Manufacturing Now

Explore the amazing world of manufacturing

See behind the scenes at ground-breaking UK companies, take a closer look at how man-made things come to life, learn how women are pushing boundaries in engineering and much more…

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Introduce students to a whole world of STEM subjects

Register for free access to online resources for teachers of computing, design and technology, maths and science. Examples include:

  • Computing without computers – an introduction to the main concepts of programming
  • Choosing a career in wind, wave and tidal energy
  • How to build an electric racer powered by a super-capacitor
  • Cre8ate maths project – applying maths to, for example, growing food, working with chemicals, childcare and early years, building for the future, digital design, making things work, food and drink, health and social care.

Educational and careers support and advice for women at all levels of engineering. WES campaigns to inspire more women to enter and remain in the profession and hosts an annual National Women in Engineering Day. A host of exciting events are planned in the build-up to the WES centenary in 2019.

The Royal Academy award scheme supports engineering undergraduates in UK universities who have the potential to become leaders in engineering, as well as administering other grants and prizes. It also runs an Enterprise Hub to support the UK’s most promising engineering entrepreneurs.

A dream digital career for students of all ages

Careers in digital engineering and IT apprenticeships. Insights into working for a wide range of companies, from ASOS – a global online fashion retailer – to Sky broadcasting.

Resources from the world’s leading museum of art and design

Extensive secondary schools and colleges programme designed to give students advice and practical experience of working in the creative industries.

Imaginative teaching resources. https://www.vam.ac.uk/page/t/teachers-resources/

Making people’s lives better

Video in the series Who’s Recruiting – Direct Career Profiles. ‘If you want to make a difference, if you want to change the world,’ says engineer Elena Rodriguez-Falcon, ‘engineering is a formidable career path.’

Encourage young people to make a better world

Resources for teachers including video stories that highlight the great variety of opportunities open to engineers.

A campaigning organisation dedicated to promoting female talent in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) from classroom to boardroom, and thereby driving economic growth. The WISE mission is to get 1 million more women into the UK STEM workforce.

Applying the understanding of science to create real things

Four-part video about engineering and manufacturing, including information on careers, the working environment, key skills and tips for breaking into engineering.

A film about the creation of the Mac Pro computer, which involved the invention of entirely new manufacturing processes.

The UK’s first ‘faculty on the factory floor’

Offering the opportunity to study in a ‘live’ manufacturing environment, AME is the result of a collaboration between Coventry University and Unipart Manufacturing Group to develop top-class ‘industry-ready’ engineering graduates in the automotive, aerospace, oil and gas, power generation and rail sectors.

Leading engineers and architects talk about their inspirations, design principles and how some of the most iconic buildings in the world were conceived such as Jack Zunz (Sydney Opera House), Jane Wernick (London Eye and Kew Treetop Walkway), Hanif Kara (Peckham Library and Bloomberg Office Building) and Achim Menges (Elytra Filment Building).

A cornucopia of resources and classroom activities

Teaching resources and classroom activities for STEM students aged 11–19, including film clips, online games and quizzes. Website includes videos of young engineers talking about their jobs.

http://faraday.theiet.org/careers/born-to-engineer/index.cfm

Inspire children to love science, technology, engineering and maths

Become a STEM ambassador. Some 30,000 ambassadors go into schools to help young people to make the most of STEM subjects. STEMNET also helps teachers to set up popular STEM clubs, as well as forging links between business and education through its advisory network. Most ambassadors are under 35, and they include apprentices, zoologists, set designers, climate-change scientists, engineers of all disciplines, farmers, designers, geologists, nuclear physicists, architects, pharmacists and energy analysts.

More than 400 sixth-form and undergraduate scholarships awarded annually to high-calibre students in engineering, computing and technical design.

A series of videos for young people featuring researchers, lecturers, student and apprentices talking about their particular area of engineering and explaining some of the science behind it. Topics include: .

  • Scaffolding for bodies – tissue engineering
  • Shiny silver – basics of electrochemistry
  • Stent design – a biomedical challenge
  • Spider science – why spiders and their silk are so amazing
  • Design and build your own racing car
  • Use computer models to understand arthritis
  • Tissue regeneration
  • Fuel cells – why we need them
  • Fuel cells – how they work
  • What is an engineer
  • Recycling lithium from industrial waste
  • How 3D printing works

The extraordinary story of the isolation of graphene and how the lightest, most conductive manmade material could change the world, told in video form.

