The Composites UK annual conference will this year take place at the Manchester Conference Centre on the 5th and 6th May 2011.

 

Aim of the Conference

 

This two-day conference and exhibition will showcase the UK's strengths and capabilities in composites, bringing together active members of the composites community to highlight the latest technological developments in the industry and academic research.

 

The conference will open with a keynote address reviewing the successes and main events of the last industrial year. The main sessions will be state of the art industry talks on topics falling into the main themes of the conference:

 

Themes:

• New Materials and Processes
• Composites Assembly
• Industry Innovations and case studies

The conference will be run in conjunction with the annual Composites UK awards dinner, celebrating UK success.

 

A tour of the North West Composites Centre and National Composites Certification and Evaluation Facility will be available during the afternoon of the 2nd day of the event.

 

Call for Papers

Papers are sought covering the above subjects. Please submit an abstract of no more than 500 words by 25th February 2011 in electronic format to Claire Whysall at Composites UK: info@compositesuk.co.uk

 

Successful speakers will be notified by 11th March 2011. Speakers will be required to prepare full papers of 8-10 pages which will be published in the conference proceedings. Presentations will be 25 minutes and should be prepared using PowerPoint.

Speakers will be charged a nominal fee of £130 (ex VAT) to attend which includes entrance to the conference for 2 days plus a place at the charity awards dinner.
 

 

Trade Association Recognises Achievements in Composites

 

Building on the success of their first Charity Awards Dinner in 2010, the trade association for the composites industry, Composites UK, have announced their second Charity Awards Dinner coinciding with the 11th Annual Conference on the 5th May 2011 at The Midland Hotel in Manchester to celebrate the achievements of the industry in 2010.

 

"The UK Composites industry is at the forefront of technological development and exciting product application both at home and overseas. In an ever-increasingly competitive environment it is important to celebrate our successes. As such the Composites UK awards will showcase some of the key advances made by UK companies over the last 12 months" - Chris Little, Chairman, Composites UK Ltd.

 

The association is taking nominations from UK companies for 3 awards: 

• Industry Innovation of the Year
• Health, Safety and Environment
• Trainee or Apprentice of the Year

Winners of the 2009 awards were:

Trainee/Apprentice of the Year 2009 Winner  - Kai Burkitt, BAE Systems
Highly Commended  -  James Andrew Spencer, Gurit
 

Health, Safety and Environment Initiative 2009  - Cray Valley
 

Industry Innovation of the Year 2009   -  Bombardier Aerospace

 

The Awards Dinner is being organised to compliment the successes of the Composites UK conference with an aim to develop and strengthen the UK composites industry.

 

Award submissions are only open to all Composites companies in the UK. For more information on each award and how to submit please click here.

 

 

PRF Composite Materials has introduced their Qiicote range of mould cleaners and semi-permanent release agents.

 

Manufactured in house, the Qiicote range offers a complete system for mould cleaning, sealing and release coating. With an extensive range of solvent and water based products there is a Qiicote product for every application be it wet lay up, infusion, pultrusion, prepreg or roto-moulding.

 

The Qiicote range consists of cleaners for different levels of ‘soil’ removal, mould sealer for filling micro porosity & light scratches/blemishes, and a complete range of semi-permanent and sacrificial release agents available in both solvent and water based formulas. 

 

The semi-permanent system has sealers and release agents formulated for use with most thermoset matrices up to 190C and also for thermoplastic composites (PEEK, PPS etc.) up to 430C.  Qiicote semi-permanent release agents are available in low, medium and high slip release to suit various resin types and mould geometry and can also be tailored for special requirements on request.

 

PRF ‘Silicone Shield’ mould release, which forms part of the range, has been specifically formulated to protect both silicone bags and seals.  Replacement of silicone bags and seals has long been an issue as the resin systems used to produce moulded parts chemically degrade these items, requiring both costly and time consuming replacement. The use of Qiicote Silicone Shield can greatly extend the life of silicone bags and seals, enabling more parts to be made before replacement is needed.  In one application, the number of parts produced from a mould has increased tenfold between seal replacements.   Furthermore, the reduced degradation in the seal improves the vacuum integrity which, in turn, not only increases the number of parts but also the consistency of the product quality over the increased life of the seal.
 
Offered in either 1lt or 5lt sizes the range is both cost effective and available from stock.

