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IfM Services
Contact DetailsJo Riches Tel: +44 (0)7854 210837 |
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IfM News 2008
IfM wins prizes for sustainability posters28 November 2008 A poster designed by Master's student Daniel Neal together with IfM's Dr Claire Barlow has won the £500 first prize in a competition aimed at showcasing new research ideas in sustainability. The poster, entitled Fibre from Stinging Nettles presents the idea that Stinging Nettles can be used to produce a fine fibre that could be used as a substitute for cotton. The project looks into the benefits of using Nettles in terms of the reduced resources they require, and other ways in which the whole plant can be used in order to fit in with the zero waste principles of integrated farming. A £250 runner-up prize also went to Dr Barlow and students Daniel Neal and Wesley Zheng for their poster Buildings from Waste Paper. In collaboration with Hertfordshire based company Econovate, they are developing a building system based on Papercrete for pre-fabricated houses. Papercrete is a low-carbon version of concrete that uses low-grade waste paper that would otherwise go to landfill. Pre-fabricated housing built using Papercrete would be more affordable and its thermal insulation properties means that they would also be more eco-efficient. The exhibition was aimed at enabling the wider public to discover what kind of sustainability research is going on in and around Cambridge, and to offer a chance for staff and students from Cambridge University and ARU to see each others' work. It was one of a series of events in the Cambridge Consultations 'A World to Believe In' programme, which is part of the Cambridge University 800th Anniversary celebrations. The competition was held in conjunction with Cambridge Environmental Initiatives. Download a pdf file of the winning poster [1.3Mb]. The other posters can be seen and downloaded from the 'A World to Believe In' website; go to the page for Events, then locate 17th-21st November, Great St Mary's - Research for a Sustainable Future Poster Day.
Creating the future in global trade & logistics21 November 2008 Professor Duncan McFarlane recently presented at a Symposium at Rotterdam School of Management to celebrate the Honorary doctorate awarded to Professor Hau Lee from Stanford. Entitled "Creating the Future in Global Trade & Logistics" the workshop also involved presentations from Professor Lee, Professor Jo van Nunen from RSM. Professor McFarlane’s presentation dealt with the issue of "tracking and tracing in supply chains" focusing on practical methods for combining historical data, RFID information and appropriate models to predict the movement of goods and to estimate order arrival times which complemented the other two presentations examining strategy issues in global logistics and tanrade. There were some lively discussions from an audience of 200 Dutch and other European industrialists and academics.
MET student wins Rolls-Royce manufacturing engineering award21 November 2008 Michael Ansbro, a second year Manufacturing Engineering student, has won a Manufacturing Engineering Award from Rolls Royce. Each year up to four awards of £500 each are awarded to final year Science or Engineering Masters students with an interest in pursuing a career in Manufacturing Engineering. The award was given to Michael based on his response to how Rolls-Royce might adopt a strategy to develop in-house manufacturing capabilities and the challenges they might face.
