Knowledge Exchange and industry

The University of Sheffield offers excellent opportunities for clinical academic trainees to work with industry and undertake knowledge exchange activities that translate research and expertise into tangible benefits for patients.

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Knowledge Exchange

The Faculty of Health's Knowledge Exchange team provides access for businesses, public and third-sector organisations to our healthcare facilities, researchers, expertise and ideas. Our collaborations with healthcare providers and NHS organisations, such as Sheffield Teaching Hospitals and the South Yorkshire Integrated Care Board, lead to improvements in healthcare delivery and patient care with the twin ambitions of improving health outcomes for the population and enhancing productivity in our region by creating and maintaining vibrant commercial propositions.

Industry partners

Health researchers at the University of Sheffield have active links with at least 125 industrial partnerships, 29 NIHR infrastructures/scheme collaborations and 59 research charity partnerships with most recent figures showing an annual value in excess of £18M from collaborative and contract research income. 

  • Imaging work with GE Healthcare, Siemens, Philips, Novartis Sanofi and Bayer (among others) supports the development of hardware, imaging markers and artificial intelligence technologies.
  • Boehringer Ingelheim funded the NEO-BLADE trial to treat bladder cancer
  • Artios Pharma and Domainex support cancer therapy research
  • Novartis, Philips, Siemens and Ixico support brain vascular MR imaging
  • NZP UK Ltd, Celgene, Cypralis, Khondrion, MitoBiopharm & Keapstone Therapeutics support Alzheimer’s research programmes
  • Pfizer, AstraZeneca, GlaxoSmithKline, Takeda, Celgene, BenevolentAI, Verge Genomics, Sosei Heptares and Aclipse Therapeutics collaborate to identify new therapies in neurodegenerative diseases.
  • Everybaby Ltd has spun out (in collaboration with DC Medical South Korea), to commercially exploit innovative bioimpedance technologies for the management of preterm birth; creating a pipeline of research translation studies.

Research in Sheffield

The University leads a consortium with Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals and Sheffield Children's Hospital that currently holds an MRC Impact Acceleration Account (total award value £1.18M), which is a crucial funding mechanism designed to bridge the gap between fundamental research and its practical application in improving human health.

The University of Sheffield Innovation District is also home to the The MRC LifeARC Gene Therapy Innovation and Manufacturing Centre, which opened in 2024 and is first of its kind in the north of England. It is set to advance scientific discoveries into treatment options for patients with life-threatening diseases as well as generate opportunities for startups and spinouts. Two UoS companies have already spun out: Blackfin Bio and Crucible Therapeutics, raising £7.75 million investment between them.

The UoS role in developing Lynparza has generated ~£25M royalty funding, with which we are funding major new infrastructure facilities, novel programme and project awards, postdoctoral clinical fellowships, doctoral fellowships (open to ACFs), and a new CL post.

The South Yorkshire Innovation Showcase is a new initiative that aims to recognise and celebrate the strength of our local health and care system by showcasing examples of good practice and sharing great ideas that could be scaled up to benefit our diverse communities.