 

For further information please contact: Crispin Jones at PRF Composite Materials info@prfcomposites.com

 

About PRF

PRF Composite Materials is a leading supplier of high performance materials for the advanced composite industry. PRF has a comprehensive range of products including high performance reinforcements, prepregs, epoxy resin systems, core materials, vacuum bag materials, consumables and tooling products. The product range is fully supported by highly experienced technicians and engineers, enabling PRF to offer a complete service to its customers. PRF is committed to supplying materials of the highest quality, whilst simultaneously making products available for immediate despatch from large stocks held in extensive warehouse and cold storage facilities.
 

Advanced Composite Wing Structures Training Course Roll Out For GKN Aerospace

 

Dark Matter Composites has successfully rolled out training courses to support GKN Aerospace’s world-leading composite aircraft wing structures production which is set to commence next year at the company’s newly constructed, state of the art manufacturing facility at Western Approach, Bristol, UK.

The contract covers the provision of a 5 day intensive training course based on Dark Matter Composites’ high end composites training format, combining theory, demonstrations, practical tasks and assessments.  The course is integrated into the complete GKN Aerospace training activity for all composite production personnel.

Charles Paterson, General Manager, GKN Aerospace, FIlton explains: “This course provides us with a core element in the broad programme of training and investment in our team.  It will create a consistent foundation, ensuring our personnel have the theoretical knowledge and practical skills necessary to apply the leading edge manufacturing technologies we are employing.  By the end of this year five courses will have been delivered to a total of forty individuals. During 2011 we plan to continue with a further twelve courses.”

Dark Matter Composites have been responsible for developing all technical course content to UK Qualification, Certification & Development Agency standards (QCDA) combining presentation materials, tutor notes, lesson plans, practical tasks, assessment tasks and criteria to create a structured course format.  The activity has also included the training and development of GKN Aerospace’s in-house tutors.

 
Technical course content is complemented by Dark Matter Composites design, manufacture and supply of mould tooling to support the course practical tasks and help highlight technical and key production process issues.  GKN Aerospace also made investment in an in-house composite training facility. This has involved the installation of a full set of Dark Matter Composites point of use fume and dust extraction benches and progressive refining of the facility over a number of courses.

 
GKN Aerospace personnel complete the course in the company’s Filton-based composite training department with composites experts from both Dark Matter Composites and from GKN Aerospace delivering key theory and practical activities associated with prepreg processing for manual and automated fibre placement technologies, and with the complete composite rear spar production process.

Rodney Hansen, Managing Director, Dark Matter Composites Ltd explains:  ‘GKN Aerospace has invested in a full course package which represents one of the most advanced, high end composite training courses available.  The course focuses on the processes associated with primary aircraft structures, particularly the composite rear spars.  We have always recommended that a programme of this nature should have its own in-house training resource.  Our expertise and capability has provided GKN Aerospace with a one stop solution that is second to none.  By the end of 2010, our tutors will have handed over the full delivery of the course to GKN Aerospace’s trainers.’

 
Even in the current economic climate, there is an increasing demand for training from hands-on technicians through to engineers, designers and management.  Dark Matter Composites’ expertise,  investment and development in this growing market sector provides world class solutions to suit all customers needs, from individuals and small companies through to tier one suppliers and OEM’s. 

The 2011 course schedule is now available on the company website www.darkmattercomposites.co.uk.
 

Pioneering eco-friendly Mini Transat 6.50 sailing boat prototype sponsored by Araldite.

Huntsman Advanced Materials is sponsoring the first ever racing boat prototype to incorporate up to 50% of natural flax fiber in the composite structure.  The boat, which has been called the ‘Araldite’, takes its name from Huntsman’s award winning Araldite® range of products.  Already established as a sponsor in International Touring Car racing, Huntsman sees Sailing as the ultimate expression of performance and innovation, qualities they associate with the Araldite® range of products.  Araldite®, the company’s flagship brand, is best known for adhesives in both key industrial sectors and the consumer domain, so this sponsorship is seen as a natural link for Huntsman.

The initiative is also in line with Huntsman’s ongoing commitment to enriching lives through innovation by supporting the development of eco-friendly, sustainable and safe technologies.  Huntsman will sponsor the ‘Araldite’ when it takes part in the Mini Transat 6.50, the first solo transatlantic yacht race for boats measuring 6.5 metres in length.

