Innovation central
The ground-breaking new UKRRIN partnership between universities and industry.
Rolling Stock: Professor Simon Iwnicki, University of Huddersfield
“UKRRIN is definitely not just about rhetoric, but will provide a step change in innovation by giving us the drive to expand our capabilities. All three universities in the CERS (Huddersfield, Newcastle and Loughborough) have considerable expertise so it made sense to bring those skills together. “We are receiving £10m from UKRRIN to support our theoretical work, which we are investing in four new testing facilities in traction and braking, alternative energy, pantographs and a full-size motion platform.
“This will allow us to test how comfortable seats are and other aspects of the passenger environment, through to body structure and the use of composites, future traction, full-scale test rigs for bogies, drivetrain, pantographs, interiors and driving cabs, together with world-class simulation facilities for analysing train systems and the interfaces with the rail network.”
Digital Systems: Professor Clive Roberts, Director of Birmingham Centre for Railway Research and Education
“As lead partner and home to the Centre of Excellence in Digital Systems, we are especially excited about UKRRIN. Our new 3,000m2 building will open in spring 2020 and offer an on-campus environment for people to work together and with our researchers to deliver a step change in rail transport.
“The CEDS has four key themes: future railway operations and control, data integration and cyber security, smart monitoring and autonomous systems, and introducing innovation. We will have dedicated labs, servers, computers and working areas where industry will work in confidential, secure areas. The centre will have space and facilities for a host of research and development work, as well as meeting and development spaces.”
Infrastructure: Professor William Powrie, University of Southampton
“You might think that track is, in principle, the same as in Stephenson’s time, but what we expect in the 21st century is hugely different. What is right for 90mph running is not right for 125mph, or even 250mph on HS2. Over the last 15 years we have been developing our large-scale laboratory apparatus and instrumentation, but UKRRIN will give us the opportunity to gear up for innovation in NR’s next control period, and continue to develop our understanding of infrastructure.
“We like to take a fundamental approach to solving practical problems but we’ve also had awards for being entrepreneurial, so being the lead for the Centre of Excellence in Infrastructure, alongside our partners in Nottingham, Sheffield, Edinburgh and Loughborough, we can build on that reputation to support industry and innovation even more.”
Testing: Amanda Mackie, RIDC Programme Manager at Network Rail
“As the lead partner of the Centre of Excellence in Testing, we are delighted to be part of UKRRIN and are looking forward to working with our partners and the rail industry to turn the exciting opportunities offered by UKRRIN into reality.
“The CET incorporates access to existing at-scale test facilities. We will link with the other three CETs to provide a one stop shop for testing and trialling, and we will support the ‘Four C’s’ of the Rail Technical Strategy – cost, capacity, carbon emissions and customer satisfaction.