IfM celebrates its 10th anniversary18 November 2008 A celebration to mark the 10th Anniversary of the IfM's foundation was held in London last night. Over 100 guests from industry, government and academia attended the evening reception held at the Royal Academy of Engineering. Economic and Business Minister, Ian Pearson, and former Minister for Science and Innovation Lord David Sainsbury, both addressed the guests and praised the work of the IfM during its first 10 years. An event was also held for staff and guests last week at the University of Cambridge Combination Room (see photo), attended by The Vice Chancellor, Professor Alison Richard. The London event was attended by British industrialist Dr Alan Reece, who donated £5 million towards the funding of the IfM's new home, now nearing completion on the university's West Cambridge Site. Dr Julian Allwood awarded EPSRC Leadership Fellowship15 September 2008
Dr Julian Allwood has been awarded an EPSRC Leadership Fellowship for his work to reduce global carbon emissions that arises in the production of steel and aluminium parts. Julian is a Senior Lecturer in the Department and as well as leading research activity on novel metal forming processes and the environmental impact of production, has initiated the departmental seminar series on 'Engineering for a Low Carbon Future.' Julian summarises the research that he will be undertaking: "8% of global carbon emissions from energy use arise in the production of steel and aluminium parts. Demand for the two materials is currently growing at 6% per year, and is set to double within 25 years, yet in response to concerns about climate change we are aiming at a 60% cut in carbon emissions by 2050. How can this occur? Industry efforts to improve energy efficiency and increase recycling rates have both been effective, but the most optimistic forecasts suggest only a further 30% reduction in emissions per unit output - which isn't enough to meet the target. The fellowship aims to find out how we could meet the carbon target for steel and aluminium. Working with academic partners in several countries, future scenarios of metal flows and associated economic forecasts will be developed to anticipate what must be achieved. These will then be explored with a consortium of 20 major global companies spanning the metals supply chain, to identify the barriers to achieving them and find technical, economic and policy measures required to overcome the barriers. Although all plausible scenarios will be examined, it is likely that a key element of a low carbon metal economy would be extensive re-use of metal without melting. Accordingly the fellowship includes exploration of several technological changes that would be required to support such re-use. The fellowship has attracted £1.5m of government support through the EPSRC and £2m of industrial commitment from companies including Boeing, Ford, Jaguar Land Rover, Corus, Alcoa, Novelis, Siemens, Arups and many others." Yak Yak - promise of a better future for people of the PamirsSeptember 2008
Yak down (fine hair) is set to revitalise the economy of one of the world’s most remote regions thanks to efforts from a Cambridge University engineering graduate. The 'Yak Yak' Project has been set up by NGO Operation Mercy, with the help of Sarah Ong, who recently completed a degree in manufacturing engineering. The project is intended to generate income from fine yak hair for the inhabitants of the Pamir mountain range in Tajikistan. Little industry exists in the area, which covers almost half of Tajikistan, but the mountain range is home to a sizeable yak population. Although the animals have been herded there for centuries, their down has generally been discarded. Its potential as a source of income was first identified by Operation Mercy Tajikistan and Sarah worked throughout the spring with their team to decide how best to put it to use. The end product is yet to be finalised, but progress has been made on trialling hand tufting of the down, collecting spun samples, and knitting prototype hats and scarves. The fineness of the down lends itself to knitwear and Yak Yak is planning to target high street consumers. "We decided on producing finished goods to maximise the employment potential for the locals," Sarah said. "The biggest problem is to separate the down from the hair - along with improving quality, we also need to establish reliable production if we want to export garments overseas." Sarah now plans to return for another two years, to follow up on her initial work by testing the reliability and quality of production and beginning the search for partner organisations. She said: "I didn't want to work at a regular factory in the UK and central Asia gave me the chance to use my skills where they will make a big difference. It was wonderful to be able to apply university knowledge in somewhere so completely different". "My stay there has changed my perspective on life. From these people, I have learnt the difference between a luxury and necessity. Earlier I would think that taking a shower is a necessity, now I think it's a luxury. "I also believe that the West can learn a lot from them because eventually we are all going to face a resource crunch. They know how to live with fewer resources, and not out of choice but because they are forced to." Funding for Sarah's initial project was provided by a bursary from Engineers Without Borders UK, an NGO dedicated to funding projects that help human development through engineering, and the Royal Academy of Engineering. The early stages and ongoing work have been funded by other sources. Manufacturing Strategy Review: New Challenges, New OpportunitiesSeptember 2008 The government has launched a new review for its strategy of manufacturing called "Manufacturing: New Challenges, New Opportunities". According to the strategy review, it sets out an ambitious new vision for a globally competitive manufacturing sector that leads the world in capturing higher value components of the global value chain. The new strategy was produced by the Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform with input from the Ministerial Advisory Group on Manufacturing and other stakeholders as well as academic and survey evidence. The strategy is aimed at helping UK manufactures to meet new challenges and create opportunities within them. Professor Mike Gregory, Head of the IfM, who is a member of the Ministerial Advisory Group on Manufacturing, said "the new manufacturing strategy represents a refreshing radical approach to manufacturing policy reflecting the UK’s global reach and emerging opportunities". For more information about the Manufacturing Strategy Review, please contact the Department for Business Enterprise & Regulatory Reform GreenPB wins first Armourers & Brasiers' Venture PrizeAugust 2008 The first Armourers & Brasiers' Venture Prize of £25,000 has been won by GreenPB, a team of scientists and engineers based at the University of Cambridge. The invention was created by a team led by Dr Vasant Kumar at the Department of Material Sciences and Metallurgy, which developed a revolutionary method of recycling lead acid batteries. The IfM's Nigel Williams was part of the team of students from several departments who took the idea forward, wrote the business plan and entered the competition. GreenPB were also finalists in this year's Cambridge University Entrepreneurs Business Plan Competition. The new technology will provide lead metal and battery manufacturers with innovative, cheap and environmentally friendly technology which may replace previous ineffective and polluting methods for lead metal processing.
