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Professor Lord Kumar Bhattacharyya, Chairman of WMG at the University of Warwick, was awarded the first ever National Rainbow Bridge Award at a ceremony at the China National Convention Centre on Sunday 25^th October in Beijing, China.

He was presented with the Award by Ms Zhang Rongming, the 10^th and 11^th Vice-Chairperson of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, in the presence of national leaders Mr Xu Bingjin, Mr Tao Xiping, Mr Qian Yicheng and Mr Sheng Jianxue at a special ceremony as part of the 2015 China Annual Conference for International Education.

Dr Kerry Kirwan is proud to be representing WMG at a special seminar for The Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (IOM3) Coventry and Warwickshire Materials Society on Monday 3 November.

Dr Kirwan’s ‘Dispelling The Myth That Sustainable Materials Are Inferior…’ will use Warwick’s WorldF3rst racing project to show what can be achieved with sustainable, natural and recycled materials.

WMG will be joining colleagues from the University of Warwick this Friday (16 October) and Saturday (17 October) to showcase its fascinating work as part of the University’s Festival of Imagination. The Festival has been organised to mark the University of Warwick’s 50^th anniversary.

We are currently putting the finishing touches to a state-of-the-art solar tree which will be unveiled at the Festival. Solar trees are artificial sculptural structures that convert the sun’s energy into electric current using photovoltaic (PV) cells. The tree has been created using CAD and brought to life through 3D printing. Once in position in the Butterworth Hall, Warwick Arts Centre, the tree will reach an impressive 6ft in height.

Lasers, poetry, business figures, politicians and leading researchers will all feature in an inaugural Global Supply Chain Debate entitled ‘Putting the UK at the Heart of Global Supply Chains’ created and hosted by WMG, at the University of Warwick, on 10-11 November 2015.

The two day conference and debate will bring together senior professionals from a range of backgrounds to discuss and debate perspectives, and the role that the UK can play. The two-day conference will be a mixture of workshops, and scene setting covering topics including: ‘The Role of the Supply Chain in Enabling Next Generation Innovation’, ‘Insights from the Wright Review of UK Manufacturing Supply Chains’, and ‘The Strategic Importance of Supply Chains to Boeing.’

WMG Chairman, and founder, Professor Lord Kumar Bhattacharyya kt, CBE, FREng, FRS joined Mr Ratan Tata GBE, Chairman Emeritus Tata Sons Ltd, to take the Oath of Freemen of the City of Coventry and sign the Roll of Honour during a ceremony at Coventry Cathedral on Friday 25th September 2015.

Honorary Freedom of the City is the highest award that Coventry can bestow upon a person and only 13 people have been given this award since 1914. Mo Mowlam was the last person to receive it in 1999.

The Lord Mayor, Councillor Michael Hammon, a Freeman himself, said the award was:

Recognising two people who have helped in the regeneration of the city is a way of celebrating all that is good about the city and its future.”

Six senior managers from the UK’s Midlands Assembly Network (MAN) are among the first to complete a new Innovation Business Leadership (IBL) postgraduate programme at WMG, University of Warwick designed to create new Midlands’s business leaders who can bring significant benefits to their businesses.

Work has started on building a second WMG Academy for Young Engineers in Chelmsley Wood, Solihull. Scheduled for completion in July 2016, the new academy is currently taking applications for the first cohort of students to start in September 2016.

Sponsored by WMG, the University of Warwick and with a range of business partners, the Academy will inspire over 600 learners who will have the opportunity to access unrivalled industry standard resources, expertise and digital technologies.

Apprentices are secret weapon in fight for productivity argues Professor Lord Bhattacharyya

Commenting in the Sunday Times (13 September), Professor Lord Bhattacharyya, Chairman of WMG, University of Warwick, says the neglect of technical education over the past decades means we lag our biggest competitors and success depends on understanding business needs.

He says "A highly skilled workforce is the key to creating virtuous circle where productivity improvement spurs increased investment which in turn drives productivity growth. The neglect of technical education over past decades means we lag our major competitors.

Unless skills training is given and funded by industry, it will be poorly targeted. We (WMG) succeed because we focus on understanding business needs, offering research and education that is both academically excellent and industrially relevant.

It is this vital role of the private sector in technical sector in technical education, which demonstrates the need for statutory apprenticeship levy, so that skill providers respond to business needs, not just government grants.

It was announced today Wednesday 9^th September 2015 that WMG, at the University of Warwick, will lead a £14 million consortium to create a new automotive battery pack manufacturing research centre. The project will help develop the next generation of traction batteries for electric and hybrid vehicles. It will combine the best human and automated assembly methods to manufacture battery packs and lay the foundations of a new UK automotive supply chain based around this technology.

Jaguar Land Rover has launched its Academy, the first of its kind in the UK automotive sector, and WMG at the University of Warwick is a key partner in the new initiative. The new Academy will offer all Jaguar Land Rover workers the opportunity to take part in continuous development programmes to enhance their careers and provide the skills the company needs.