National Graphene Institute | Booth Street East | 4 fl | App

[nq]

Shortlist for the main construction contract, appointment expected in April.

http://www.building.co.uk/news/six-f...049252.article

The complete shortlist of six bidders is:

• Lend Lease
• Laing O’Rourke
• Bam
• Morgan Sindall
• Vinci
• M&W Group

Ling [director at Jestico + Whiles] said designing the project was “challenging” as the scheme “has more demands on its performance than 99% of buildings”.

The main clean room – where minute samples of graphene will be tested and manipulated – is to be built directly on bedrock four metres below the ground without piling to minimise vibrations.

He said the practice’s design for the exterior expressed “an interesting and technically challenging building, represented in an abstract way” but was not directly inspired by graphene itself.

[jrb]

MEN.

£855m award share for Graphene research, first developed at Manchester University

28 Jan 2013 16:06

The "wonder material" shared in the largest financial prize ever awarded for research excellence today, three years after their £925,000 Nobel Prize for Physics in 2010

A "wonder material" first developed at Manchester University shared in the largest financial prize ever awarded for research excellence today.

The inventors of graphene received the £925,000 Nobel Prize for Physics in 2010.

Today, they saw their work acknowledged again by an £855 million (one billion euro) European Union (EU) award to fund 10 years' more work to explore and exploit what the European Commission (EC) today called "the unique properties of a revolutionary carbon-based material".

A second major research programme known as The Human Brain Project also received a one billion euro award to help create the world's largest experimental centre for developing the most detailed model of the brain, with a view to creating personalised neurological treatments to extend the lives of millions.

Up to half of the total funding for both initiatives will come from the Commission's Future and Emerging Technologies (FET) Flagships research programme, the rest from a combination of private and industry backers, universities and government funds.

But the Commission, aware of concern about big EU spending schemes in an economic downturn, insisted today that "there will be careful monitoring during the lifetime of the projects so that the flagships continue to be an efficient use of taxpayers' money".

A statement continued: "This is about investing in Europe's future. Tackling grand challenges necessitates, in certain cases, large-scale projects which require large-scale investment.

"The European Commission is supporting ambitious and risky projects which promise a big return in the long-term.

"Supporting these projects will help Europe maintain its position as a global player, particularly in priority areas which could create jobs and growth."

The Commission statement described "graphene" as "an extraordinary combination of physical and chemical properties: it is the thinnest material, it conducts electricity much better than copper, it is 100-300 times stronger than steel and it has unique optical properties... the substance is set to become the wonder material of the 21st century, as plastics were to the 20th century, including by replacing silicon in information and communications technology products."

Hundreds of research groups are now involved in both programmes: work on graphene, although originating in the UK in 2004, is now led by Sweden and includes more than 170 academic and industrial research groups in 17 European countries.

The UK authorities have been criticised for lagging behind in the drive to benefit from its potential.

The Human Brain Project, led by Switzerland, involves 87 organisations in 23 countries.

A spokesman said details of matching national funding were still to be agreed, although the UK has already invested £60 million in the graphene research, alongside Sweden and Denmark.

"Both these projects are shared investments across Europe," a Commission official said.

EU digital agenda commissioner Neelie Kroes urged governments to agree an "ambitious" research budget soon.

She said: "Europe's position as a knowledge superpower depends on thinking the unthinkable and exploiting the best ideas.

"This multi-billion competition rewards home-grown scientific breakthroughs and shows that when we are ambitious we can develop the best research in Europe.

"To keep Europe competitive, to keep Europe as the home of scientific excellence, EU governments must agree an ambitious budget in the coming weeks."

She emphasised: "This award is not an Oscar - it is money to continue the work."

Russian-born graphene pioneers Andre Geim, 54, and Konstantin Novoselov, 38, both moved to Manchester University in 2001, where they remain at the School of Physics and Astronomy.

They received the 2010 Nobel Physics Prize for "groundbreaking experiments regarding the two-dimensional material graphene".

Two years earlier the pair had been awarded the Europhysics Prize for "discovering and isolating a single free-standing atomic layer of carbon (graphene) and elucidating its remarkable electronic properties".

Accepting that award in 2008, Mr Geim said: "In 10 years' time, I believe the word graphene will be as widely known to the public as silicon."

[macc]

Manchester will surely get good a cut of that money, which is great.

It's a shame that as far as European research is concerned, graphene was invented at the University of Manchester and research is now led by Sweden.

Sounds like that Sweden is just where the co-ordinating professor works at but it's a shame it wasn't someone from Manchester.

[markydeedrop]

Research projects investigating the "miracle material" graphene and the human brain have won unprecedented funding of up to 1bn euros each.

Under the European Commission's Future and Emerging Technologies programme, the backing is designed to give Europe an edge in key areas of research.

