EPSRC Delivery Plan Sponsorship
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Manchester
Department Name: Research Support Services
Abstract
The funding will be used strategically by the University to support new research opportunities, developing new pathways to impact for previously funded research, and developing research staff.
Planned Impact
One aspect of the proposal is specifically to establish new pathways to impact for previously funded research, leading directly to new non-academic impacts. New areas of multidisciplinary research will also be developed, with specific emphasis on EPSRC mission areas - which have already been identified as areas of strategic importance to the UK.
Organisations
Publications
Costilla-Reyes O
(2021)
Age-Related Differences in Healthy Adults Walking Patterns Under a Cognitive Task With Deep Neural Networks
in IEEE Sensors Journal
| Description | We used the EPSRC Institutional Sponsorship award (EP/J501384/1) together with our Delivery Plan Award (EP/K005294/1) to fund new activity under a total of 8 schemes organised under the four broad headings specified by the Council. Most of the funding was distributed in response to internal proposals, with 49/134 proposals funded overall. Short descriptions of the individual activities are available on request. DELIVERING IMPACT Impact Pathfinder Awards. We ran an internal competition for Impact Pathfinder Awards of £20-50k to explore opportunities for enhancing the impact of EPSRC-funded research that were not anticipated when the research was originally funded - with the aim of establishing new pathways to impact. We supported a range of activities including concept development, feasibility studies, workshops, networking activities, engagement events with industry (and other users), and public engagement. We funded a total of 13 projects, managed by our KTA team. Overall the scheme was successful, delivering new relationships with users of research, follow-on projects with industry, new and enhanced commercialisation opportunities, and impact on policy. Support for Graphene Commercialisation. Given the opportunities for impact created by the University's Nobel Prize winning research, we supported a KT Associate to work with the research team to help identify new commercial opportunities and also help to develop a joined-up cross-School/Faculty Graphene research community. DEVELOPING LEADERS Partial Scholarships for Research Training. We offered partial scholarships, of up to £20k, for EPS research training programmes (PhD, MRes and MSc with a significant research project), with preference given to candidates currently lost to the pool of research talent (eg women returners, graduates returning to research having gone straight from graduation to employment). The timing was such that we had relatively few applications, and only one that we judged met the criteria. Research Experience Internships. We offered research internships of 6-9 months for high-quality recent or returning graduates, exposing them to a research environment and engaging them in enhancing the outcomes of EPSRC-funded research (though not necessarily as researchers). We funded 6 internships, and 5 of the candidates are now in a research career, with the sixth considering his career options. SHAPING CAPABILITY Embedding Cross-Disciplinary Outreach. We offered funding for embedding cross-disciplinary outreach activities (relevant to the EPSRC mission) in the culture of the University via its institutes and centres, with particular emphasis on EPSRC mission areas. Three proposals were funded to provide a range of activities including: community building (workshops, newsletters, one-to-one exploration), identifying and developing new multidisciplinary research opportunities, mapping relevant research capability, and engaging with users - leading in each case to new partnerships and research activity. Bridging the Gaps Awards. We ran an internal competition for Bridging the Gaps Awards of £20-50k, to explore specific opportunities for research relevant to the EPSRC mission and involving more than one school/faculty/institution. Priority was given to projects addressing EPSRC mission areas, or where a significant advance in one discipline might impact on another. Funding was available for: conducting feasibility studies, supporting staff and/or students to acquire new knowledge and skills, and hosting meetings with, or visiting, users and/or potential academic collaborators. This was the most over-subscribed scheme, with 6/31 proposals funded, and the success rate in initiating new research collaborations was high. EFFICIENCY AND EFFECTIVENESS N8 Equipment-Sharing Study. Support was provided for part of an N8 study of equipment sharing, agreed in advance with the Council. Equipment-Sharing Awards. We ran an internal competition for Equipment-Sharing Awards to promote multi-user access to equipment relevant to EPSRC research. The intention was to focus primarily on areas of strategic importance to the University (computational science, photon science, imaging science etc) but an open competition was used to encourage broad take-up. Proposals were required to demonstrate commitment from users in different research groups and identify concrete outcomes. Awards could cover the costs of a range of activities including: improving access (eg developing booking systems, providing advice and assistance), support and maintenance of shared facilities, and developing sustainable business models. We funded 6 initiatives. |
| Sector | Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software),Energy,Environment,Healthcare,Manufacturing, including Industrial Biotechology,Pharmaceuticals and Medical Biotechnology |
| Impact Types | Economic,Policy & public services |