A major new research partnership will be launched tomorrow (November 8) to ensure the future of Scotland as a driving force in engineering.
With an investment of over £26.5 million from the Scottish Further and Higher Education Funding Council (SFC), and a further £100 million co-invested over five years by the 10 collaborating universities, the partnership will enhance the position of Scotland as a world class centre for engineering research by pooling expertise, resources and industry links.
The collaboration between the universities under the Scottish Research Partnership in Engineering (SRPE) brings together an academic community of more than 730 staff with a research income in excess of £23 million. The new investment will strengthen the partnership through the provision of state of the art equipment and the appointment of an additional 69 academics supported by 71 PhD students and Research Assistants.
The SRPE will focus its activities in three regional research partnerships:
· The Edinburgh Research Partnership in Engineering and Mathematics (ERPEM):
o The University of Edinburgh
o Heriot-Watt University
o Napier University
· The Glasgow Research Partnership in Engineering (GRPE):
o The University of Glasgow
o The University of Strathclyde
o Glasgow Caledonian University
o Paisley University
· The Northern Research Partnership in Engineering (NRPE):
o The University of Aberdeen
o The University of Dundee
o Robert Gordon's University
Chairman of SRPE's Strategy Board and Principal of Heriot-Watt University, Professor Anton Muscatelli, said: "The Scottish Research Partnership in Engineering will bring together some of the best minds in engineering to ensure that Scotland maintains its position at the forefront of this increasingly competitive field.
"The total investment of £126.5 million by the Scottish Funding Council and 10 universities represents one of the largest research pooling initiatives in Scotland to date.
"Scotland has a reputation for world-leading research and industrial applications in a wide range of fields of engineering. Historically Scotland has been at the centre of the development of engineering. As the field moves into new and challenging areas, many of them cutting across the traditional disciplinary boundaries, this partnership will help to ensure that we remain at the forefront of research and innovation."
Professor Albert Rodger is Vice-Principal & Head of the College of Physical Sciences, at the University of Aberdeen, and the first Northern Research Partnership Director to be appointed. Speaking ahead of tomorrow evening's event he said: "The Scottish Research Partnership in Engineering is an extremely important development for all the universities involved. The purpose of the Partnership is to pool research strength in areas common to partner universities, and to exploit areas of complementarity. This will enhance research performance by creating critical mass, and increase significantly the international competitiveness of research groups."
John McClelland, Chair of SFC, said: "Scotland's universities now have a combined research strength to compete with the world's very best in engineering. The benefits of research pooling in engineering will be felt in research outcomes, in the attraction of world-class researchers, in the training of future research leaders and in Scotland's economy. The Scottish Funding Council is pleased to be a partner in this innovative and exciting transformation."