• Nine engineering researchers awarded grants to advance national security

New technologies to detect and protect against malicious drones, investigate the movement of pollutants in indoor spaces and improve radar imaging are among a wide range of technologies being developed by engineering researchers through this year’s UK Intelligence Community (IC) Postdoctoral Research Fellowships, announced today.

Focusing on areas of unclassified basic research, the fellowships support cutting edge work that can assist the intelligence community and also provide mentoring support to a new generation of engineers.

The UKIC Postdoctoral Research Fellowships, which are offered by the Government Office for Science and administered by the Royal Academy of Engineering, provide a vital link between academia and the intelligence community. Each awardee receives funding for at least two years of their project and mentorship from a Fellow of the Academy as well as an advisor from the intelligence community.

Alex van Someren, Chief Scientific Adviser for National Security to HM Government, said: “I am delighted with the variety of technologies and the quality of the 2021 awardees of the UK Intelligence Community Postdoctoral Research Fellowships programme that the Royal Academy of Engineering manages on my behalf. A record nine awards have been made this year in a wide variety of topics. Detection of the use of synthetic biology is the first award of its kind, particularly relevant in light of the current global pandemic. In addition, the importance of detecting unmanned aerial vehicles is reflected in the two awards made in that area. The broader category of detection of radio frequency electromagnetism (5G, measurement intelligence and wireless network fingerprinting), and using electromagnetism as an energy source to power batteries, is of central importance to designing devices for future threat detection. I am looking forward with great anticipation to the outcomes of this cutting-edge research.”

The new postdoctoral researchers are:

• Dr Javier Alfaro, University of Edinburgh
  Detecting the use of synthetic biology in protein designDr Alfaro is developing new methods in protein design that leverage on current trends in artificial intelligence. He will then explore the potential to detect and circumvent detection of synthetic biology and artificial intelligence in protein design.
• Dr Gerard Canal, King’s College London
  Plan and goal reasoning for explainable autonomous robotsRobots need to reason about the task they are performing to be fully autonomous. Dr Canal’s research explores developing methods for robots to reason about their current and future goals along with their plan to achieve them, leveraging this information to allow them to explain their behaviour.
• Dr Christos Ilioudis, University of Strathclyde
  5G-based passive sensing and counter measures5G telecommunications operate in significantly higher frequency bands compared to previous generations. This makes such signals especially suitable for passive radar operations. Dr Ilioudis is investigating how 5G-based passive sensing could exploit surveillance vulnerabilities in public, business and infrastructure, as well as develop countermeasures.
• Dr Desmond Lim, University of Southampton
  Experimental investigation of eddy diffusion in indoor spacesPeople spend around 93% of their time indoors where the concentrations of air pollutants are often higher than outdoors. To improve the energy efficiency of buildings and occupants’ wellbeing, Dr Lim’s research focuses on the fundamental processes in indoor airflows and the eddy diffusivity of pollutants using experimental methods.
• Dr Scott McLachlan, Queen Mary University of London
  Safer aviation from ethical autonomous intelligence regulationWe are already seeing an explosion in personal and commercial drone use. Ensuring safe and ethical use poses completely new challenges, requiring a deep understanding of the interfaces between computer science, law and aviation. This research investigates limitations, identifies key challenges, and seeks solutions to the most significant issues.
• Dr Timothy Pelham, University of Bristol
  Spatial fingerprinting for self-securing wireless networksSecure wireless communications are critical to the modern world, and with increasing data traffic their security and privacy only becomes more important. This research combines conventional sensing and direction-finding techniques with machine learning and radio frequency fingerprinting to develop methods for self-securing networks of trusted devices.
• Dr Adolfo Perrusquía, Cranfield University
  Drone intention prediction based on semi-supervised learning of flight physicsProtection against malicious drones is critical to ensuring smooth operation of national services. Dr Perrusquía´s research aims to design innovative and stable machine learning algorithms for intention prediction, based on complementary learning both from experts’ aerospace knowledge and from deep patterns in drone flight data from a range of sources.
• Dr Mahmoud Wagih, University of Southampton
  Radio frequency-enabled multi-source energy harvesting in inaccessible environmentsHarvesting energy from sunlight or vibrations could lead to battery-free electronics. Yet it can only generate sufficient output where ambient power is present. Dr Wagih’s research aims to enable a single energy-harvesting source to power many co-located ’satellite‘ systems through safe, robust and efficient radio frequency power transmission.
• Dr Francis Watson, University of Manchester
  From rich and nonlinear tomography to radar MASINTRadar imagery is degraded in scenes containing moving targets or multiple scattering of radar pulses such as through-walls, limiting its use for measurements and signatures intelligence (MASINT). Dr Watson is developing practical tomographic imaging methods for complex and dynamic scenes, exploiting rich multi-dimensional data from multi-static, multi-polar and interferometric radars.

Notes to editors

1. The Government Office for Science offers UK Intelligence Community (IC) Postdoctoral Research Fellowships to outstanding early career researchers. These Fellowships are designed to promote unclassified basic research in areas of interest to the intelligence, security and defence community. Each fellowship is capped at a maximum grant of £200,000 over a two-year period.  For more information on the fellowships, visit: https://www.raeng.org.uk/grants-and-prizes/support-for-research/ic-postdoctoral
   Submissions for the UK Intelligence Community (IC) Postdoctoral Research Fellowships 2022 will be open in late January 2022.
2. The Royal Academy of Engineering is harnessing the power of engineering to build a sustainable society and an inclusive economy that works for everyone. In collaboration with our Fellows and partners, we’re growing talent and developing skills for the future, driving innovation and building global partnerships, and influencing policy and engaging the public. Together we’re working to tackle the greatest challenges of our age.

