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IfM Services
Contact Details
Jo Riches
Tel:
+44 (0)7854 210837
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IfM NewsMoss table wins people's choice
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Alex Driver and Carlos Peralta’s ‘Moss Table’ has won the People’s Choice poll to be included in the Design Icons: Cambridge Innovation Festival exhibition at Anglia Ruskin University (8-23 February).
The interactive Design Icons exhibition, organised by Creative Front and staged at the Ruskin Gallery on Anglia Ruskin’s Cambridge campus, will showcase 20 of the most important products designed in Cambridgeshire over the last 40 years.
Designed by Alex Driver and Carlos Peralta of the IfM’s Design Management Group, in collaboration with scientists, the table is a concept for a potential future application of biophotovoltaic technology. The moss produces energy through photosynthesis, which would be stored in a battery.
Although it is currently unable to power the built-in lamp, scientists have been able to demonstrate that moss can be used to drive low energy devices such as a digital clock. Because the table is a “living exhibit”, it will only be on display from 8-10 February
Other products on show from 8 February include the Dulux PaintPod Roller System, Kenwood Juice Extractor, Prestige Traditional Kettle, Freudenberg Vileda Magic Mop II, SureFlap catflap, Sinclair C5 and the Sinclair ZX Spectrum..
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IfM Education and Consultancy Services is helping to map out the next 30 years of the Australian rail industry following the great success of the Automotive Australia 2020 Roadmap undertaken in 2009. Working in collaboration with The Australian National University (led by ANU Edge), the CRC for Rail Innovation and Strategic Connections Group, IfM ECS is helping to create a roadmap to support an effective and efficient rail supply network well into the 21st Century.
IfM ECS, a world leader in roadmapping practice, were commissioned a second time, following the success of the earlier Automotive Australia 2020 Roadmap. Australian Government appointed Rail Supplier Advocate Bruce Griffiths initiated the railway project, based on first-hand experience from participating in the automotive roadmap and having witnessed how beneficial it was to both the industry and his own automotive company. A team of Commonwealth government, state governments and industry supporters were gathered to fund and drive the project forwards.
Roadmapping is used by a wide range of organisations and industry sectors to facilitate communication, collaboration and shared decision-making. It attempts to answer three key questions: Where are we now? Where do we want to be? How can we get there?
More information - press release
Click on the image for a larger version.
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Former IfM student Philip Deakin was recently named Undergraduate Visionary of 2011 by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE). The institution’s visionary awards showcase talented individuals who are inspiring change and driving innovation forwards.
Philip studied Manufacturing Engineering (MET) at the IfM from 2008-2010. He was recognised not only for his strong academic achievements whilst at Cambridge, but also for his work in industry. As well as the industrial placements forming part of the MET course, he completed two summer internships with Rolls-Royce working firstly for its air safety investigation team before working as an engine design engineer for the Ministry of Defence. Philip now works offshore for Shell in the Dutch North Sea.
More information about the Vision Award
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New sound-recognition technology developed by a Cambridge company is to be used in intercom systems to protect prison, hospital and commercial staff from violence, break-ins and vandalism.
Audio Analytic Ltd has entered into a licensing agreement with Zenitel AS to integrate its sound recognition technology with Zenitel's STENTOFON communication systems.
Audio Analytic’s technology is designed to recognize complex sounds by using advanced psychoacoustic modelling, the science behind how humans distinguish and understand the meaning of sound. Integrating the advanced sound recognition software into intercoms and information/help points will automatically alert security CCTV operators to such events as car thefts, break-ins, violence and firearm crimes.
The intercom analytics will do what video can’t: detect crimes and events by analyzing audio; detect off-camera events or areas where cameras are not located; and detect events regardless of lighting conditions.
“We are very excited about this collaboration. Zenitel is a leading provider of intercoms and we are pleased that they have selected our solution as being the best technology for their needs,” said Dr. Christopher Mitchell, CEO of Audio Analytic. “With the significant domain expertise of both companies, we are looking forward to working together to make safer environments for people and organizations the world over.”
Audio Analytic Ltd ispart of the ideaSpace Enterprise Accelerator programme, which is managed by IfM Education and Consultancy Services.
Download press release
Andrew Jones (centre), at the award ceremony with Alexander Armstrong (left) and Tony Pepper of sponsors Egress Software |
A high-tech temperature monitoring device which could help UK firms cut millions of pounds off their energy bills, has given its inventor his second major product award this year.
Andrew Jones, founder and Managing Director of Alquist, part of the ideaSpace Enterprise Accelerator programme, was presented with the Infrastructure Innovation of the Year award at the prestigious UK IT Industry Awards 2011 for his product Celsius. The awards were handed out by comedian and television presenter Alexander Armstrong at a ceremony in London, in front of an audience of more than 1,000 technology professionals from across the UK.
Celsius is a high-definition energy monitoring technology. It is of particular interest to datacentres housing banks of computer servers. Data centres currently consume 3% of total energy used in the UK. The device uses fibre-optic cable as a high-resolution temperature sensor to monitor temperatures. It is helping data centres to reduce their annual energy consumption by about 25 per cent.
“I am delighted that Alquist have been given this award. Our product impressed the judges with its brilliant use of physics in the real world, and its broad applicability – not just to data centres.” said Andrew.
Alquist’s product also won the DataCentreDynamics Future Thinking and Design Concepts award earlier this year and was a Finalist in the Data Centres in Europe 2011 awards.
The ideaspace Enterprise Accelerator programme is managed by IfM Education and Consultancy Services.
ideaSpace company to open new R&D centre in the North East
3 November 2011
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Award-winning ideaSpace company Polysolar is opening a new research and development office in County Durham.
The company which is part of ideaSpace Enterprise Accelerator, a programme run by IfM Education and Consultancy Services to support new firms, is gearing up for the manufacture of its revolutionary organic photovoltaic (OPV) glass.
Polysolar is a leader in the development of next generation, transparent photovoltaic glazing based on low cost organic polymers. It is working in collaboration with UK glass company Pilkington and Belgian chemicals company, Solvay.
Polysolar already produces a low-cost, transparent PV glazing panel for integration into new and existing buildings.
