The Engineer
Jon Excell Editorial
Jon Excell is editor of The Engineer
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Power generation is a 'risky' business
14 May 2012
As much of the world scales back on its nuclear ambitions the risks associated with other sources of generation will only become more pronounced
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Addressing dimmer LED compatibility
14 May 2012
Digital control technology from iWatt could greatly improve the safety of light-emitting diodes used with wall dimmers.
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Are wind subsidies a price worth paying?
2 May 2012
The anti-wind lobby gained a bizarrely-coiffed ally last week in the shape of US business tycoon Donald Trump.
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MWP award winners announced
18 Apr 2012
Around 700 senior figures from the UK manufacturing sector gathered at Birmingham’s Hilton Metropole last night for the culmination of the MWP advanced manufacturing Awards 2012.
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Why Cameron's Deepsea Challenger is good for engineering
28 Mar 2012
James Cameron’s headline grabbing trip to the deep is the latest example of how private enterprise can help put technology on the front pages
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Technology adoption should be pain free
7 Mar 2012
Removing the hurdles to medical technology deployment is vital to the UK’s physical and economic well-being
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A success story that can’t be told
22 Feb 2012
The ban on companies promoting their work on this summer’s Olympic games represents a huge missed opportunity for the UK economy
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Joined-up thinking
20 Feb 2012
A laser-based technique could overtake resistance technology as a faster welding method for automotive and other applications.
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The underwhelming reality of UK apprenticeships
8 Feb 2012
If apprenticeships really are to deliver the growth that they could it’s time to start taking them a bit more seriously
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Oil fears should spur low-carbon innovation
25 Jan 2012
As the UK’s Coryton oil refinery goes into administration, and uncertainty over key oil producing regions grows, the case for an electric vehicle industry is growing stronger by the week.
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Will infrastructure investment really rebalance the UK economy?
18 Jan 2012
Rarely a day goes by without a member of the government hailing the “economy-rebalancing” properties of some project or other. But while it’s tempting to be cynical in the face of a refrain that’s becoming a little tired, we decided to subject it a little more rigorous scrutiny.
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Cameron’s veto could make life doubly hard for UK manufacturers
13 Dec 2011
It’s not yet certain what repercussions David Cameron’s European walk-out will have, but it’s becoming increasingly clear that beyond the euro-sceptics within his own party and elements of the right-wing press, not many people seem to think it was a very good idea.
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The 2011 Civil Engineering Winner - Slope ALARMS
2 Dec 2011
A low-cost sensor detects high-frequency acoustic emissions to predict whether a landslide is likely to occur.
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The 2011 Medical & Healthcare Winner - Exstent
2 Dec 2011
Not content with existing treatments, Marfan Syndrome sufferer Tal Golesworthy built his own life-saving implant.
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Back to black: enhanced oil recovery brings back abandoned wells
28 November 2011
A range of advanced recovery techniques are breathing new life into the world’s abandoned oil fields.
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The end of the easy oil era
28 November 2011
Fossil fuel may be finite, but with production costs rising we may well have moved on to more economical alternatives long before it runs out.
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Quietly planning the return of the blimp
14 November 2011
Barely a year goes by without someone heralding the rebirth of the airship. And yet, for many, the fiery demise of the Hindenburg in 1937 continues to cast a shadow over the technology’s credibility.
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Awards season and D-Day for HS2
7 Nov 2011
It’s awards season. And as we hurtle towards the end of another testing year for the engineering sector, it’s reassuring that the UK’s manufacturing and technology firms still have plenty to shout about.
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The 2011 Shortlist - Turning the spotlight on effective collaboration
The 2011 Shortlist
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Automotive engineer Gordon Murray
31 Oct 2011
Race to market: After a glittering career at the summit of motorsport, Gordon Murray is facing his toughest challenge yet.
