Newcastle University

Two teams from Newcastle University have won a prestigious regional business award and the School's Prof Akay is part of one of the winning teams.

His company which is developing a process which can be used as an agricultural catalyst has been named a winner of a Blueprint Award.

The awards, backed by Procter & Gamble and Dickinson Dees, saw students, graduates and staff from the universities of Newcastle, Durham, Northumbria, Sunderland and Teesside compete against each other to present the most compelling business plans to business experts.

The Knowledge Transfer Award went to Galip Akay and Ed Brown also of Newcastle University for their process which can be used as an agricultural catalyst and in bio-science.

Finalists took part in a practice pitch event, where they received constructive feedback from competition sponsors and supporters, all of whom possess business knowledge and expertise from a variety of backgrounds. They were then offered a further opportunity to gain professional advice on their plans and pitches after being paired up with business mentors in the lead up to the grand final.