‘Araldite’, is a 6.5m long and 3m wide, ergonomic, lightweight Mini Transat racing boat prototype - the smallest offshore racing boat allowed to cross the Atlantic.  Designed by Regis Garcia to showcase the possibilities of incorporating flax fibers into the composite structure of an open sea sailing prototype, the boat was built at the well known IDB Marine de Tregunc shipyard in Brittany, France.  With acceptance and funding received from C.I.P.A.LIN, the French Interprofessional Committee for the Agricultural Production of Flax, the project has been completed in just over 12 months.  Thibault Reinhart, the main skipper and naval engineer, Julien Marin, naval architect and Garcia, co-skipper, represent the project team.  As official sponsor, Huntsman has also played an active role in the technical development behind the project.

The ultimate goal was to adopt a cleaner production process whilst combining the renewable properties of flax with the well-known, high-performance characteristics of carbon fiber, without compromising the light weight or mechanical properties of the sailing prototype.  In order to achieve this, Lineo, a Belgium company specialising in flax reinforcements, provided the diverse fibers, specially treated to ensure perfect compatibility between the flax and the Araldite® warm curing system.

Lineo uses new technology to coat flax fibers with epoxy resins in such a way that absorption of water from the flax is prevented and strong bonds between the flax and the epoxy resin are created, guaranteeing the quality of the laminate.  Working closely in partnership, Huntsman research laboratories and Lineo issued the necessary laminate mechanical properties used for designing the prototype’s diverse parts, including the deck, hull, helm and toe-rails.  In total, flax fiber constitutes 50% of the boat’s structure, with the remaining 50% being reinforced by traditional carbon fibers.

Commenting, Thibault Reinhart, co-owner and main skipper of the Araldite said: “Constructing the ‘Araldite’ using flax fibers represented a big challenge, especially when considering how all the other prototypes in the Mini Transat category only consider using the tried and trusted formula of deploying carbon.  Since the start of this project 12 months ago, with the help of Lineo and Huntsman we have undertaken many, many trials to find and validate the right blend between flax, epoxy resin and carbon fibers, so as to realise the optimum performance for the boat.  Reducing the impact on the environment is not the only advantage of flax fibers.  Imbued with their intrinsic technical properties, we have high hopes for our unique sailing prototype as we prepare to take part in our maiden competition across the Atlantic.” 

Philippe Christou, Huntsman Global Technical Director added:  “Our involvement in this radical venture illustrates Huntsman’s ongoing commitment to creating sustainable and eco-friendly technologies.  It just goes to show that flax fibers can now be considered as a genuine reinforcement composite, with the potential to take on the mass fiber market and to even penetrate the carbon market.  Bio-derived composites, such as flax fibers offer potential for a reduced environmental footprint, greater sustainability and lower costs, providing advantages for an increasing number of marine applications and beyond. 

He continued, “Working alongside the ‘Araldite’ boat construction team has been a real pleasure and we are glad that the Araldite system solutions used for both the pre-treatment and final incorporation of flax into the boat’s structure performed so well, meeting the exacting design engineering standards that were set, with such precision.  As the official sponsor of the ‘Araldite’, we are extremely proud to be involved in this pioneering project and look forward to monitoring the team’s progress as they circumnavigate the globe in the forthcoming race sailing season.”

The ‘Araldite’ is due to be launched on 9th September 2010 at a ceremony at the Maison du Nautisme at Douarnenez,  France.  In its maiden competition, the boat will compete in the Mini Empuries two-handed prototype race, sailing 300 miles around the Balearic Islands before crossing the finishing line at L’Escala in Spain.  This will be followed by the Mini Barcelona solo race from 18-21st September, another 300 mile race which will see the Araldite sailing from Barcelona back to Barcelona.

Huntsman worked with Lineo to win the Bio-Based Materials category of the JEC Innovation Awards 2010.  Huntsman supplied the Lineo development team with resins for both the pre-treatment and final impregnation of flax fibers.  The result is a flax prepreg for vibration damping applications which are particularly suited to the sports market. 

Future resin composite solutions from Huntsman will increasingly be based on various renewable feedstocks to reduce the dependence from oil and to optimise customers’ carbon footprint.  Huntsman tailors resin formulations that can be used together with natural fibers to achieve equivalent performance to synthetic fibers for epoxy composites materials.  Resin systems reinforced with natural fibers like flax are already developed for applications in sports & leisure and automotive markets.

www.huntsman.com/advancedmaterials
 

Sales of Lectra’s Latest-Generation Vector® reach 1000

Lectra, the world leader in integrated technology solutions dedicated to industries using soft materials—textiles, leather, industrial fabrics and composite materials—, is pleased to announce the sale of its thousandth latest-generation Vector®.