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Motorsport ethos offers value to other sectors
31 October 2011
The UK’s unique strength in the motorsport sector could help many other industries to improve energy efficiency, introduce new materials and streamline their development processes
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Weightman review should calm UK energy jitters
12 Oct 2011
The final report on Japan’s Fukushima crisis should help shore up confidence in UK nuclear plans, but it remains a parlous time for the energy sector in general
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Job cuts put skills debate firmly back on the agenda
5 Oct 2011
Last week’s announcement that BAE is to cut 3,000 jobs couldn’t have come at a worse time, and has reignited the ever-emotive debate on engineering skills.
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Gender agenda
The Engineer - Women in Engineering supplement
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Sense of potential
The Engineer - Women in Engineering supplement
Only a small proportion of UK engineers are female. Jon Excell considers how this gender imbalance is being addressed
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Time for electric cars to find their voice
19 September 2011
The near-silent operation of electric vehicles is a growing safety concern for pedestrians used to engine noise. But some intriguing solutions are at hand.
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Victorians have a very elegant sense of alarm
19 September 2011
House fires were an ever-present threat in Victorian times and this article from the archives proposes an intriguing solution to the problem.
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Building the world's "greenest" supercar engine
19 September 2011
A compact V8 engine designed and built by Ricardo is helping put McLaren Automotive firmly on the international supercar stage.
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Innovation is critical to the future of the UK defence sector
05 September 2011
The latest round of armed forces redundancies announced last week by defence secretary Liam Fox poured fresh fuel on the smouldering debate over cuts to the UK’s defence budget.
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Anti-social media?
17 Aug 2011
The disturbances that swept across England last week have raised a number of questions relevant to the UK’s technology sector.
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Growth, what growth?
27 Jul 2011
Politicians have been keen to talk up industry, but the UK’s latest economic figures show little evidence of a rebalanced economy
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Ricardo assembly facility to build the “world’s greenest supercar engine”
25 Jul 2011
The Engineer visited Ricardo’s UK technical centre to take a look at the facility that’s building the engines for Mclaren’s MP4-12C
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Why aren't there more women engineers?
19 Jul 2011
New figures suggesting that the number of women pursuing a career in engineering is in decline make worrying reading for the UK’s technology sector.
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The world's first general purpose computer
18 July 2011
Sixty years ago, the world’s first commercially-available computer took up a whole room
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Keeping business and engineering at arm's length
4 July 2011
Alan Sugar’s recent denigration of engineers was rightly condemned but did he stumble clumsily upon a truth that’s hampered the development of many a young engineering company?
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Join the debate on The Engineer’s new forum site
27 Jun 2011
Swap ideas, seek technical advice, or discuss the big industrial issues of the day on our new forum site
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Medical manufacturing, motoring and driving quickly up a hill backwards
27 Jun 2011
The UK’s burgeoning medical manufacturing industry and its resurgent automotive sector both feature prominently in an event-packed week ahead
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Prime time manufacturing
21 Jun 2011
Following Alan Sugar’s now-infamous dig at engineers, the BBC was back on more industry-friendly ground this week with the first episode of “Made In Britain”, a documentary which attempted to debunk the notion that British manufacturing is dead.
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Could you be a winner?
20 Jun 2011
Are you involved in a groundbreaking technology-led project? If so, you could be joining the winners at the Engineer’s Technology and Innovation awards 2011
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A compelling glimpse of a complex future
10 Jun 2011
Often vague, sometimes noncommittal and frequently contradictory, auto industry crystal-ball gazing isn’t always particularly helpful. But this week in Germany Bosch Automotive set out a technology roadmap that was both comprehensive, compelling and complex.
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Range-extender engines
23 May 2011
Are range-extended vehicles a credible low-carbon alternative to pure-electric cars?
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Offshore tonic for UK shipbuilders
23 May 2011
The sad decline of its shipbuilding sector is arguably one of the most potent symbols of the UK’s diminished status as an industrial superpower
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Will the government’s carbon budget help or hinder UK industry?
