Engineering news
Lockheed Martin to launch satellites from northernmost British island
Professional Engineering
Satellites could be launched into orbit from the northernmost part of the inhabited British Isles after the government approved Lockheed Martin plans. The international aerospace firm will transfer its satellite launch operations to the Shetland Space Centre on the island of Unst. The centre, which along with the Sutherland spaceport in the Scottish Highlands will provide orbital launch capability from the UK, anticipates that it will support a total of 605 jobs in Scotland by 2024.
Research projects aim for ‘routine’ drone deliveries of medical supplies
Professional Engineering
Drone deliveries of medical samples and supplies could become ‘routine’ in the UK thanks to two new research projects. Both involving Cranfield University, one led by Skyfarer will aim to create a flight testing corridor in Warwickshire, while the other will create the first set of standard operational procedures for routine medical drone deliveries.
‘Huge’ drop in demand threatens small manufacturer recovery
Professional Engineering
Small and medium-sized manufacturers already hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic are being ‘squeezed’ between a huge drop in demand and weaker supply chains, according to a new report. General engineering was one of the three worst-hit sectors dealing with decreased orders, according to the Manufacturing Growth Programme (MGP). Sixty-four per cent of 289 respondents to its survey said orders had dropped owing to the pandemic.
Ministry of Defence plans three new warships
E&T
The Royal Navy is set to receive three new fleet support warships after defence secretary Ben Wallace pledged to “revitalise” the UK shipbuilding industry. Manufacturing will be led by a UK company, and the project is expected to support hundreds of jobs.
Octopus-inspired sucker transfers delicate tissue grafts and biosensors
Professional Engineering
A new device inspired by an octopus sucker can rapidly transfer delicate tissue or flexible biomedical electronics on to a patient. The tool, developed by researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and collaborators, could overcome a key barrier to the clinical application of thin tissue grafts and flexible electronics, which have a host of applications for wound healing, regenerative medicine and biosensing.
Graduate opportunities in the digital railway
Professional Engineering
The digital railway is set to transform the UK rail network, thanks to £38bn investment from Network Rail. We spoke to telecoms project engineer Jay Kacou about the opportunities and innovation happening through the operator’s graduate schemes ahead of his talk, ‘Graduate Opportunities: The Digital Railway and Your Future’, at EngRec Live next Friday (30 October).
Shaker will put vehicle batteries through their paces
The Engineer
Automotive testing specialist Horiba Mira has revealed its new vibration test facility for electric vehicle batteries. The laboratory’s shaker will vibrate batteries as they are charged and discharged, and can carry out testing in extreme temperatures.
Pandemic speeding up workplace automation
E&T
The Covid-19 pandemic is speeding up workplace automation, according to a new report from the World Economic Forum. 43% of businesses surveyed for the Future of Jobs Report 2020 said they would reduce staff due to technology integration.
Luminescent solar concentrator in clothes could charge electronics
Professional Engineering
A new flexible material that captures light and transmits it to solar cells could be built into clothes to charge electronics on the go, its developers have said. Aimed at a future in which power sockets are obsolete for charging mobile electronics, the researchers at the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa) developed the polymer for integration into jackets, T-shirts and other clothes.
Magnetic field and hydrogels can grow new cartilage
Professional Engineering
Common injuries such as cartilage degeneration could get better, longer-lasting fixes thanks to a new method of rebuilding complex body tissues. The technique from researchers at the University of Pennsylvania uses a magnetic field and hydrogels. “We found that we were able to arrange objects, such as cells, in ways that could generate new, complex tissues without having to alter the cells themselves,” said the study's first author, bioengineer Hannah Zlotnick.
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