Upon its launch in February 2007, the latest generation of Vector automated cutting solutions became an instant success. Even during the current economic crisis, this internationally successful range has never faltered, driven in particular by top-of-the-line Vectors which account for 75% of sales. Whether based in developed countries in Europe and North America or in rapidly expanding countries like China, India, and Brazil, professionals in the Fashion, Automotive, Furniture, and Industrial Fabrics industries are convinced of the importance of investing in solutions to optimize their production. Designed to meet the specific needs of each market—finished product diversity, time-to-market, productivity, and high quality standards—the success of the Vector range can be explained in particular by its high value-added solutions, which allow manufacturers to be more competitive and attain maximum profitability. This competitive advantage is all the more important in light of current increases in raw material prices—representing on average over 50% of production costs—which weigh heavily on industry professionals.

Lectra's cutting room, comprising the Diamino® marker-making software offer, the Optiplan® production order management and planning solution, and the Vector range, enables manufacturers to achieve the best return on investment the market has to offer.

The latest generation of Vectors benefit in particular from "smart services," which provide real-time monitoring, operating software updates, and a preventive maintenance program, along with a range of other high value-added services. Equipped with over 120 sensors that transmit data in real time, Vectors are able to maintain a continuous dialog from anywhere in the world with experts at Lectra’s five international Call Centers. These experts can solve most problems remotely and without delay, attaining a record availability rate of over 98%.

"As an industrial partner to our customers, our objective is to actively participate in optimizing their operations. We are particularly proud to contribute daily to their success with our cutting room solutions, which are the result of over 35 years’ experience and investment in innovation. Lectra knows its customers' businesses well, enabling us to supply equipment perfectly tailored to the specific needs of each company. Our Vectors allow manufacturers to operate a just-in-time production model, optimize material use, and cut operating costs, while benefiting from high levels of productivity and a cutting quality unparalleled in the industry," says Daniel Harari, Lectra CEO.

Since their launch in 1993, nearly 5000 Vectors have been sold. In 2010, Vector sales increased 70%.

About Lectra

Lectra is the world leader in integrated technology solutions that automate, streamline and accelerate product design, development and manufacturing processes for industries using soft materials. Lectra develops the most advanced specialized software and cutting systems and provides associated services to a broad array of markets including fashion (apparel, accessories, footwear), automotive (car seats and interiors, airbags), furniture, as well as a wide variety of other market sectors such as aeronautical and marine industries, wind power and personal protective equipment. Lectra serves 23,000 customers in more than 100 countries with 1,400 employees and $214 million in 2009 revenues. The company is listed on NYSE Euronext.

For more information, please visit www.lectra.com

Gearing Scientific Increase Capabilities in Testing

 

Gearing Scientific have just invested in specific heat software so that they can now offer measurements between 0C and 250C on samples 2 to 25mm thick by 50 to 60mm diameter which is often much more representative of a real composite sample compared to the few milligrammes in a DSC apparatus.

 

Because of the number of samples being tested for thermal conductivity they also now have an autosampler set up allowing unattended operation on several samples overnight.

 

Finally the DMA still offers a rapid comparison of subtly different composite materials or resin systems over whatever T range you are interested in.

 

For more information go to www.gearingscientific.com.

WEB Processing, well known for over 25 years for the range of solvent based and hot melt prepregging machines for fabric and UD has recently developed and supplied a number of new machines moving the versatility of their equipment forward quite significantly.

1.    "Filming" for prepreg manufacture at a different time or place has
enormous attractions to companies not using sufficient quantities of material to justify their own prepregging machine, but until recently it was almost impossible to buy the resin film alone. WEB Processing has developed a line which allows the appropriate weight and width of suitably formulated hot melt resins to be applied onto release paper, cooled and rewind with or without a film applied to the other surface of the epoxy. widths up to 1.6m are available to match the width of release paper. Speeds vary according to the melt temperature and applied weight but are typically in the 5-30 metres.minute range.

Precision deposition is achieved with Infra red back scatter weight monitoring and control.

Whilst some companies will use this unit to make films available for sale others will cast their own films, refrigerate until required and then lay up with the fabric or multiple fabrics to achieve the required end products.

