Shaping our manufacturing future through technology roadmapping
Professor Chris Dungey
Chief Technology Officer, HVM Catapult
Over the last two years we have brought together the strength of our technology capability to, not only share and collaborate, but to build roadmaps that will ensure we can deliver productivity and net zero gains for the UK.
Our work connects national priorities with practical technological solutions. The technology capability roadmapping activity has transformed how we coordinate and deploy our network’s extensive capabilities, deepening the strategic alignment and collaboration across and beyond our centres and giving us unprecedented clarity on current capabilities and future requirements.
Through collaborative workshops engaging experts across our network, we identified key industrial trends, challenges driving technological innovation and alignment between our core technical capabilities and the strategic priorities at the heart of UK economic growth.
We have identified the critical technology capability families: additive manufacturing, biomanufacturing, composites, joining, near net shape and subtractive technologies. Additionally, there are underpinning cross-cutting technologies whose development and deployment are critical to supporting the UK manufacturing base: assurance, advanced materials, digital engineering, digital manufacturing, and robotics and automation.
This gives us a clear offer to UK industry, using our facilities and experts to help businesses grow and develop new products and processes which will enhance productivity and drive economic growth.
Continual research and innovation is needed to ensure there is a consistent flow of ideas and supply chains are able to address emerging research and innovation challenges that arise during the scaling-up of manufacturing and deployment into full-scale production.
Our work goes beyond traditional technology planning and this dynamic framework – connecting national strategy, research excellence and industrial needs – will ensure the UK stays at the forefront of global manufacturing innovation.
As we move through 2025, we are focused on validation, integration and implementation.
There is strong alignment with Innovate UK’s Materials and Manufacturing Vision 2050 and we will work closely with government, including Innovate UK, as well as undertaking industry consultation and validation of our capability roadmaps.
We will build on early successes, having already:
- Created an integrated vision that aligns our technical capabilities with national manufacturing priorities
- Established a framework for strategic investment decisions
- Fostered stronger collaboration between our centres, leveraging our collective capability and accelerating innovation.
By providing clear direction for technology capability development, delivery and cross-sector collaboration, we are guaranteeing HVM Catapult remains a trusted partner at the forefront of innovation and that UK manufacturing remains globally competitive.