KTP Associate comes top in the British Muslim Awards

THE success achieved by a former Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) Associate at the University of Huddersfield, whose transformation of a local bed and mattress manufacturing business has led to them being nominated for multiple accolades, has been recognised in the national British Muslim Awards.

Dr Sammar Javed, a PhD alumna of the University of Huddersfield’s Business School, began the KTP with Huddersfield firm Deluxe Beds Ltd in January 2018 and was supervised by senior lecturer Jim Bamford.  Months before the project was complete, the business had already exceeded the anticipated five-year defined financial targets and had witnessed a 100% increase in productivity. 

The British Muslim Awards acknowledge a wide range of achievements from inspiring individuals who have made a positive impact upon business, charity, sport, arts, culture, religious advocacy, education and medicine.

Dr Javed’s accomplishments with the local bed and mattress manufacturer led to her being named the winner of the category Services to Education and contributed to Deluxe Beds coming second in their category Business of the Year.

Deluxe Beds Ltd is a family-run bed manufacturer based in Kirklees and Dr Javed was appointed as their Business Development Manager after the company was awarded a KTP project, worth £132k by Innovate UK.

The KTP programme is part of the government’s Industrial Strategy and helps businesses improve their competitiveness and productivity through the better use of knowledge, technology and skills that reside within the UK’s knowledge base.

During Dr Javed’s time with the company, she managed multiple projects and successful funding applications.  They led to an increase in sales due to improved marketing, company outreach and networking.  The company also noticed improvements in its supply chain and an increase in production through more efficient operations. 

Her achievements during the two-year partnership led to her being named in the 2019 Manufacturer Top 100 Awards.  The annual awards list the 100 most inspirational individuals working in UK industry and publicly recognise the most dynamic leaders and innovators in manufacturing.

The extensive list of successes also impressed the judges of the annual Oracle Awards after Dr Javed was named Best Bed Company Person at a glittering awards ceremony in November 2019.

One of the funding bids managed by Dr Javed was awarded over £56,000 to explore the potential for taking a highly-innovative approach to mattress manufacturing using “modular” construction.  The project aimed to provide significant enhancements to the product handling by the end-user, transporter and manufacturing team.

Designs produced for the pioneering new mattress were recognised by the nation’s bedding industry when Deluxe Beds Ltd was named as one of three finalists of the category Innovation of the Year in the 2019 National Bed Federation Annual Awards.

The KTP also led to the high-quality bed manufacturer receiving an upgrade to its digital infrastructure after Dr Javed secured funding from the Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership (LEP) via a business support programme known as Digital Enterprise.

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Read more about the KTP with Deluxe Beds - Knowledge Transfer Partnership saves local business £1.4 million
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Shortly after, the company was named in a campaign to showcase the most digitally-innovative businesses from across West and North Yorkshire, known as the Digital Enterprise Top 100.

Managing Director of Deluxe Beds Ltd Khatizi Bibi believes that without the partnership the growth that the company has witnessed would have been near impossible. 

“We are a small business with a relatively small management team and it is not often you find someone like Sammar who has expertise in so many areas,” she said.

“We’ve made a lot of progress and there have been multiple improvements made to the company, all thanks to Sammar’s efforts. 

“The KTP programme bridges a gap between industry and academia.  The valuable insight received from this project allowed the company to access new research ideas as well as discover alternative funding options,” she added. 

Dr Javed, originally from Pakistan, has since been offered the role of Operations Director with Deluxe Beds Ltd.