Media enquiries to: Pippa Cox at the Royal Academy of Engineering Tel. +44 207 766 0745; email: Pippa.Cox@raeng.org.uk

• Sixteen talented entrepreneurs have been selected from Cameroon, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, The Republic of the Congo, Togo and Uganda
• Half the shortlist are women, including mechanical, electric, materials and software engineers
• Shortlist will compete for the £25,000 Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation

Inventors of an off-grid neonatal crib for jaundiced babies, portable vaccine fridges, and a fuel-cell-based hydrogen generator that converts gas into electricity on the spot are among the 16 African entrepreneurs shortlisted for the 2022 Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation. They are set to receive crucial commercialisation support from the Royal Academy of Engineering to accelerate their businesses.

Top L to R: Dr Julius Mubiru, Divin Kouebatouka, Norah Magero, Oluwatobi OyinlolaBottom L to R: Juveline Ngum, Virtue Oboro, Mariam Eluma, Gaël Matina Egbidi

The Africa Prize awards tailored training and mentoring, as well as funding, to African innovators who are tackling local challenges with scalable engineering solutions. The 2022 shortlist includes the Prize’s first Togolese and Congolese innovators, with innovators from nine countries in total. For the first time, half of the 16-strong shortlist are women, including the first woman from Ethiopia to be shortlisted for the Prize.

Launched by the Royal Academy of Engineering in 2014, the Africa Prize programme has a track record of identifying engineering entrepreneurs with significant potential, many of whom have gone on to achieve greater commercial success and social impact. An alumni network of more than 102 social entrepreneurs across Africa are projected to impact over three million lives in the next five years. To date the entrepreneurs have created more than 1500 jobs and raised more than $14 million in grants and equity.

Top L to R: Adekoyejo Kuye, Dr Jack Fletcher, Femi Taiwo, Catherine Wanjoya
Bottom L to R: Lawrencia Kwansah, Fabrice Tueche, Philip Kyeswa, Afomia Andualem

The benefits of selection include eight months of comprehensive and tailored business training, bespoke mentoring, and media and communications training. The programme also provides funding and access to the Academy’s global network of high-profile, experienced engineers and business experts, as well as access to the alumni network when the programme concludes.

For the second year in a row, the programme will be offered as a digital experience, with intensive support provided through both one-on-one and group sessions. Where possible, sessions may also be held in-person. Following this period of support, four finalists will be selected and invited to pitch their improved innovation and business plan to the judges and a live audience. A winner will be selected to receive £25,000, and three runners up will receive £10,000 each. An additional One-to-Watch award of £5,000 will go to the most promising innovator, as selected by the live audience.

“Once again we have received an inspiring calibre of applications for the Africa Prize. This year’s shortlist demonstrates how technology can be used to drive development from a grassroots level, and we look forward to supporting these innovators in expanding their impact across Africa” said Dr John Lazar CBE FREng, Africa Prize judge.

The Africa Prize supports entrepreneurs creating disruptive technologies that may have otherwise gone unrecognised and under-resourced. Unlike conventional programmes, the Prize places greater focus on the socio-economic impact of the overall business. Alumni of the Africa Prize have addressed challenges identified in their own communities and are scaling up solutions to tackle issues as diverse as agricultural resilience, education, and sanitation.

The innovations represented by the 2022 shortlist tackle challenges central to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, such as better access to healthcare, reducing waste, improving energy efficiency and financial inclusion. This includes medical innovations, such as a device that maps a patient’s veins onto their skin to aid nurses inserting drips or drawing blood; environmental innovations, such as commercial packaging made from variety of agricultural waste, and an absorptive fibre made from the invasive water hyacinth to clean oil spills on land and water; and those enabling greater online inclusion, including an outdoor and off-grid communal workspace that gives students access to WiFi and power, and a prepaid bank card that requires no bank account and can be used worldwide, and that gives the unbanked access to online purchases and cash from mobile money.

The Africa Prize supports some of the brightest minds tackling global challenges and improving economic prosperity and quality of life, as part of the Royal Academy of Engineering’s suite of international programmes, which provide tailored funding, training and support to researchers and entrepreneurs in low and middle income countries. The programme is currently seeking partners and funders to help reach millions more.

The complete list of selected technologies and candidates is as follows:

• A-Lite Vein Locator, Dr Julius Mubiru, Uganda—A device that maps patients’ veins out as shadows on their skin, helping medical staff insert a drip or draw blood more easily.
• Agelgil, Afomia Andualem, Ethiopia—A sustainable range of packaging and tableware made from agricultural by-products such as barley and wheat straw.
• Aquaponics Hub, Lawrencia Kwansah, Ghana—A kit for new users to set up their own aquaponics system, complete with smart sensors to monitor crops and fish, and an online marketplace to sell produce.
• Bleaglee, Juveline Ngum, Cameroon—A sustainable cooking system that includes a smokeless cookstove made from recycled metal scraps, and bio-briquettes made from plastic and biomass waste.
• Coldbox Store, Adekoyejo Kuye, Nigeria—An off-grid cold storage solution for farmers to store and sell fresh produce without relying on the electrical grid.
• Crib A’Glow, Virtue Oboro, Nigeria—Foldable photo-therapy cribs that treat jaundice in newborns. The crib can operate on solar or grid power, and monitors the baby’s condition.
• Genesis Care, Catherine Wanjoya, Kenya—A system to dispense and later dispose of feminine hygiene products. The system is installed to give young girls access to affordable products.
• HoBeei, Mariam Eluma, Nigeria—An online free-cycle platform where users can upload unwanted or unused items in exchange for virtual currency with which to purchase other goods with.
• HYENA POWER POD, Dr Jack Fletcher, South Africa—A fuel-cell based hydrogen generator that converts LPG into usable electricity, all within one device.
• Kukia, Divin Kouebatouka, The Republic of the Congo—A process that transforms the invasive water hyacinth plant into an absorptive fibre that can clean up oil spills and stop oil leaks on land or water.
• Peer REM, Philip Kyeswa, Uganda—A remote monitoring and metering system for off-grid solar installations. It also alerts utilities to blackouts or tampering.
• SolarPocha, Oluwatobi Oyinlola, Nigerian—An outdoor workstation, a solar-powered space where students can connect to WiFi and off-grid electricity.
• Solimi Prepaid Card, Gaël Matina Egbidi, Togo—A Visa-backed card that does not require users to bank with one specific bank, giving unbanked individuals access to the digital economy. 
• TelMi, Fabrice Tueche, Cameroon—A set of devices that help nurses monitor patients, respond to alarms, and collect data in order to improve workflow and response times.
• TERAWORK, Femi Taiwo, Nigeria—An online platform that connects users to freelancers, so small business owners can find and safely outsource key skills such as coding and accounting.
• VacciBox, Norah Magero, Kenya—A mobile and solar-powered fridge that safely stores temperature-sensitive medicine such as vaccines, to be used by travel clinics and for transport.