Hamish Watson, Polysolar’s CEO, said: "Opening a new operation in the North East shows our confidence in the Solar BIPV industry in this country and is a sign of the UK’s growing leadership in organic polymer PV technologies and their commercialisation.”
Download full press release
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Two award winning sixth form students were given an introduction to student life at the IfM as part of a week’s placement with British Sugar. The pair had won the placement as their prize in the Academy Award Excellence competition.
To take part in the competition the students had to write essays giving their ideas for improving the sustainability of transport to their respective institutions. Their week away included a visit to the IfM to find out about it’s approach to engineering education and it’s work in sustainability.
During their visit, the students, Ambi Ubhei of Sandwell Academy and Sam Exton of Darwen Aldridge Community Academy (pictured right outside the IfM), were given an introduction to student life and studying at Cambridge. They toured the IfM’s automation labs and design studios and also had the chance to discuss industrial sustainability with IfM researchers and to contribute their ideas on outreach activities. They ended the day with a dinner at St Catharine’s College.
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Cambridge Carbon Capture (CCC) has entered into a research collaboration with Polarcus Limited to develop its carbon mineralization technology. Such technology could be used to reduce CO2 emissions from ships, including emissions from Polarcus’ fleet of marine survey vessels.
CCC, based at ideaSpace on the University's West Cambridge site, has developed an electrochemical process which safely, securely and profitably captures carbon dioxide from the combustion of hydrocarbons as solid carbonate materials.
Polarcus operate the world's cleanest fleet of marine survey vessels for the oil industry. They already have world leading low-emissions of SOx and NOx from their diesel engines and CCC's technology will enable them to capture their CO2 emissions.
As part of the agreement Polarcus and CCC have agreed to jointly fund a 3 year PhD research programme at the University of Sheffield. It is believed that the research project will make an important contribution to Polarcus’ goal of becoming the most environmentally responsible towed marine seismic service provider in the industry.
Dr Robin Francis, CEO of Cambridge Carbon Capture, commented "We are delighted to be working with Polarcus, an acknowledged leader in reducing emissions from marine vessels. The collaboration with help us to further develop our carbon capture technologies for use in the marine and other sectors."
The Cambridge high tech cluster proved relatively resilient amidst what many consider the worst economic crisis since the early 1930s, according to new research from the Institute for Manufacturing.
The study by Vivian Mohr and Elizabeth Garnsey revealed that new firms founded during the period of the financial crisis showed higher survival rates than those founded during the economic boom of the mid 2000s. There is also evidence that newly emerging sectors in the Cambridge cluster – such as optoelectronics and environmental technologies – expanded employment during the crisis.
Between 2008-2010, jobs in the Cambridge technology cluster fell by 4.0%. However, during this time GNP fell by 6%. The number of Cambridge technology firms fell by 8.1% with more closures among the smallest firms and fewer start ups. The fall in start up rates and in firms growing to midsize reduced the pool of firms eligible for growth in difficult times.
In a second study the same authors looked at acquisitions of companies in the Cambridge cluster. Among firms acquired between 1988 and 2008, 80% were approaching mid-size (50 employees). University spin-off firms were amongst those more likely to be acquired than other firms. Firms receiving venture capital investment were almost six times as likely to be acquired as firms without venture capital investment.
Download copy of The Cambridge High Tech Cluster: Facing the Downturn of 2008-2010
Download copy of Who owns the Cambridge Phenomenon?
A team of designers from the IfM's Design Management Group are exhibiting a novel 'moss table' at the London Design Festival this week. The table will showcase an emerging technology called biophotovoltaics (BPV) which uses the natural process of photosynthesis to generate electrical energy. Researchers are exploring how moss, algae and plants could be used as a source of renewable energy in the future.
Featuring biological fuel cells made from moss, the table has been created by Alex Driver and Carlos Peralta from the IfM and Paolo Bombelli from the University’s Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology Department.
Still at early stages, BPV has the potential to power small devices such as digital clocks. Low cost BPV devices may become competitive alternatives to conventional renewable technologies such as bio-fuels in the next ten years.
The table is based on research into biophotovoltaics funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC). This pioneering work involves collaboration between the Departments of Engineering, Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, Biochemistry and Plant Sciences at Cambridge University, and the Chemistry Department at Bath University. The research is led jointly by Dr Adrain Fisher, Professor Christopher Howe and Professor Alison Smith at Cambridge, and Dr Petra Cameron at Bath.
Carlos Peralta said: “The moss table provides us with a vision of the future. It suggests a world in which self-sustaining organic-synthetic hybrid objects surround us, and supply us with our daily needs in a clean and environmentally friendly manner.”
Dr James Moutrie, Head of the IfM's Design Management Group said: “The table we are exhibiting this week demonstrates the ways in which designers can play a valuable role in early stage scientific research by identifying commercial potential and is one of the outcomes from our Design in Science research project.”
Download full press release
New research led by Professor Andy Neely, Director of the Cambridge Service Alliance (CSA) argues that a shift to services is vital for UK industry.
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A newly published white paper co-authored by Professor Neely and Dr Ivanka Visnjic, shows that ‘service’ offers companies significant opportunities to create and capture economic value.
Forty per cent of manufacturers now sell ‘services’ alongside products, to the extent that 50% of the income of many manufacturing firms stems from ‘services’.
The white paper entitled ‘From processes to promises: How complex service providers use business model innovation to deliver sustainable growth’, is published today at the CSA’s industrial conference ‘Service Innovation: Competitive Advantage Through New Business Models’ taking place in Cambridge.
The paper indicates that underlying this shift to ‘service’ is a change in the nature of service itself with firms increasingly focusing on how they can deliver services that help their customers deliver value.
Providers are progressing from ‘do-ers’ to problem ‘solvers’ and becoming capable of orchestrating the delivery of complex services. “Understanding what is happening in the shift to services is vital to the future success of UK industry,” says Professor Neely.
“Through this research into business model innovation we’ve really identified the three key elements to making successful innovation of your business model - understanding the value proposition; understanding the service value delivery system; and understanding the risk that is inherent in your new delivery system.”
The white paper lists 12 issues which executives keen to pursue a business model innovation approach to service provision should follow.
