£10 million investment paves the way for the future of engineering

£10 million investment paves the way for the future of engineering

The University of Wolverhampton has appointed local Shropshire building contractor, Pave Aways, to build its new £10 million development at the Telford Innovation Campus – part of its Our Vision, Your Opportunity £250 million investment plan.

The investment in advanced, new engineering facilities and enhanced courses is in response to the regional and national shortage of qualified engineering graduates and will focus on providing students with access to technology at the forefront of engineering developments.

New courses including BEng (Hons) Motorsport Engineering, BEng (Hons) Chemical Engineering and BEng (Hons) Electronics and Telecommunications Engineering will be complemented by specialist equipment: a design and visualisation facility, wind tunnels, engine test facilities, 3D printing facilities, and laboratories dedicated to electronics and telecommunications, metrology and materials testing.

Professor Ian Oakes, Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the University of Wolverhampton, said: “In the UK, it is estimated that there will be a shortfall of around 200,000 qualified engineers by 2020. This substantial investment in enhanced provision and expanded facilities demonstrates our commitment to providing the next generation of skilled engineers.  Our new courses combine activity based learning and live industrial project work with a real focus on creativity and employability.”

Steven Owen, Managing Director at Pave Aways, said:  “With over 40 years of experience, we pride ourselves on being a leader in the ever changing construction industry within the surrounding counties of Shropshire and Mid & North Wales. We were delighted to win the contract to deliver such an exciting redevelopment project in our local area and we are committed, as part of the contract, to offering real work experience opportunities for apprentices and students currently studying at the University.”

Work is due to start work in early April with completion expected by November 2016.

ENDS

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Date Issued: 1^st April 2016