Graphene - a single-layer of carbon atoms - has extraordinary properties which give it immense potential.

Possible applications include flexible electronics and lighter aircraft.

The Human Brain Project will attempt to build a computer-based copy of a human brain to understand neurological disorders and the effects of drugs.

Both projects involve researchers in dozens of institutes across Europe and will receive the funding over a ten-year period. They include the scientists who first developed graphene at the University of Manchester, UK.

The two fields of novel materials and brain research are described as fulfilling the criteria for the funding by being "ambitious and risky" while promising large returns.

The backing is meant to answer the criticism that Europe lags behind more dynamic competitors such as the United States and China in economic growth and scientific research.

By focusing the funding on two key areas, the hope is that a "critical mass" can be achieved which will give Europe an edge in technologies vital to future economic development.

Patent race

Last month the BBC reported on the race to secure patents on graphene and how, despite the UK's early lead, China was now leading the field with the South Korean electronics giant Samsung holding nearly ten times more patents than Britain as a whole.

Graphene is far stronger than steel, more conductive than copper and more flexible than rubber so it could potentially open up entirely new avenues for manufacturing, consumer products and medical devices.

The material, so thin it effectively has just two dimensions, was first isolated by two Russian-born scientists, Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov, at the University of Manchester, work that earned them a Nobel Prize and knighthoods.

The European Commission vice-president Neelie Kroes, announcing the funding in Brussels today, said that it "rewards homegrown scientific breakthroughs".

"So, you've heard of Silicon Valley," she said.

"Where in Europe wants to be known as 'Graphene Valley'? That's the billion-euro question I am putting to you today."

The graphene funding will be spread across 126 academic and industrial research groups. It will be coordinated by Professor Jari Kinaret of Chalmers University of Technology at Gothenburg in Sweden who has stressed that it not attempt to match competitors in all areas.

"For example, we don't intend to compete with Korea on graphene screens," he said, a reference to Samsung's determined effort to lead the market in flexible electronic screens and e-paper. However graphene production - still not achieved on an affordable and industrial scale - is in the project's sights.

Profs Geim and Novoselov will play a leading role in guiding the collaborative effort.

Think big

Meanwhile the Human Brain Project will attempt to simulate the trillions of neural connections that make up a human brain in an effort to comprehend how the organ functions.

With an ageing European population, brain disorders, while becoming a more important feature of healthcare, remain poorly understood.

The Commission explains that the Human Brian Project will "collect the masses of clinical data available, mining for biological patterns, leading to new ways of diagnosing and classifying brain diseases."

The sheer volume of data involved in modelling the brain will itself lead to "radically new" IT with new computer technologies designed to manage the flow.

A further angle will be to explore how the brain manages such an intense workload with a relatively tiny power supply - "no more power than a light bulb". Understanding this could lead, it's hoped, to an entirely new way of powering energy-hungry supercomputer systems.

At a time of austerity across Europe and criticism of the European Commission's own budget, officials are emphasising the potential value of the funding for nurturing the kind of research that can produce an economic spin-off.

A key test will be how effectively the initial grants of 54m euros are handled. Beyond that, the precise level of future funding, which is meant to include contributions from industry, is still being negotiated.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21231960

[nq]

Press release is here if anyone wants a read,

http://www.graphene-flagship.eu/GFfi...sseText_A4.pdf

[js1000]

Originally Posted by markydeedrop

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21231960

See the BBC are pushing the pro-EU stance recently

What else do you expect?

[nq]

From Twitter,

Work has begun to prepare the site for the new world leading National Graphene Institute (NGI). Exciting times! pic.twitter.com/cJJt6tat
@maceweb Feb 18

Q+A article from the Uni,
Graphene Commercialisation: Assumptions and Realities

Think this is the full interview,
http://www.umi3.co.uk/pdf/Graphene%20Q-A.pdf

[jrb]

This interview may allay some fears that Manchester(University) is being left behind in the Graphene race, especially regarding patents. Click on the link below the article. Plenty to read.

Manchester University News.

Graphene Commercialisation: Assumptions and Realities

18 Feb 2013

The European Commission has announced that it is providing 1bn euros over 10 years for research and development into graphene – the ‘wonder material’ isolated at The University of Manchester by Nobel Prize winners Professors Andre Geim and Kostya Novoselov.

The University is very active in technology transfer and has an excellent track-record of spinning out technology, but some think that the University has taken a different view when it comes to patenting and commercialising graphene. Others have expressed a broader concern about British Industry lagging behind in the graphene ‘race’, based upon international ‘league tables’ of numbers of graphene patents.

A recent interview with Clive Rowland (CEO of the University’s Innovation Group) addresses the assumptions about the University’s approach and reflects more generally about graphene patenting and about industry up-take of graphene. The interview is summarised below.