They include value propositions, value delivery and accountability spread including the range of risks a business model innovation creates.
The Cambridge Service Alliance is a business-led alliance founded in 2010 by the Institute for Manufacturing and the Judge Business School at Cambridge University, with BAE Systems and IBM as the founding industrial members. CSA brings together some of world's leading scholars working on the design and delivery of complex service solutions.
Cambridge Service Alliance website
Download a PDF of the white paper
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An ideaSpace-based company has been shortlisted for its third major product award in a year. Alquist has been nominated for its product Celsius, a high-tech temperature monitoring device which could help UK firms cut millions of pounds off their energy bills.
The device has attracted particular interest from Data Centres, the facilities that house banks of computer servers and which currently consume 3% of total energy used in the UK.
“Data centres are set to double their energy use by 2015. No other industry consumes as much power,” said Andrew Jones, founder and Managing Director of Alquist, which is part of ideaSpace Enterprise Accelerator, a programme managed by IfM Education and Consultancy Services.
The high energy use by data centres is due to the air conditioning required to prevent the computer equipment from overheating. Such facilities currently operate at between 18- 20°c . It is believed much higher temperatures could be tolerated, allowing energy use to be reduced – but the slightest risk of damaging the equipment has to be avoided.
Celsius is being used to gradually allow temperatures to rise in a tightly controlled manner, so that potential risks are minimized. “We are providing a monitoring infrastructure that enables them to gradually make the journey with confidence,” said Andrew. “For every 1°c degree the temperature is increased savings of around 5% per year can be achieved.”
Alquist’s product is a Finalist in the prestigious UK IT Industry Awards 2011, sponsored by the British Computer Society and Computing, in the category of Infrastructure Innovation of the Year. The winners will be announced at an award ceremony in London on 10 November.
Celsius won the DataCentreDynamics Future Thinking and Design Concepts award earlier this year and was also a Finalist in the Data Centres in Europe 2011 awards.
Download full press release.
Alquist website
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A former IfM student, Michael Korn, is the UK winner of the James Dyson Award – an international design competition run across 18 countries.
Michael won the award – and a prize of £1,000 – for his product KwickScreen, a portable room divider, designed principally for use in hospitals to isolate infected patients, as well as give them more dignity and privacy.
The screens enable hospitals to make more effective use of their accommodation as infected patients do not need to be moved into a private room. “In hospitals, there is a huge opportunity to optimise utilisation of bedstock and overall productivity whilst also improving the patient care environment,” said Michael.
The 2m high, bendable screens can be pulled out to anything up to 3.5m wide and retract back into a compact vertical compartment. They use a technology, the RolaTube, invented with NASA for use in space.
Michael gained inspiration from nature, including a frog’s tongue, to design the retractable KwickScreens. “I was interested in the way a frog’s tongue rolls out, which led me to prototyping with children’s slap-on bracelets and tape measures, which then led me to RolaTube – a materials technology company affiliated with the Cambridge Engineering Department.”
Michael used what he learned as a student on the IfM’s Manufacturing Engineering (MET) course to help him to develop his product. "MET gave me a broad understanding of business and the importance of appropriate management strategies – combined with a grounding in technology and engineering. This prepared me perfectly for a future in design, manufacture and entrepreneurship."
Download full press release
Further information about KwickScreen
26 August 2011
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IfM Head, Professor Sir Mike Gregory, has been elected a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering in recognition of his distinguished career teaching and researching at the forefront of Engineering. Professor Gregory, who was knighted in the New Years Honours for services to technology, works in the areas of manufacturing strategy, technology management, international manufacturing and manufacturing policy.
28 July 2011
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Over thirty delegates came together at the Institute of Materials Minerals and Mining in London to join the launch of an EPSRC funded report into Japanese interests in Industrial Sustainability.
The report was based on a study visit in which representatives from UK Universities and the EPSRC were able to meet with senior Japanese academics and engage in a full day workshop to learn about Japanese interests in Industrial Sustainability and identify areas of common interest.
The program in London included an introduction to the visit and supporting activities from Head of IfM Professor Sir Mike Gregory and an overview of the visits research findings from Professor Steve Evans of Cranfield. Dr. Jacquetta Lee on the University of Surrey and Dr. Derek Gillespie were also on hand to lend their insights during a Q&A session and help lead workshop groups.
The breakout groups were asked to comment on the report findings and to identify possible areas for collaboration and actions to take forward. The outputs from the workshop will be compiled into a report on the workshop and shared with the Japanese colleagues who participated in the Tokyo leg of the workshop.
The report is available to download from here, and presentations and materials from the day are available here. Comments on the report received before the 3rd of August will be included in the report on the workshop.
26 July 2011
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Companies who outsource to China significantly underestimate the costs involved. Although cost savings are cited as a major reason for sourcing from China, the actual savings may not be as great as expected.This is the finding of a research paper by Dr Ken Platts of the IfM.
His paper, “Overseas sourcing decisions – the total cost of sourcing from China,” co-authored with his former research student Ninghua Song, has been awarded the 2011 Outstanding Paper Award for the Best Paper published during 2010 in “Supply Chain Management – An International Journal”.
The paper, based on in-depth case studies, presents a comprehensive cost analysis of the total costs of outsourcing from China, and compares actual costs with the perceived costs of company managers. It shows that, on average, additional costs amounted to 50% of the quoted price.
Managers’ perceptions of additional costs averaged 25% of the quoted price. “Taken together, these findings suggest that companies generally do not comprehensively measure the costs of global sourcing, and significantly underestimate the true costs incurred,” said Dr Platts, University Reader in Manufacturing and Head of the IfM’s Centre for Strategy and Performance.
The paper can be downloaded here.
The photograph shows Ken Platts receiving the Outstanding Paper Award award from Lucy Sootheran from Emerald Group Publishing.
21 July 2011
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Twenty-three children from a Chelmsford secondary school spent a day at the IfM, having fun and learning about manufacturing engineering. The students from the specialist engineering college, Chelmer Valley High School, who are studying for their GCSEs, took part in a rocket building competition. The winning team managed to fire their rocket 50 metres into the air.
After punting on the Cam and a tour of Cambridge colleges the students returned to the IfM to play the 'just-in-time' game – a fun session designed to teach operations management.