18 May 2011
Stung by criticism that it’s failing to deliver on its pledge to become the “greenest government ever” the coalition has announced ambitious emissions reduction targets that could put the UK at the forefront of the global low carbon industry.
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Electric glimpse of motorsport's future
9 May 2011
Could electric motor-bike racing provide a blueprint for a more relevant motorsport industry?
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IEEE chief Moshe Kam
9 May 2011
The president of the IEEE says it is up to teachers to get young people excited about engineering.
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Energy storage gets second wind
25 April 2011
If wind is to make a truly significant contribution to our future energy mix, engineers will need to crack the intermittency challenge. Could compressed air energy storage be the solution?
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Making more by using less
The Engineer - Sustainability Supplement
Businesses across a range of engineering sectors are increasingly equating sustainbability with long term economic success
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Nuclear fusion might be the best medicine
11 April 2011
A post-fukushima nuclear downturn could have implications way beyond the global energy industry
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UK researchers pioneer development of robotic bureaucrats
1 Apr 2011
Engineers at the UK’s Robotics Research Institute (RRI) have received a £60 million grant to develop intelligent robots that could dramatically reduce the operating costs of local authorities and even central government.
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Rules of engagement
30 Mar 2011
Surprised reactions to the crowning of an engineer as businesswoman of the year are a chastening reminder of the scale of the sector’s engagement problems.
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Could Fukushima derail the UK’s nuclear new build plans?
16 Mar 2011
Japan’s ongoing nuclear crisis has inevitably led to questions over the wisdom of putting nuclear generation at the heart of our future energy mix, but now is not the time for knee-jerk reactions
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Motion compensation technology could enable surgery on moving organs
14 March 2011
Advanced techniques that account for the beating of the heart or the movement of the lungs promise to revolutionise a range of invasive and non-invasive therapies
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Technology transfer is good for your health
14 March 2011
Engineering challenges are rarely solved in isolation: technologies developed in one sector frequently have their biggest impact elsewhere, and the medical sector is no exception
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Keeping our eyes on a volatile natural world
March 2011 Online
In the wake of any natural disaster the question of whether technology could have helped to save lives is inevitably asked.
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Brompton managing director Will Butler-Adams
28 February 2011
Hinge benefits: Brompton’s ebullient MD is pedalling the maker of the iconic folding bike into the 21st century.
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Bright candidates for government finance
14 February 2011
The notion that industry backers will always step in when government stands back is a dangerous misconception
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Manufacturing growth needn't cost a fortune
31 January 2011
Conveniently for the government the message from industry appears to be that it needn’t cost a fortune to advance UK manufacturing; that creating the right conditions and removing the barriers to economic growth doesn’t have to be expensive.
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Sheffield festival aims to bring manufacturing to the masses
19 Jan 2011
As a new initiative to champion engineering is launched the UK manufacturing industry is feeling optimisitic about its future. But it can’t afford any more missed opportunties
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Engineering sustainable population growth
12 Jan 2011
A new report published by the IMechE exmaines the role engineers can play in meeting the challenges of a population overload
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TSB fleshes out UK technology centre plans
6 Jan 2011
Plans to create a UK network of technology centres designed to bridge the gap between research and commercialisation move a step closer to fruition
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Particle therapy comes of age
13 December 2010
Particle accelerators that can blast tumours with pinpoint accuracy are entering the medical mainstream.
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Skills, funding and other burning issues
13 December 2010
Skills; the profile of engineers; funding priorities: three subjects guaranteed to engage, enrage and polarise the opinions of The Engineer ’s readers.
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Uncertain road ahead for British car industry
29 November 2010
While electric cars may be the ultimat end-point for personal transportation, the internal combustion engines still have the potential for development, as UK-based engineers are discovering
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Are we investing too much hope in a manufacturing led recovery?
24 Nov 2010
Talk of putting manufacturing at the heart of the economy is becoming so common these days that it’s in danger of becoming a slightly tired refrain. But are we placing unrealistic expectations on the shoulders of industry by viewing manufacturing as an economic silver bullet?