Note to editors

1. Photographs and videos of the shortlisted candidates can be found here.

2. The Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation, founded by the Royal Academy of Engineering in 2014, is Africa’s biggest prize dedicated to developing African innovators, and assisting them to maximise their impact. It awards crucial commercialisation support to ambitious African innovators developing scalable engineering solutions to address local challenges, demonstrating the importance of engineering as an enabler of improved quality of life and economic development.
         An eight-month period of tailored training and mentoring culminates in a showcase event where a winner is selected to receive £25,000, along with three runners-up, who are each awarded £10,000.
         The 2022 Africa Prize is generously supported by The Shell Centenary Scholarship Fund. Further information can be found here: https://www.shellcentenaryscholarshipfund.org/
        Judges, mentors and expert reviewers for the Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation have provided over 2,312 hours of support to entrepreneurs since the prize was established – this equates to a value of roughly £1,156,050 in support. This year, the judges are:

• Chair of judges: Malcolm Brinded CBE FREng, Past President of the Energy Institute, Chair of EngineeringUK
• Dr Alessandra Buonfino, Senior Advisor, Global Innovation Fund; Consultant, International Research Fellow, Said Business school, Oxford University
• Dr Ibilola Amao, Founder and Principal Consultant, Lonadek Global Services
• Dr John Lazar CBE FREng, Chair, Enza Capital, What3Words and Raspberry Pi Foundation
• Maya Horgan Famodu, Founder, Ingressive Capital
• Rebecca Enonchong, Founder and CEO, AppsTech

More information can be found here: www.raeng.org.uk/africaprize

2. The Royal Academy of Engineering is harnessing the power of engineering to build a sustainable society and an inclusive economy that works for everyone. In collaboration with our Fellows and partners, we’re growing talent and developing skills for the future, driving innovation and building global partnerships, and influencing policy and engaging the public. Together we’re working to tackle the greatest challenges of our age.

For media queries and interview requests, please contact:

Africa
Anzet du Plessis, Proof Africa on behalf of the Royal Academy of Engineering
anzet@proofafrica.co.za / yethu@proofafrica.co.za
+44 7878 126 050

UK and International
Rachel Ng, April Six on behalf of the Royal Academy of Engineering
africaprize@aprilsix.com
+44 7485 317 148

A new, neonatal incubator designed, developed and manufactured in Britain — and backed by Holly Branson and Sir James Dyson OM CBE FREng FRS — saw its first ever clinical use in a UK hospital earlier this month. Created by Enterprise Hub member James Roberts, Founder & CEO of mOm, and his team, this innovative accessible incubator helped to sustain a premature baby at St Peter’s Hospital, Chertsey.

One in 10 babies born around the world are premature, and one million of them die every year. Three-quarters of these deaths are easily preventable through access to thermoregulation, or consistent warmth. However, only a small minority of premature babies have access to conventional incubators, which are regularly inoperable or discarded due to a lack of servicing and spare parts, leading to ‘equipment graveyards’ in many parts of the world.

This is what inspired James to create the mOm Incubator, an alternative to conventional incubators that is cost effective, compact, and easy to maintain. mOm not only provides a life-saving solution in challenging, low/middle income settings, but a more flexible option for neonatal care in the UK and the developed world.

James Roberts’ prototype caught the attention of the James Dyson Foundation, which in 2014 awarded him the global James Dyson Award. Fast forward to today and the early design of 2014 has progressed into a life-saving device, which has been successfully deployed in a clinical setting for the very first time.

James commented, “Sustaining a child’s life in our incubator for the first time has been a humbling experience and a monumental step in transforming this dream into a practical reality. It is unacceptable that one million premature babies die each year, when most of these deaths can be easily prevented. An idea that was once scribbled down on paper now has the potential to impact many lives globally.”

Peter Reynolds, Consultant Neonatologist at St Peter’s Hospital Chertsey stated, “I am delighted that we have successfully recruited the first few babies into the mOm incubator clinical trial at St. Peter’s Hospital. I am very grateful to their parents who agreed to their participation. Keeping babies warm is a fundamental part of good neonatal care and we are pleased to be leading this evaluation of the new mOm incubator.”

In 2015 James won the Academy’s Launchpad competition for the UK’s most promising engineering and technology entrepreneurs, with a £15,000 prize, and joined the six-month SME Leaders Programme in 2019 for coaching, business mentoring and leadership training. He continues to be a lifelong Enterprise Hub member, with access to our alumni network, Fellows and events.

Ana Avaliani, Director of Enterprise and Sustainable Development at the Royal Academy of Engineering, said: “The solutions to today’s most complex economic and social challenges lie in the minds of the brightest engineering and tech entrepreneurs – people like James. At the Royal Academy of Engineering Enterprise Hub, we help them transform ideas into reality. We are thrilled to see the mOm incubator in clinical use in the UK.”

