CRL greets a new bunch of budding entrepreneurs

CRL share that they are looking forward to seeing the new cohort #MakeHistory.            

The Accelerator programme supports entrepreneurs by helping them focus on the area’s most crucial to enabling them to grow their businesses, such as: product development, market development, business development and investment.

As part of their involvement, they receive a £5,000 start-up grant, a trip to Shenzhen to meet with manufacturers, support with their funding strategy (from prizes to crowdfunding to angel investment) and continued support from industry experts.

The CRL said it is proud to be focussed on supporting the aspirations of hardware-focused entrepreneurs and makers; with a range of in-house technology and facilities to support their product development.

Candidates from CRL's previous cohorts, including Aceleron and Design by Sol, have gone on to raise substantial investment, others are on the cusp of launching their product to market and individuals from both of the previous cohorts have won tens of awards.

CRL is an Accelerator, Incubator and co-working space based in Hayes, West London. Supported by regeneration specialists U+I, Brunel University, HEFCE and ERDF, it works with innovative start-ups to create high-tech jobs and economic growth. Based in the Old Vinyl Factory it is proud to continue the area's legacy for innovation and manufacturing.

Entrepreneurs joining CRL’s Accelerator programme include:

ULTRA IoT
ULTRA IoT develops an ultra-rapid development toolkit aimed at prototyping new Internet of Things (IoT) solutions in minutes. With their modular and open toolkits they empower everyone - from software - and hardware developers to any organisation facing IoT related challenges - to easily apply the latest available communication and sensoring technology to solve their problems or improve their processes.

Bright Sign
Bright Sign Glove is a wireless and stand-alone data glove which translates sign language to text and speech. It's equipped with machine learning to allow users to upload their own version of sign language. It also connects to a web app for instant translation to most languages. Bright Sign is designed to help give a voice to those who can't speak.

Tonik
The disconnect from acoustic interfaces has reduced the ability of musicians to improvise, collaborate and perform. For amateurs, modern instruments can be confusing and expensive. Tonik offers innovative, intuitive and affordable hardware that will revolutionise the way that people write, record and perform music, by blending acoustic and electronic instrumentation.

Third Skin
Third Skin is an ecosystem of wearables to augment sensory experiences with digital content, and put the humanity back into technology. Their mission is to empower people to enjoy the digital world like people - with freedom of self-expression, elegance and privacy.

Odd Ball
Odd Ball is a ball that turns every surface into sound. It is a playful drum machine; one you can throw around and that transforms your environment into a musical instrument. The ball connects to your devices through Bluetooth and triggers percussion-type sounds through speakers or headphones every time it bounces. You can lay and loop the beats you create, you can jam over a song or play along with other Odd Friends.

Studio93Limited
Studio93Limited, founded by Dr Jackie Lightfoot, is a furniture design company developing unique, innovative products to meet real human needs. They do this by researching and developing products with people in real-life situations. Their current projects focus on educational furniture for primary schools.

Wisp
Wisp is a project delivering wearable IoT technology developed by women for women and their partners to enhance female sexual well-being. They are empowering individuals to have a better understanding of their body and to have better intimate experiences through a technological solution.

Flow
Flow is a small, portable air purifier that can remove gases, pollutants and allergens from the air. Designed perfectly for small spaces, flow links wirelessly to an app to track air quality levels throughout the day, improving the user's health and raising awareness of air pollution.