AWE and Surrey strengthen strategic research partnership

AWE and the University of Surrey have deepened their strategic alliance to accelerate cutting-edge research, innovation and skills development that will help strengthen the UK's future scientific, technological and security capabilities.

The partnership brings together Surrey's world-leading academic expertise with AWE's mission-driven research priorities to accelerate research, innovation and skills development. A key feature of the alliance is its focus on knowledge exchange through research showcase and "show and tell" events, providing opportunities to demonstrate emerging technologies, share research progress and spark new collaboration across disciplines.

A recent event brought together researchers, leaders, engineers and early-career scientists to present their work through lab demonstrations, short talks and interactive discussions. The aim was to create opportunities for challenge, feedback and cross-disciplinary problem-solving.

These showcases help to:

Highlight advances in materials science, quantum technologies, engineering, chemistry and physics
Strengthen collaboration across research teams
Connect researchers with stakeholders and end users
Support the development of future scientific and engineering talent.

By making research visible and accessible, the partnership is helping to ensure that innovation is actively discussed, tested and refined rather than remaining confined to individual projects or disciplines.

Building capability through enduring research partnerships

At the heart of the alliance is a portfolio of long-term research collaborations, including Materials Ageing, Performance and Lifetime Prediction (MAP-Life), an established research group supporting AWE’s materials research capability.

This group provides a long-term framework for tackling complex technical challenges and developing expertise in areas of importance to AWE’s future capability, including:

Predicting material degradation over extended periods
Understanding materials behaviour in extreme environments
Developing advanced modelling and simulation tools
Supporting the reliability, safety and sustainability of high-performance engineering systems and contributing to the UK's broader capability in strategically important technologies.

The AWE-Surrey alliance reflects the importance of bringing together academia, government and industry to strengthen the UK's future scientific capability. By combining world-class academic research with mission-led expertise, we are advancing critical technologies, inspiring the next generation of scientists and engineers, and accelerating the translation of research for national resilience.

Through close collaboration, knowledge exchange and opportunities to showcase discoveries, we can ensure that ideas, expertise and innovation are shared across disciplines, maximising the impact of Surrey's world-class research and helping to address some of the UK's most important scientific and technological challenges. We look forward to continuing to build this partnership and delivering outcomes that will benefit the UK's future capability and security. Professor Mark Whiting, Professor of Materials Ageing

Our partnership with the University of Surrey is built on a shared commitment to advancing science and engineering in areas of strategic importance to the UK. Research showcase events help bring the partnership to life, creating opportunities to demonstrate emerging research, connect experts from different disciplines and identify new areas for joint innovation. We look forward to building on this relationship and strengthening our collaboration in the years ahead. Dr Toni Lilly, Head of AWE’s External Technical Partnerships Office

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