Apply for Membership
All UK universities can apply to join the UK-RAS Network. Applications are considered twice a year, in December and June. All members of the network are aligned to the following objectives:
- To effectively bring together EPSRC funded centres to establish a coherent face for the UK in RAS by building on their strengths and complementary capabilities, underpinned by significant industrial involvement, clear translational focuses and exploitation routes;
- To proactively engage existing and future users of EPSRC-funded research in RAS, particularly in transport, healthcare, manufacturing, unmanned systems and core foundations of RAS;
- To systematically identify key requirements and engineering challenges in RAS, define its future research and translational pathways, and influence government and EU policy in the effective uptake of RAS for addressing the social-economic challenges;
- To create a critical mass around the UK’s research strengths in RAS and stimulate exchange of knowledge, the flow of people and the creation of new projects and partnerships to address unmet engineering challenges and capitalise on the opportunities that they present;
- To foster a collaborative environment and a shared vision among stakeholders through planned network activities, synergistic usage of the capital equipment, interlinked CDT programmes and secondment of researchers to catalyse cross-disciplinary and cross-institutional research;
- To facilitate interdisciplinary mobility through proof-of-concept projects, joint supervision across CDTs, and attract and nurture talented young researchers, using the network as a platform to initiate and advance their careers;
- To act as a conduit for information exchange and optional IP exploitation among network members and external stakeholders to accelerate the translation and commercial success of RAS technologies;
- To underpin the long-term sustainability of the network through active industrial engagement, initiation of major new national and international grants and seeking leveraging funding sources.
To apply, please download and complete this form and submit by the end of October for consideration in December, or by the end of May for consideration in June.