Design students win commercial manufacturing awardJuly 1st 2008 Four students from Cambridge University have won a commercial manufacturing award as part of the Manufacturing Engineering Trips programme, run by the University’s Institute for Manufacturing. The 'Shearline Manufacturability Award' was presented by leading manufacturing organisation, Shearline, to a group of students who, as part of their design project, created a redesign of the precision pipette, one of the most commonly used laboratory instruments, to address ease of use and ergonomic issues. While current laboratory pipettes satisfy the need for precision and reliability, their design falls short in terms of ease of use. They are entirely thumb-operated and are known to cause cases of repetitive strain injury. The students successfully designed a comfortable, easy to use pipette, the 'Ergopip', which distributes workload to the user's fingers and is just as precise and reliable as existing versions. For more on student designs see http://www.ifm.eng.cam.ac.uk/met/design/2008/ Press release [Word document]
Planes ready for take-off in fraction of the timeFriday 6 June 2008 New Cambridge University project could reduce aircraft turnaround delays by a quarter, saving airline industry millions. A new project which could help slash airport delays by reducing snarl-ups in the chain of operations that prepare an aircraft for its next flight is being launched by Cambridge University. The initiative will trial the latest automated identification technology - such as tiny electronic tags that feed information back to computers - to examine how it could be used to speed up airport operations by making equipment and processes more visible. Researchers believe it could lead to "dramatic improvements" at airports around the world. Press release [Word document]
'Mosquito traps, cocktail makers and intelligent litter bins…Friday 6 June 2008 Cambridge engineering students display their latest innovations. A high street litter bin that sorts waste and a device to help deaf musicians feel the beat are just two of the latest ideas by Cambridge University students hoping to bring new products to market. The ideas went on display, along with eight more prototypes, at the Design Show run by the University's Institute for Manufacturing (IfM) this week. The annual showcase is a chance for the best undergraduate manufacturing engineers to show off their ideas to local inventors, industrialists and designers, looking to spot the next big thing. Press release [Word document]
'Dragon' talks at IfMTuesday 20 May 2008 Tips on how to get business angels to back new business ventures were given by successful entrepreneur and former BBC 'dragon' Doug Richard on 20th May at IfM. Doug, co-founder of Cambridge Angels and a string of successful software businesses, talked around the themes of risk and value as it relates to the investment activities of business angels. Doug's talk also covered the role of alliances in increasing the investability of start-ups, the importance of choosing the right location to start a firm (stressing the importance of proximity to market and customers), the irrelevance of patenting for many start-ups, the challenges of attempting to deal with multiple business angels, and the role of public policy in supporting entrepreneurship. Doug was speaking at one of the IfM's regular seminars run by the Technology Enterprise Group (TEG). Information on the activities of TEG, including access to audio and video downloads of past seminars, can be found at: www.ifm.eng.cam.ac.uk/ctm/teg. Press release [Word document]
Intellectual Property in Open Innovation: A dangerous mix?Wednesday 14 May 2008 How can start-ups and large firms work together to bring ideas to market? What are the challenges of making this form of 'open innovation' work? The Cambridge Network's Special Interest Group on IP sought to address these issues at an event on 14th May organised in partnership with the Institute for Manufacturing (IfM). Supported by Unilever R&D, IfM is currently working with a community of 30 multinational companies to share good practice in making open innovation work. The multinational corporation's perspective was given by Mike Addison from the Business Development team at P&G. His talk presented some of