Resilience through innovation
New British innovations coming to market bring with them an opportunity to anchor manufacturing in the UK and level up former industrial communities. The HVM Catapult is leading the charge, helping to ensure that UK research has a real impact in every region.
Backing SMEs in manufacturing
It’s small and growing manufacturers that can have the greatest direct impact on communities, creating valuable jobs and investment for local people. Making up 56% of our industrial partners, the HVM Catapult is supporting Britain’s smaller firms to commercialise their ideas and access new markets across the globe.
Related Case Studies
CASE STUDY
Deaf community hails new lip-reading face masks
Scientists and healthcare professionals around the world have underlined the importance of face coverings to reduce transmission of the coronavirus. While necessary for public safety, facemasks present huge challenges for the hard of hearing.
2 February 2022
CASE STUDY
Less than five weeks to become the UK’s largest supplier of critical PPE
The Black Country-based Ramfoam secured a contract to supply the UK Government with 3.5 million face visors per week to help protect workers across the public sector. To achieve this, they had to scale their output by 300 times in a matter of weeks.
2 February 2022
CASE STUDY
Bringing nanomaterials to County Durham
As part of the COAST programme, and with the research expertise of Durham University and scale-up experience of CPI at their fingertips, more than 60 SMEs were able to speed their ideas – including 11 products or processes which were completely new – to market.
3 February 2022
CASE STUDY
Putting UK innovation on the world stage
The ‘thoroughbred, highly educated, expert approach’ of the AMRC has helped a South Yorkshire SME to revolutionise how top tier professional golfers practise and how we all watch the game on TV.
3 February 2022
CASE STUDY
Helping an innovative SME soar
Robop are now looking at what other components can be manufactured using the method developed by the NCC, as well as looking to see if they can bring the manufacturing in-house, which would allow them to upskill their workforce and save costs.
3 February 2022
CASE STUDY
Helping an SME halve lead times and boost sales
The MTC created and supported Raybloc through a development journey to achieve the goals of the business that began with coaching and mentoring the workforce and helping the business to understand the priorities, issues, culture and opportunities of the current-state.
3 February 2022
CASE STUDY
Climbing the wall with Hausbots
With the potential to save thousands of lives, speed is essential. Hausbots identified a potential bottleneck in their product development: compliance with international regulations on radio frequency emissions.
3 February 2022
CASE STUDY
Keeping a watchmakers’ machine tool ticking over
The AMRC’s support means that Loomes & Co now have an improved machining process; knowledge of basic machining practices; skills development including design software; redesigned fixtures; and sample part production. Sometimes it’s the simplest of interventions that give firms the freedom to innovate.
3 February 2022
CASE STUDY
Robotic drilling: sofa, so good
The AMRC completely de-risked the investment by presenting the Keighley-based business, the largest independent cushion manufacturer in the UK, with a feasibility study confirming the technology could work and full specification for a drilling cell – including the equipment and hardware needed.
3 February 2022
Developing UK supply chains
Sovereign capability is more important than ever to help tackle the supply chain disruption that can flow from problems at borders, transport hold ups, trade agreement changes and COVID-19. The HVM Catapult is helping local companies and global giants to seize the opportunity of British production and manage their supply chains through difficult circumstances.
Related Case Studies
CASE STUDY
Saving the Great British cuppa
Many manufacturers and distributors struggled to meet this demand, with basic products like toilet rolls, tea and pasta disappearing from shelves. Big brand firms were not immune from the difficulties, even household names like Tetley Tea, owned by Tata Consumer Products Ltd (TCPL).
3 February 2022
CASE STUDY
Building up the Scottish 3D-printing supply chain
Additive manufacturing (or 3D-printing) is a transformative approach to manufacturing that allows companies to develop complex shapes which often can’t be created by any other process.
3 February 2022
CASE STUDY
Developing the UK energy supply chain
More than 860 companies have already completed the online F4N assessment, with most receiving ongoing support and development from the Nuclear AMRC’s team of industrial advisors.
3 February 2022
Levelling up the UK’s regions
The HVM Catapult is attracting investment to the UK from around the world and and anchoring it in our regions. We use our national capabilities to deliver regional growth, often helping to bring high skilled jobs and prosperity back to deprived communities. The expertise and facilities found in our Centres are a powerful magnet for multinational firms and national institutions who come to locate close to us creating jobs and boosting local economies as they do.
Related Case Studies
CASE STUDY
Attracting global firms to Renfrewshire
Forging new relationships with both industrial leaders and local communities alike, HVM Catapult’s presence in Renfrewshire is bringing tangible benefits to the region and Scotland as a whole.
3 February 2022
CASE STUDY
Greening the UK’s most carbon-intensive industrial region
The AMRC and Nuclear AMRC will work together to apply their expertise in developing the UK supply chain for the low-carbon energy sector, building on the proven Fit For Nuclear model to meet the challenges of industrial decarbonisation.
3 February 2022
CASE STUDY
Pioneering Modern Methods of Construction for Liverpool’s recovery
The MTC is participating in a programme that could make the Liverpool city region a national centre of excellence for modern methods of construction for housing and related infrastructure.
3 February 2022
CASE STUDY
Developing the next generation of sustainable composites
At the moment, however, 85% of composites are neither reused nor recycled at the end of their life. Instead, the materials end up in landfill, adding to the world’s growing refuse problem.
3 February 2022
Supporting the next big thing
Cutting-edge technologies need to be nurtured by experts to move effectively beyond the lab. The HVM Catapult is taking early-stage innovations and demonstrating their usefulness for commercial applications, ready for the next generation of manufacturing.
Related Case Studies
CASE STUDY
Quantum leap in data security in UK first
Quantum key distribution (QKD) has been identified as one of the solutions to maintaining this security, using principles from quantum mechanics to keep data encrypted and reliably detect eavesdropping attempts.
3 February 2022
CASE STUDY
Breakthrough in intelligent robotics
The MTC has made a breakthrough in intelligent robotics by developing a system that can teach itself how to pick up unknown objects, without the need for expensive sensors or lengthy programming.
3 February 2022
CASE STUDY
5G Factory of the Future: the smart factory of tomorrow starts today
Efficiency, productivity and sustainability are everything in manufacturing. From advanced product and machine tracking to autonomous warehouse transportation and remote assistance for operators, these digital technologies can help lower production costs, boost productivity and sharpen competitive edge.
3 February 2022
CASE STUDY
Supporting the micromobility revolution
With exciting partnerships with Transport for West Midlands and companies like Voi Technology, WMG is working on a number of projects in micromobility and its wider integration into transport infrastructure.
3 February 2022
CASE STUDY
Decision making robot could revolutionise manufacturing
Using a combination of machine learning and visual recognition, the robot can be taught to make assembly decisions based on the components put in front of it, in a breakthrough development which could save manufacturers the costs of expensive fixed tooling.
3 February 2022
Identifying areas for UK growth
The cradle of the first industrial revolution, Britain has historic strengths in many areas of manufacturing, alongside present-day research excellence in many others. The HVM Catapult is working to identify the most promising areas for growth and developing realistic plans to make it happen, building on the UK’s existing
strengths.
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