The Northern Tech Summit action won’t be confined to the Crucible – and here’s your chance to get involved! As part of its three-day fringe programme, Pennine Five is inviting visitors to step inside Sheffield’s innovation economy at Open Doors on 20 Oct, a free festival packed with live demonstrations, lab access and behind-the-scenes experiences.
Pennine Five will become a central hub for Sheffield’s Open Doors Innovation Festival on Tuesday 20 October, inviting businesses, students and members of the public to explore the Cathedral Quarter campus and meet some of the innovators based there.
The free festival kicks off three days of activity organised by Sheffield Innovation Spine, official fringe partner of TECH SY’s Northern Tech Summit, and will offer behind-the-scenes access to technology, science and startup spaces across the city.
The former HSBC headquarters is increasingly positioned as a home for scaling businesses in the digital, technology and life sciences sectors, and occupies a prominent position within Sheffield Innovation Spine – a 190-acre urban innovation district connecting businesses, universities, specialist workspaces and innovation assets across five city centre neighbourhoods.
Open Doors will provide an opportunity to see some of that work first-hand.
Among the Pennine Five businesses taking part will be Exciting Instruments, which develops technology for single-molecule spectroscopy, and manufacturing analytics specialist FourJaw, with visitors able to tour labs and see product demonstrations.
Venture Community will host a sustainable design showcase featuring innovators including Matt Willox of Colab3, a startup creating new products from recycled industrial waste.
Discovery Cafe Bar will act as the festival’s central hospitality hub, where visitors can also explore The Hub podcast space and record their own vox pop message. Visitors will even be able to head to the top of Block One for panoramic views across Sheffield.
Exciting Instruments will also demonstrate its EI-FLEX system, technology designed to enable real-time 3D tracking of individual biological molecules and accelerate research into areas including Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease.
Tim Craggs, CEO and co-founder of Exciting Instruments, said: “We are really pleased to welcome visitors and shine a light on innovation in the region. We went from founding to delivering our first unit in 13 months, and we hope to inspire people that great ideas turn into reality when the right people and environments connect.”
Beyond Pennine Five, visitors can use the Spine Guide app to explore other innovation locations across Sheffield, unlocking content and founder stories as they travel around the route.
Participating venues include Electric Works, Sheffield Technology Parks, Sheffield Hallam University’s Strines Building, the University of Sheffield’s Engineering Heartspace and the Royal Academy of Engineering’s UKSE Innovation Centre.
Visitors who check in at venue checkpoints through the app can also climb the festival leaderboard, with £100 in Sheffield city centre vouchers up for grabs.
Pick of the Fringe
TUESDAY 20 OCTOBER
OPEN DOORS INNOVATION FESTIVAL
Pennine Five takes centre stage as a primary host location for the free, city-wide festival. Visitors can explore the campus, meet innovators and experience demonstrations before using the Spine Guide app to continue along the wider Innovation Spine trail.
The event runs from 9.30am–4.30pm and is open to anyone who lives, works or studies in Sheffield.
WEDNESDAY 21 OCTOBER
GUIDED URBAN INNOVATION DISTRICT TOURS
Coinciding with day one of the Northern Tech Summit, Sheffield Innovation Spine will host hour-long guided walking tours during the summit’s afternoon break, between 3pm and 4.30pm.
Exclusive invitations will be extended to summit delegates, including civic leaders, technology ecosystem partners and regional businesses, offering a curated tour of Sheffield’s urban innovation district and an opportunity to make connections beyond the main programme at the Crucible.
THURSDAY 22 OCTOBER
RUN THE SPINE
The fringe concludes with a 5km group run through Sheffield city centre, organised by Sheffield Innovation Spine with local entrepreneur Hannah Duraid, founder of Sheffield Business Runners.
Open to all running abilities, summit delegates and Sheffield’s wider innovation community, the social-paced run will meet at 7am and finish no later than 8am.
It provides an altogether more active opportunity to network and experience the Innovation Spine before day two of the Northern Tech Summit begins at the Crucible at 9am.
Key Details
WHAT: Open Doors Innovation Festival
WHEN: Tuesday 20 October, 9.30am–4.30pm
WHERE: Pennine Five Campus, 41 Silver Street Head, Sheffield S1 2DD, plus venues across the Innovation Spine
ADMISSION: Free and open to all
HOW TO JOIN: Download the free Spine Guide app on iOS or Android to follow the interactive trail and access exclusive content.
