News: AMRC launches region's first composite materials research centre

Olympic bicycles, aircraft wings, hi-fi speakers and even wind turbines could one day be made using composite manufacturing technology developed in Rotherham. Last week, Bart Moenster, chairman of the board of the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre with Boeing and director of Manufacturing Technology at Boeing Phantom Works, Boeing’s advanced research and development unit, invited Deputy Chair of Yorkshire Forward, Linda Pollard, to launch the region’s first composite materials research centre. The £4.5 million AMRC Composite Centre, located on the Advanced Manufacturing Park, is a collaboration between the University of Sheffield and Boeing. "Advanced composites are revolutionizing the aerospace industry and are here to stay," Moenster said. "The technologies developed by the AMRC Composites Centre will enable the Yorkshire and Humber region to take advantage of this growth via new companies with new capabilities, while helping the University of Sheffield prepare engineers with the knowledge to use these capabilities." The facility will provide engineers with the capability to undertake manufacturing research for next-generation civil aircraft, automotive, and off-shore energy. Linda Pollard said: "The Composites Centre supports the exploitation of new materials which fall outside of the traditional metals sector of which our region is world renowned, putting Yorkshire and Humber at the forefront of a new age of lighter and stronger composite structures. It demonstrates Yorkshire Forward’s commitment to Advanced Engineering and Metals and I am sure the Centre will complement the existing world-class facilities on the Advanced Manufacturing Park."
AMRC website
AMP article
Rotherham