Science minister Chris Skidmore visited the Nuclear AMRC to see how the centre is supporting the development of new low-carbon power plant.
Skidmore was re-appointed as Minister of State for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation following December’s general election. He visited the Nuclear AMRC and its sister centre, the University of Sheffield AMRC, on 16 January as part of a tour of key organisations in the north of England.
The minister met with Nuclear AMRC CEO Andrew Storer, University of Sheffield Vice-Chancellor Koen Lamberts and other senior staff to discuss how academia, industry and government can help rebalance the UK economy by working together to improve productivity, processes and skills.
“This excellent work is supercharging manufacturing in the north of England, demonstrating the importance of industry, academics and government collaborating to boost prosperity,” Skidmore said. “Driving innovation in all parts of the UK is vital. We’re determined to harness brilliant research like this, to grow the economy and secure our status as a global science superpower.”
During the minister’s visit to the Nuclear AMRC workshop, Storer highlighted how the centre’s engineers are supporting the development of new forms of low-carbon electricity generation, including government-funded programmes such as the UK SMR led by Rolls-Royce and UKAEA’s fusion projects.
The Nuclear AMRC is working on a host of manufacturing technologies which can significantly improve productivity for key reactor components, such as electron beam welding which can join thick-walled pressure vessel sections in a fraction of the time of conventional methods.
