Programme for EPSRC Future Composites Manufacturing Hub Launch Event Announced

Published: 11th April 2017

The EPSRC Future Composites Manufacturing Hub will be hosting an Open Day on the 4 May 2017 at the East Midlands Conference Centre, Nottingham, UK.

The Hub is a £10.3m investment by the EPSRC to expand the national research effort towards delivering a step change in the production of polymer matrix composites, whilst training the next generation of composite engineers. The Hub is led by the University of Nottingham and the University of Bristol and initially includes 4 other UK universities; Imperial College London, Cranfield University, the University of Manchester and the University of Southampton. Supported by 4 HVM Catapult Centres and 18 leading companies from the composites sector, collectively offering a further £13m in support, the total portfolio is over £23m. This forms a key element in the UK’s composites manufacturing R&D strategy.

This launch event will provide attendees with the opportunity to hear about current projects and to understand how these fit within the research priority areas determined by the UK’s Composites Leadership Forum. There will be a series of technical presentations from the academic partners, followed by a Q&A session and a poster exhibition, providing opportunities to network and discuss research interests. This event will also see the launch of the first call for feasibility studies, offering short-term Hub funding to investigate challenging and ambitious projects involving both academia and industry. The Hub Director will explain how new partners can engage, whilst current partners will discuss the industrial support they need to meet the Hub’s objectives.

The programme for the day is as follows:

10.00 Registration & Coffee

10.30 Welcome

10.40 Future Composites Manufacturing Hub Overview
Andy Long (University of Nottingham)

11.00 Industry Viewpoint on the Future Composites Manufacturing Hub
Peter Chivers (National Composites Centre)

11.20 Doctoral Training for Composites Manufacturing
Ivana Partridge (University of Bristol)

11.40 Coffee and Networking Break

12.00 Technologies Framework for Automated Dry Fibre Placement (ADFP)
Kevin Potter (University of Bristol) and Tom Turner (University of Nottingham)

12.20 New Manufacturing Techniques for Optimised Fibre Architectures
Prasad Potluri (University of Manchester) and Andy Long (Nottingham)

12.40 Manufacturing Multifunctional Composites for Structural Applications
Paul Robinson (Imperial College, London) and Ivana Partridge (University of Bristol)

13.00 Lunch & Exhibitions

14.00 Feasibility Study – Manufacturing Thermoplastic Matrix CFC / Metallic Framework Structures
Andrew Mills (Cranfield University)

14.10 Feasibility Study – Strain-Based NDE for Online Inspection and Prognostics of Structures with Manufacturing Defects
Janice Barton (Southampton)

14.20 Q&A Panel Session with Academic Leads
Chaired by Andy Long (Univeristy of Nottingham)

14.40 Closing remarks

Click here to register before 24 April 2017.