Chair plans are in motion.

Byline: Andrew Mernin

ATEAM of North East businessmen and inventors has developed an 'intelligent' wheelchair that they say will revolutionise the world's healthcare sector and create manufacturing jobs in the region.

The Smartchair, which is targeted for use by hospitals, care homes and ambulance services, enables robotic movement in almost every direction, meaning it can be transformed from a wheelchair, into a stretcher and a lifting platform at the push of a button.

The company behind the technology is currently generating the funding needed to build a prototype, which it aims to complete within six months, and then expects to set up a manufacturing facility in the North East within a year.

The Smartchair consortium includes North East Designer and automotive robotics engineer Barrie Cook, Sunderland inventor and GPS tracking expert Dr Phillip Tann and Neil Herron, who runs Sunderland-based vehicle tracking company FleetM8.

The project, originally pioneered by entrepreneur Alex Bastholm, had been mothballed for four years until he saw a story in the Journal.

Mr Bastholm, who was instrumental in the construction of the Dalton Park shopping centre in County Durham, developed the Smartchair for his step father, with the help of a robotics specialist in the car industry, Andrew Turner. However the project was put on hold due to other commitments until he read about the success Neil Herron's technology firm FleetM8 in nebusiness.

The pair held a meeting to discuss potential avenues to take the project forward and then set about building a consortium of business and techno-logplayers.

They have already touted the technology to companies in the States, including the Georgia Institute of Technology University Hospital (Georgia Tech).

In partnership with Georgia Tech, the consortium presented the technology to the Shepherd Group - the company that helped design the wheelchair system used by the late Superman actor Christopher Reeve after a horse riding accident left him quadriplegic.

Neil Herron, who said the Shepherd Group were certainly impressed with the technology, believes it could be used all over the world.

He said: "We are keen to develop and manufacture in the North East and bring manufacturing jobs to the area and we are considering funding options from a number of agencies.

"We have already been supported by funding from Business Link and RTC North and we are currently discussing the way forward with One North East."

"Given the interest we have had already from the States and the NHS we are confident that we will have a product ready for manufacture within 12 months."

Smartchair director and investor Matthew Thoburn said: "It is an exciting invention and one which will be of massive benefit to the NHS and the private care home sector, assisting with disability mobility.

"We are keen to push forward and showcase Sunderland and the North East-developed and manufactured technology on the national and world stage."

North East financier and equity in-vestoByron Longstaff and Tyneside entrepreneur Paul Wright are also among those involved in the Smartchair consortium.

To watch an animation of how the Smartchair will work go to nebusiness.co.uk.