An innovative partnership between Coventry University and Unipart Manufacturing Group to develop skilled graduate engineers for the future has been awarded a prestigious Queen’s Anniversary Prize.
The prize – presented to Coventry’s Institute of Advanced Manufacturing & Engineering (AME) – is the highest national honour awarded in UK further and higher education.
Celebrating excellence, innovation and public benefit in work carried out by UK universities, it recognises the achievements of the AME, which opened over four years ago on Unipart’s site in Coventry.
The institute is known as “the faculty on the factory floor” and allows students to engage directly with the engineering and manufacturing industry to the benefit of themselves and the industry as a whole. Its 1700 sq ft manufacturing hub houses £3m of robotic automation, forming, joining, analysis and simulation, metrology and product verification technology.
Around 120 students currently study at the AME and since its launch all those who have graduated have gone on to be employed in engineering roles. A key aim of its courses is to help address the growing skills shortage in the engineering and manufacturing sector, which will require an additional 1.8 million engineers by 2025.
Coventry University’s vice-chancellor Professor John Latham said: “Collaborative partnerships between universities and businesses are critical in promoting innovation and supporting the industry. The prize is testimony to our strong focus on employability and underpins our long-term commitment to producing industry-ready graduates.”
Director of the Institute for Advanced Manufacturing, Professor Carl Perrin said: “Unipart Manufacturing Group and Coventry University share the same passions, including increasing the number and calibre of engineers, as well as researching and supporting high value manufacturing and engineering.”
Further aims of the institute include to research and develop innovative technology for automotive, aerospace, oil and gas, power generation and rail sectors, and disseminate research and technologies for the benefit of Unipart, its suppliers and UK manufacturing.