Ealing Pioneers Fund

Ealing Council launched the Ealing Pioneers’ Fund to provide innovation grants to local small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in the borough.  The fund, which was project managed by West London Business, totalled £1.217m of Additional Restrictions Grant (ARG) funding.  It was designed to deliver targeted innovation grants to businesses in Ealing that demonstrated a good prospect of accelerated growth and job creation with the support. The fund focussed on the following sectors: aviation/logistics, food, creative/media and retrofit/construction tech with a particular interest in low carbon and/or circular economy innovations.   The initiative has contributed towards the development of the London West Innovation District.   

The following projects, demonstrating an economic and/or employment benefit for Ealing were successful in receiving the grant: 

Ajar Technology has been assisting enterprises through their digital transformation journeys since 2005. As a successful and highly-regarded end-to-end systems integrator, they deliver a range of audio visual, digital media, security system and home automation solutions as well as range of specialised integrated solutions. The objective of their research and development is to achieve a scalable autonomous retail store solution that is built by integrating multiple technologies produced by multiple vendors. This will enable retailers to open new locations with low cost and convert existing locations to operate with new efficiency. The retailer will also gain new data insights of the customer journey which will help them to plan their store operations and optimise the marketing approach in stores to increase revenue. 

For the past 4 years Blast Studio have been developing a new technique to transform single use cardboard packaging into a sustainable material used to make objects, furniture and art pieces, using robots and living organisms. For this project, Blast Studio is creating a micro-recycling facility inside the district to transform the waste produced locally into unique furniture and interior design projects. A new type of space will be created at the crossroad of a manufacture and a shop where people can recycle their waste and watch it be transformed into new artefacts. Thanks to their unique technology, they are able to transform urban waste into a material that they can 3D print into lamps, tables, and architectural elements with unique shapes inspired by the geometries of nature.

Cultivate London works to improve health and wellbeing across London by encouraging and supporting local communities to engage with their green spaces. Cultivate London will pilot a ground-breaking Circular Bio-economy model in Ealing in order to manage food and green waste where it is produced using advanced technology.  They will valorise by-products on-site to grow food for local consumption, deploy energy-efficient hydroponics as well as soil-based growing to maximise resources and use AI technology to optimise the flow of nutrients, water and energy.  This will prioritise local distribution to maintain food with high nutrient content for better health and immunity. They work with communities, businesses and local government to create and maintain enjoyable and sustainable urban green space, give local people the opportunity to learn, train and work. They also generate engagement in urban space and food growing through bespoke employment opportunities, learning opportunities and by making horticulture education accessible to all.

Doughlicious is a gluten free dough manufacturer and their goal has been to make a healthier cookie dough for their customers to bake at home. This project is about meeting the demand from airlines and distributors for individually wrapped ready-baked cookies. These are vegan, organic and gluten free options that are all made using the finest natural ingredients that are sourced from reputable suppliers who adhere to our high standards of quality, animal welfare an sustainable production methods. Its cookie dough is produced in its eco-friendly, five-star food hygiene rated factory, powered by renewable electricity on the Park Royal Estate. The cookies will be unique and contain unique fillings as well as functional ingredients such as vitamins, collagen and protein – while still tasting delicious. Their dough is also individually portioned so one only bakes what one needs in order to minimise food waste. 

Ealing Gin is a super-premium gin, in a stunning bottle. It encapsulates the rich cultural heritage, joie-de-vivre and strong community spirit of the Queen of The Suburbs. Launched in 2019, Ealing Distillery produces and sells hand-crafted gin locally in the borough. Distilled in a traditional copper still named Felicity, the gin is in the premium category which means it uses the finest botanicals as well as the London gin distilling process. The aim of this project is to innovate, market and develop the product and secure a larger foothold in the market enabling the creation of a larger distillery and visitors’ centre – a tourist destination in the heart of Ealing.  A crucial element of their project was to ensure their bottle were more environmental friendly and cost-effective, they have now collaboratively  created a new, organic ink spraying technology to decorate their bottle instead of plastic based decals

Hydrogen Waves (HyWaves) Ltd is a technology company, that is developing a simplified electronics design architecture for renewable energy to green hydrogen production, focusing on new technology to drive down the cost of green hydrogen produced locally. The technology allows for a point-to-point Direct Current (DC) connection between the solar plant and the electrolyser, contrary to the usual Alternating Current (AC) connection. The direct DC-DC coupling scheme eliminates the need for costly power electronics such as inverters and transformers, while at the same time maximising the electrolyser output depending

on weather conditions. Overall, the levelised cost of hydrogen production is reduced by 20%. The HyWaves Team had previously participated in two solar to hydrogen projects, one sponsored by an Italian gas major and another by Innovate UK. While working on these projects, the HyWaves team spotted a gap in the market to develop the simplified electronics architecture and set up a brand new company in June/2022. They have now successfully field tested their electronics solution on four panel (1kW) and demonstrated superb hydrogen production. 