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The robot will see you now
15 November 2010
A criticism sometimes levelled at the UK’s health service is that it’s become depersonalised. Little wonder then that the rise of medical robots - and the notion of replacing the human clinician with a machine - is regarded by many with horror.
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Offshore momentum makes powerful case for state funding
3 Nov 2010
The government’s decision not to cut £60m funding to overhaul ports is welcome news for the UK’s stuttering wind turbine manufacturing industry.
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Few surprises in defence review
19 Oct 2010
In the end there was little in the defence review that the numerous leaks didn’t prepare us for : the two carriers are saved (although one will not enter service) Trident will be replaced, Harrier will be retired, and the Nimrod spy plane will be cancelled.
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The 2010 shortlist: the full breadth of the UK's technology landscape
Awards 2010
The Engineer is delighted to present the final shortlist for the 2010 Technology and Innovation Awards
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Impending science cuts are bad news for engineers
4 October 2010
Cuts to the science budget will jeopardise the critical, and often unquantifiable, relationship between ’blue-sky’ scientific research and engineering innovation
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A good Olympic story that needs to be told
20 September 2010
To ensure a truly lasting legacy, 2012’s innovators should be allowed their moment in the sun
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To imitate or innovate? The challenge facing electric car designers
6 September 2010
Not long ago battery-powered cars were seen as a bit of a joke. No coverage of the technology was complete without a gag about milk floats or a sniggered reference to the Sinclair C5. And the diminutive G-Wiz, the first all-electric car to appear in anything like significant numbers on UK roads, did little to dampen the derision.
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Defence review should trigger Trident debate
16 August 2010
The long-awaited defence review, coupled with the announcement that the MoD will have to foot the bill for a Trident replacement, could have a profound impact on the UK’s defence industry. Meeting the estimated £20bn cost of the nuclear programme from a budget running at around £35bn would, most observers agree, make it impossible to maintain current capabilities.
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Simon Howison, engineering director, BAE Systems Military Air Solutions
16 August 2010
Air of Austerity: Despite the challenges facing the defence sector, BAE’s top military aerospace engineer is optimistic
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Forgemasters saga raises concerns over coalition business policy
28 Jul 2010
The news that Forgemasters has suspended work on its giant nuclear-industry forge press marks a new low in a saga that continues to raise more questions than it answers.
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Light materials hold hefty potential for UK
26 July 2010
The UK must quickly build on its expertise if it’s to cash in on the growing use of composite materials
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Meet LEMV: the first of a new generation of advanced military airship
12 Jul 2010
US and UK engineers have joined forces on the development of an advanced reconnaissance vehicle that could breath new life into the world of airships
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Innovation is key for future of civil aerospace sector
12 July 2010
There’s a palpable note of relief to the civil aerospace sector’s pre Farnborough posturings
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Osborne ignites the bonfire of the quangos
30 Jun 2010
As its pledge to tackle the quangos gathers pace, the government must be careful not to turn its back on the UK’s rich pool of forward looking innovators.
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Fairey Rotodyne was the future of aviation
28 June 2010
Aviation Concept more than a flight of fancy
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Forgemasters cut puts brakes on UK's nuclear ambition
18 Jun 2010
In cancelling the £80 million loan to Sheffield Forgemasters, the government has missed a gold-plated investment opportunity.
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Wind in the sails of the UK offshore industry
14 June 2010
Spending cuts must not be allowed to set back the UK’s buoyant offshore wind sector
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Government must build on engineering feel-good factor
9 Jun 2010
In the desire to slash the deficit it would be a grave mistake to pull the rug from the UK’s burgeoning areas of expertise.
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The rise of additive manufacturing
24 May 2010
Dream machines: Systems capable of printing functional components are poised to enter the manufacturing mainstream
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Coalition must give technology room to breathe
24 May 2010
In its rush to make cuts the UK government must take the long term economic view on research funding
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Robot referees - good or bad?
