Thoughts and Reflections

March 15th, 2010

Here is a short video with the  thoughts and reflections of some of the mission’s delegates and the organisers on how the Clean and Cool Mission went.
Clean and Cool reflections

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PassivSystems & Modcell Partnership

March 4th, 2010

Two Clean & Cool Mission companies have combined forces to unveil a blueprint for the eco schools of the future. PassivSystems is to work with Modcell on the creation of the ModCell Renewable Schools across the UK, targeting the Governments Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme.

The schools will be built using ModCell’s renewable, carbon capturing materials that lower heating costs by up to 85 per cent, whilst any energy used on lighting, computers and other technology will be reduced even further using the PassivEnergy energy management system. The first school is scheduled for completion in September 2010 and will be an exemplar of how Zero Carbon Schools will be delivered.

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Mission You Already

February 26th, 2010

No sooner have we landed in San Francisco, than it’s time to pack our bags and head for home. We’ve worked hard, visiting leading companies including Serious Materials, Arup and Better Place. We’ve met with officials at City Hall. We’ve met financiers, with the companies pitching to no fewer than 15 VCs at Orrick’s Silicon Valley offices. Yes, we’ve played hard too, with an unforgettable visit to Birch Castle, the pub located within the beautiful home of Michael and Xochi Birch. It has felt best when we’ve combined work and play; at Susan MacTavish Best’s Sunday Brunch, where CEOs pitched their businesses to journalists over scrambled eggs and French toast. At the Consul General’s residence, where deals with leading influencers were plotted over fish and chips. And late at night, as travellers discussed potential ways of joining forces over one last Sam Adams.

This is the third trade mission I’ve been involved with, and I’ve jotted down a dozen things I’ve learned. ‘Takeaways’, as they say;

1. There is a certain urgency created by being somewhere for one week only. You can’t be palmed off with a meeting in a month’s time. Why should an investor meet you on Thursday? Because by Friday, you’ll be gone.

2. A group attracts attention, which benefits everyone. I’ve lost count of the number of times when someone has said ‘Oh, I heard about you guys’. As news of the mission reached the media, several companies reported unsolicited approaches. Being part of the group is a great conversation starter, as you point out friends and colleagues around the room.

3. You can have a series of conversations with people. For example, we have been travelling with several journalists (from the Guardian, Wired UK and Spectator Business) and there isn’t the pressure to go into pitch mode at every opportunity. You know you will be able to follow up in a couple of hours, and to share your story as it unfolds.

4. There’s (just) time for two meetings with the same person. Lots of the companies have been following up Tuesday’s pitches with Thursday or Friday meetings. Some have been back to see Arup, or to arrange a formal interview with a journalist, met over brunch at the weekend. Two meetings in one week back home would seem over-keen. On a mission, it’s par for the course.

5. The competition element adds credibility. People are impressed when they hear that over 140 companies applied to attend the Clean and Cool Mission. It gives them confidence that an hour spent with our group will not be time wasted.

6. A blend of funders works well. The backing of the British Government goes down well here in the US. Back home, this can trigger eye-rolling and tutting, which may be silly and naive, but it’s true. The people we are meeting are smart enough to realise that UK Trade and Investment plays an important role in brokering valuable connections. They recognise the significance of the Technology Strategy Board (our lead sponsor) and this goes down well.  The companies fund their own plane tickets and accommodation.  We use the sponsor’s money to add value to the week. 

7. Work hard play hard. The people we’ve been meeting are driven, and they love to have fun. Sometimes it’s easier to build relationships over pub quizzes than formal meetings.

8. Wall to wall doesn’t work. I must admit that one of the days this week was too full. The days which work best are ones where we have at least a few clear hours to do our own thing. Some take the opportunity to rest or catch up with work, others pack in impromptu meetings. The energy when we reunite is fantastic.

9. Leverage the social networks of local friends. Susan MacTavish Best’s brunch worked well because she invited her own contacts. The farewell drinks at the Consul General’s house had over forty influential, hand-picked guests. The events which work best are the ones where we join forces to pull the list together.

10. Skills develop as the week goes by. Sitting around the enormous table at City Hall, I was aware of just how much clearer our ‘elevator pitches’ had become in only three days. Following Kevin Surace’s master class in dealing with Silicon Valley VCs, the changes in presentation style and substance were obvious.

11. Opportunities emerge within the group. Already, several companies have agreed to work together. In every case I have heard about, they had not met before the mission.

12. A ‘hive mind’ emerges. As we get to know each other, we can help each other. Meeting a VC who doesn’t invest in your particular area? Allow me to introduce you to someone I think you’ll love. The entrepreneur you’re talking to is after press coverage? Have they met the Business Week reporter, standing in the far corner?