2.    "Tow Preg" is a relatively new development in the wider industry and
most companies trying to obtain supplies are finding it hard to impossible.
WEB Processing alerted to the potential demand have developed a line which will handle anything from 1 to 20 tows in parallel spreading the material, and applying the appropriate resins as hot melt, solvent based or water based materials. The unit comes complete with all the various application systems, drying, cooling, B-staging etc and can run from package to package or as most appropriate.

Different weights of tow can be catered for and production speeds of up to 30 metres/minute have been achieved to date but higher speeds could be reached by appropriate scaling up of the relevant components.
 

Website: www.webprocessing.co.uk  
Photograph used with the kind permision of Bentley Motor Company - www.bentley.co.uk

IDAC Case Study: Whittaker Engineering - Static and Impact Structural Analysis of a Deployment Skid

Company Profile

Since being founded in 1983 Whittaker Engineering has rapidly developed into a respected and reliable contributor in the offshore oil and gas industry. Whittaker Engineering specialises in designing and manufacturing innovative solutions that are designed to work in extreme environments - offshore topside and subsea.
Whittaker Engineering is based in the south of Aberdeen, Scotland and employs over 100 people. In 2009 Whittaker opened a new branch of the company in Mexico.

Background

A Deployment Skid is a frame which is used to lift equipment from a vessel onto a rig. The Deployment Skid analysed in this project was required to lift Subsea Control Modules (SCM) and Module Running Tools (MRT). Both the SCM and MRT contain electronics, instrumentation and hydraulics, so it is imperative that they are transported safely with minimum displacement to the skid. Both static and dynamic analyses were carried out. The dynamic analysis was an Occupant Safety type of analysis where the SCM and MRT modules were considered to be the occupants. This was done to ensure that the cargo did not experience any detrimental displacements.

Analysis

IDAC were required to analyse, and hence evaluate, two designs of the skid; a base model (as shown in the graphic to the left) and a braced model incorporating additional braces on the top and sides, and a modified pad-eye design (below left), under two different analysis conditions; static and impact. For each design the loadcases that were considered are detailed as follows:

Static Loadcases:

2.5 x Max Gross Weight (MGW) using 4 outer pad-eyes
1.5 x MGW using 2 outer pad-eyes
3.0 x MGW using 3 outer pad-eyes

Dynamic Loadcases:

Impact at 3.5m/s with a rigid cylinder
Impact at 3.5m/s with an identical skid

The impact velocity was supplied by Whittaker, but was based on the skid unit being suspended from a Knuckle crane on a dynamically positioned support vessel. The rigid cylinder for impact was modelled as having a diameter of 200mm and a height of 2000mm, and was positioned to impact the midpoint of the long side of the skid. For the skid to skid impact the corner of the moving skid hit the midpoint of the long side of the stationary skid as shown in the graphic below.

The geometry of each of the skid components was determined from drawings supplied by the customer and using these, a model was created by IDAC within ANSYS Workbench DesignModeler. All the skid components were made from S355 J2 Steel; this material was modelled as elastic in the static analysis and elastic-plastic in the Dynamic (Impact) analysis. The analyses were carried out using ANSYS (static) and ANSYS LS-DYNA (Impact).

The pad-eyes, SCMs and MRT were meshed using higher order 3D hexahedral elements with all the other components being meshed using higher order 3D shell elements. The skid components were connected using bonded contacts and frictionless contact was used between the pad-eyes and the shackle bolts. Frictionless contact elements were also used between the SCMs and the container base plate. The centre-points of each pair of SCM’s and base plate were rigidly fixed together. However, a coefficient of friction of 0.3 was used for the contact between the two skids in the dynamic analysis.

Results – Static Analysis

From the static analyses it could be seen that the braced design showed a significant reduction in stresses and deflections compared to the base model in all three static load cases. The peak stresses were found to be in the base model pad-eyes for all three loadcases.

Results – Dynamic Analysis

The braced design showed a significant reduction in deflections compared to the base model in both the impact loadcases. The addition of bracing reduced the maximum plastic strain for both the rigid cylinder impact and the skid to skid impact although the bracing was found to have less effect in the skid to skid impact. The braced design had higher levels of plastic strain in the payload canisters. This was due to the stiffening of the frame creating greater relative motion of the payload. LS-DYNA provided a solution for Occupant Safety simulation, giving a realistic prediction of how the electronic modules behaved under impact.