21 May 2010
This summer’s packed schedule of sports will give a host of technologies the chance to grab some of the glory, but the use of technology to make tough decisions continues to divide opinion
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Wave Treader steps closer to commercialisation
20 May 2010
Scottish marine power group Green Ocean Energy begins work on wave energy device that piggybacks on wind turbines
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Siemens tunnel-fire prevention system begins trials
19 May 2010
Advanced imaging technology that could help avert fatal road tunnel fires is being trialled by engineers at Siemens in Germany.
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BAE and Portendo join forces on explosives detector
19 May 2010
A Swedish-developed security system that uses lasers to detect minute quantities of explosives may soon be providing British troops with an early warning of roadside bombs.
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Deepwater disaster demands slick thinking
12 May 2010
The continued leak of oil from BP’s Deepwater well could have dire implications for the future of offshore exploration
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Could a hung parliament stall nuclear new build?
4 May 2010
If the Lib Dems, who are opposed to new nuclear build, end up holding the balance of power in a hung parliament, could the UK’s nuclear ambitions be put on hold?
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Sheffield Forgemasters' nuclear ambition
28 Apr 2010
A giant forge press could propel the UK to the summit of the global nuclear supply chain.
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Chiswick or China: Brompton bicycles sparks IP debate
23 Apr 2010
Iconic folding bike maker Brompton is a curious company. Though exports account for around 75 per cent of its output, it continues to manufacture all of its bikes in the UK . And not just any part of the UK, but in leafy Chiswick, spiritual home of the urban SUV and top of the range baby buggy, and just about as far removed from a UK industrial heartland as it’s possible to get.
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Why the UK still has a viable industrial future
19 April 2010
As our latest political contributor Lord Drayson writes, there are many misconceptions about the UK’s manufacturing sector: not least the notion that it barely exists, or that if it does it is no longer relevant
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Election special - the choice for engineers
8 Apr 2010
As the election race gathers momentum, all three parties claim to have a plan to put engineering at the heart of the economy.
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Election hopes for industry
6 Apr 2010
While it might be too much to expect engineering to take centre stage at next month’s general election, it would be a surprise not to see the importance of manufacturing and technology talked up more than it has been in recent decades.
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Making history
06 April 2010
A trawl of engineering’s pre-digital age could become a valuable part of the innovation process.
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The Martel one-man tank
06 April 2010
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Nothing new under the sun
24 Mar 2010
Could forgotten technologies provide the solutions to some of our most pressing contemporary problems?
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Motorsport's flagship must embrace change
22 Mar 2010
It was tipped to be one of the most open and exciting races for years. But ’Boring Bahrain’, as it’s been dubbed, provided one of the most uninspiring F1 curtain raisers in a long time.
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This Week In 1960
22 March 2010
Pioneering space project attracts mass attention
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No silver bullet for UK energy conundrum
8 March 2010
It’s no exaggeration to say that addressing the often conflicting challenges of meeting spiralling demand, reducing emissions and enhancing security of supply represents one of the biggest technical conundrums of the modern age
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This week in 1860
8 March 2010
The Engineer reports on a proposal to build a giant Iron fortress in the mouth of the Thames
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Skills shortage? What skills shortage?
24 Feb 2010
If you find yourself redundant, it must be pretty galling to repeatedly read that engineering skills - your skills - are in short supply.
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The waste of space
22 February 2010
The growing amount of man-made junk orbiting the Earth is prompting calls for a cosmic clean-up.
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Manufacturing the future
19 Feb 2010
As the blast furnace at Teesside Cast Products prepares to flicker out - the UK government’s repeated assurances to put manufacturing at the heart of economic recovery have rarely looked less convincing.
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Hybrid hopes dashed by Prius recall
10 Feb 2010
To say it’s been a disastrous couple of week’s for Toyota is an understatement.
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Different strokes
08 February 2010
Two-stroke makeover offers a glimpse into a fuel-efficient future for car engines.