As I prepare to leave for the airport, I believe in the value of trade missions more than ever. I also believe, despite the nonsense talked by some naysayers, in the value of public-private collaborations. Without the significant private cash of Orrick, BP Alternative Energy, and the Clean Tech Group, we wouldn’t have had a Clean and Cool Mission. Without the Technology Strategy Board being first to sponsor, we could not have begun planning. The introductions brokered by UKTI have made the trip worthwhile. If this is the last mission I’m involved with, I’ll be disappointed and more than a bit surprised. Thank you for tuning in, and watch this space!

Oli Barrett

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A Thousand Words

February 25th, 2010

Sometimes, a picture can say a thousand words.  So here’s hoping that some of our latest Clean and Cool Mission photos give you a flavour of the last couple of days!

We’ve been to Arup, Autodesk, City Hall and Better Place….

Clean and Cool Mission

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It’s all so easy when you know how

February 24th, 2010

After a gentle introduction over the weekend, Monday was the first full day of the Clean and Cool mission. And what a full day it was. Starting with a masterclass on doing business in the US, then two visits to companies, a panel discussion on the future of cities and ending up with a networking party hosted by entrepreneurs Michael and Xochi Birch.

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Why Clean and Cool Mission 2010?

February 24th, 2010

Claire Cunningham – Media Relations Manager for the Technology Strategy Board – Mission Delegate

So why have 19 UK businesses joined the Clean and Cool Mission to San Francisco and what do they hope to get out of it?

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All up to speed and pitching away – Tuesday morning

February 24th, 2010

Claire Cunningham – Media Relations Manager – Technology Strategy Board – Mission Delegate

We have made it!

 The Clean and Cool mission companies have pitched to a number of top venture capitalists in Silicon Valley. Having had the opportunity to get to know the businesses, it was a really important morning for me. I sat rooting for everyone as they made the most of their five minute pitching window.

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California – Efficiency is Key

February 24th, 2010

When I was previously here in 1995-97 Clean Tech was on the fringe. Being on the Faculty at Stanford University as the Geothermal Program Manager, I was seeking ways to make green power more economical and hence mainstream. I had a great time but it felt as though the green power community was small, and there was certainly no real interest in reducing energy demand. 

13 years on, and it is amazing. If anything the sentiments of the California industry leaders we have met thus far on the mission suggest that energy efficiency is the “next big thing”. I am excited at the prospect of working with the Clean Tech thought leaders here and helping. The mission of Breathing Buildings is simple – to have the biggest impact as humanly possible in reducing energy consumption in buildings … worldwide. A simple vision, but not simple to achieve, and we certainly won’t do so by just staying in the UK. Some say there is a war on climate change. In the words of MacArthur, “I will return” -  but this time in the mainstream of energy efficiency and not on the fringe.

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Tales of a High Energy Week

February 23rd, 2010

One thing is certain;  Clean and Cool Mission participants need to have a huge amount of energy. Luckily, this is something Nexeon CEO Scott Brown knows all about.  His company is setting out  to shape the future of rechargeable batteries.  During a busy week, he has been finding the time share his thoughts with Business Zone, and began by reflecting on just what we mean when we talk about ‘clean’, concluding;

“It’s a very real set of partly related technologies and approaches, broadly in the fields of energy generation and storage, energy efficiency, air and water quality and so on.”

Writing after our first business day in San Francisco, Scott mentions the ‘Doing Business in the US’ session, hosted by law firm and mission sponsor Orrick.

“We start with a couple of hours of ‘master class’ briefings designed to hone our skills in communicating with potential investors, legal organizations, technology partners and so on. The sessions are fascinating and boost our confidence as we know we’re communicating in the same language as our contacts in the US. Certainly not as Churchill said: “Two nations divided by a common language”.”

Follow Scott’s story over here on Business Zone.

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Wave Boss Takes On World With His Oyster

February 23rd, 2010

Martin McAdam is a man on a mission.  The boss of AquamarinePower is making waves in more ways than one, as one of the nineteen companies joining us in here in San Francisco.  His company designs and manufactures the innovative Oyster device, which is the world’s largest working hydro-electric wave energy converter.

Writing for Director Magazine, Martin has been sharing some of his thoughts about the Clean and Cool Mission;

 

Many of the great travel writers say that the journey is as important as the destination. For air travellers I doubt this is the case anymore. At the airport, you are probed and detected. A free government massage might be attractive to some but I find it quite disturbing. And no, we don’t fly business class. Equity at this stage in a start-up has better uses. Even though it is already dark when we arrive, the city is spectacular. You see the Bay Bridge lit up and the downtown buildings just being American: tall and confident.

Clean & Cool seems to have grown out of the original UK Web Missions to California’s Silicon Valley. You can imagine that when a Web mission came to California everybody was into the latest digital communications. With Clean & Cool you have a bunch of engineers who care about bubble physics, building materials, diamond semiconductors, or in the case of my business, Aquamarine Power, wave energy.

Read the rest of this entry here on Director Magazine’s site.

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