Suzanne Mycock, Head of Engineering at the school said: "We are very pleased that the students have been given the opportunity to see manufacturing in the real world. We are keen to inspire them to aim high and realise that a place at Cambridge is not beyond their grasp."
Student Daniel Andrews said he had enjoyed the rocket building exercise. "I enjoyed being part of a team and working out which rocket type would go best."
28th June 2011
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The cream of European engineering talent will be converging on Cambridge next month to take part in an annual international competition.
This year’s European Society for Precision Engineering and Nanotechnology (EUSPEN) Challenge event is being hosted by the University of Cambridge’s Institute for Manufacturing.
Teams from the UK, Belgium, Spain, Germany, Switzerland, Netherlands, Denmark, Italy, Croatia will be taking part in the three day event.
The international competition is designed to identify outstanding students across Europe that have the potential to be future leaders in the field of Precision Engineering and Nanotechnology.
It takes the form of a hi-tech Great Egg Race. Students are issued with a real world problem, provided with a set of materials and then have three days to produce a working product to solve the challenge.
Bill O’Neill, Head of the IfM’s Centre for Industrial Photonics, is helping to organise the event, he said:
“It is a unique opportunity for young engineers to promote themselves at an international level and to connect with industry.
“Students’ benefit from national and international teamwork exposure, in addition to testing their engineering and business skills.”
The event will give the opportunity to the national competition winners from and the UK, to compete against each other for a prestigious industrial award. With support from industrial sponsors Heidenhaim, Hexagon Metrology, and Renishaw, the event promises to be an excellent showcase for the precision engineering leaders of tomorrow.
EUSPEN – an influential community of engineering professionals from industry and academia – is a Europe-wide organisation providing companies and research institutes to promote their latest technology developments, products and services and keep up to date with those in the field.
16th June 2011
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The University of Cambridge is used to firsts - now it has another as its first apprentice in laser and precision engineering has won an award.
Michael Herring, an apprentice at the IfM’s Centre for Industrial Photonics (CIP), has just been named Apprentice of the Year by Cambridge Regional College’s Engineering Academy.
Michael, 19, joined the IfM in 2010 and became the university’s first ever apprentice in photonics. Dr Bill O’Neill, head of the CIP, said the award was recognition for Michael’s contribution to the centre’s activities.
“The Department of Engineering only takes on one or two apprentices each year and we were delighted Mike joined us.
“Mike had good A-level grades that would have given him access to a first class university.
“Instead, he chose to develop his interests in Engineering by applying for an Apprenticeship here within the Engineering Department.
"I am really pleased with Mike’s performance, and delighted to hear of news of his award. He has been central to the many research and development activities here in the CIP, and he very much deserves this honour.”
Michael received his award at a special ceremony at the Regional College on Tuesday. He said: "I am honoured to get the award from Cambridge Regional College, my first year of my apprenticeship in Engineering has been very successful and I have enjoyed many new experiences working at the Centre for Industrial Photonics, I am looking forward to a great future here. “
9th June 2011
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A group of four Cambridge Manufacturing Engineering students have come up with a new design for a extreme sports device which could save lives.
The Automatic Belay Device (ABD) is the work of four third year students, Chris Bellamy, Emma Crossman, Tom Latimer, Isabel Martinez who are planning to apply for a patent for their design.
The ABD is one of eleven new product ideas developed by students as part of their Manufacturing Engineering course. The designs were on display at the IfM's annual Design Show, supported by Shearline Engineering.
The annual showcase is a chance for students to show off their ideas to local inventors, industrialists and designers.
The ABD device has been designed to allow climbers to safely use indoor climbing walls without the need for a climbing partner. The climber clips into the device and it takes up the slack as they climb the wall.
The students are now in conversation with a leading sports equipment manufacturer to obtain a patent and eventual production.
Details of all the projects at this year's show, including photographs, can be found at:
http://www.ifm.eng.cam.ac.uk/met/design/2011/
25th May 2011
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A new multi-million pound science and enterprise hub designed to encourage collaboration and foster the commercialisation of scientific research and innovation, has been officially opened by Science Minister David Willetts at Colworth Science Park, Bedfordshire.
Joint venture owners, managers and developers of Colworth Science Park - international property group Goodman and Unilever plc, with support from the Government through the East of England Development Agency (EEDA), joined forces with the University of Cambridge, Cranfield University and IFR Extra Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Institute of Food Research, to create the landmark enterprise hub known as The Exchange.
The Exchange has been made possible by the injection of £13.7 million from the Goodman:Unilever joint venture and EEDA, which provided £4.4m of funding.The IfM is one of the first organisations to establish a presence at the new centre.
A delegation representing the University of Cambridge, met with the Science Minister describing the research activities of the IfM, the work on open innovation and the role of the ideaSpace Enterprise Accelerator (iEA) in fostering innovation in the region. Leading the Cambridge group was Professor Sir Mike Gregory, head of the IfM. He was accompanied by Dr Tim Minshall and Dr Letizia Mortara of the Centre for Technology Management and Dr Belinda Clarke, iEA Director of External Relations.
Speaking at the official opening, David Willetts, Minister for Universities and Science, said: “To make the most of our world class research base we need to encourage close collaboration between the public and private sectors. This creates the right conditions to commercialise research – enabling businesses to work with universities to develop new products and break into new markets, boosting economic growth while helping to maintain our leading edge in science.”
17th May 2011
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An IfM doctoral student is playing a leading role in trying to find budding Bransons in poverty-stricken Rwanda. Julia Fan Li is one of a team of Cambridge students organising the African Innovation Prize business plan competition and Rwanda Entrepreneurship Week at the Kigali Institute for Science and Technology (KIST), Rwanda.The business plan competition for African students and the week-long conference grew out of Julia’s experience of entrepreneurship in both Cambridge and Rwanda: “In Cambridge we have so many resources to support students interested in enterprise (including CUE, CUTEC, iTeams). When I worked in Rwanda in 2009, I couldn’t help noticing that despite the entrepreneurial spirit of all the students I met, there was an absence of structured support for them to learn and apply their skills outside the classroom.”