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Spheres of influence
08 February 2010
Materials based on tiny glass bubbles are being adopted across the industry due to their diverse properties
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A sense of perspective
08 February 2010
There tends to be little middle ground in the UK’s assessment of its own strengths and weaknesses. Either we shout our prowess from the rooftops, or wallow in the depths of self-deprecation.
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This week in 1946
08 February 2010
The Fairey “Spearfish”
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UK low-volume sector has high potential
25 January 2010
When Dutch ‘supercar’ maker Spyker revealed late last year that it was relocating its production to the UK, the news was jumped on by some as evidence of a long-hoped-for UK manufacturing renaissance.
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Road to recovery
25 January 2010
Concerns over the transport of CO2 must be addressed if carbon capture and storage is to really take off.
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The Week in 1960
25 January 2010
Road-rail freight vehicle: did it turn to train in vain?
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Global Focus
13 Jan 2010
From the Germanic efficiency of Volkswagen, the Gallic chic of Renault and the proudly conspicuous consumption of a North American SUV, the automotive industry has long been bound up with ideas of national identity.
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Shipping out on nuclear power
11 January 2010
Looking back on some of the maritime landmarks of 1959, The Engineer settled first on USS Long Beach, the world’s first nuclear-powered surface fighting ship and the first surface ship to be armed with a battery of guided missiles.
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Field of innovation
6 Jan 2010
The impending food crisis will require unprecedented collaboration between engineers and the farming industry
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Sky high competition
16 Dec 2009
The Airbus A380 has been around for so long now it’s easy to forget that it was once neck and neck with Boeing’s Dreamliner in a race to stake its claim as a glimpse of aviation’s future.
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Reasons to be cheerful
14 Dec 2009
One reason to be hopeful that positive action on curbing global warming might just be achievable is that the technologies required to build a low carbon future offer potentially huge economic opportunities.
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December 1869. The Suez canal opens
7 December 2009
Man-made waterway provides super shortcut
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Atom smashers and record breakers
25 Nov 2009
As we report with growing frequency, engineers have a major role to play in addressing the big issues of the age: from developing the tools that will help society cope with the ageing population to the practical responses to the effects of climate change.
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D-day nears for Severn Estuary projects
23 November 2009
A bold project to harvest power from the Severn Estuary could pay off, according to its backers.
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The silver lining of an ageing population
23 November 2009
An ageing society presents design opportunities for today’s engineers.
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Paul Newsome of Lotus Engineering
18 Nov 2009
Lotus is much more than a manufacturer of affordable supercars.
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Where next for the IC engine?
18 Nov 2009
The internal combustion engine may still have a few surprises up its sleeve for the automotive industry.
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Shell's Perdido platform will be world's deepest
2 Nov 2009
Advanced technology is helping engineers tap into once unreachable deepsea oil and gas reserves.
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Welcome to our world
November 2009 Online
Deputy EditorThe Engineer
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Cleaning up the Soviet legacy
26 Oct 2009
UK engineers are playing a key role in cleaning up the Soviet Union’s nuclear and chemical legacy.
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Countering the nautical threat
12 Oct 2009
Defence firms are working on technology to keep shipping safe from pirates.
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'Boris island' points to watery future for building
21 Sep 2009
Although ‘Boris Island’, London mayor Boris Johnson’s proposed airport in the Thames Estuary, was scoffed at by critics, it reflects a growing trend of aiming to build on seas and oceans.
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Solar Impulse aims for 24 hour flight
16 Sep 2009
Following six years of development, the Solar Impulse HB-SIA is said to have the potential to become the first manned solar aircraft to fly continuously through the day and night.
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The end is nigh
11 Sep 2009
To send the reader home for the weekend infused with the warm glow of righteousness, the gaze of the Futurescope is usually fixed on the wondrous future promised by a bold new area of innovation.
