320179New technique to create a step change in chocolate manufacturingClosedCollaborative R&DInnovate UKThe chocolate industry has been moulding chocolate using the same core techniques for over 100 years. Whilst there have been massive advances in technology for accuracy and speed of production, and some advances in moulding itself, these core techniques have stayed remarkably constant. There are however limitations to these. The innovation I aim to develop with funding will enable a small British business to create a game-changing technology and manufecturing process which can challenge the status quo that has been maintained by the dominant mould manufactuters in Germany and the Netherlands. The innovation will have applications for other markets but is essentially about mass producing chocolate in a way that can only currently be done at the boutique level which is only accessible to a handful of people. So my aim is to both fly the flag for women in engineering, and for innovation from the UK, whilst at the same time creating a technique which will enable boutique-grade chocolate to be affordable for everyday people.