Current Awards

Following the quarterly calls to Proof-of-Concept Fund and monthly calls to Partnership Grant since the official Launch of the ICUK programme, over 40 good quality applications have been received from the 5 UK partner HEIs collaborating with some key Chinese universities. We are pleased to announce that up to July, 13 applications have been awarded Proof-of-Concept Fund totaling about £1m. ICUK has also awarded 19 Partnership Grant to forge the collaboration through feasibility study and staff exchange. It's worth noting that some of the Partnership Grant projects have very strong potential to lead to a future Proof-of-Concept project for further knowledge  transfer collaboration.

 For more details of current awards, please click the link to visit the ICUK website.

Project Highlights

With the awards from ICUK Collaboration Development Fund, key academics of ICUK projects have kickstarted their projects in collaboration with their Chinese collaborators and industrial partners. Here is a selection of projects in progress:

First Order from Sony Ericsson
An ICUK project entitled "EMC Testing of Mobile Communications Platforms" led by Profossor Xiaodong Chen from Queen Mary, University of London has received first order of 5 units from Sony Ericsson. Prof. Chen has developed a novel Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) testing equipment to allow mobile phone companies optimise the design of handsets with multiple integrated devices. With the support of ICUK Proof-of-Concept fund, Prof. Chen is currently working with Beijing University of Post and Telecommunication to develop a commercial prototype.

Establishment of a Web Science Research Lab
In April of this year, Tsinghua Graduate School in Shenzhen and the University of Southampton formally announced the establishment of a Web Science Research Lab in Shenzhen, China. With the support of a partnership grant from ICUK work is now underway. In July Professors Wendy Hall and Nigel Shadbolt from Universty of Southampton met with Professors Jiang Yong and Ma Hui from Tsinghua, Shenzhen to appoint to set up a steering group and agree on a plan of work for the forthcoming months. The lab is one of an international network currently being set up by the Web Science Research Initiative, a joint venture between MIT and the University of Southampton.

Market Research Contract Signed
Dr Liam Good from Royal Veterinary College, University of London (RVC) has developed a high sensitive and high efficient screen method to identify the antibacterials from traditional Chinese medicine(TCM). This method is also target linked which can indicate the mechanism directly. With the support of ICUK fund and in collaboration with Prof. Boli Zhang in Tianjin University of TCM, this project has signed the market search contract to evaluate the demands of new antibacterials, especially in China and the UK. One scientist from Chinese partner has been trained to apply the screen method. The partners meeting has been scheduled in Tianjin on 17th October.

Strong Interest from Dun'an Group, China
An ICUK project entitled "A new dew point air conditioner and its application in China and UK buildings" led by Dr. Xudong Zhao from The University of Nottingham has attracted strong interest from industry. Dun'an Group from China, one of the top manufacturers in China, has expressed interest to license the technology and take it into market. The feasibility study of the system has been completed and results have shown that the system is well suited for use in most regions of China and UK.

Prototype Developed
With the support of ICUK fund, a prototype has been developed for the ICUK project entitled “Reconfigurable Workholding Devices for Aerospace Components Utilising Smart Nano-materials” led by Professor Nabil Gindy from The University of Nottingham. The reconfigurable workholding devices are designed as one fixture to hold multiple components to replace current one-to-one dedicated fixtures. The initial market survey has also been conducted, the result of which indicated good market potential of the device.

Please click here to see the project profiles on the ICUK website.

New Strategic Partnership with RCUK Office in China

 To further enhance the partnership for innovation and knowledge transfer between China and the UK, ICUK has developed strategic partnerships with RCUK Office in China. Set up in 2007, the RCUK Office in China liaises with research support agencies to enable the funding systems in both countries to work more closely together, and so increase opportunities for joint UK-China research projects. The RCUK Office in China supports ICUK by accommodatingr the ICUK China Coordinator.

Upcoming Events

 1. Building A UK-China Partnership In GNSS and Geospatial Sciences, 22-23 October 2008, Wuhan, China

Initiated by key academics from The University of Nottingham, ICUK is planning a workshop on Building a UK-China Partnership in GNSS and Geospatial Sciences in Wuhan University in China. This event is going to be led by The University of Nottingham, one of the ICUK partner institutions. This event aims to set up a common platform for UK-China professionals in GNSS and Geospatial Sciences to exchange information on a regular basis (a workshop once every two years), seek research collaboration opportunities, promote mutual technology transfer and personnel visit/training.

2. Commercialization of Photonics Technologies from Universities, 30th October -2nd November, Shanghai, China

Initiated by key academics from University of Southampton, ICUK will be running a workshop on Commercialization of Photonics Technologies from Universities at the Asia Optical Fiber Communication & Optoelectronic Exposition & Conference (AOE) in Shanghai, China. This event will be led by University of Southampton, one of ICUK partner institutions and will bring together the best minds from industry, government, university and capital communities to share their visions, business models and experiences of bringing the outcomes of their research into a business environment.

For further information about the upcoming events, please click the link to visit www.icukonline.org

Proof-of-Concept Fund: Round 4 Call for Applications

Applications are now invited for the round 4 call to the ICUK Proof of Concept Fund for proposals falling within ICUK's remit. The ICUK Proof of Concept Fund aims to support technologies or business ideas from the research community to be further developed to the stage that a commercial company or a private investor will become engaged in the commercialisation of a new product or service. The deadline is 30th September. For more details of the Proof of Concept Fund such as funding criteria and how to apply, please click Funding.