Applied Knowledge Exchange

Four enterprise areas are to be created in Scotland with an emphasis on some of our most dynamic industries with the greatest potential to create new employment opportunities, stimulate private investment and boost economic growth.

The Government is aiming to support Scotland’s life sciences industries, low carbon and renewables and manufacturing.

More information…

84% of SMEs in Scotland are engaging with higher education institutions, according to Universities UK.

View the full report – Driving Economic Growth

Universities play an important role in providing support to businesses through research and training. This is demonstrated by the breadth and range of industries with links to universities and the variety of activities with which they are involved, including extensive support for small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

Hundreds of people with dementia have spend the day at Hampden Park as part of the football reminiscence project. 

The project is part of ongoing research by Glasgow Caledonian University.

Click on the link to view the short video http://news.stv.tv/scotland/280005-dementia-patients-benefit-from-football-memories/ (please note that the video will start after the short advert is played).

An interesting article in the FT on the difficulties in measuring academic impact

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/0ef2fb1e-e400-11e0-bc4e-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1Zp40mrvt

Glasgow Caledonian University’s Applied Knowledge Exchange attended this week’s Offshore Europe conference in Aberdeen, meeting with partners including FMC Technologies and networking with the industry.

During a first day session analysing the Operating Models for the Future, panelists including Oil and Gas UK Chief Executive Malcolm Webb said there were potentially large untapped ‘unconventional’ oil and gas reserves which required investment from the industry and a skilled, international supply chain.

Bob Keiller, CEO of Wood Group PSN, detailed the pros and cons of contracting out operations. He insisted it was important to be an ‘informed buyer’, keeping a close eye on contractor relationships through effective project management.

Global oil and gas solutions provider FMC Technologies is working with GCU to deliver a pioneering five-year research and development collaboration within the subsea oil and gas industry which includes KTPs, PhD studentships and research and development projects to identify new opportunities for safe and efficient oil recovery and to enhance reliability and integrity in the monitoring of subsea installations.

ScottishPower has recently submitted proposals to the energy regulator Ofgem outlining £3bn of planned investments on its high voltage transmission electricity network in Scotland over the next 10 years.  Projects will include the connection of up to 5GW of renewable energy, helping Scotland to achieve its 2020 carbon reduction targets, and extensive upgrades to the electricity grid links between England and Scotland.

GCU has a number of energy experts working with power suppliers. For more information, click here.

The full announcement.

The Scottish Academy of Fashion, a joint venture between GCU, Heriot-Watt, Edinburgh College of Art and Robert Gordon University, has announced new research projects aimed at supporting Scotland’s textile industry.

The Academy, an ambitious project developing Scotland as a global centre of excellence in fashion-related learning and commercially relevant research, has backing from Creative Scotland, Textiles Scotland and the Scottish Funding Council.

Linda Shearer from GCU’s Caledonian Business School is working on projects with the Academy. Linda has a background in Fashion Design, predominantly for high street markets, involving design, pattern cutting, fabric sourcing, range building, garment development to production. She has recently organised consultancy projects with SMEs in design and development of fashion and textile- related products including the design, development & production of a baby seat concept to improve infant development, development and production of patented textile component for cycling/commuter luggage, CAD garment simulation for a transactional website for a textile design business, garment pattern development and grading for a small fashion design retail enterprise, creation of CAD fashion illustrations for promotion of a new fashion range in a retail outlet, and the creation of garment production patterns, consumer testing & reporting on production samples for an online retail organic lingerie enterprise.

Linda’s research projects include the interrelationship of dress, identity and the workplace, the positioning of vintage fashion retailers, vintage consumers – mainstream and subculture, the role of designers in fashion retailing, and the consumer perception of retail environments.

For more information about the Academy go to http://scottishacademyoffashion.com/

Rising unemployment and dramatically increasing fuel prices could lead to significant fuel poverty in the UK unless more is done to invest in energy efficiency. Gas and electricity bills for millions of homes are expected to rocket in the coming years, as suppliers attempt to offset rising wholesale prices, energy analysts have warned.

Households are considered by the UK Government to be in fuel poverty if they have to spend more than 10% of household income on fuel to keep their home to an adequate standard of warmth. One of the most effective ways of combating fuel poverty is to target energy efficiency measures on homes typically occupied by those on low incomes.

AppleGreen Homes is working with Glasgow Caledonian University and Glasgow-based Spacesix Architects to research and develop an affordable, energy efficient home for the future at the new BRE Innovation Park at Ravenscraig in Motherwell. It will feature a solar energy package that will not only help significantly reduce electricity bills but will also drastically reduce heating bills, helping to eradicate fuel poverty. In addition, a guaranteed feed-in tariff from the solar electricity package will be paid to the owner, developer, housing association or council.

Glasgow Caledonian University profiled its High Voltage Engineering Research Group at this year’s Scottish Technology Showcase.

Scottish Technology Showcase 2011

New technology is currently being developed by the group as part of a pioneering partnership with FMC Technologies.  The University’s High Voltage Research Group brings together engineers from a range of disciplines to tackle fundamental and applied research in high-voltage engineering systems and high-voltage insulation diagnostics.

GCU’s groundbreaking research in engineering has generated multiple patent applications and funding from industry including Doble and National Grid as well as EPSRC and Scottish Enterprise Proof of Concept funding.

Find out more about our engineering expertise

Glasgow Caledonian University’s Applied Knowledge Exchange is involved in a Scotland-wide innovation network for universities to support the Scottish food and drink industry.

The Scottish Funding Council (SFC) is to invest £2.64 million in The Scottish Universities Industry Innovation Network for Food and Drink, which will work to meet the research and innovation needs of Scottish food and drink companies. Working in partnership with businesses and their supporting trade sectors, academics from multiple disciplines will work to deliver a range of knowledge exchange projects in areas including food science, supply chain development, waste management, packaging design and marketing for the benefit of industry.

Led by the University of Aberdeen, the University of Abertay Dundee and Heriot-Watt University together with Interface, the Network is specifically designed to meet the needs of the Scottish food and drink industry expressed by its members during a consultation process. 

GCU’s expertise in Food and Drink includes marketing, food sciences, packaging design, sustainability and nutrition.