£5,000 of equipment to aid Internet of Things product development

Oxford, UK, 16 April 2015 - RS Components (RS), the trading brand of Electrocomponents plc (LSE:ECM), the global distributor for engineers, is supporting the launch of an Innovation Development Lab with a donation of equipment that will help to inspire the development of commercial Internet of Things (IoT) products.

The Innovation Development Lab is being launched on 24 April by Reading-based GROW@Greenpark, a Connecting Thames Valley Tech (Connect TVT) innovation hub, which helps startups and entrepreneurs collaborate in a creative environment. The lab aids the development of products by bringing in industry experts as mentors to run workshops and hands-on sessions.

The £5,000 donation of test equipment, tools and a 3D printer by RS will create a working lab environment that can be used by startups to help develop their applications.

Pete Wood, DesignSpark Community Manager at RS, said: "The Internet of Things is gathering pace and is more than just a futuristic vision. From IoT 'devices' such as vehicles and appliances to the explosion in wearables such as the Apple Watch, IoT is set to become much more mainstream. Encouraging development of further commercial products is important and will open up many opportunities for businesses, so we're delighted to support the Innovation Development Lab at GROW@Greenpark."

Louize Clarke, Connect TVT co-founder, said: "The aim of the labs is to be able to offer startups access to products that can be prohibitively expensive, but are essential to driving their business ideas forward. The labs are still evolving and changing and will no doubt continue to do so, in line with user feedback and suggestions - which of course we welcome in the spirit of creativity and encouraging innovation. By creating a collaborative environment that encourages creativity we firmly believe more startups will happen as a result of the space."

The Lab offers IoT hardware and software development tools, a 3D Printing Zone and Open Device lab to harness more disruptive enterprises enabling ConnectTVT to offer a more connected experience. Key sponsors of the lab include IBM, KPMG and RS Components. The Lab will be opened by Gerard Grech, CEO, of Tech City UK, on Friday 24 April and will create the first fusion space of its kind, offering co-working and lab facilities within a start-up accelerator hub.

For further information about Connect TVT labs, or to explore partner opportunities, visit https://www.connecttvt.co.uk.

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About RS Components
RS Components and Allied Electronics are the trading brands of Electrocomponents plc, the global distributor for engineers. With operations in 32 countries, we offer around 500,000 products through the internet, catalogues and at trade counters to over one million customers, shipping more than 44,000 parcels a day. Our products, sourced from 2,500 leading suppliers, include semiconductors, interconnect, passives and electromechanical, automation and control, electrical, test and measurement, tools and consumables.

Electrocomponents is listed on the London Stock Exchange and in the last financial year ended 31 March 2014 had revenues of £1.27bn.

For more information, please visit the website at www.rs-online.com.

Editorial Contacts
Lisa Townsend
PR Manager - EMEA
RS Components
lisa.townsend@rs-components.com
+44 (0)1536 209026

Joanne Youson
Product Marketing PR Manager
RS Components
joanne.youson@rs-components.com
+44 (0)1536 405752

PR Agency Contact
Janice Fenton
Account Director
Publitek Technology PR
janice.fenton@publitek.com
+44 (0)1225 470000

Further information is available via these links:
Twitter: @RSComponents; @alliedelec; @designsparkRS
RS Components on Linkedin
www.linkedin.com/company/rs-components

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