Innovative Manufacturing Programme

A radical restructuring of the Engineering Programmes in the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) has led to a new approach to focus the support and organisation of manufacturing research programmes.

Following Council's agreement to this approach, a total of 13 groups in 11 universities have so far been awarded the status of Innovative Manufacturing Research Centres (IMRCs). This concentration of support will ensure the survival of the UK's leading research centres, and within a more secure funding regime will allow our best researchers to devote more of their time and resource to research which will improve the competitive situation of UK manufacturing industry. A major element of the activities of the Centres will be a strong emphasis on dissemination of results and technology transfer. The Centres will be working with hundreds of industrial collaborators. It is expected that further centres will be created over the next 2 years, targeted at key areas of strategic importance.
To develop a new approach to maintain continuity of funding in manufacturing centres in key industries.
The programme will not support the application of an existing technology to a new area but it may take an existing technology to the next significant level eg to move to new length scales. It is therefore intended that projects supported would have a potentially wide breadth of future application. By their nature some of the projects will be high risk as new approaches and ideas will be tested. Flagship areas for investment, eg Sensors, Imaging, Nanotechnology and Smart Materials Technologies will be announced in each call for proposals.
IMRCs have been set up at the following universities:
- Bath IMRC - design, manufacture and management of processes, machines and systems;
- Cambridge - Engineering Design Centre;
- Cambridge Institute of Manufacturing;
- Cranfield Manufacturing Research Centre
- Liverpool e-Business Research Centre
- Liverpool Manufacturing Science and Engineering Research Centre;
- Loughborough Innovative Manufacturing and Construction Research Centre;
- Nottingham Innovative Manufacturing Research Centre (NMRC);
- Reading Innovative Construction Research Centre;
- Salford Centre for Research and Innovation;
- University College London Bioprocessing Centre;
- Warwick Innovative Manufacturing Research Centre;