Rolls-Royce meets most of
its fundamental research
needs by accessing
the very best expertise
available in academia.
The Power of
Partnership
olls-Royce, a flagship
UK company, has been
providing power systems
for aircraft, ships and land
applications for more than 100 years.
Accounting for 0.6% of GDP and 2%
of UK exports of goods its current
importance is more than matched by
future opportunities to secure business
in sectors offering major growth
potential.
R
But commercial success depends on
a relentless commitment to confront
fierce global competition – and that
demands science & engineering
excellence rooted in world-class
research.
It’s not just about the capacity to
respond rapidly to in-service issues
and keep customers happy. It’s about
generating fundamental insights – into
each material used, each system built,
each process developed – that ensures
every component can withstand
extreme operating conditions,
whether in aero-engines or nuclear
reactors. Crucially, these insights
mean materials can be exploited more
effectively, efficiently and sustainably
too, and they also pave the way for
innovations that equip Rolls-Royce to
keep pace with – and often outpace –
its competitors.
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The company’s relationship with the
Engineering and Physical Sciences
Research Council (EPSRC), based
on a Strategic Partnership Flagship
Programme, is essential to making it
happen. Working closely with EPSRC,
Rolls-Royce is able to leverage not
only funding, but also ideas and talent
within the UK research base. EPSRC
invests more than £800 million a year
in research and postgraduate training,
providing a platform for the two
organisations to dovetail their delivery
of technologies, capabilities and skills.
This generates an array of benefits
both for Rolls-Royce and for ‘UK plc’, as
well as enhanced air safety, a cleaner
environment and lower costs for
countless organisations worldwide.
Weight of Evidence
One breakthrough achieved
by the Strategic Partnership
Flagship Programme has been the
implementation of titanium aluminides
– low-density materials that, when
used in the low-pressure turbines at
the rear of aero-engines, cut engine
weight, fuel-burn and emissions.
Swansea University has been at the
forefront of this work, harnessing its
specialist expertise in the testing of
materials’ properties developed over
the last 30 years with Rolls-Royce and
EPSRC support. Following successful
engine tests at Rolls-Royce Derby in
summer 2014, titanium aluminides
are on track to enter service in the
company’s world-renowned Trent®
family of aero-engines.