Holly Branson, Chief Purpose and Vision Officer at Virgin, made mOm Incubators her first ever impact investment in 2016: “From the first moment I met the incredible, innovative team at mOm Incubators in 2016, I knew this was a unique, game-changing, purpose-led company that we should invest in and help grow. As a family, and a brand, we are passionate about backing individuals who are using intelligence, creativity, expertise, and sector skills to make a positive impact in the world through growing successful, purposeful businesses. James and the team at mOm are doing just that and much, much more. I’m incredibly proud of all they have achieved and don’t mind saying that the photos of ‘first baby’ being protected in a mOm Incubator made me more than a little emotional. As the mum of premature children, I know how critical those days in the incubator are. The mOm Incubator will make a positive impact to newborn children and society across the world by accelerating access to care and as my first ‘official’ impact investment, over five years ago, mOm Incubators will always hold a special place in my heart.”

mOm’s seed investment round in 2016 was led by MaSa Partners. MaSa co-founder Max Duckworth stated, “It has been a privilege to be involved with James, the company and the board since inception. The team’s vision, innovation and determination have led mOm to this significant milestone — a working incubator that has passed all testing and now helped a premature baby to survive. We are very excited to go to market and achieve the global impact that first led MaSa Partners and our fellow early investors to fund mOm.”

Gemma Singer, a Design Engineer at mOm Incubators, explains the impact on her: “It’s so exciting to see what purpose-led design has achieved at mOm. Our incubator will save lives now and also take care of the next generations as we reduce waste and landfill by taking on the ‘medical device graveyard’ through innovative engineering.”

And while this is a significant development for neonatal care, James is far from complacent: “Our mission has been for a mOm Incubator to reach everywhere it’s needed on the planet. Our first clinical use represents an exciting step towards achieving this objective. Over time, I want mOm to apply this ethos to providing access to quality healthcare around the world. It is time for our industry to start to think differently.”

Notes for Editors

1. The mOm incubator was designed and developed in conjunction with eg technology, a product engineering specialist based in Cambridge, UK. Development and industrialisation led in conjunction with Cambridge Medtech Solutions, a medical device specialist in Cambridge, UK. Manufactured by Cogent Technology specialists in medical device assembly based in Felixstowe. Welding and assembly by Arrow Medical specialists in medical device manufacture based in Kington. Mouldings managed by Fenland RP based in Wisbech.

Co-funded by the UK’s innovation agency, Innovate UK. www.momincubators.com

WHO Data on Premature Baby Deaths: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/preterm-birth

2. The Royal Academy of Engineering is harnessing the power of engineering to build a sustainable society and an inclusive economy that works for everyone.

In collaboration with our Fellows and partners, we’re growing talent and developing skills for the future, driving innovation and building global partnerships, and influencing policy and engaging the public.

Together we’re working to tackle the greatest challenges of our age.

For more information please contact:

Jane Sutton at the Royal Academy of Engineering

T: 0207 766 0636

E:  Jane Sutton

The Royal Academy of Engineering has selected 15 entrepreneurs from seven different countries to join its Leaders in Innovation Fellowships Advance (LIF Advance) programme to help equip them to grow their businesses and achieve their full commercial potential.

From novel delivery and disposal of biodegradable menstrual products to the use of a high-altitude platform and space technology to improve internet connectivity in remote areas, the 15 individuals have developed a wide range of innovations that are helping to improve social inclusion across education, employment, agriculture, and healthcare.

Since launching in 2015, the LIF programme has supported more than 1,000 entrepreneurs from low-and middle-income countries (LMICs) who have an engineering-based innovation with the potential to boost social welfare and economic development in line with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. The programme offers mentoring and networking opportunities and tailored guidance on commercialisation to help participants scale-up their products and services for the benefit of their communities and beyond.

LIF Advance takes things a step further for an exclusive cohort of the best LIF alumni, giving them an enhanced programme of training in relationship building and business growth, both internationally and in the UK. Through the programme they can achieve their full commercial potential and leave equipped to grow their business at home and internationally with closer links to and understanding of doing business in the UK. Entrepreneurs on the programme also mentor others within the LIF community.

This month the selected entrepreneurs begin a nine-month programme to hone their entrepreneurial skills, better understand the UK market for digital technology, make connections and prepare for growth. The programme, delivered by the university-led enterprise partnership SETsquared on behalf of the Academy, also includes a one-week residential course in the UK and ongoing mentoring.

Lisa Rose, Senior Manager Entrepreneurship for Development at the Royal Academy of Engineering, said: “LIF is an incredible programme supporting talented innovators to commercialise a product for the benefit of their communities. Selection for LIF is tough; selection for LIF Advance is tougher. It’s great to see such a diverse and dynamic mix of innovators creating solutions for the future. I’m delighted to welcome these talented engineers to the Academy’s LIF Advance programme where they will gain the support they need to scale up. They’ve all shown that they’re passionate about overcoming social inclusion challenges within their countries and we are proud to be able to support them on their journey to commercialising their innovative start-ups.”

The first LIF Advance programme in 2020/21 brought together 13 entrepreneurs from four continents. Their shared goal was to launch innovations to reduce inequalities in healthcare and for disability inclusion. The technologies they had designed and were commercialising products and services ranged from affordable surgical robots and using nanoparticles to diagnose Hepatitis C to portable diagnostic bio sensors and urine collecting devices for people with disabilities.

The successful roll out of these products could help to improve the lives of more than 600 million individuals who live in some of the poorest and most vulnerable communities around the world. It has been estimated that these 13 entrepreneurs have the potential to generate £180m turnover and employ over 160 people over the next decade.