Working with KIST University, Julia helped to establish the first African Innovation Prize competition in 2010. It was the country’s first business planning competition for students, designed to help those who wanted to set up their own business. The competition has already led to the creation and seed funding of one business - Rwanda Environmental Design Ltd – which is creating a decompostable toilet.
Now Julia, and her fellow organisers Sarah Teacher, Alex Handy, Jackie Stenson and Baillie Aaron, are hoping that the new conference will help provide a more structured approach to enterprise training. Learning from Cambridge University Entrepreneurs, the AIP organizers know that giving seed funding alone is not enough. Support, mentorship and a supportive ecosystem for enterprise are needed. Led by established Rwandan entrepreneurs and organised by the Cambridge team, the week, which runs from July 25 to 30, will enable students at KIST and other Rwandan universities to engage in product development, understand different business models, learn how to analyse a market, network, measure performance and fund their initiatives.The project – which has been backed by Brussels Airlines and retailer Staples – is still seeking financial support.
To find out more about the students’ work on Rwandan entrepreneurship, and support them in realizing the conference click here. Follow them on Twitter: @AIPrize, or check out their blog.
16th May 2011
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The IfM is to be a major partner in two new research centres designed to help boost UK manufacturing.
The Institute is a partner in both the new EPSRC Centre for Innovative Manufacturing in Ultra Precision and the EPSRC Centre for Innovative Manufacturing for Continuous Manufacturing and Crystallisation.
The announcement forms part of a £51m Government project to create eight high value manufacturing centres, which will see universities collaborate with industry on a range of manufacturing and engineering topics.
Recently it was announced that the IfM would also play a leading role in a new EPSRC Centre carrying out research into Industrial Sustainability.
The IfM’s Centre for International Manufacturing and the Centre for Industrial Photonics are involved in the new national research initiative.
Dr Jag Srai, Head of the IfM’s Centre for International Manufacturing, will be working on the continuous manufacturing and crystallisation project. The work aims to enable researchers to dramatically improve and accelerate the manufacture of medicines, foodstuffs and chemical products.
Dr Srai’s team will be investigating challenges around key manufacturing operations and supply chain issues.
He said: “We’ll be investigating the impact of changing supply chain configuration, based on more continuous processing can have on the efficient manufacture product vital to industries like pharmaceuticals.
“Designing the right supply chain for continuous processing, ensuring effective management controls and systems are in place are key to efficient manufacturing.”
“We will be carrying out research into the best ways of achieving this, looking at best practice in continuous processing and supply chain configuration across a range of industries and sectors.”
Partners in the new EPSRC Centre involve the Universities of Strathclyde, Bath, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Loughborough and Herriott-Watt University. It has also been backed by a number of industrial partners which include multinationals such as GlaxoSmithKline, Pfizer and AstraZeneca
Dr Bill O’Neill, Head of the Centre for Industrial Photonics, is a key academic partner in the EPSRC Centre for Innovative Manufacturing in Ultra Precision.
This EPSRC Centre will study next generation ultra-precision production systems and products, novel composite technologies and intelligent automation systems with an aim to create ultra high-precision manufacturing tools that can make products with nanoscale precision.
Dr O’Neill said his team were looking forward to tackling the research challenges:
“We’ll be working to develop new ultra-precision tools and processes which can help manufacturers create new and innovative products.
“Our work will enable UK industry to introduce mass production techniques to create the next generation of high-value products in the nano and micro-scales.
“The eventual aim is to create the tools that will allow UK manufacturing to create and seize new commercial opportunities.”
The IfM will partner Cranfield University, The National Physical Laboratory as well as three industrial collaborators in Microsharp Ltd, Hexagon Metrology and Fives – Cinetic.
12th May2011
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Dr Bill O’Neill was recently elected by the Council of the Institute of Physics to a Fellowship of the Institute in recognition of his personal contribution to the advancement of physics.
Dr O'Neill,Head of the IfM's Centre for International Photonics, said “I am delighted to receive the award and very much look forward to working closely with the Institute in order to advance physics research, application, and education. We really need to work hard to promote science end engineering to the younger generations, and with the support of the professional bodies such as the IoP, we can hopefully generate lots of budding scientists and engineers through our outreach work”
5th May2011
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The IfM has launched a new group designed to help fast-track research into open Innovation.
The Open Innovation Research Forum (OIRF) launched with a two-day ‘fast start’ research proposal development workshop. The OIRF workshop – sponsored by the UK Innovation Research Centre and Japan’s Institute for Technology, Enterprise and Competitiveness – brought together 40 representatives of multinationals, open innovation intermediaries, and academics from around the world to discuss the links between geographic location and the successful implementation of open innovation.
The first day of the event was designed to identify the key issues faced by business when trying to implement open innovation in many different locations. Attendees heard a summary of a recent UK-IRC survey that captured the current open innovation practices of 1,200 UK firms. They also heard the contrasting experiences of Kodak and Philips, highlighting the role of location in their open innovation strategies. Finally, the role of open innovation in attracting investment to the UK was presented, with particular emphasis being given to the ‘Tech City’ development in London. The workshop resulted in highlighting five key questions that, if addressed, would be of direct benefit to companies implementing open innovation.
The second day was structured around identifying ways in which these key questions identified by the companies on the first day could be addressed. By the end of day, six outline proposals, each involving a minimum of two academic institutions, were developed and presented back to all attendees. The six proposals were:
1. Comparing open innovation best practices in developed countries versus emerging markets
2. Identifying factors influencing successful open innovation implementation
3. Open innovation for corporate growth and renewal
4. Effective intra- and inter-organisation collaborations
5. Developing leadership capabilities for open innovation
6. The role of open innovation in stimulating cluster development
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5th April 2011
A robot door opener, an interactive recipe book and an automatic school register were just some of the imaginative ideas submitted in a great gadget competition.
The mini i-Teams What would you use that for? Contest was run at the Institute for Manufacturing as part of the Cambridge Science Festival.
Entrants were asked to submit ideas for alternative uses for cool gizmos developed by a number of hi-tech Cambridge companies.
Putting their tech to the test were Light Blue Optics – makers of an interactive projector which turns any surface into a virtual touchscreen; Sureflap an automatic catflap which uses cat microchip ID tags; Audio Analytic makers of sound detection software, Cambridge Temperature Concepts temperature monitor.
