The recent development of a proposal for a centre for doctoral training in timber has received the backing of the UK forest products sector.

The proposal, which has been submitted to the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), is a collaboration between Bangor, Surrey and Edinburgh Napier Universities and, if successful, will train 50 doctoral level students in the area of timber.

Dr Graham Ormondroyd (The BioComposites Centre, Bangor University), has been leading the bid and says he is excited about the progress being made.

Earlier this summer he updated the woodworking industries about the project at the British Woodworking Federation Members’ Day.

“The response from industry has been overwhelming, we have had support from across the breadth of the timber industry from sawmills to end users, timber modifiers and preservation companies,” he said.

Bid Application Process

The progression of the proposal through the expression of interest phase to full stage of the application process shows a shift in attitude of the government in the use of timber. Other big industry areas including artificial intelligence have not reached this stage.

Through work undertaken by the leading timber industries bodies and laid out in the clean growth strategy, timber is a key component to the UK’s climate change strategy and this has been reflected in the increased funding for timber-related research through all funding bodies.

Funding

In terms of the current proposal the EPSRC will fund 70% of the cost of training the students whilst industry has been asked to contribute the extra 30%.

“Whilst this represents great value for money, it is still a draw on operating capital of companies and the fact that we have been able to hit our match funding target of over £1.5m is a testament to the industries attitude to the continuing need for education and research within the sector,” added Dr Ormondroyd.

Next Stage

The proposal is now submitted and EPSRC will announce the successful centres in December 2018. The first cohort of 10 students will be expected to start in the summer of 2019.