Bath-led EPSRC project aims for more habitable refugee sheltersThe world is witnessing the worst refugee crisis ever recorded with levels of human displacement at their highest. Conflicts such as the Syrian civil war are leading to the creation of a new generation of refugee camps that are meant to provide temporary accommodation. Many people remain in these camps for years, living in extreme climates ranging from 45 degrees Celsius to -10 degrees Celsius. Now an international collaboration, led by researchers at Bath University, is hoping to improve living conditions for those residing in the camps, by designing better housing. Read more...
Reinventing the warehouse with UK-engineered automation
Tharsus, the leading UK designer and manufacturer of electro-mechanical systems, has been unveiled as the long-term partner in Ocado’s ground-breaking warehouse automation project.The two companies have been working closely together since 2013 when Tharsus first became the official co-designer and manufacturer of the robotic vehicle that now forms the foundation of the game-changing Ocado Smart Platform. Read more...
What new job roles has automation created?
Despite Albert Einstein’s fears that technology would create a “generation of idiots”, automation has improved quality of life for most people and created a wealth of new and more skilled industrial positions.
Automaton created 3.5 million jobs between 2001 and 2008, allowing many workers to move into higher skilled positions. ince 2008 in the UK alone, 800,000 jobs have reportedly been lost to automation since 2001, largely within the administrative, retail and low-skilled manufacturing sectors. Despite these losses, automaton has created 3.5 million jobs in the same time-period, allowing many workers to move into higher skilled positions. Read more...
The Manufacturer offers young scientists a helping hand
Hennik Research, publishers of The Manufacturer, are delighted to have been invited onto the board of trustees of the Young Scientists Journal. Peter Osborne reports on what this means to UK manufacturers. The magazine comes out twice a year and acts as a showcase for the best articles that regularly flow through their website www.ysjournal.com. The students also stage conferences to bring together young scientists, teachers and scientists (the next one is on 12 October at Queens’ College Cambridge). Read more...
Raspberry Pi wins UK’s top engineering innovation PRIZE
His Royal Highness The Duke of Kent last night presented the UK’s top engineering innovation prize – the Royal Academy of Engineering MacRobert Award – to the team of engineers behind Raspberry Pi, the small but mighty microcomputer that has revolutionised control systems and redefined how people engage with coding. Its success has been enabled by the Pi’s affordability: the product has been developed at a price-point that makes it accessible to anyone: just $35 (£28) for the flagship product, or an even smaller version, the Raspberry Pi Zero, at $5 (£4). Read more...
Rolls-Royce safeguards jobs with £150m investment
Rolls-Royce is to safeguard over 7,000 jobs following its decision to invest £150m into new and existing civil aerospace facilities in Britain. The company said the investment will support the planned doubling of engine production, and help to provide additional capacity as next generation aero engines are developed and tested. Most of the investment will provide a new facility for the testing of large civil aero engines in Derby, the home of Rolls-Royce’s civil aerospace division. Read more...