Also taking part in the event were ARM who showcased their mbed processor.
The winning entries were as follows:
The winners will all receive a science-themed toy for their efforts and a special certificate of their award-winning idea.
Download the full press release here
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5th April 2011
David Gill, a Senior Research associate at the IfM, has received a prestigious award for Outstanding Contribution to Business Incubation 2011.
David, a member of the Centre for Technology Management (CTM), was given the award for his work with St John’s Innovation Centre in Cambridge at the UK Business Incubation (UKBI) 12th International Conference in Manchester. UKBI is the leading professional body for the development and support of business incubation environments. David joined CTM as a Senior Research Associate to contribute to the investment-related projects on the 'Emerging Industries Programme' and provides input to CTM's research on investments in innovation, business incubation, and knowledge transfer.
More details are available on the St John’s innovation Centre website
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March 30th 2011
The IfM is to be a major partner in a multi-million pound project to establish a new national research centre in the field of industrial sustainability.
Partners in the new EPSRC Centre for Innovative Manufacturing in Industrial Sustainability are Cranfield the University of Cambridge IfM, Loughborough University and Imperial College London.
The EPSRC Centre, will be supported by £4.5m from EPSRC and a further £1.3m from industrial partners and will support the development of a sustainable UK industrial system through the dissemination of applied research.
It will also equip the future leaders of manufacturing with the knowledge, tools & methods necessary to encourage innovation in the field. Finally the centre will offer policy-makers support and guidance over regulatory frameworks to hep encourage sustainable development in manufacturing industries.
Professor Steve Evans of Cranfield who is heading the project said: “The EPSRC centre will address a number of key challenges including how we can make products in a low-carbon resource efficient manner and how we can make our factories and processes greener.
”We want to explore major changes to the industrial system and to do this we expect to encourage greater collaboration between universities and industry.
" We also want to promote the subject agenda to our academic colleagues and to work closely with Government and think-tanks on policies which can support industrial sustainability.”
Professor Sir Mike Gregory, head of the IfM, said he was delighted the institute could play a major role in the project: “In order to achieve our stated goals we need this type of close collaboration between academe and industry, the EPSRC Centre provides a great opportunity to move towards a sustainable industrial system.”
The project has been backed by a range of key industrial partners which include multinationals such as Unilever, GM, IBM, Toyota and Marks and Spencer.
It has also been supported by UK-based companies Suffolk-brewer Adnams, precision engineers Shearline, shelving and storage design fim Vitsoe and city car manufacturer Riversimple. EEF, the Carbon Trust and the TUC have also supported the ambitious initiative.
The announcement forms part of a £51m Government project to create eight high value manufacturing centres, which will see universities collaborate with industry on a range of manufacturing and engineering topics.
Science Minister David Willetts, said the new centres would: “combine inventive research and business acumen to develop the high-tech manufacturing industries we need to secure sustainable growth.”
Minister for Business and Enterprise Mark Prisk said: ”Manufacturing generates £140 billion a year for the economy and accounts for 55 per cent of total UK exports. These exciting new partnerships between our universities and businesses will play a vital role in keeping UK manufacturing ahead of the game internationally.”
March 17th 2011
Governor Patrick addresses IfM audience Pic: Kim Haberlin/Governor's Office |
A high-profile US trade mission visited the IfM as part of an international 10-day trade tour of Israel and the UK.
The Massachusetts Innovation Economy Partnership Mission 2011, led by the State’s Governor Deval Patrick, was designed to help form new research and business collaborations.
The visit was aimed at strengthening links between the UK and Massachusetts in Manufacturing, social policy and life sciences. It was jointly hosted by the IfM and the Centre for Science and Policy.
The US delegation, which included leading industrial, academic and government representatives, took part in a series of roundtable discussions with representatives from Cambridge life science, cleantech and technology companies.
Governor Patrick said the visit was an opportunity to foster mutually beneficial collaboration and investment, saying: “We want to invite businesses from the UK seeking to expand to work with us.” He added that the event was part of “… laying the groundwork for businesses from across the world to join us”
The Governor spoke of the historic links between his state and the UK and was keen to develop new collaborations aimed at strengthening these ties and creating new jobs to help generate economic growth.
The day’s activities also included a panel discussion which focused on how to encourage and build hi-technology clusters similar to Cambridge’s 'Silicon Fen'.
The panel included Graeme Reid, for the the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, Cambridge MP Julian Huppert, and Dr Tim Minshall and Dr Eoin O’Sullivan of the IfM. More than 100 people attended the event and heard how policy and regulatory frameworks can help assist hi-tech economic growth.
The audience made up of local businesses, representatives of the University and business support agencies, then had an opportunity for networking with members of the US party.
The final part of the day featured a Town Hall meeting led by Governor Patrick, which focused on facilitating the development of the life science, cleantech and ICT sectors in the state.
It was a view echoed by Finbarr Livesey, Head of the IfM’s Centre for Industry and Government: "This visit is an opportunity to strengthen the ties between two regions with significant depth in science, technology and innovation.
“We hope the sharing that happens over the visit leads to future partnerships between our universities, companies and public support agencies."
As part of his visit, Governor Patrick met with the Vice-Chancellor Professor Sir Leszek Borysiewicz, and was named to an Associate Fellowship position at the Centre for Science and Policy by Dr David Cleevely, Founding Director of the Centre.
A graduate of Harvard, Governor Patrick was first elected in 2006 and was re-elected to a second term in 2010.
Hear the Governor's address here
March 10th 2011
Alumni James Strachan and James Hyde |
Two former students are busy putting the lessons learned from the IfM's Manufacturing Engineering Tripos into practice.
James Strachan and James Hyde, who both graduated in 2007, are the founders of Six Works Ltd. The firm, based in Cambridgeshire, is an e-commerce and mail order fulfilment service which warehouses, picks and despatches goods to customers on behalf of a number of e-commerce websites.
After leaving the IfM, the pair ran a web-based business, but after this ended began consulting with a local health food importer.