Question: Has the University set up any commercial graphene activities?

Answer: The University owns a company, called 2-DTech Limited, which makes and supplies two-dimensional materials and has an interest in another, Graphene Industries Limited, which sells graphene made by a different technique to 2-DTech.

Question: Is the University falling behind in graphene?

Answer: The University is the world’s leading university for graphene research and publications. It led the charge for UK investment into the field and has been awarded The National Graphene Institute, which will be a £61m state-of-the art centre. This Institute will act as a focus for all sorts of commercial graphene activity in Manchester, from industrial research and development laboratories locating “alongside” the Institute, developing new processes and products, to start-up companies. The University championed the major flagship research funding programmes that have been initiated in the UK and Europe and has been awarded a number of prestigious grants. Graphene is still a science-driven research field and not yet a commercialised technology.

Question: Did the University miss the patent opportunities for graphene when it was first isolated?

Answer: All options were considered thoroughly prior to and immediately post the initial 2004 publication. There were no credible or commercially valuable patent options at that time, something with which experts in the field agree. The material will need to be modified for most applications. The key is a scaled-up manufacturing technology platform which no-one has yet come up with. The University has patented where it sees good cases for doing so. These are based upon internal development projects on the fundamentals, such as manufacturing and coatings and approaches that enable new techniques which might lead to commercial applications. The University will continue to patent where it sees potential financial value in doing so. Not all of the University’s intellectual property transfer transactions take place through independent patenting. Patenting is just a part of the commercial strategy – not the sole aspect, nor a target in itself.

Question: Have British firms lost out to the Far East on patenting?

Answer: The picture is more complex than mere number counting suggests. Not all of the patents necessarily equal real business opportunities. Some of the patents reference graphene rather than being about graphene technology. Japanese firms were very active early on but have since been overtaken by Korean and US firms. China is getting very active but much of the patenting there is by research institutions rather than firms, which isn’t the experience elsewhere, so it’s difficult to know the level of corporate capabilities there. Much of the early work on graphene was – and still is – for electronic and related applications. So much of the patenting activity has been by electronics firms, which reflect that industry’s structure and geography – predominantly in the Far East and the US. Competition in graphene is at an early stage. There are many significant aspects which aren’t yet addressed. There is still time. As the uses of graphene become clearer, more opportunities for British companies will open up. Nevertheless the window of opportunity could narrow. It’s vital that more British firms increase their knowledge of two-dimensional materials like graphene. For Britain to be successful, graphene will need to be treated as a project on a very large scale. To keep themselves in the picture, British firms should invest now in long-range R&D, and engage in university research partnerships and collaborative projects. The National Graphene Institute at the University is an excellent place to do this.

Question: Are the Nobel Prize Winners interested in the commercial side of graphene?

Answer: Professor Geim and Professor Novoselov focus on science, which is key to the success of the development aspects that everyone is interested in. At the same time they have been very supportive of their students engaging in enterprise activities, such as business training courses and start-ups. They both actively lent their support to help set up the two existing companies. Much of the graphene commercialisation will be through collaboration with companies with the requisite product know-how and manufacturing facilities. During the last year, more than 100 firms have been to the University to talk with them. They see everyone that they can to discuss possibilities. They recognise there’s potential for the University to licence-out graphene intellectual property and they support such efforts by the technology transfer office as appropriate.

You can read the full interview with Clive Rowland at www.umi3.com

[nq]

Another couple taken today. I've got a few others to post.

[VDB]

Whoa! Ey up, what's with the underground ruins?!

(Thanks for the pics today nq by the way)

[iheartthenew]

Probably basements from terraced houses. Early Victorian slums at a guess.

[VDB]

The cobbled bit where the hi-viz guy is walking looks like the back alley between two rows of terraced houses.

[future.architect]

Amazing, it's like Pompei.

[jrb]

Originally Posted by future.architect

Amazing, it's like Pompei.

[jrb]

And to think, just up the road will be the new MBS 20 storey Hotel.

[pixel2006]

And those houses are their because of the first industrial revolution. And will be replaced by a building which could be a power house of the third industrial revolution. And happens to be just down the road from the site where the first proper computer was built that, in part, sparked the information revolution.

[manc_monkey]

Apparently it is the remains of the 19th Century Albert Club – which "entertained the great and good across the city."

http://www.manchestereveningnews.co....eveals-1691599

[iheartthenew]

aaarghhh you beat me to it by 1 minute manc monkey!!!!

I was right about the terraces

[Slow Burn]

BBC playing catch up with story on the ruins of The Albert Club. Apparently Engels was a member

http://m.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-21640392

[nq]

Hyper promo video shown at MIPIM.



http://www.homeofgraphene.com/