The AMRC with Boeing operates from two purpose-built, factory-scale research facilities on the Advanced Manufacturing Park in South Yorkshire.
Our landmark Rolls-Royce Factory of the Future building is a 6400 sq m facility including workshop, laboratory, office and conference space. The building was opened in 2008 and extended in 2012.
The main open-plan workshop is focused on machining research, housing an array of state-of-the-art machining centres and other manufacturing equipment – see the research group pages for more detail. The workshop is designed to allow member companies to trial new technologies and processes before introducing them to their own factories.
The AMRC Composite Centre is based in an 1800 sq m extension to the original Factory of the Future, housing a general workshop and a controlled environment including high-spec clean rooms.
The Factory of the Future was designed by Bond Bryan Architects to high BREEAM environmental quality standards. The building is designed to make maximum use of natural lighting, heating and ventilation, and features significant renewable energy capabilities including ground source heat pumps and wind turbines.
The original AMRC building opened in 2004 as the anchor tenant of the Advanced Manufacturing Park. It provides 1,800 sq m of workshop space plus offices and meeting rooms.
The original facility currently houses our Advanced Structural Testing Centre (ASTC). It is now undergoing a significant redevelopment and expansion to create the new Design Prototype and Test Centre (DPTC), with funding from ERDF and the High Value Manufacturing Catapult. The extended building will employ around 40 exceptional design engineers plus support staff. Existing testing equipment in the building will be complemented by new rapid prototyping and stuctural testing facilities, creating a manufacturing design resource capability far beyond anything currently available in the UK.