University ‘launch pad’ for business to expand

Leeds Metropolitan University’s Northern Technology Institute (nti) was first launched in a out-of-the way office in Beeston as a training centre.

Although it still delivers training – including specialist help to enable people to develop their own applications for iPhone and Android mobile phones, its move to its current home at Old Broadcasting House in the heart of the city has allowed it to become a “co-working centre”.

The nti prides itself on allowing graduates, students, creative people, IT experts, existing businesses and entrepreneurs to mingle, share ideas and discover ways of working together.

Linda Broughton, the head of nti told the Yorkshire Post that at least 100 new business start-ups had been developed through the institute.

She said: “At nti it is all about the buzz, developing ideas and the synergy between the people there. The networking opportunities for graduates and anyone looking to move their creative ideas forward are excellent.

“One of the advantages of co-working is the opportunities it brings for collaboration.

“Working closely with others means you get to know them and their skills and strengths, which can and does open up all sorts of possibilities for working together. Ideas and unscheduled brainstorming between co-workers is where some of the best projects begin.”

Ms Broughton said a similar co-working centre, the General Assembly, recently launched in Manhattan, had taken New York by storm and was hailed as an innovative, modern and forward thinking way of doing business.

“That’s exactly what we’re doing at nti,” she said. “Our co-working centre, the first of its kind in Leeds, was featured in Wired Magazine’s Top Ten co-working spaces in the world and we are accredited training providers by leading global brands including Apple and Adobe.

“Old Broadcasting House has been beautifully refurbished and is perfect for us. It is a real mix of old and new. The open space really lends itself to collaboration.”

At any one time the institute has 40 people based there who pay a monthly fee of £90. Ms Broughton said people get more than just a desk and access to a computer but are able to be a part of a community.

Successful businesses will often move into new premises but Ms Broughton said people always want to return because of the opportunities to meet creative people.

Next year nti will celebrate its tenth anniversary and Ms Broughton said she hoped to be able to attract more current Leeds Met students to the facility in future to allow them to see the potential it can give them.

James Ward is among those who has seen a business idea flourish through nti where he has been based since 2008.

The 40-year-old has created Pianola which has been described as a Facebook for bridge players. The paid for product handles administration for bridge club managers and gives players a personalised history of results and smart tools to analyse their play. It also offers a partner-finder, so it is easy to find out who is looking for a game.

Mr Ward said: “I joined nti as a co-worker when I was free- lancing as a digital coach. Being based there really opened my eyes to the possibilities of what I could do with my ideas, by calling on the expertise and knowledge of those who work at nti, as well as the skills and advice of fellow co-workers.

“I’ve been a keen bridge player for years and it occurred to me that there must be something that could be done to make the organisation of a bridge club less of a hassle for those who run them.

It was with this in mind that Pianola was born. By getting members to take care of their own data via Pianola, many old administrative problems are solved.

“But more than that, Pianola builds on the social element of bridge clubs, so it’s a ‘Facebook for bridge’ connecting players so they can find out when a friend is promoted in the rankings and discuss hands.”

Mr Ward believes co-working at nti is about “stumbling on an idea and running with it” and “thinking big because you are working alongside the people who can help make an idea a reality.”

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