Karen Brooks, Programme Director at the Academy’s delivery partner SETsquared, said: “The participants from the first LIF Advance cohort are working on technologies that will change the way people access healthcare around the globe. We worked closely with them all to provide a bespoke schedule of support in line with their stage of commercialisation and technology development, and each and every one of them gave 100% commitment. To see them make progress and connections, and ultimately take the next step in their business development journey is why we do what we do. We now look forward to meeting the 2022 cohort and ensuring they achieve similar success.”

The 2021/22 LIF Advance participants and their innovations:

• AGROS, Robinson Lopez from Peru – A voice-based digital identity and wallet for non-digital farmers to help them gain credibility and make transactions.
• Genesis Care, Catherine Wanjoya from Kenya – Sanitary pads and incinerators with a digital payment system and app.
• Helion, Hagorly Mohamad Hutasuhut from Indonesia – The application of high-altitude platform and space technology to provide internet connectivity.
• Kiddo, Analia Tanuwidjaja from Indonesia – A technology to help parents identify their kids’ strengths and use this data to provide tailored activity recommendations.
• Lepsta, Excellent Sithembiso Khumalo from South Africa – A collaboration platform for software development teams that helps them increase productivity and efficiency by progressively automating parts of their workflow.
• Majik Water Technologies, Beth Koigi from Kenya – Atmospheric water generators.
• Microdigo and DigoLab, Diogo Cunha from Brazil – A web platform using AI, robotics, IoT gadgets, interactive online classes and machine learning to teach science and maths to kids.
• PBot, Himmat Singh from India – An autonomous, robotic, waterless, cleaning and inspection system.
• Pixed Corp, Ricardo Rodríguez Torres from Peru – Using 3D printing to create prosthesis for upper limbs.
• Plusfarm Agribusiness Management System (PAMS), Stephen Moses from Kenya – A knowledge-based management software that helps farmers in data-driven decision-making for improving productivity and profitability.
• Thermy, Luis Enrique Hernandez from Mexico – A medical device and an integrated software solution to screen and to help with the early detection of breast cancer.
• Trestle Labs, Bonny Mukesh Dave from India – Kibo – An end-to-end solution for listening to, translating and digitising printed, handwritten and digital content across more than 60 languages.
• VBraille, Jennifer Rodriguez from Colombia – A Braille keyboard, platform and academy for teachers.
• Vyorius Drones Pvt, Nishant Singh Rana from India – An AI-enabled universal plug-and-play digital architecture for unmanned mobile robotic operations.
• WitBlox, Amit Modi from India – A gamified robotics learning app using comic stories and cartoons to encourage children to engage in STEM subjects.

LIF Advance is part of the Royal Academy of Engineering’s suite of international programmes, which provide tailored funding, training and support to LMIC’s researchers and entrepreneurs, these programmes welcome support from new funders and partners.

Notes to Editors

1. More about the first cohort of LIF Advance participants and their impact can be found in Exploring the impact of the Leaders in Innovation Fellowships Advance Programme

2. The Royal Academy of Engineering is harnessing the power of engineering to build a sustainable society and an inclusive economy that works for everyone. In collaboration with our Fellows and partners, we’re growing talent and developing skills for the future, driving innovation and building global partnerships, and influencing policy and engaging the public. Together we are working to tackle the greatest challenges of our age. 

3. SETsquared is a unique enterprise partnership and a dynamic collaboration between the six-leading research-led UK universities of Bath, Bristol, Cardiff, Exeter, Southampton and Surrey. Ranked as the Global No. 1 Business Incubator, SETsquared provides a wide range of highly acclaimed support programmes to help turn ideas into thriving businesses. For more information about SETsquared visit: www.setsquared.co.uk

All primary and secondary school pupils in Blaenau Gwent and Merthyr Tydfil will soon be able to engage with an exciting range of local science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) employers as part of a new effort to inspire and encourage more young people into high-skilled STEM careers, the Welsh Government has announced.

The Welsh Valleys Engineering Project (WVEP) is an initiative developed jointly by the Panasonic Trust and the Royal Academy of Engineering that started in 2018, funded by the Trust and delivered by the Academy. Its aim is to create centres of excellence in STEM teaching and improve learning opportunities in the South Wales valleys by bringing real-world engineering practice into schools and colleges.

The programme helps enrich the curriculum, enhances pupil engagement, and provides high-quality learning experiences through additional STEM teaching and engagement with STEM-related companies, raising the aspirations of learners about opportunities available to them. The programme is particularly keen to help increase diversity in STEM careers, engaging with groups that are currently under-represented in engineering.

The WVEP currently works with Coleg Gwent and Merthyr College, along with eight secondary schools and five primary schools in the area. It has so far provided more than 20,000 STEM learning opportunities and has awarded 69 Panasonic Trust Future Engineer bursaries to post-16 students, with 33% of bursaries awarded to women students in academic year 2020/21.

The programme will receive £348,377 over four years from the Welsh Government’s Tech Valleys Programme, extending the WVEP’s employer engagement strand to cover all 53 schools in Blaenau Gwent and Merthyr Tydfil from the spring term of 2022.

The expansion will help create a sustainable legacy through better-resourced schools, upskilled teachers and closer alignment between the STEM curriculum and the needs of STEM businesses in the area. It will also offer valuable opportunities for social mobility and contribute to the pipeline of highly skilled workers that the Welsh Government’s £100 million Tech Valleys programme aims to facilitate.

Throughout the period of the expanded project, the Panasonic Trust will continue to fund Future Engineer bursaries for students continuing into Further Education, with an extension to funding those continuing yet further into Higher Education.

STEM forms an integral part of the Curriculum for Wales, alongside preparing learners for study, employment and life in the 21st century. 

Economy Minister Vaughan Gething said: “My ambition is to make Wales a place where more young people feel confident in planning their future. My message to them is you don’t have to get out to get on.

“Programmes like this provide a crucial practical part in creating optimism around this vision. It enriches the curriculum, enhances pupil engagement, and inspires students by bringing real-world engineering practice into schools.

