Public Funding for Droneprep Ltd

The Open Skies Cornwall Project will create four thematic demonstration environments in Cornwall for real world end users, technical specialists, UAS operators, regulators, innovators and academics to: 1)Test New Detect and Avoid Systems and concepts in real world Cornish environments that will lead to advancements in UTM and new market opportunities for UAS use locally, nationally and internationally. 2)Seamlessly link end user viable drone delivery requirements to end user supply chain challenges/opportunities which will lead to market validation and the route to future integration and commercialisation/adoption. 3)Pursue, unpack, explore and test solutions, procedures and concepts to overcome regulatory requirements relating to airspace access (CAA), land access (bylaws/land access permissions/local planning authority) and medical products transit compliance (NHS/MHRA) 4)progress industrial research to integrate enabling technology and support infrastructure to real world end users within our thematic environments. The consortium benefits from exclusive demonstration partnerships with Royal Mail, NHS Kernow, JHUB-Med, Falmouth Harbour and is supported from insights and the embedded local connections/knowledge of Cornwall Development Company so that our project technology providers and innovators can explore how to: 1)**Royal Mail:** integrate drones seamlessly within Royal Mail's supply chain network, ground assets and customers to provide a lean, quick, cost effective and robust connection to remote Cornish communities for parcel, next day and pharmacy postal delivery. 2)**NHS Kernow**: explore and demonstrate how drones can be incorporated into the NHS logistics supply chain to provide new options for time critical medical delivery and the optimisation of transport and pathology lab assets. 3)**Falmouth Harbour:** integrate autonomous drone solutions and enabling infrastructure to complement and supplement maritime end user requirements in relation to data capture, ship to shore delivery and remote healthcare/telemedicine/flying defibrillator applications. 4)**JHUB-Med:** explore, test and demonstrate how the MOD can develop a humanitarian/disaster relief medical re-supply drone capability for the purposes of deployment to support the logistical needs of NGOs (UNICEF etc) in pandemic/epidemic/disaster scenarios both domestically and internationally. 5) **Cornwall Development Company:** explore how detect and avoid solutions tested on the project can enable opportunities for drones to contribute toward economic growth in Cornish wind power/ maritime/ lithium extraction/agriculture and tourism markets. Our experienced technology team is formed of industry pioneers (Skyports/DronePrep/Neuron/University of Southampton/The Flight Corp) Together, our team have been responsible for the UKs first NHS and Royal Mail drone deliveries, regulatory advancements in the transport in medical goods and for achieving the first BVLOS approvals in the UK.

The Open Skies Cornwall Project will create four thematic demonstration environments in Cornwall for real world end users, technical specialists, UAS operators, regulators, innovators and academics to: 1)Test New Detect and Avoid Systems and concepts in real world Cornish environments that will lead to advancements in UTM and new market opportunities for UAS use locally, nationally and internationally. 2)Seamlessly link end user viable drone delivery requirements to end user supply chain challenges/opportunities which will lead to market validation and the route to future integration and commercialisation/adoption. 3)Pursue, unpack, explore and test solutions, procedures and concepts to overcome regulatory requirements relating to airspace access (CAA), land access (bylaws/land access permissions/local planning authority) and medical products transit compliance (NHS/MHRA) 4)progress industrial research to integrate enabling technology and support infrastructure to real world end users within our thematic environments. The consortium benefits from exclusive demonstration partnerships with Royal Mail, NHS Kernow, JHUB-Med, Falmouth Harbour and is supported from insights and the embedded local connections/knowledge of Cornwall Development Company so that our project technology providers and innovators can explore how to: 1)**Royal Mail:** integrate drones seamlessly within Royal Mail's supply chain network, ground assets and customers to provide a lean, quick, cost effective and robust connection to remote Cornish communities for parcel, next day and pharmacy postal delivery. 2)**NHS Kernow**: explore and demonstrate how drones can be incorporated into the NHS logistics supply chain to provide new options for time critical medical delivery and the optimisation of transport and pathology lab assets. 3)**Falmouth Harbour:** integrate autonomous drone solutions and enabling infrastructure to complement and supplement maritime end user requirements in relation to data capture, ship to shore delivery and remote healthcare/telemedicine/flying defibrillator applications. 4)**JHUB-Med:** explore, test and demonstrate how the MOD can develop a humanitarian/disaster relief medical re-supply drone capability for the purposes of deployment to support the logistical needs of NGOs (UNICEF etc) in pandemic/epidemic/disaster scenarios both domestically and internationally. 5) **Cornwall Development Company:** explore how detect and avoid solutions tested on the project can enable opportunities for drones to contribute toward economic growth in Cornish wind power/ maritime/ lithium extraction/agriculture and tourism markets. Our experienced technology team is formed of industry pioneers (Skyports/DronePrep/Neuron/University of Southampton/The Flight Corp) Together, our team have been responsible for the UKs first NHS and Royal Mail drone deliveries, regulatory advancements in the transport in medical goods and for achieving the first BVLOS approvals in the UK.

Cuts to Isles of Scilly ferry and air services due to the on-going Covid-19 crises is hindering medical and other logistics services. Our consortia, led by DronePrep and supported by Windracers, University of Southampton and Consortiq propose to utilise the Windracers ULTRA UAV platform to deliver a range of payloads as required by the Council of the Isles of Scilly and Cornwall Council and Cornwall Council in response to time-critical Covid-19 challenges. In gleaning the support these partners they have jointly stated to our consortia that: 'One of the main challenges facing CIoS is that it is a rural peripheral region with dispersed communities. The ULTRA UAV provides a solution which could be used to connect remote communities across the region, enable NHS services to be delivered more effectively and overcome the limitations associated with traditional modes of transport.' Validated CIoS partners are supportive of offering their facilities for the test flights proposed. The Council of the Isles of Scilly operate St Mary's Airport, and Cornwall Council own and operate Cornwall Airport Newquay. The Isles of Scilly Council are responsible for Social Care/Care Home provision on the Islands and it is proposed that these trials will focus on trial delivery of essential items such as PPE and Covid-19 tests to those in a Care setting and potentially thereafter extend to supplement NHS supply chains should CLoS partners request and enable this thereafter. To achieve this we will be the first consortia to: 1) Demonstrate UAV capability in delivering supplies to the islands whilst comparing performance of this intervention to existing manned alternative 2) Explore the viability of securing multiple landing sites to allow dynamic and flexible goods transfer between islands 3) Work toward contributing to protocols research to test the transport Dangerous Goods via UAV Our consortium were informed on 31st July 2020 that this application (submitted in May 2020) had been successful at the technical assessment phase of the UKRI COVID-19 Open Call Innovate UK response competition and a funding award is due on 26th August 2020 which would facilitate the commencement of this project for a period of upto 4 months starting 2 September 2020\.