Ways to Engage with the CIU
There are various ways that organisations can work with the CIU on R&D projects.
Please remember that any specific situation or circumstance is always negotiable and we usually find a route of engagement that satisfies all parties with respect to costs and IP.
The best thing to do is contact one of the CIU team in the first instance to discuss your needs.
If necessary this can be done under a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA).
click here to see an example NDA.Link opens in a new window
Mechanisms
Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTP) Projects
In a KTP project, the University collaborates with a company for typically 18-24 month long project. The University employs the KTA (Knowledge Transfer Associate), who is usually based mainly at the company. The company does need to provide cash support to these projects, but it is a fraction of the real cost of having a full-time member of staff working at the company, supported by two academic researchers at the University.
Summer Student Projects
During the summer vacation, together with industrial partners we select some of the strongest undergraduate students to undertake projects of 8-10 weeks duration, working under a contract to cover foreground and background IP. This typically costs the sponsoring company ~£250 per week, all of which goes to the student for living expenses.
Previous summer projects have in some cases resulted in the develpoment of new products or the generation of scientific results that has been used in technical and sales documentation of CIU members.
* Interested organisation need to contact us by January / February to let us know of their requirements for the following summer. Numbers are limited and it operates on a first-come-first-served basis.
Postgraduate Research Projects
Some companies sponsor PhD or EngD postgraduate research students to work on an area that supports the activities of the company, often developing new products or getting a better understanding of current products or materials. Again, all work is covered by a case-by-case negotiated contract, covering foreground and background IP. There is some expectation that the student will be able to publish some of their research in journals and conferences, but of course without impacting any commercial aspects or IP.
Costs for this option of enagagement can have a significant range, dependent on a number of factors including IP rights, but can start from as little as ~£40k total for a 3.5 year industry-university sponsored PhD, or even potentially lower where a company has access to EPSRC iCASE funding.
Longer Term Research Projects
We have a track record of working with industry collaborators to secure large scale research projects, funded by various sources including the UK science funding agencies, the EU R&D funding schemes, Innovate UK and others. When we work with partners in this way, we will typically take a significant amount of the workload in writing the proposal and even in managing the project if successful.