“Through Tech Valleys, the Welsh Government is committed to business growth across the south Wales valleys and expanding the base of technology-driven organisations we have in the area. We want to support all businesses to innovate and strive for world-leading technologies.

“We are already a destination of choice for exceptional companies and projects. This programme, through genuine collaboration with local authorities, businesses and schools, is a long-term commitment to creating centres of excellence in STEM learning and fostering the future workforce for these businesses and initiatives to reach even greater heights in the future. It could inform a Wales-wide roll out of the model.”

WVEP is delivered by the Royal Academy of Engineering, a charity focused on harnessing the power of engineering to build a sustainable society and an inclusive economy that works for everyone.

Dr Hayaatun Sillem CBE, CEO of the Royal Academy of Engineering, said: “I am absolutely delighted that our ambitious plans to extend the Welsh Valleys Engineering Project’s employer engagement have been realised and that the Academy is able to strengthen and broaden its engagement in Wales. One of the main aims of the Academy is to support the development of an inclusive economy, and that includes identifying and engaging with schools in areas of low social mobility, providing equity of access to science and engineering for the students in these areas, and developing their skills for the future. By building long-lasting local partnerships between schools and employers in these areas, we can also work together to contribute towards the creation of an engineering skills base better able to meet regional needs.”

Jeremy Miles, Minister for Education and the Welsh Language, said: “I’m very pleased to see the extension of WVEP to schools across Blaenau Gwent and Merthyr Tydfil – the success of the programme thus far is testament to the effort which schools and employers have put in to widening opportunities for young people in this part of Wales, and I’m delighted to see it going from strength to strength.

“Programmes such as these equip all learners – no matter if they continue in STEM-related careers or not – so they can thrive in a world driven by science and technology. Ensuring we have skilled learners in these fields is vital to our economic prospects here in Wales.

“Our Tertiary Education and Research Bill – introduced at the Senedd this month – sets out our plans for radical reform in the post-16 education sector, ensuring more and more people have access to greater learning and training opportunities after they reach the end of their compulsory schooling. Programmes such as WVEP show we can help young people move into those fields by training them in sought-after skills while still in school, and I look forward to seeing the programme’s success in the future.”

Notes for Editors

The Royal Academy of Engineering is harnessing the power of engineering to build a sustainable society and an inclusive economy that works for everyone. In collaboration with our Fellows and partners, we’re growing talent and developing skills for the future, driving innovation and building global partnerships, and influencing policy and engaging the public. Together we’re working to tackle the greatest challenges of our age.

The Panasonic Trust for the further education and training of engineers is a registered charity that was established on 30 October 1984. The objective of the Trust is to extend the education and training of industrial engineers in the fields of engineering such as electronic systems engineering, environmental studies, energy and new materials. This may be achieved by the establishment and award of grant scholarships, fellowships, lectureships, competitions, prizes and awards. The Panasonic Trust have been funding the Welsh Valleys Engineering Programme since its launch in 2018 and will continue to fund it, alongside the Welsh Government, allowing the Programme to continue the annual awarding of up to 20 Panasonic Trust Future Engineer bursaries to Post-16 students. These students will be instrumental in supporting the extension of the employer engagement strand.

The Tech Valleys programme is a ten-year, £100 million commitment by the Welsh Government with Blaenau Gwent at its heart.  Building on the region’s long-standing manufacturing heritage, Tech Valleys aims to capitalise on the opportunities arising from the fourth industrial revolution – particularly in the areas of 5G, battery technology, digital and cyber research and application – supporting high value, sustainable jobs, attracting investment and creating opportunities for the region. In line with the Welsh Government’s Economic Action Plan, the Tech Valleys programme has the principles of growth, fair work and decarbonisation at its heart. For further information about Tech Valleys, email: TechValleys@gov.wales

• Framework from National Engineering Policy Centre advises government on how to take urgent next steps to meet 2050 targets

The National Engineering Policy Centre, a partnership of 43 engineering organisations led by the Royal Academy of Engineering, has published a ‘low-regrets’ framework to guide government decisions on tackling carbon emissions across the UK. The framework will assist with identifying policy options to help put the country on a pathway to net zero.

Low-regrets decisions are urgent decisions that can be made now to have a significant impact on decarbonisation, and that unlock pathways towards the net zero target rather than blocking off options. They can build flexibility, reduce costs for the future, deliver social, economic and environmental co-benefits, and help prioritise the use of limited resources.

Low-regrets options are likely to include providing incentives for consumer change, scaling up the deployment of proven technologies, demonstrating the effectiveness of low-carbon technologies and improving efficiencies in energy use across transport and built environments. The framework provides an engineering perspective on how such options can be identified. Examples examined in the paper include retrofitting buildings to meet energy demand via a low-carbon technology, developing a battery electric vehicle (BEV) charging network, and pilot-scale trials of critical technologies such as hydrogen and carbon capture and storage.

With the UK having enshrined in law its commitment to a net zero economy by 2050, it is vital for policymakers to be able to make confident decisions in the face of uncertainty. The low-regrets framework is intended to help identify the priority actions to take in the short-term—avoiding technological ‘lock-in’—while government, devolved administrations and local councils develop long-term decarbonisation strategies in parallel.

Professor Paul Monks, Chief Scientific Adviser of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy said: “Now is the time the world needs to go further and faster to tackle climate change. Prioritising low-regrets actions is a crucial component of our Net Zero Strategy to build back greener. The Prime Minister introduced the Strategy by warning against panicked, short-term or self-destructive measures that will hinder future efforts, and this framework will assist us with identifying the routes that will deliver not only the transition to net zero, but a healthier, happier, more equal society.”

