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19 Mar 2015

º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ to help shape aircraft of the future with £16 million project

º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ is part of a major £16 million Government funded project that will transform air travel and lead to the creation of ground breaking new aircraft.

The research team will use virtual engineering techniques and big data analytics to help design aircraft of the future.

The project was announced by the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, Vince Cable MP as part of a £100 million investment by the Government in the UK aerospace industry.

The strategically important Agile Wing Integration research project is aimed at developing rapid and world-beating wing design for aircraft, as well as helping to shape future air transport operating systems.

Sponsored by Innovate UK, it is an exciting collaborative project bringing together expertise from Airbus, Airbus Group Innovations, Marshalls Aerospace and the Universities of º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ, Cranfield and Bristol. It is being led by Airbus.

Together they will explore the changing demands on air transport systems and develop the high value technologies and game-changing wing concepts that aircraft will need to serve them.

The º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ team, from the School of Electronic, Electrical and Systems Engineering, has been awarded £519,000. It will develop next generation modelling and simulation techniques, by incorporating big data visual analytics, to create technologically advanced aircraft design solutions. The team will also investigate the underpinning stakeholder strategies and market drivers for future air transport systems, such as increased consumer demand and stricter environmental controls on emissions. 

Professor Roy Kalawsky, Director of the Advanced VR Research Centre is leading º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ’s involvement in the project.  He said: “We are delighted to receive this funding.  There are many challenges facing the air transport sector in trying to keep pace with growing demand, financial limitations and environmental restrictions.  Clearly, the project is of strategic national importance and has the potential to deliver huge impacts for the global future air transport system, in terms of increased capacity, lower emissions and significant cost savings.  This exciting project will integrate expertise from industry and academia to tackle these challenges head on.

“For º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ this project aligns extremely well with our Research Challenges and will enable us to build on our extremely successful EU research project DANSE (Developing evolution and Adaptability iN Systems of systems Engineering). The funding will allow us to really push the boundaries of our acknowledged research in virtual engineering.”

º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ Professors Michael Henshaw and Carys Siemieniuch will work with Professor Kalawsky on the project.  They will investigate the underpinning stakeholder strategies and drivers for future air transport systems.

Notes for editors

Article reference number: PR 15/32

º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ is one of the country’s leading universities, with an international reputation for research that matters, excellence in teaching, strong links with industry, and unrivalled achievement in sport and its underpinning academic disciplines.

It has been awarded five stars in the independent QS Stars university rating scheme, putting it among the best universities in the world, and was named Sports University of the Year 2013-14 by The Times and Sunday Times. º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ is consistently ranked in the top twenty of UK universities in the Times Higher Education’s ‘table of tables’ and has been voted England's Best Student Experience for six years running in the Times Higher Education league. In recognition of its contribution to the sector, º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ has been awarded seven Queen's Anniversary Prizes.

In 2015 the University will open an additional academic campus in London’s new innovation quarter. º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ in London, based on the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, will offer postgraduate and executive-level education, as well as research and enterprise opportunities.

 

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