£18m for advanced materials centre

THE University of Manchester’s planned advanced materials centre has secured £18m from the UK Research Partnership Investment Fund (UKRPIF).

It is one of five projects funded with £290m of public and private cash announced by Chancellor George Osborne yesterday.

The university’s “multidisciplinary characterisation facility” was first announced in August when BP committed funding over a 10-year period.

The institution has now lined up private investment of around £100m from Rolls-Royce, AMEC, Sellafield, NNL, FEI Company, Xradia, Rapiscan Systems, AREVA, Westinghouse, EDF, and TiSiC.

The new facility, which should be up and running by next year, will focus on the UK’s strategic development in advanced materials and manufacturing.

Dean of the faculty of engineering and physical sciences, Professor Colin Bailey, said: “We are delighted to be awarded £18m from the UK Research Partnership Investment Fund, which will allow us to obtain the required infrastructure to fully utilise the current expertise at Manchester in advanced materials and manufacturing.

“Working with existing and new industrial partners we will be able to accelerate innovation from the laboratory to market which will be of long-term benefit to the Northwest and the UK economy more widely.”