Swansea University Medical School is uniquely placed to translate advanced research into new and improved treatments, innovative products, processes and services to benefit human health. It does this by providing dedicated support for the commercialisation of research, knowledge transfer and business incubation for life science client organisations who can benefit from purpose built environments and unparalleled access to the skills and expertise needed for growth.

Central to the Medical School’s offer since 2007 has been the Institute of Life Science (ILS), an £81m collaboration with the Welsh Government, Abertawe Bro Morgannwg University Health Board, IBM and industry and business partners. As Wales’s premier purpose-built medical research facility, the ILS vision has been to benefit human health and to link those benefits to link those benefits to the economy by encouraging interaction with other organisations. These interactions draw upon an ‘Open Access Open Innovation’ philosophy, encapsulated by AgorIP, a Medical School-led initiative to support academics, clinicians and industry to turn bright ideas and cutting-edge research into real-world products and services.

Research is grouped into four broad themes – biomarker and gene discovery; microbes and immunity; medical devices; and patient and population health and informatics – all of which are supported by a collection of platforms including informatics, data science, molecular medicine, nanohealth and a joint clinical research facility with the NHS. Cross cutting these areas are clinical interfaces due to the partnership with the NHS – in particular Abertawe Bro Morgannwg University (ABMU) and Hywel Dda Health Boards.

The Medical School’s UK research council funded centres are the UK Centre for Health Informatics, the Farr Institute, the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council UK National Mass Spectroscopy Facility and the Economic and Social Research Council funded Administrative Data Records Centre. Other research centres include the Centre for NanoHealth, BEACON and the British Heart Foundation Cymru. The Medical School is also a partner in the Celtic Advanced Life Science Innovation Network (CALIN) project, connecting 240 businesses across Ireland and Wales with world-leading institutions to advance life science product development through collaborative research and development, again helping new business bring new life science products to market.

The Medical School aims to build upon its enterprise and innovation collaborations by seizing opportunities arising from the Swansea Bay City Region Deal, the Medical School’s partnership in A Regional Collaboration for Health (ARCH) and by creating new and deeper relationships with business, government and health and social care stakeholders regionally and further afield.