partners and markets
Find out more
If you’re a Warwick researcher working in polymers or advanced materials and want to understand what this could mean for your work, get in touch with Warwick Innovations, the University’s technology transfer office.
PIC members or US-based organisations who are interested in engaging in this collaboration or want to explore joint opportunities, please contact the PIC team at: polymerindustrycluster.org
About the Polymer Industry Cluster
The Polymer Industry Cluster initiative was launched in 2021 to conduct a deeper examination of the region’s polymer industry and develop a framework to leverage its full potential. Powered by the Greater Akron Chamber, the Polymer Industry Cluster works to elevate Northeast Ohio’s polymer industry into a truly dynamic enterprise that is better positioned for strong, sustainable growth in an ever-changing global economy.