Sir Jim McDonald FREng FRSE, President of the Royal Academy of Engineering, said: “The UK’s ability to decarbonise at sufficient speed and scale is dependent on key decisions made by government now. With less than 30 years to meet the government’s own target for decarbonising the economy, it is imperative that policymakers can confidently take rapid actions alongside more complex and longer-term decisions. The engineering community is well equipped and highly engaged in supporting government to move fast, and the low-regrets framework is a practical tool to facilitate this.”

The paper can be found here.

Notes for Editors

1. The National Engineering Policy Centre is an ambitious partnership, led by the Royal Academy of Engineering, between 43 different UK engineering organisations representing 450,000 engineers. Our ambition is that the National Engineering Policy Centre will be a trusted partner for policy makers, enabling them to access excellent engineering expertise, for social and economic benefit.

Media enquiries to: Pippa Cox at the Royal Academy of Engineering T: 020 7766 0745 E: pippa.cox@raeng.org.uk

• Digital artist has reworked masterpieces by Monet, Van Gogh, Constable and Pissarro to inspire a conversation about the engineering advances that could help to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050.
• Innovations such as agricultural robots, smart thermochromic windows, vertical farms and flying taxis have been woven into the reimagined impressionist masterpieces to depict what a more sustainable world may look like in the future.
• The artworks have been commissioned by the Royal Academy of Engineering ahead of This is Engineering Day on Wednesday 3 November, which aims to encourage more young people to choose engineering careers and help achieve net zero carbon by 2050.
• Sympathetic reimaginings show how innovative agriculture, aviation, transport and buildings could help to transform everyday life and landscapes.

Painters such as Constable, Monet, Pissarro, and Van Gogh first made their marks in the art world during the industrial revolution. While this era drove economic benefits and improvements in living standards for many, we now know that it triggered the start of rising carbon emissions leading to global warming.

Ahead of COP26, masterpieces by these iconic artists have been reimagined to inspire conversations about the kinds of engineering advances that could help to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Electric planes and flying taxis, vertical orchards and rooftop farms are just some of the innovations that feature in the reworked masterpieces, commissioned by the Royal Academy of Engineering as part of its This Is Engineering campaign to promote engineering careers in response to a significant skills and diversity shortfall in the profession.

Van Gogh’s Factories at Clichy, Constable’s The Wheat Field, Pissarro’s La Rue Saint-Honoré
and Monet’s The Seashore at Sainte-Adresse have been digitally remastered by a contemporary artist, Ashly Lovett, to show how engineering innovations could help to transform everyday life and landscapes in the future.

The Engineer the Future collection can be viewed during COP26 at Strathclyde University in Glasgow and online via Google Arts & Culture. The aim of the exhibition is to start a conversation about what we want a net zero future to look like, and the role of future engineers in that, with viewers invited to contribute their own ideas via social media on This is Engineering Day on Wednesday 3 November 2021.

Were Van Gogh to paint Factories at Clichy in 2050, his masterpiece might feature autonomous ‘agbots’ – agricultural robots – tending the crops using precision farming; a development that could help to slash agricultural carbon emissions. In the skies above, Sophie Harker, Assistant Chief Engineer of Electric Products at BAE Systems, thinks the painter would capture a variety of electrically powered ways to transport ourselves and our goods in 2050.  She says: “In the future, we may be using a pod system for public transport, for example on a Hyperloop. These pods could look like the Maglev trains and could travel within a vacuum to reduce drag and increase speed. People would likely use this system for travelling long distances cross-country or city to city, then shorter journeys could be taken by vertical taxis that carry up to four people. Heavy lift flying drones could also be used for transportation of goods or for emergency response.”

Constable’s The Wheat Field, reimagined for 2050, includes solar powered pruning robots, autonomous grass cutting machines and crop-monitoring drones.  Meanwhile, environmentally friendly hydrogen planes can be seen in the sky, with futuristic shapes that maximise fuel-efficiency and range of travel.  Kit Franklin, Senior Lecturer in Agricultural Engineering at Harper Adams University, says: “The artistic reinterpretation of Constable has removed the hard physical labour and repetitive tasks of agricultural farmhands as autonomous robots take on the work humans would have traditionally done. Agbots make farming more precise to conserve vital resources like water and energy and we’ll see smaller machines in future to help preserve soil quality and health.  A healthy soil is not only vital for growing food, it can also sequester carbon more effectively than one that has been compacted by large machinery. If Constable were to walk in the British countryside in 2050, he’d see smaller fields with strips of different coloured crops, and less productive fields rewilded with trees, wildflowers and shrubs to boost biodiversity and pollination.”

Professor Susan Gourvenec, RAEng Chair in Emerging Technologies for Intelligent & Resilient Ocean Engineering at the University of Southampton, whose ideas have been incorporated into a reimagined Monet, commented: “If Monet was to paint The Seashore at Sainte-Adresse in 2050, his famous seascape might feature offshore energy farms generating renewable energy through wind turbines or tidal power, which could be used to power homes or produce green hydrogen, and to refuel ocean-going cargo vessels offshore.  Closer to the shore, seagrass plantations might be visible, which would not only capture carbon but also provide coastal protection and improve the coastal ecosystem and habitat for wildlife.”

The artist has also imagined a residential building on the coast that uses thermochromic windows to help to cool the house and generate solar power, reducing its carbon footprint and maximising efficiency.

Pissarro’s La Rue Saint-Honoré has been reworked to reflect a vision of the future in which a central hub links several public transport systems including an electrically powered monorail, vertical taxi station and underground stations. Professor Chris Wise RDI FREng, Founder Partner of Expedition, says: “If Pissarro were to travel to Paris in 2050, he might find buildings that have been designed to take full advantage of their environment.  No side of a building would look the same: the south facing side is shaded and both east and west facades have screens to capture the morning and evening sun. The artist might also find chameleon buildings with a ‘skin’ that is responsive to sunlight and shade for temperature regulation. Pissarro, who suffered from an eye-infection and eventually went blind, would find getting round the city easier with colour coded areas and rumble strips, as well as a monorail system that dispenses with the need for a car. He’d also find less hard landscaping.  As we see increased rainfall and flooding in the future, cities will have replaced concrete pavements with more permeable materials and greenery.” 

