The AMRC has been named a partner in three of the UK’s new Future Manufacturing Hubs.

Universities and Science Minister Jo Johnson unveiled the plan to create six new £10 million research hubs that will explore and improve new manufacturing techniques.

The hubs will draw together expertise from 17 universities and multiple industrial and academic partners and are funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).

EPSRC chief executive, Professor Philip Nelson, said: “Some of these new Hubs will build on the solid foundations of earlier Centres for Innovative Manufacturing while some, like the Hubs at the University of Sheffield are completely new ventures that have strong links with industry and organisations such as the Advance Manufacturing Research Centre.

“EPSRC is pleased to be at the forefront of the drive to keep the UK a prosperous and productive nation.”

The AMRC is a partner in Future Manufacturing Hubs focusing on Advanced Metrology, Composites and Manufacture using Advanced Powders and Processes (MAPP).

The Advanced Metrology Future Manufacturing Hub will be led by and based at the University of Huddersfield.

The Hub’s work focuses on technological developments that will be at the heart of Industry 4, the new industrial revolution that harnesses the power of the Internet to create ‘cyber physical systems.’

The Hub will develop new measuring technologies to be incorporated into machine tools and systems for extracting and interpreting data which could be used to analyse and improve machine performance and product quality.

The technology could eventually lead to machines becoming ‘self-aware,’ able to optimise their own operations, respond to potential breakdowns and repair themselves

The AMRC will work with the University of Sheffield’s Department of Automatic Control and Systems Engineering on extracting and interpreting data from new measuring devices developed by other partners and embedded in machine tools and production cells at the AMRC.

The emerging measuring technologies will be tested at Factory 2050, the AMRC’s reconfigurable, digital factory for collaborative research.

Factory 2050 will also host pilot demonstrations which will allow UK manufacturers to see the new technology in action and gain an understanding of how it could benefit their businesses.

The Future Composites Manufacturing Hub will be led by the University of Nottingham and includes GKN Aerospace, Airbus Group, GE Aviation, BAE Systems, Bentley Motors and the AMRC among its industrial partners.

The Hub has been set up to drive the development of automated manufacturing technologies that deliver components and structures for demanding applications, particularly in the aerospace, transportation, construction and energy sectors.

The Future Manufacturing Hub in Manufacture using Advanced Powders and Processes is being led by the University of Sheffield and has been set up to deliver on the promise of powder-based manufacturing processes to provide low energy, low cost, and low waste high value manufacturing route and products to secure UK manufacturing productivity and growth.