the key lessons that P&G have learned through numerous open innovation projects. A key point he stressed as that "open innovation forces firms to do things very well". For smaller firms, he noted that successful collaboration relies upon having a clear plan to extract value from IP, approaching a large firm at the right time, and being realistic about your chances of getting to, and the time it will take to get to a deal. The start-up's perspective was given by Tony Hooley of 1 Ltd. He shared the substantial learning that had taken place as 1 Ltd had built IP-based partnerships with universities and multinational firms. He echoed many of the views presented by Mike Addison, and stressed the importance of realising that the more work that can be done in getting an idea close to market, the more likely it will be to form a mutually beneficial IP-based deal with a large firm. Following on from this event, IfM and the Cambridge Network are planning to run a more detailed training event on setting up and managing successful partnerships between start-ups and large firms.
Free help for small manufacturing businesses on offer from Cambridge UniversityThursday 1 May 2008 Small manufacturing companies can get free help to improve their business from experts at the University of Cambridge Institute for Manufacturing (IfM). Up to 100-man days of impartial guidance is on offer between now and the end of September. The service is free to users thanks to government funding designed to improve the success rate of start-ups and small businesses. The IfM has undertaken many years' of research and practical engagement with small companies. It has developed a set of tools, the Industrial Innovation Toolset, that help smaller businesses to become more competitive. "We can help them tackle a range of issues, from working out why their new products are always late to how they can put in place an effective, sustainable business strategy," said Peter Templeton, Head of the IfM's Industry Links Unit. "The programme is being run in conjunction with six regions of the government's Manufacturing Advisory Service who will help to identify the companies taking part." MAS regions involved are the South East, North West, East Midlands, North East, West Midlands and East of England. Press release [MS Word document] For more information go to the "Working with the IfM" webpages. or Download the brochure [192k pdf file]
Global leaders in business and academia call for new focus on service innovation
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Tuesday 22 April 2008
Many firms are failing to establish effective global production networks and rely too heavily on short-term outsourcing and offshoring to countries such as India and China, Paul Christodoulou of Cambridge University Institute for Manufacturing (IfM) warned today.
Businesses need to establish a systematically designed global ‘footprint’ or network, attuned to the constantly changing business environment, rather than pursuing quick cost reductions, said Mr Christodoulou, a Senior Industrial Fellow at the IfM and co-author of a recent IfM report “Making the right things in the right places.”
Speaking at Subcon 2008, the International Subcontract Manufacturing Show at the NEC in Birmingham, Mr Christodoulou argued that the real benefits in the long-term will come not from ‘quick fixes’, but from a systematic approach to developing production networks.
Press release [MS Word document]
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Tuesday 4 March 2008
A major £2 million research programme has been launched to examine changes required by the engineering industry as it moves to provide more product-related services, rather than just the products themselves. Headed by Cambridge University's Institute for Manufacturing (IfM), the new research programme, 'Support Service Solutions: Strategy and Transition', is jointly funded by BAE Systems and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and involves researchers from Bath, Cranfield, Exeter, Leeds, Loughborough, Nottingham, Queens and Salford universities.
Press release [MS Word document]
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Tuesday 26 February 2008
Work has begun on a new, £15 million home for Cambridge University's Institute for Manufacturing.