Dr Rhys Morgan, Director of Engineering and Education at the Royal Academy of Engineering says: “The UK’s goal of reaching net zero carbon emissions by 2050 is a massive undertaking. Decarbonisation on this timescale and magnitude will bring widespread and rapid change to every aspect of daily life and meeting our goal of a net zero future will not be achieved without engineering expertise. From the ways we heat, cool and light our homes, to how we produce our food, how we build our houses and how we travel around, our future daily lives will be shaped by today’s engineers and engineering.

“These famous masterpieces originally captured a snapshot of daily life at a time when the consequences of carbon emissions were not known. By reimagining them for 2050 we hope to start a conversation about how engineers can help shape our net zero future and inspire the next generation to join the profession. To realise the emission-saving technologies imagined in these artworks, the UK needs more engineers – for example, National Grid estimates that the UK energy sector alone will need to fill 400,000 roles between now and 2050 to reach net zero.”

In a bid to boost recruitment and challenge the narrow stereotypes of what engineers look like and do, This is Engineering Day is an annual reminder of the importance of engineering to our daily lives. Created by The Royal Academy of Engineering in 2018 the day celebrates the varied and vital roles that engineers play, from developing medical technologies like brain scanners and clean energy solutions, to powering the social media platforms and smartphones we rely on to keep in touch every day.

For further information contact tie@thisiscow.com

Notes for Editors

To help reimagine the future, the Royal Academy of Engineering sought opinions and visions from a network of Fellows and engineers:

• Professor Chris Wise RDI FREng – Founder Partner, Expedition
• Professor Emile Greenhalgh – RAEng Chair in Emerging Technologies and Professor of Composite Materials, Imperial College London
• Kit Franklin – Senior Lecturer in Agricultural Engineering, Harper Adams University
• Olivia Sweeney – Sustainable waste consultancy
• Dr Paul Miller FREng – Director, Silsoe Spray Applications Unit
• Professor Simon Pollard OBE FREng – Pro-Vice-Chancellor, Water Energy and Environment, Cranfield University
• Sophie Harker – Senior Engineer, Flight Controls at BAE Systems
• Professor Susan Gourvenec – RAEng Chair in Emerging Technologies and Professor of Offshore Geotechnical Engineering, University of Southampton
• Tim Chapman FREng – Director, Infrastructure Design, Arup
• Vinita Marwaha Madill – Space operations engineer, Mission Control Space Services
• Dr Priti Parikh, Head of Engineering for the International Development Centre
• With contributions from: Arup, Cranfield University, Heriot-Watt University, Rolls- Royce, University of Glasgow, and University of Oxford.

About the artist Ashly Lovett Known for her captivatingly ethereal artwork in chalk pastel, Ashly Lovett is a freelance illustrator, writer and gallery artist. Inspired by folklore and mythology, she hopes to bewitch her viewers with a deep sense of wonder and nostalgia. She has done licensed work for Jim Henson Company, Adult Swim, Netflix, SEGA, and more. She received her BA in Illustration from Ringling College of Art and Design and has exhibited in galleries from California to New York. She lives in Louisiana, USA with her husband Matthew, son Leon, and fat cat Skeletor (a.k.a. Skelly.)

About This is Engineering This is Engineering is a campaign to raise awareness of the breadth of careers in engineering and help address the significant engineering skills and diversity shortfall that is holding back growth and productivity across the UK economy. The campaign aims to give more young people, from the broadest possible backgrounds, the opportunity to take up an exciting, engaging, rewarding and in demand career.
     This is Engineering is led by the Royal Academy of Engineering, in collaboration with EngineeringUK. The campaign has been made possible thanks to the generous support of the Fellows of the Royal Academy of Engineering and our corporate partners. More information about the campaign is available at www.thisisengineering.org.uk and @ThisIsEng on Twitter.

Principal partners
Amazon
bp
Rolls-Royce
Shell UK

Sponsors
MBDA
Mott MacDonald
Teledyne e2v

Technology Partner
Google Arts & Culture

Strategic partner
EngineeringUK

Academic Partners

Principal university partners
University of Oxford

Major university partners
Anglia Ruskin University
Aston University
Heriot-Watt University
University of Cambridge

University partners
Bangor University
Imperial College London
Manchester Metropolitan University
University of Southampton
Cranfield University
Kings College London
University of Glasgow

The Royal Academy of Engineering is a charity that harnesses the power of engineering to build a sustainable society and an inclusive economy that works for everyone. In collaboration with our Fellows and partners, we’re growing talent and developing skills for the future, driving innovation and building global partnerships, and influencing policy and engaging the public. Together we’re working to tackle the greatest challenges of our age.

EngineeringUK is a not-for-profit organisation, which works in partnership with the engineering community to inspire tomorrow’s engineers and increase the number and diversity of young people choosing academic and vocational pathways into engineering. EngineeringUK leads engagement programmes The Big Bang, Robotics Challenge and Energy Quest, helps schools bring STEM to life through real-world engineering via Neon, creates inspiring engineering careers resources and campaigns through Tomorrow’s Engineers and produces a body of research including the flagship State of Engineering report.www.engwww.engineeringuk.com/ineeringuk.com

Google Arts & Culture Google Arts & Culture puts the collections of more than 2,000 museums at your fingertips. It’s an immersive way to explore art, history and the wonders of the world, from Van Gogh’s bedroom paintings to the women’s rights movement and the Taj Mahal. The Google Arts & Culture app is free and available online for iOS and Android. The team has been an innovation partner for cultural institutions since 2011. Google Arts & Culture develops technologies that help preserve and share culture and allow curators to create engaging exhibitions online and offline.