The University of Nottingham will lead three projects as part of a new £20 million program funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and led by the East Midlands Combined County Authority (EMCCA), to position the East Midlands as the leading place to develop and manufacture the next generation of clean power and propulsion technologies.
Inside the Omnifactory at the University of Nottingham. Image Credit: University of Nottingham
The program, Advanced Manufacturing for Clean Energy (AMCE-LIPF), is funded through the Local Innovation Partnerships Fund, a £500 million UK government initiative delivered by UKRI to strengthen regional innovation economies.
The University of Nottingham is leading three of AMCE’s four projects, alongside the University of Derby’s INFINITY project, and will work closely with EMCCA, which is coordinating delivery to ensure integrated delivery across the programs. Also involved are industry partners, Loughborough University and Nottingham Trent University.
The projects are designed to help the region seize time-critical opportunities in clean energy and decarbonizing propulsion, as aircraft makers choose technologies for the next generation of single-aisle aircraft and large manufacturers look for digital, low-carbon supply chains.
The £20 million program is an umbrella for a range of related projects to be delivered by experts in the Faculty of Engineering to offer businesses a pathway from idea to factory floor, with companies joining at whichever stage suits them.
The University is leading on three of these projects worth £13.6 million:
- The Advanced Manufacturing and Clean Energy (AMaCE) Accelerator, which supports the commercialization and development stage of the research-to-market pathway, helps entrepreneurs, start-ups and spinouts turn innovative ideas into investable products.
- The Next Generation Single-Aisle (NGSA) Hybrid-Electric Propulsion Challenge responds to industry-led challenges, demonstrating and testing propulsion technologies against the needs of major aircraft manufacturers.
- The Connected Factories Program helps regional suppliers adopt digital, automated and low-carbon technologies so they are ready to manufacture new products at scale, including but not limited to those emerging from the other projects. This project has also been allocated £3.2m from the East Midlands Investment Zone initiative.
Across the whole portfolio, the program is expected to add £325–340 million in gross value to the regional economy over its lifespan and will support up to 1,775 jobs. It will be matched by at least £36 million of private sector investment.
This LIPF funding complements the East Midlands Investment Zone’s Innovation Accelerator, whose second year was announced by the Mayor in September. The Accelerator funds university–business projects at an earlier stage of prototyping and demonstration, giving companies a further entry point into the region’s clean-tech support.
Professor Tom Rodden, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Research and Knowledge Exchange at the University of Nottingham, said: “We are proud to be leading three major projects funded through the Local Innovation Partnerships Fund and play a role in the East Midlands becoming a global leader in clean technology innovation. We are bringing our strengths and expertise in advanced manufacturing, transport decarbonization and industry-focused research and partnership to accelerate the development of technologies that can create growth, attract investment and deliver real-world impact.”
The program will build on the East Midlands’ established cluster in advanced manufacturing for clean energy, which serves highly regulated markets such as civil nuclear, aerospace and defense.
Manufacturing accounts for 11% of the East Midlands workforce, and average manufacturing wages in the region are 21% higher than in the rest of the regional economy (Make UK). The wider Midlands is the UK’s largest aerospace cluster, with 30% of UK aerospace businesses and more than 56,000 jobs. The government’s Fusion Energy Strategy also identifies the East Midlands, around West Burton and the Trent Valley, as the UK’s second fusion cluster.
Mayor of the East Midlands, Claire Ward, said: “Our ambitions for the innovators of today are high, with a clear focus: clean energy, advanced manufacturing, and inclusive growth. This funding will ensure that ambitious businesses with the power to change the world can establish, grow, and thrive here. They will develop cutting-edge products, design new manufacturing processes, and start new companies: building an economy which is grounded in what this region needs for the future.”
The program is also a practical example of the East Midlands University Compact, signed earlier this year by EMCCA and the University of Nottingham, Nottingham Trent University and the University of Derby. Through the compact, the partners have committed to work together on skills, research, business growth and innovation, and inclusive growth across the region.