The building, designed by world-famous architects Arup Associates, will create an international centre for industrial innovation, reflecting the IfM’s integrated approach to global industrial issues.
A generous donation from leading British industrialist Dr Alan Reece provided the funds needed to complete the project and the building will be named in his honour. Dr Reece officially launched the construction phase at a start-on-site ceremony on Tuesday 26 February.
More information about the building, plans, maps and photographs
Press release [MS Word document]
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February 2008
The Institute for Manufacturing is taking its expertise in industrial innovation to the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia under a new partnership with one of the country's universities.
In the first deal of its kind between Cambridge and an Eastern European state, staff from the IfM will help establish both a postgraduate course and an industrial support unit designed to assist the development of manufacturing companies in the region.
The agreement was made official last week with a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Cambridge and St Cyril and Methodius University, which is based in the Macedonian capital, Skopje. The signing of the Memorandum was welcomed with an official announcement from the Macedonian Prime Minister, Nikola Gruevski.
The new developments will be led by the IfM's Industry Links Unit –which is part of the University’s Department of Engineering.
The postgraduate course in Industrial Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Management will aim to educate future industry leaders and entrepreneurs. It will be modelled on a similar course which staff from the IfM helped establish at the University of Trinidad and Tobago. Cambridge staff will help to run the course for the first three years, transferring knowledge and skills in course delivery and development to the university in Skopje.
The collaboration will also support the formation of a new Industrial Development Unit in Macedonia. The Unit will assist small and medium-sized manufacturing companies in the region to prosper and grow by developing sustainable business strategies, building the capabilities necessary to execute their strategies, and increasing productivity.
For more information about St Cyril and Methodius University see: http://www.ukim.edu.mk/index.php?lan=en
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February 2008
The Spring 2008 issue of the Cambridge Technopole Report has just been published by St Johns Innovation Centre with support from the Cambridge Network and the Institute for Manufacturing.
This report provides an overview of the history, selected key organisations and their activities, and the challenges and opportunities facing the Cambridge high technology business cluster.
In this issue, in addition to the regular updates on investment, events and organisations, three particular questions are raised:
Report co-author Dr Tim Minshall commented: "There have been some recent mixed messages about the performance of the Technopole. I think that there is now a real need to put in place mechanisms to help us understand and focus upon the core strengths of Cambridge to allow us to build on the successes achieved to date."
Walter Herriot noted: "This is a critical time in the development of the Cambridge Cluster. We need to invigorate ourselves by building on our strengths yet ensure that we support exciting new technologies and innovations that are emerging."
From the perspective of the report's sponsor, the Cambridge Network, Dr Peter Hewkin added: "Cambridge is acknowledged as a source of 'Ideas that Change the World' - in the 21st Century there will be new ideas and we need to make sure that the cluster can facilitate new ways to exploit these. I am confident that we will succeed in this endeavour."
The report is available for download from www.cambridgetechnopole.org.uk .
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January 2008
Traditional manufacturing systems are poorly suited to the highly competitive, globalised markets of today according to a new book co-authored by Duncan McFarlane, Professor of Service and Support Engineering at the IfM. With a constant stream of new products and a growing demand for customisation, manufacturers need production facilities that can be reconfigured easily and quickly in order to cope robustly with constant change and disruption.
While the chemical and petrochemical industries have, in the recent past, tended to focus on mass production and reducing production costs, the changes brought about by increased competition and globalisation demand a new approach, says Prof. McFarlane. The traditional 'hierarchical' control system used in most production facilities is too inflexible and breaks down under the pressure of constant change. Instead, the book proposes modular processes, supported by distributed control systems, capable of making decisions and reconfiguring production to suit the evolving conditions.
A distributed coordination approach to reconfigurable process control is co-authored by Nirav Chokshi, a former graduate student of the IfM. It is published by Springer as part of its Advanced Manufacturing series.
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