Impact case study database

Research by Salford’s Human Movement and Rehabilitation team [2.1 – 2.3] has benefitted people who suffer mobility problems by influencing practice across the global clinical gait analysis sector, shaping individual companies and their products and services at a sector level, and introducing innovative health technologies into new territories, with immediate impact on patients.

4.1. Developing the industry standard for clinical gait analysis

Researchers at Salford provided the first major update to the clinical gait model and methods for 40 years, transforming the quality of data and measurement standards globally [see 2.1]. Indicative of the transformational impact of Salford’s research, the new model was adopted by the two global leaders in gait analysis software: Vicon and Qualysis, who supply approximately 80% of the clinical gait laboratories across the world [5.1, 5.2]. The new standards are now relied upon by 1000 clinical laboratories worldwide [5.1, 5.2], with the Salford model and methods hailed as ‘a significant turning point’ and ‘universally welcomed’ by the sector [5.2], producing more accurate and reliable data on approximately 250,000 patients per year. A Product Manager at Qualysis attests that ‘the quality of the science [at Salford] has led to a renewed confidence in what laboratories can achieve for patients’ [5.2]. The Head of Product Management at Vicon confirms that the new model ‘offers a very global and inclusive solution to how the sector might avoid future long periods without innovation. Perhaps this is the greatest impact that will bear out over time’ [5.1]. Qualysis adds that *‘the fact the Salford model has been implemented by all other major motion capture manufacturers firmly establishes it as the first industry standard for clinical gait analysis’* [5.2].

Even before the official academic publication in 2018/2019, the methods and models produced by Salford were being adopted and transforming user connectivity within the global clinical gait analysis sector [5.3, 5.4]. The global community of approximately 1000 clinical laboratories now has a free and stand-alone alternative to the software offered by vendors. This means that gait data is, for the first time, compatible between clinical centres across the world and historical barriers to national and international standardisation and collaboration have been removed [5.3, 5.4]. The Australian laboratory community has commenced national roll-out of the Salford model as a minimum standard [5.3], and equivalent United Kingdom and European Associations provide workshops to facilitate roll-out [5.3].

Furthermore, Salford’s research has led to the removal of major barriers to future innovation of the model and its applications [5.3]: critically for clinical users, the model is easier to use and data is backward compatible, which means that old and new data sets work seamlessly together – this is a key issue in tracking the progress of patients over time [5.1, 5.2]. The lack of backward compatibility of solutions proposed by other researchers meant that users faced making their existing clinical data (often collected over 20 or more years) unusable, and hence innovation stalled over several decades [5.1, 5.2, 5.3]. This has now been permanently addressed in the new Salford model. This is crucial for clinical governance because data on movement problems and treatments must be tracked over time, so a change in model could invalidate all prior patient measurements.

4.2. Improving workplace musculoskeletal health and footwear, leading to new business opportunities and products

Researchers at Salford evidenced a need to produce footwear that protects against musculoskeletal injuries that occur due to workplace tasks, rather than workplace slip, trip and fall accidents [see 2.2]. This new focus was highly disruptive to a tightly regulated and therefore conservative sector (EN ISO 2347, 2345), drawing the attention of the Health and Safety Executive to an issue largely ignored to date [5.5].

By forging this new space in the occupational footwear sector, Salford’s research enabled a top 3 UK occupational footwear company (Toffeln Ltd.) to completely rethink its business strategy after 30 years in the sector [5.5, 5.6]. The company split, creating a new company, WearerTech Ltd., in August 2017, with a business plan based entirely on the new market space and new footwear products developed through the research [2.2]. This attracted GBP500,000 of external investment and executive talent from outside the footwear sector for the first time, with the impact of Salford’s research on the business being described as ‘transformational’ by its Co-owner [5.5].

The new company created 9 jobs (headcount: 9; FTEs: 9, including an applied researcher role), has approximately GBP2,000,000 annual turnover and distributes to approximately 30 countries [5.5]. Some 70% of their product range (and therefore business) is derived from Salford’s research, with one Salford product selling 60,000 pairs since its launch in April 2019 alone [5.5].

The Salford-created, unique ‘musculoskeletal injury’ market proposition and footwear products were pivotal in opening access to previously inaccessible global corporations [5.6]. WearerTech is the only brand in Europe using the scientific and health merits of their footwear to underpin their marketing. As a result, WearerTech now supplies the world’s two largest catering organisations (Compass and Sodexo, which have annual revenues of GBP40 billion), with the Culinary Director at Sodexo stating his ‘ instant attraction’ to the concept of footwear that addresses pain in the workplace ‘because of the research done with Salford University’ [5.5, 5.7]. Other new partners include the Hilton and Marriott hotel chains, who are normally only accessible if there is an ‘ exceptional market proposition’ [5.5].

4.3. Delivering high-quality, low-cost physical therapy through technology investments in China

The stroke rehabilitation sector in China is inadequate in scale and coverage and typically delivered using traditional, labour-intensive approaches [see 5.8]. High intensity practice of functionally relevant tasks is seen as the ‘gold standard’ in upper limb rehabilitation and Salford’s post-stroke rehabilitation technology [see 2.3] was recognised as a solution which could be scaled faster than alternative routes (for example, through the training of more physiotherapists).

Salford’s research led to the creation of a University spin-out company, BetR Medical Technology Co., in February 2018 through a GBP690,000 investment resulting from a successful pitch at a prestigious Chinese innovation investment competition [5.8]. The company was established to meet the huge demand for stroke rehabilitation in China, which records 2,000,000 new stroke cases each year [5.8]. Since its inception the company has created 9 engineering jobs (headcount: 9; FTE:9) and has delivered technology-enabled stroke rehabilitation to approximately 1350 patients via a contract with Minzu Hospital in Jinan, China, with contracts in place with two further hospitals to support the therapy [5.8, 5.9]. The service is growing at 25% per year and provides an estimated 40% improvement in service efficiency compared to traditional therapy [5.9].

The company has now attracted a further GBP1,400,000 in investment from angel and government investors, to produce a new upper limb functional electrical stimulation system, at the core of which lies the controller developed in Salford [5.8]. BetR Medical has established a new dedicated factory (measuring 2105m²), which is being equipped to manufacture the new functional electrical stimulation system [5.8].