James Strachan explained: "We started working a few hours a week for them refining and streamlining their processes and improving their e-commerce capabilities. Over the weeks and months, we got to know their business inside out and continued working with them as their company grew.
"It was in the course of our work with Green Bay that we first came across the order fulfilment industry - warehouses which specialise in the picking, packing and posting of products on behalf of sellers."
The pair realised that the growth of e-commerce provided an opportunity for services in order fulfillment. After a search on behalf of their client for a provider failed to meet the needs of the firm, they decided to set up a business which would.
The company has now been trading from its premises in Foxton for more than a year. The pair now write about their experiences on the company blog
March 8th 2011
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The IfM is to receive a visit by the State Governor of Massachusetts, Deval Patrick, and his Innovation Economy Partnership Mission team.
Governor Patrick is due to visit the IfM’s Alan Reece Building on March 15th as part of a 10 day trade tour of Israel and Britain.
The visit to the IfM is being co-ordinated by the IfM’s Finbarr Livesey in conjunction with the University’s Centre for Science and Policy CSaP.
Finbarr, Head of the IfM’s Centre for Industry and Government, said: "This visit is an opportunity to strengthen the ties between two regions with significant depth in science, technology and innovation.
"We hope the sharing that happens over the visit leads to future partnerships between our universities, companies and public support agencies."
The delegation will be comprised of leading business executives, academics and senior government officials.
The aim of the Governor’s visit is to learn more about Cambridge’s innovation-based industries – in particular technology, life sciences and clean energy – and to explore potential for closer ties.
As part of the trip a specially invited audience will also take part in a round table discussion focusing on research, policy and practice for innovation in the high-tech economy.
Find out more about the Governor’s Innovation Economy Partnership Mission 2011
Details of the delegation can be found here
March 1st 2011
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Mr Liu Xiaoming, Chinese Ambassador to the UK, visited the Institute for Manufacturing to discuss the Institute’s connections with China and explore opportunities for future collaboration.
Mr Lui Xiaoming was welcomed by the Head of IfM, Professor Sir Mike Gregory, who provided an overview of the work carried out at the Institute and the organisation’s strong links with China, followed by a tour of the IfM's automation laboratory.
Mr Liu Xiaoming, said: “Today’s visit has been extremely productive and I have been very impressed with the innovation and creativity demonstrated at the Institute. In particular I am pleased with the international approach taken by IfM and its continued commitment to forging strong links with China.
“China is the second largest manufacturer in the world – however, in order to retain this position, we can learn a lot from the UK and organisations like IfM in terms of developing new technology processes and creative industries. The strength of this relationship is therefore vital both in terms of growth for China and for the UK.”
Professor Sir Mike Gregory, said: “It has been an honour to host the Ambassador’s visit to Cambridge. Our links with China are very close and have been for the past ten years. Firstly in terms of our collaborative work with Chinese Universities - we have over eighty students from China studying here and also provide opportunities for our students to study in China. Secondly we work closely with manufacturing companies in China - particularly those companies looking to go global, which require our technology expertise. At IfM we recognise the vital importance of China in the world of manufacturing – our work with these companies therefore continues to be of great importance.”
February 23rd 2011
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The President of the European Commission, José Manuel Barroso, has visited the IfM.
The President was in Cambridge to deliver this year’s Alcuin Lecture, entitled “Europe in the 21st Century: non progredi est regredi”.
Mr Barroso, accompanied by the Vice-Chancellor Professor Sir Leszek Borysiewicz, was welcomed to the IfM by Professor Dame Ann Dowling, Head of the University's Department of Engineering and Professor Ian Hutchings, head of the IfM's Inkjet Research Centre.
Prof Hutchings gave the President an overview of the IfM’s activities and current research projects, before taking him to see the work of the IfM's Centre for Industrial Photonics.
Dr Andrew Cockburn and doctoral student David Hopkinson described an exciting European-funded programme designed to help in the manufacture of eco-friendly vehicles.
The HiWi project involves developing micro and nano-scale manufacturing techniques in order to create magnets for electric motors to power green cars. It is hoped the techniques will reduce the dependence on rare earth metals. Partners on this project include Italian car-maker Fiat and Siemens.
Mr Barroso and the Vice-Chancellor were also presented with special laser etched photographs to mark their visit.
Full details of the President's visit to Cambridge, as well as the full text of his lecture, is available on the University of Cambridge website.
February 22nd 2011
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A chance to find out about the latest research activity at the IfM attracted more than 100 guests.
An audience of industrialists and academics attended the IfM Open Evening to find out more about the institute's latest projects.
They saw presentations from Alan Thorne, Associate Director Auto-ID Labs Cambridge about a project to improve airport operations, Dr Alan Cousens on the IfM's work with SMEs and Dr Tim Minshall about the new ideaSpace Enterprise Accelerator initiative.
The event also provided an opportunity for business leaders to meet with students.
February 21st 2011
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A group of UK academics have visited Japan to find out more about the country's approach to industrial sustainability.
Head of the IfM, Professor Sir Mike Gregory and Professor Steve Evans of Cranfield University led a UK delegation of researchers to Tokyo on an EPSRC funded study.
The visit was designed to help share experience and expertise in the fast-developing research area.
The programme combined institutional visits in and around Tokyo with a one day workshop hosted at the British embassy (pictured right). The event was attended by distinguished academics from Japanese Universities, the Engineering Academy of Japan and other research organisations.
The British delegation also included: Dr. Derek Gillespie of the EPSRC, Professor Shahin Rahimifard of Loughborough University, Dr Tim Short of the University of Liverpool, Dr Jacquetta Lee of the University of Surrey and Dr Dai Morgan of the IfM.
The findings will be disseminated at a workshop July 22nd in London, click here for details.
February 10th 2011
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An ambitious research project aims to improve the chances of success for new products – by studying the role of senior management in the development process.
The IfM is looking at the role of senior-level management in new product development (NPD).
The research, being conducted by the IfM’s Design Management Group, hopes to identify a set of indicators which, if met, could help improve the chances of new products becoming a commercial success.
The project is unique in that it will examine the role of senior management in the new product development process from the perspective of both top management and the development team.
Doctoral student Burcu Felekoglu is collecting data from manufacturing and techology firms by carrying out a survey of both senior management and the NPD team.
