The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) is a British Research Council that provides government funding for grants to undertake research and postgraduate degrees in engineering and the physical sciences (including mathematics, physics, chemistry, artificial intelligence and computer science), mainly to universities in the United Kingdom. The head office is in Swindon, Wiltshire in the same building (Polaris House) that houses the AHRC, BBSRC, ESRC, MRC, Natural Environment Research Council, Science and Technology Facilities Council, TSB, Research Councils UK and the UK Space Agency.
History
EPSRC was created in 1994. It was formerly a part of the Science and Engineering Research Council (SERC).
Structure
Paul Golby, Chair of EngineeringUK, was appointed as the Chairman of the EPSRC from 1 April 2012 for four years. He succeeded Sir John Armitt.
From 2007 to March 2014, the chief executive and deputy chair of EPSRC was David Delpy FREng FRS, a medical physicist and formerly vice provost at University College London.[2]
He was succeeded in April 2014 by Philip Nelson, former University of Southampton pro vice-chancellor for research and enterprise.[3] In April 2016 Professor Tom Rodden was appointed as the Deputy CEO of EPSRC, a new position created to work alongside Philip Nelson while he also acts as Chair of RCUK Strategic Executive. Rodden joins the EPSRC on secondment from the University of Nottingham where he is currently Professor of Computing and Co-Director of Horizon Digital Economy Research.
In October 2018 Nelson was succeeded by Lynn Gladden CBE FRS FRSC FInstP FREng[4] in the new role of Executive Chair.[5]
Functions
In addition to funding academic research projects, the EPSRC also funds Centres for Doctoral Training (CDTs). These deliver four-year doctoral training programmes to cohorts of PhD students and EngD research engineers studying within UK universities, and are funded to target specific areas of research for which there is recognised need. In 2008, the EPSRC announced funding for 44 new CDTs spanning its entire remit.[6]
The EPSRC also funds or joint-funds 'Innovation and Knowledge Centres'. Innovation and Knowledge Centres are university based business incubators established in order to support commercialisation of emerging technologies. Between 2007 and 2016, the EPSRC has funded 7 Innovation and Knowledge Centres:[7]
Cambridge Innovation and Knowledge Centre (CIKC): Advanced Manufacturing Technologies for Photonics and Electronics - University of Cambridge
Ultra Precision and Structured Surfaces (UPS2) - Cranfield University
Centre for Secure Information Technologies (CSIT) -Queen's University Belfast
Medical Technologies IKC - University of Leeds
Sustainable Product Engineering Centre for Innovative Functional Industrial Coatings (SPECIFIC) - Swansea University
Centre for Smart Infrastructure and Construction (CSIC) - University of Cambridge
Synthetic Biology Innovation and Commercialisation Industrial translation Engine (SynbiCITE) - Imperial College London
References
Budget and finances, Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, archived from the original on 29 August 2020, retrieved 29 August 2020
New Chief Executive for the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, 30 May 2007, http://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/news-articles/0705/07053002
"Archived copy". Archived from the original on 13 April 2014. Retrieved 10 April 2014.
Anon (2017). "Gladden, Prof. Lynn Faith". Who's Who. ukwhoswho.com (online Oxford University Press ed.). A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc. doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.4000454. (subscription or UK public library membership required) (subscription required)
"Professor Lynn Gladden selected as Executive Chair of the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council". Retrieved 13 December 2018.
New Centres for Doctoral Training - December 2008 Archived 2013-07-06 at Archive.today, from EPSRC's site
"Innovation and knowledge centres - EPSRC website". www.epsrc.ac.uk. Retrieved 3 March 2016.
External links
EPSRC website
Grants information
Doctoral Training Accounts
Centres for Doctoral Training
Research Councils UK
Video clips
EPSRC YouTube channel
Undergraduate Texts in Mathematics
Graduate Studies in Mathematics
Hellenica World - Scientific Library
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/"
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