Design Benefit

The skids have to be designed to withstand the rigours of the offshore environment and as such the braced design of the skid was developed to compare with the existing base design. From the work carried out in the analyses it was demonstrated that the bracing had a significant effect on the behaviour of the skid in both the static and dynamic analyses. A full crash test to reproduce the dynamic conditions of a real life crash would be very expensive, however, carrying out the finite element analyses and testing the ‘virtual’ prototype meant that Whittaker did not have to manufacture and test a prototype. IDAC were able to reproduce results at a fraction of the cost of a full crash test. Ken Whittaker says of IDAC “Once again IDAC demonstrates that an FE model can do a better job of crash simulation than building and destroying actual hardware.”

 
Website: www.idac.co.uk

DSM Announces Price Increase for its Complete Unsaturated Polyester/Vinyl Ester Resin Portfolio

DSM Composite Resins, a global leader in Unsaturated Polyester Resins (UPR), is increasing the price of its complete portfolio of resins produced and sold as from January 10th 2011.

Due to increased raw materials cost and higher feed stock prices, the price of DSM
Composite Resins’s Unsaturated Polyester Resins / Vinyl Ester Resins are raised by €150 per ton as from January 10th 2011. Wilfrid Gambade, Business Director Composite Resins Europe & Global Markets, explains: “In order to be able to continue our commitment on innovation and to ensure ongoing value-added services, we have to pass this increase on to our customers”.

 

For further information, please contact DSM’s commercial teams.

 

Website: www.dsmcompositeresins.com

New Materials Recycling Project - MATREC

European Regional Development Funding(ERDF) has been secured by EMTEX, to develop and run an exciting new recycling of materials project.

The project is designed to support small and medium size companies within the East Midlands to reduce landfill and recover materials which are often discarded or not fully reclaimed.

The project will be interested to hear from any SME that has a desire to be more environmentally friendly, has a waste problem, or is keen to be involved in research to support more efficient usage of materials.

EMMAT will be the brand under which the project is promoted, and will provide research, support , advice on waste problems, and will enable SME’s to engage with specialist materials organisations that would normally be out of reach. Consultation and information will help any business to improve the efficiency of materials usage, from design to disposal, whilst free waste audits, specific consultation and advice will be available.

The project has already been running for a year, but still has two years to run, and is looking to hold further workshops, seminars, events on relevant topics, and bring best practice knowledge to the SME community.

Small grants will be available,(up to £5000) with a penetration rate of 35%, so if you are looking for the essential funds to make a materials/recycling project viable, this funding may be for you.

To discuss the potential in MATREC, and if applicable to your project, please contact the following email address for free and confidential advice: raynewell@hotmail.com.

An application from can be downloaded here.     
 

 

Give your input and express your interest in Technology and Innovation Centres

 

Following the October 2010 spending review the Government has announced that over £200m will be invested in a network of elite Technology and Innovation Centres to be established and overseen by the Technology Strategy Board.

 

The new investment will further bridge the gap between universities and businesses, helping to commercialise the outputs of Britain's world-class research base. The centres will also complement and link with the other programmes which the Technology Strategy Board already manages to promote collaboration between universities and business, and to drive innovation and the commercialisation of new technology and ideas.

 

Working with industry and government, the Technology Strategy Board will develop a strategy and implementation plan for the network of centres by April 2011.

The Technology Strategy Board has set up a discussion space for interested parties to offer initial opinions and for discussions to take place. 

 

 Click here to find out more and add your contributions to the debate.

 

Feasibility Studies for Technology-Inspired Innovation

 

Through its Feasibility Studies for Technology-Inspired Innovation funding competition, the Technology Strategy Board is to invest up to £2 million in feasibility studies in technologies that are closely aligned with its six core areas - Advanced Materials; Biosciences; Electronics, Photonics & Electrical Systems; High Value Manufacturing; Information & Communities Technology and Nanotechnology.

 

Projects may be collaborative or carried out by a single company. Lasting up to three months, the projects can cost £33,000 and funding of up to 75% of costs (£25,000) may be available. The projects must be led and undertaken by small or micro companies (50 employees or fewer), whether working individually or in partnership.

 

The competition opens on 10 January 2011 and closes on 10 February 2011. Successful candidates will be informed at the end of February 2011. Each funded project will culminate in a short report and, where relevant, a demonstrator. Projects will also present their achievements at a public 'Collaboration Nation' event to be held in the autumn of 2011.

 

For further information please click here.