Research Festival - 24 January 2020
On Friday 24 January, the business community together with academics and experts gathered at the University of Plymouth as part of its Research Festival 2020.
The festival is a week-long celebration of the rich research culture at the University, which covers a broad range of field including health and medicine, science and engineering, and the arts, humanities and social sciences.
Delegates were provided with an insight into the characteristics of successful industry-university partnerships through case studies of recent projects including Impact Lab, which assists Devon-based SMEs with creative thinking to address big data and environmental challenges. As well as hearing from Cornish Lithium who have taken their business to the next level through Acceleration Through Innovation.
Adrian Dawson, Director of Research & Innovation, said: “This event was a fantastic opportunity to invite industry in to see some of the partnerships that the University has developed. The commercial case studies demonstrated some of our successful collaborations and created a chance for researchers to network with new potential partners who have an appetite for innovation.”
The session also featured a showcase of some of the high-tech facilities and equipment hosted at the University that are available for commercial benefit, including the COAST Lab, the Plymouth Electron Microscopy Centre and the Digital Fabrication laboratory.
The audience heard from Hamish McRae, Associate Editor and Principal Economic Commentator at The Independent, who provided a talk about global future trends in economics, business and society. As a speaker, Hamish is in demand around the world for his lucid insights into how forces such as technology, demography, globalisation, natural resources, and government policy shape the economy and influence business strategy.
The University of Plymouth is renowned for high quality, internationally-leading education, research and innovation.
With a mission to Advance Knowledge and Transform Lives, Plymouth is a top 50* research university with clusters of world class research across a wide range of disciplines including marine science and engineering, medicine, robotics and psychology. A three-time winner of the Queen’s Anniversary Prize for Higher and Further Education, the University of Plymouth continues to grow in stature and reputation.
It has a strong track record for teaching and learning excellence, and has one of the highest numbers of National Teaching Fellows of any UK university. With over 19,000 students, and a further 9,500 studying for a Plymouth degree at partner institutions in the UK and around the world, and over 130,000 alumni pursuing their chosen careers globally, it has a growing global presence.
