Faraday Plastics signs top UK academic affiliates

Faraday Plastics, the UK's plastics research and development centre, welcomes two of the leading UK academics to its affiliate community: Dame Prof Julia Higgins and Prof Tom McLeish

Faraday Plastics, the UK's plastics research and development centre, welcomes two of the leading UK academics to its affiliate community.

Dame Prof Julia Higgins, Chemical Engineering, Imperial College, also Chair of the EPSRC, and Prof Tom McLeish, Director of the Polymer Interdisciplinary Research Centre (IRC) at Leeds have recently become Faraday plastics affiliates.

Richard Simpson, Faraday Plastics Director, sees their membership as a clear recognition of the role to be played by Faraday Plastics in bringing the academic knowledge base to the attention of the industrial community: 'Both parties can only benefit from contact and interaction with each other.

The UK has world class resources in both research and exploitation and our role at Faraday Plastics is to enhance both activities by bringing them closer together'.

Simpson urges other leading UK academics to apply to join the affiliate scheme, which is currently free of charge.

The Faraday Plastics benefits for academe include: - Collaboration with companies to form research teams - Support in the preparation of research bids - Help in identifying funding sources - Opportunities to exploit research outputs.

The purpose of the Faraday Plastics affiliate scheme is to link both industry and academe in meeting the critical technological challenges of the plastics sector.

Benefits in the new nano-technology-based polymers, low-energy processing techniques, and environmental polymers are now being shared through the Faraday Plastics network.

For industrial companies the affiliate scheme ensures that large and small plastics-based businesses are custom-served by Faraday Plastics with the information and market research that they need, as well as being introduced to the wealth of polymer ideas and research within the UK university and academic infrastructure.

Linpac Automotive, Lucite International (owner of Perspex), Amcor Flexibles and Victrex are some of the leading names in the sector, who already number among the Faraday Plastics affiliate members.

Richard Simpson, Faraday Plastics director believes that for innovative plastics-based businesses, the affiliate scheme is the best single way to boost its R and D and to capitalise on this increase in Faraday Plastics activity.

'Our affiliate scheme is the basic point of entry for participating businesses.

For a very minimal outlay, companies can get connected to the best plastics-based research in their fields; save time and money in searching for solutions; and also get access to the best researchers, partners and technologies available'.

For large companies, there is opportunity to have a Faraday Plastics technology road map created each year for the needs of that company.

Funding alerts are part of the large company package, as is a research review, networking opportunities, supply chain analysis and participation in Faraday Plastics main projects and Technology Road Maps.

At GBP750 a year for large firms and just GBP300 for small companies our annual affiliate fee is heavily subsidised and very competitively priced,' says Simpson.

The approval of the new Faraday Plastics business plan - and funding for the next three years - gives companies renewed opportunity to attract plastics technology development funding.

Since Spring 2003 Faraday Plastics has produced several Technology Road Maps for the plastics sector - on subjects such as low-energy processing, nano-technology, plastics in healthcare, and others.

Faraday Plastics has also boosted its technology translator posts and is increasing its outreach work; matching companies to universities.

Faraday Plastics has also selected a number of priority areas for the next three years: these are energy; recycling and sustainability; nano and smart materials; healthcare and automotive applications.

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