GoCreate Examinations (GCE) aim to deliver a suite of world-first creative media qualifications for tomorrow’s workplace, to satisfy the demand for mobile-centric subjects like: Vlogging, Podcasting, Online Safety, Social Media, Live Streaming and Mobile-Film-Making. The assessment process will be managed online by their own unique, innovative, AI-driven platform to evaluate candidates. They focus on giving everyone access to a wide selection of new, employment-focused, creative skills, irrespective of their different stages in life, geography and their demography. Their mission is to develop creative, problem-solving skills and digital competencies, to be prepared for the future. Their course structure range from short courses, accredited programs, online degrees and virtual camps for young creatives. They have also been recently commissioned by University of West London to start a series of contracts to replace the Ed-Tech booking systems used by London College of Music Examinations.

Ice Kitchen is best known for their handmade/chef developed gourmet lollies. Taking inspiration from the US market, Ice Kitchen now plans to launch a scientifically formulated and nutritionally enhanced range of frozen, blender-free smoothies. This new product will appeal to health and wellness conscious consumers, as well as time strapped professionals. The smoothie can be easily prepared by popping the pre-blended mix which has been frozen into cubes into a base of liquid, which should then be allowed to de-frost to have a delicious smoothie.  Produced from 100% natural ingredients and manufacturing all of their products themselves in North West London, they are fully SALSA accredited and work to the highest manufacturing and food safety standards.

The Imaginarium Studios, the trading name for Creative Capture Services, is a world-class pioneer in the development of Performance Capture and Virtual Production techniques and technologies. They are a pioneering, world-class Perfomace Capture and Virtual Production facility based at Pinewood Studios and the US. Perfomance Capture involves bringing together the body data of performers with footage created through the use of head mounted cameras that track every subtle movement of the human face, to deepen audience’s emotional engagement. Their innovations have been used on numerous major Film, TV and Video Game projects over the years with clients ranging from Netflix, Marvel, Apple, Disney and many others. This project will allow Imaginarium Studios to continue to research and develop new tools, software and hardware that will enable the company to expand its competitive advantage and the focus will be on turning the creative and technical demands of their clients into production-ready tools and innovations that will aim to be the best examples of their kind in the world.

Queensrollahouse is a purpose built space for artists, designed to act as a catalyst for inquiry, experimentation and inspiration. This project’s vision is the creation of an artists’ led cultural centre. Queensrollahouse Cultural Centre will be designed to act as a dynamic environment for members of the broad community to come together to experience innovative and exceptional events, such as workshops, residencies, events and film screenings.  Housed in an industrial 50’s warehouse formerly occupied by Rolls Royce and acquired in a semi derelict state, its transformation was approached by Henry Krokatsis as a large evolving sculptural work. It has been constructed using found and redundant materials, balancing functionality and subversion. They are building  a strong a widening base audience for their events and have hosted several events including Painting and Markmaking workshops, Rooftob Supper Clubs, Park Royal Design District District Launch Party for the London Design Festival to name a few. They have also partnered with Ealing gin, another Ealing Pioneers grant winner for their supper clubs. 

With its origins in the audio-visual industry, Torpedo Factory Group is re-engineering its business as a Smart Building Infrastructure company. By helping create valuable data about the ways people interact with commercial buildings, it will help its clients make those buildings more sustainable and more enjoyable for everyone to use. Their bold vision starts with upgrading their own headquarters as part of the drive to net zero, and continues with the development of novel proprietary technology. This will use their in-house audio expertise to deliver data to improve the effectiveness of meetings. Finally the advancements will be rolled out to existing and new clients, with their North Acton HQ used as a demonstration and research facility.

VMI is a West London camera rental company and a West London’s Highly Commended Park Royal Company of the Year 2023, strives for ever-greater sustainability in TV production methodology, with the aim to make West London a beacon for best-practice in adopting a low-carbon TV lighting methods. They supply digital camera packages for Features, Dramas, Commercials & Documentaries etc. The focus of this project will be to build a new sustainable lighting division by purchasing the latest LED fixtures to replace highly inefficient tungsten lighting. VMI’s “green” lighting division will help to promote and speed-up wider industry adoption of the latest lighting technologies and in doing so, to accelerate the reduction of the industry’s carbon footprint by producing videos, writing white papers, hosting seminar and workshops. Since the grant programme, they have organised several successful LED high-efficiency workshops in London, and has used social media and other media platforms to create awareness about the advantages of latest generation lighting, winning much appreciation as well as visibility.