Part of Warwick University, WMG is one of the world’s leading industrial research groups. It aims to provide manufacturing and technology solutions through collaboration between industry and academia. HVM Catapult focuses on the global challenge of low-carbon mobility.

An annual ten-day programme of science, technology, engineering and maths events and activities across the UK aimed at people of all ages. Organised by the British Science Association.

Scholarship awards of £5,000 per year for up to four years for engineers studying for an undergraduate degree-level qualification. There are also awards of £7,500 per year for up to three years for postgraduate research leading to a PhD or EngD.

Get your career going

Official government website providing the latest news and information on apprenticeships and apprenticeship schemes.

Be part of a top British firm specialising in future technologies

Apprenticeships, graduate schemes and careers with a global defence, aerospace and security company employing more than 83,000 people in 40 countries.

An initiative to show the next generation that girls and women (as well as boys and men) do science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM). Girls meet STEM role models, learn STEM skills, see STEM in action and have STEM mentors. Panel events, hackathons and exhibitions.

Moises Aramburo talks about the loss of his hand in an accident and what a difference a robotic prosthetic hand has made to his life.

See engineers and apprentices in action

More than 20 short video films about careers in energy and engineering with companies ranging from BT to Scottish Power.

Shell funds UK entrepreneurs at the cutting-edge of the low-carbon economy. In 2016 funding awards of up to £150,000 are available for small enterprises that meet the requirements. Since 2005, the programme has awarded £3 million to 86 enterprises. Inspiring video on website has alumni talk about their achievements.

Groups of highly trained staff visit schools, festivals and other public events to put on stimulating interactive shows that bring science and engineering to life: ‘From football to game shows to pop songs and everything in between, we take the world around us and show the science that makes it work.’

TED talk by Tim Minshall of Cambridge University about the urgent need to change perceptions of engineering. Tim also writes an engineering blog.

From Why? to Wow!https://whytowow.wordpress.com

Paid placements for students taking a gap year before or during a degree course in all areas of engineering, science, IT, e-commerce, business, marketing, finance and logistics. The scheme involves 300 leading UK companies, including Shell, Rolls Royce, EDF, Network Rail and GKN.

Take advantage of the renaissance in bespoke British tailoring

If you’ve ever considered an apprenticeship or career in textiles or tailoring, this is a wonderful place to start. Includes personal stories and information on jobs and training courses.

Solve the world’s problems

From jet-engine and wind-turbine manufacture to dentistry and brain surgery, Renishaw solves tough engineering and scientific problems. Graduate trainees and apprentices talk about their experiences and opportunities with a company that encourages innovation and personal achievement.

Part of Warwick University, WMG is one of the world’s leading industrial research groups. It aims to provide manufacturing and technology solutions through collaboration between industry and academia.

Global £1 million prize, awarded every two years, that recognizes the engineers responsible for a ground-breaking innovation that has been of global benefit to humanity. The scheme also includes a network of engineering ambassadors.

Involve your students in developing small satellites

ESA runs educational programmes, produces resources for teachers and organizes hands-on activities for students in various age groups from 6 to 28.

A snapshot of engineering today

In-depth report produced by the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering Foundation. Chapters on solving the world’s problems, recognising and understanding engineering, inspiring the next generation, and creating opportunity.

Advice for anyone considering a career in engineering

A gateway to really useful and wide-ranging information for students and teachers, including advice on apprenticeships and careers, stories about successful engineers and role descriptions. An interactive presentation for 11–14s explains:

  • What engineering is
  • What engineers do
  • How engineers impact on our everyday lives
  • The range of jobs engineers are involved in through real-life examples
  • The different routes you can take to a career in engineering
  • Where the jobs will be in the future

Discover what happens behind the scenes

Students, teachers and career advisors are invited to visit a wide range of manufacturing facilities across the UK to stimulate interest in technology and engineering. An initiative spearheaded by the Department for Business Innovation and Skills.

An annual celebration of STEM subjects attracting more than 70,000 visitors. It aims to show young people (primarily 7–19) the exciting and rewarding opportunities available to those with the right experience and qualifications, by bringing classroom learning to life. Results of national competitions, including UK Young Scientist and UK Young Engineer of the Year.

