Midlands Engine Trade Missions

Jane Lambert

Earlier today I blogged about Northern Powerhouse branded trade missions in IP Northwest and IP Yorkshire. I wondered whether there was anything similar for the Midlands Engine. It turns out that there is a Midlands Engine campaign page and that six trips have been arranged.

The destinations are as follows:

• NY Now show in New York between 19 and 22 Aug 2017;
• The Trako 2017 12th international railway fair at Gdansk between 26 and 29 Sept 2017;
• Anuga 2017 food fair in Cologne between 7 and 11 Oct 2017;
• China International Industry Fair at Shanghai between 7 and 11 Nov 2017;
• Arab Health 2018 exhibition in Dubai between 29 Jan and 1 Feb 2018; and
• Auto Expo Components Show in New Delhi between 8 and 11 Feb 2018.

Places on all those missions can be booked through the DIT's Midlands Engine campaign page.

If you go on any of those missions, take care not to disclose anything that you might wish to patent, register as a design or otherwise keep under wraps except in confidence (see Duty of Confidence). Remember that there is a year's grace period for design registration (see Registered Designs and Registered Community Designs).  Don't forget the international exhibition exception provided by s.2 (4) (c) of the Patents Act 1977.

Make sure that any non-disclosure or confidentiality agreement is to be construed and enforced in accordance with English law. We are harmonizing our trade secret law with the laws of the other EU member states by implementing the Trade Secrets Directive but we are not there yet (see The Trade Secrets Directive 7 July 2016 NIPC Law).

You must also be aware of the ease with which it is possible for IPR owners to get without notice injunctions just before international exhibitions in some countries (see the penultimate paragraph of Pre-Action Correspondence: What to do if you get a Stroppy Letter ....... or worse 4 Aug 2017 NIPC Law). You should also take a look at the arbitration schemes that exist in Italy and Switzerland (see my article Resolving IP Disputes at Trade Fairs 1 June 2017).

Should anybody wish to discuss any of these matters, call me on 020 7404 5252 during office hours or send me a message on my contact form.

Further Reading

The Midlands Engine

The Midlands Engine

The Midlands

Author Morwen

Source Wikipedia

Creative Commons Licence

Jane Lambert

Although The Guardian facetiously described the "Midlands engine" as appearing to be "a leaflet and some money" in "Can the measly Midlands Engine turn the region into a powerhouse?" 4 Dec 2015 it offers serious opportunities for creative and innovative businesses in the region.  Having made a devolution deal with the West Midlands local authorities on 17 Nov 2015 (see Elected mayor deal for West Midlands Combined Authority agreed BBC website) the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced substantial investment in transport and the arts in his autumn statement (see Spending review and autumn statement 2015 27 Nov 2015 and the Business Secretary and the 11 Midlands local enterprise partnerships published the The Midlands Engine for Growth Prospectus on 4 Dec 2015.

The Prospectus indicated 5 priorities:

• Trade and investment
• Transport
• Research and innovation 
• Business support, and
• Skills development.

On research and innovation the Prospectus promises:

"The Midlands Engine will drive up business innovation, improving business productivity and competitiveness. Our universities and business will work together pan-regionally to bring forward innovations that support our key sectors and drive this through the supply chain. We will work with Government to identify where opportunities exist to further our innovation activity across the Midlands Engine."

The opportunities mentioned in the Prospectus  include

• Manufacturing, Engineering and Transport Technologies
• Agri-food and drink manufacturing and production
• Healthcare
• Energy and low carbon technologies, and
• Creative, Digital and Design industries.

To help finance such research and innovation, the Prospectus proposes "a comprehensive fund-of-funds:"

"To support business growth and survival, Midlands Engine partners will develop a £180 million region-wide fund-offunds utilising the EU Joint European Resource for Micro to Medium Enterprises (JEREMIE) programme. This fund will combine ERDF funding with matched lending from the European Investment Bank (EIB) and legacy returns from previous programmes. This will establish a comprehensive range of sub-funds designed to support the SME growth ambitions of the region. The funds will deliver access to finance solutions on a scale and ambition that has until now been unknown in the Midlands Engine region."

I shall support those initiatives by providing advice  on intellectual property, joint ventures, licensing and technology law through clinics. workshops and one to one consultations and representation in negotiations, mediation, the courts and Intellectual Property Office. Anyone who wishes to discuss this article or the Midlands Engine generally should call me on 020 7404 5252 during office hours or contact me through this form.