£6m expansion at Institute for Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering

Coventry University’s Institute for Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering (AME), born out of a collaboration with Unipart Manufacturing in 2014, relaunched yesterday (November 7, 2023) at an event attended by over 200 domestic and international guests.

Benefitting from a £5m University investment followed by a £1m grant from the Government’s Local Growth Fund though the Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership (CWLEP), the recent changes have delivered nearly 2000m² of additional space.

The latest funding takes the total investment in the Institute of Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering to £18m, with the latest facilities including a digital twin pilot environment, a series of physical stations that maximise Artificial Intelligence and Virtual Reality and dedicated materials, metrology, lasers and functional materials and chemistry laboratories.

To date, AME has been involved in Research & Development (R&D) and commercial projects worth over £110m with companies including Aston Martin, Ford, Lotus and Hyperbat.

Nearly 175 companies – including OEMs, tier ones and SMEs – have been involved in collaborative work, whilst over 400 students have graduated through a combination of real-world shopfloor and classroom learning.

Marcos Kauffman, director of AME and Centre Director of the University’s Research Centre for Manufacturing and Materials, said: “The AME expansion is more than just physical growth; it’s a testament to our unwavering commitment to bridging the skills and R&D gap between academia and industry.

“From our inception…AME has consistently aimed to be at the forefront of innovative teaching and research with our ‘Faculty on the Factory Floor’ model. This expansion is a beacon of our dedication to nurturing industry-ready talent while also fostering pioneering research that helps solves everyday issues.”

He continued: “We are more energised than ever to open our doors to the wider manufacturing and engineering supply chain in the West Midlands.”