Join the ambitious 500

The largest engineering firm in Europe offers apprenticeships at company sites across the UK and offshore in the power industry, construction and manufacturing, rail engineering and rail logistics.

Free online business advice and funding for young entrepreneurs in the UK. The Smarter Future Programme awards a start-up grant of £5,000 each month to one 16–30-year-old entrepreneur with an idea that addresses sustainable living challenges.

A charter scheme run by the Equality Challenge Unit (ECU) to encourage and recognise commitment to advancing the careers of women in science, technology, engineering, maths and medicine. ECU charters enable organisations to apply for an award recognising their commitment to, and progress on, equality and diversity.

Discover fantastic job opportunities

Are you a science or maths student aged 11–16+ looking for career opportunities? Futuremorph offers careers advice, work experience, and case studies including stories from the ScienceGrrl Calendar http://www.futuremorph.org/11-13/case-studies/sciencegrrl-calendar/

Improve your skills and productivity

An agency that encourages collaboration between employers and teachers to transform skills and productivity in a wide range of sectors, from aerospace to process operations, and including business administration, customer service, leadership and management. As well as apprenticeships, SEMTA promotes graduate opportunities and professional development.

How Siemens is shaping the future of manufacturing

  • Virtualisation.
  • The internet of things
  • IT infrastructure
  • Cloud technology
  • Customisation
  • Smart systems that make sense of big data.
  • A look inside the Advanced Manufacturing Training Centre in Coventry.

Debbie Sterling, engineer and founder of Goldieblox, has made it a mission to tackle the gender gap in science, technology, engineering and maths.

Awards some 25 postgraduate fellowships and scholarships a year, for advanced study and research in science, engineering, the built environment and design.

Think about a career in engineering

A gateway to really useful and wide-ranging information for students and teachers, including advice on apprenticeships and careers, stories about successful engineers and role descriptions in the fields of food, medicine, music, computing, space, sport, electronics, energy, film and television, green engineering, and construction. An interactive presentation for 11–14s explains:.

  • What engineering is
  • What engineers do
  • How engineers impact on our everyday lives
  • The range of jobs engineers are involved in through real-life examples
  • The different routes you can take to a career in engineering
  • Where the jobs will be in the future

Guide the new trailblazers in engineering design

Resources and practical support for the education of design engineers at all levels, including the Ideas Box series.

A regular event at Birmingham NEC showcasing the broad array of opportunities for engineers working in many sectors, including oil and gas, nuclear, computer software and construction.

Lydia Feasy, a mechanical technician at the Culham Centre for Fusion Energy Nuclear, explains the important of developing nuclear fusion as an energy resource.

Teams of University Technical College students are challenged to design and build an amphibious solution to help stricken islanders on Angel Island. Some 40 teams are expected to compete for various prizes in time trials at the HMS Sultan national final in Gosport, Hampshire, on 17 March 2017.

The Imagineering Foundation organises fairs and clubs across the UK to introduce young people of 8–16 years to engineering, science and technology through fun hands-on activities and personal involvement.

Are you a technical or commercial graduate with plenty of talent?

Graduate programmes in aerospace engineering, civil engineering, electrical and electronic engineering, mechanical engineering, naval architecture, physics, process engineering, project management, safety engineering, software engineering, systems engineering, and technical and business management. The Babcock website includes a Meet Our People section.

Explaining the concept of ‘total design’

The Engineering Season at the Victoria and Albert Museum celebrates the ‘unsung heroes’ of design that create and shape the built world. The line-up includes a major retrospective of engineering legend Ove Arup and a display highlighting the global impact of contemporary British engineers. Website includes teachers’ resources.

Nurture engineering talent for the future

Teachers’ resources, curriculum-linked materials and latest information on STEM-based activities and challenges for schools and pupils. The education project is part of a three-year engagement initiative that sets out to inspire five million young people through the promotion of science and engineering.

Getting Started

Made Here Now's resource cards bring together lots of information aimed at inspiring young people to take a closer look at manufacturing. Each card highlights a specific resource covering videos, success stories, case studies, websites and a wealth of analysis and opinion on manufacturing in the UK.

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