There are a number of ways for businesses to collaborate
with universities and to reap a real financial return. Paul
O’Donnell, head of external affairs at the Manufacturig
Technologies Association (MTA), explains

When politicians or economists
make a list of the national
advantages that Britain enjoys –
a variety of counting one’s blessings – one of
the first things that they cite is usually our
Higher Education sector. Britain’s universities
rank second only to those in the United
States in international league tables with
Oxbridge, London and the big city
universities, like Manchester and
Birmingham, all enjoying enviable global
reputations. The same is true in niche areas
too. For example, did you know that Dundee
is one of the best places in the world to study
video game design (an £87bn industry)?
In manufacturing too there are massive
strengths, five of the world’s top 50 (the same
number as the rest of Europe put together)
engineering and technology faculties are
located in the UK. But there are also
strengths in other manufacturing areas like
product design and software engineering.

This is all well and good but surely
collaboration with a University is a step too
far for most small and medium sized
businesses? Don’t you have to have a string
of PhDs already on the books, a Nobel prize
contending idea and won’t they want a huge
amount of investment up front?
Well no; increasing numbers of smaller
MTA member companies are finding that
there are a number of ways to collaborate
with universities that provide a real financial
return for their businesses.

Firstly there are the now well established
Knowledge Transfer Partnerships. These
began in 2003 (replacing the old Teaching
Companies Scheme). At heart, a recently
qualified researcher is seconded from a
university to a company for a period of 12-36
months. The business gets access to a first
rate person with expertise they do not have
in house and a range of contacts not
previously open to them. The researcher gets
the opportunity to work on real business
issues. There is considerable funding
available for companies who want to
participate, although there are some costs.

Companies large and small are benefitting
from KTPs and often report that not only
does the seconded student, called an
‘Associate’, bring expertise but also a new
perspective.

Then there are SMART grants; an
initiative aimed at helping SMEs develop
new products and services. They can be
aimed at developing a proof of market or
concept or developing a prototype.

Importantly they are not just for start-ups;
established firms can and do receive them.

Another really valuable way for SMEs to
get engaged with reseach is to sponsor a
postgraduate student. A Trade Association
like the MTA can be a really useful first step
to making a connection with a university in
you region. Engineering departments up and
down the country are often crying out for
opportunities to engage with business. As
always there is an investment in terms of
time and money but the rewards can be
tremendous.

Case Study
Mitchell Howard, a 26 year-old graduate
engineer recruited by Mollart Engineering
has been awarded two grants under the
Technology Strategy Board’s SMART
scheme. The first grant of £250,000 is for a
£550,000 project to develop Acubore,
(steerable gundrill technology) that will
break new ground in ensuring that drilling
tools are capable of maintaining their
direction over increasing lengths of
penetration and in the course of the process
be able to change the direction of the tool
around other geometry in a component.

This was followed by a £100,000 grant
application as part of a £165,000 project to
match and monitor advanced fluid dynamics
simulation for abrasive flow machining.

The grant-funded projects, which started
in June and September 2012, are being run
by Mitchell Howard and involve his coordination
of different universities, equipment
suppliers and overall management, cost
control and reporting back on both
applications. He is principal researcher on
the abrasive flow machining project.

He is currently enrolled and sponsored by
Mollart Engineering on the Engineering
Doctorate (EngD) programme administered
by Brunel University and the University of
Surrey. The programme is due to end in
November 2013 which will then enable
direct application into the CEng process with
the IMechE. He is a graduate of Brunel
University’s MSc
Advanced
Manufacturing
Systems
(IMechE and
IET accredited)
programme.