UK businesses encouraged to join space race with new MTC conference

The Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) is encouraging UK businesses to grasp the opportunities presented by the growth in the global and UK space sectors.

The global space industry is booming and is forecast to be worth £400 billion by 2030. Now the Coventry-based MTC is to hold a high-powered space strategy summit which aims to help UK industry take advantage of the growth.

The MTC's two-day Made for Space conference will be held on 2-3 May 2019 and will feature leading international experts who will explain the opportunities for UK manufacturers. The MTC already works with NASA and the European Space Agency.

Keynote speakers will include John Vickers, principal technologist, Space Technology Mission Directorate at NASA and Thomas Rohr, head of materials and processes at the European Space Agency. Also speaking will be Graham Peters, chair of UK Space and Graham Turnock, chief executive of the UK Space Agency.

MTC chief technologist David Wimpenny said the UK space sector had trebled in size since 2000, with further significant growth predicted.

He said: "This presents a significant opportunity for high value manufacturing companies in the UK. The Made for Space conference will explore the opportunities for UK manufacturers, bringing together international experts from both the space and advanced manufacturing sectors who will show how new manufacturing technologies can help to address the challenge of producing the next generation of space hardware.”

Topics covered will include additive manufacturing, automation and robotics, surface engineering and high performance coatings and advanced joining technology.

The Made for Space Conference will be held at the Manufacturing Technology Centre from 9.00am to 4.30pm. Early bird tickets are available from now until March 31 and can be obtained here.

The MTC was founded by the University of Birmingham, Loughborough University, the University of Nottingham and TWI. The MTC’s industrial members include some of the UK’s major global manufacturers.

The MTC aims to provide a competitive environment to bridge the gap between university-based research and the development of innovative manufacturing solutions, in line with the Government’s manufacturing strategy. The MTC is part the High Value Manufacturing Catapult, supported by Innovate UK.

www.the-mtc.org