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Turbine chief Alan Epstein
9 Sep 2009
Dr Alan Epstein of Pratt & Whitney says new turbofan technology is well on course to meet future environmental targets.
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MOD technology chief Paul Stein
19 Aug 2009
The MoD claims it is more accessible to technology SMEs thanks to its top scientist’s drive to interact more successfully with industry.
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Dr Richard Holliday, World Gold Council
14 Jul 2009
Dr Richard Holliday from the World Gold Council explains how industries are benefitting from new applications of the planet’s most coveted material.
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Rolls-Royce technology chief Ric Parker
5 Jun 2009
Prof Ric Parker believes that some of the biggest advances in the history of civil aviation are just around the corner
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Could electromagnetic launch systems feature on future carriers
3 Jun 2009
The steam-powered catapults that propel planes along aircraft-carrier flight decks may soon be replaced by electromagnetic launch systems
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Inside Heathrow's pod cars
18 May 2009
Could the introduction of ‘pod cars’ at Heathrow Airport herald a new era for urban transport in the UK?
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Targeted cancer treatments take centre stage
27 Jan 2009
A range of technologies could be at the heart of a new era of cancer therapy that is tailored and targeted to a patient’s condition.
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Brighter idea
13 Jan 2009
A three-year UK initiative to advance materials and production technology for light-emitting polymers aims to replace the traditional light bulb and help cut energy bills.
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Dutch connection
13 Oct 2008
As the threat of blackouts looms, a project to link the UK and Dutch national grids could point the way to greater energy security.
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Green bikes take to TT track
1 Sep 2008
The Isle of Man TT is an unlikely showcase for clean technology, but in 2009 it will host the world’s first zero-emissions grand prix.
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Radio control
4 Jun 2008
As wireless technology expands, Ofcom’s role in managing the radio spectrum takes on increasing importance. William Webb is the man in charge.
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Surgeon turned minister Ara Darzi discusses his vision for the future
28 Jan 2008
Surgical pioneer-turned health minister Prof Ara Darzi has been given the brief to review and update the UK’s healthcare system. He shares his vision for the future with Jon Excell
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Cream of the crop
12 Nov 2007
Bruce Grieve is director of a new innovation centre that will use engineering technologies to help agribusiness feed the world’s growing population.
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Solar powered aircraft take off
16 Jul 2007
From stratospheric surveillance platforms to hand-held spy planes, solar-powered aircraft are finally coming of age.
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Dr Rafal Zbikowski on emulating flapping insect flight
3 Oct 2006
Cranfield University’s Dr Rafal Zbikowski aims to emulate the flapping flight of insects to develop a mico air vehicle which he believes could lead to a new generation of surveillance drones.
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Severn barrage could meet five per cent of UK energy needs
19 Jun 2006
A consortium of UK engineering firms is proposing a barrage across the Severn estuary that could, it is projected, harness tidal energy to generate double the output of a nuclear power station.
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Stealthy alternative
27 Feb 2006
The Royal Navy’s latest nuclear-powered submarine, built using a modular assembly technique, bristles with state-of-the-art technology which makes it the quietest vessel in the fleet.
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Pioneer of radar and eminent astronomer Sir Bernard Lovell
January 2006 Online
Sir Bernard Lovell’s pioneering work on radar helped swing World War II decisively in the allies’ favour, while the huge radio telescope that bears his name at Jodrell Bank remains one of the most impressive instruments in the world after almost 50 years of operation.
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Senior Adidas engineer Dr Tim Lucas
3 May 2005
At Adidas’s Innovation Team Dr Tim Lucas brings an engineering approach to sport, producing trainers that adapt to the wearer and footballs that know when they cross the line.
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Robot rescuers
8 Apr 2005
A new breed of rescue workers that crawl, slither, burrow, swim and report signs of life in places impenetrable by humans could soon play an increasing role in emergencies.
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Tropical juice: ocean thermal energy conversion
25 Feb 2005
US company to tap into energy from the world’s warm oceans.