Burcu explained: “New Product Development is essential to many businesses; it can have a real impact on the profitability and profile of manufacturing and technology companies.
“Previous studies have shown that senior management involvement in NPD projects is critical. They have also highlighted examples of best practice, but there are crucial gaps in our knowledge.”
Burcu said the new project aims to answer a series of important questions: “We still don’t have a clear definition of what actually constitutes managerial involvement in NPD.
“We don’t clearly understand the significant roles senior management can play or how their involvement affects the success of NPD projects.
“We also want to investigate how communication between top management and the NPD team influences success.”
As the need to deliver sustained success becomes increasingly crucial to the prospects of companies, more emphasis will be placed on NPD.
The study hopes to highlight the roles and functions senior management can play which can improve the chances of success of a new product.
The researcher also hopes to shed new light on the reasons why some NPD projects go awry, such as missing key deadlines or due to resource constraints.
Participants will benefit from access to research findings prior to publication and have the chance to attend a special seminar detailing the results
For more information on this project please contact Burcu Felekoglu
February 8th 2011
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A prestigious international conference on Operations Management has become a record breaker, having received more than 850 academic paper submissions.
EurOMA 2011 is being hosted by the University of Cambridge’s Institute for Manufacturing and the Judge Business School.
The conference – which attracts around 500 delegates from Europe and from countries as far flung as Malaysia, Iran and Brazil – is being held for the 18th time.
The event, which takes place from 3-6 of July, is designed for academics and practitioners from around the world who have a common interest in the continuing development of Operations Management.
Organisers say they have been delighted at the record number of abstracts received.
A spokesperson for the conference said: “We’re delighted with the level of submissions for the conference.
“We have received a record number of abstracts, which we think, demonstrates the significant level of research interest in exploring the changing nature of Operations Management.”
The conference programme will include around 300 papers and keynote presentations as well as workshops for PhD students and Young Scholars. There is also a programme of technical visits, a conference dinner and a programme for accompanying persons.
The Chairmen are Dr Jag Srai (pictured, right), head of the IfM’s Centre for International Manufacturing, and Dr Matthias Holweg Reader of Operations Management at the Judge Business School. For further information, visit the website.
January 25th 2011
L-R: Carlos Lopez (IfM), Dr Jose Rosas (Programme
coordinator Mexico-Cambridge project in technology transfer), HE Ambassador
Medina Mora, Mrs Alexandra Hass, Director Promexico UK, Secretary of Economy |
A delegation of Mexican government officials paid a visit to the IfM to find out more about the Institute’s research on industrial policy and its role in assisting small businesses.
The delegation, led by Bruno Ferrari, Mexico's Secretary of Economy, stopped off in Cambridge en route to Davos for the World Economic Forum meeting.
The delegation also included the Mexican Ambassador to the UK, His Excellency Eduardo Medina Mora, and Alexandra Hass, Director of ProMexico UK.
During the visit the Secretary met with David Probert, Head of the Centre for Technology Management (CTM) and his colleague Dr Rob Phaal, and Finbarr Livesey, Head of the Centre for Industry and Government.
The group heard how CTM’s research was helping businesses make informed choices in the selection and use of technologies to assist growth and the value of techniques such as roadmapping in helping to plan long-term strategy.
Finbarr Livesey explained how his research in industrial policy was shedding light on how regulatory frameworks can influence economic development.
The delegation was also due to visit the Judge Business School before the Secretary departed for Switzerland.
January 20th 2011
iEA is based at the Hauser Forum on the University's West Cambridge campus |
Seven projects designed to support innovators and entrepreneurs across the Eastern Region have been announced by the ideaSpace Enterprise Accelerator (iEA).
The ideaSpace Enterprise Accelerator (iEA) is a four year, East of England Development Agency enabled programme, which aims to help economic, strategic and social value to be generated across the Eastern Region.
For each year of the programme, iEA will provide grants to help establish projects that will deliver progress towards these aims. The seven projects being announced are:
January 10 2011
Alex Driver recieves his award from Martin Rowson Below: Alex's winning entry (click to see enlarged)
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An IfM researcher has been named Young Cartoonist of the Year thanks to his illustration depicting rejected Harry Potter titles.
Alex Driver, a research associate in the IfM’s Design Management Group, won the award run by the Cartoon Arts Trust.The contest was judged by the cream of British newspaper cartoonists. The judging panel included The Guardian’s Steve Bell, Matt from the Daily Telegraph and Peter Brookes of the Times.
Alex said he was delighted to have won: “I’ve been drawing cartoons all my life as a hobby, mainly just to make my friends laugh. I’ve never won anything for my cartoon art before, so I was absolutely thrilled to have won this competition.
“One of the most exciting things from my point of view was being told that Mac, the cartoonist for the Daily Mail, particularly liked my drawing.”
The competition victory - which saw him win £250 and a certificate signed by the judging panel - has already seen Alex earn a number of professional commissions for his work. He was presented with his prize by political cartoonist Martin Rowson, head of the British Cartoonists’ Association. Alex’s winning cartoon is currently on display in the Cartoon Museum, London.
January 4 2011
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Professor Mike Gregory, Head of the Institute for Manufacturing (IfM) and of the Manufacturing and Management Division of the Department of Engineering, has received a knighthood in the New Years Honours for services to technology.
After an early career in manufacturing engineering and management in the machine tool industry, Professor Gregory was the founder member of the Manufacturing Engineering Group at Cambridge, the forerunner of the IfM, which he established in 1998.
A strong advocate of the need to take a broad view of manufacturing, integrating management, technology and policy issues, Professor Gregory's work has always been closely linked with industry and government. He has published in the areas of manufacturing strategy, technology management, international manufacturing and manufacturing policy.
Professor Gregory said he was surprised and delighted to receive the honour. “I welcome this recognition of the important role that manufacturing industry plays – and will continue to play – in the economy,” he said.
Professor Gregory’s external activities have included membership of various government and institutional committees. He was Springer Visiting Professor at UC Berkeley in 2008-2009. He chairs the UK Manufacturing Professors Forum and is a member of the UK Government's Stakeholder Group on Manufacturing.
He is a Fellow of Churchill College Cambridge
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