University of Greenwich
Award-winning spin-out companies, educational excellence
and the restoration and provision of world-class facilities
are just a few elements of the legacy that the University
of Greenwich at Medway has created since its inception
10 years ago.
Since first opening its Medway
Campus at Chatham Maritime in
the mid-1990s, the University of
Greenwich has been in the business
of raising standards, profiles and
educational achievement in an area
that had suffered in the past from
under investment.
Thanks to one of the most innovative
educational partnerships in the
country Ð the £50 million
Universities at Medway project Ð
the region is now host to some of
the finest educational facilities
available in the UK both for Higher
and Further education. Through a
number of different research
schemes and projects, groundbreaking
work is being carried
out linking academia to the
business world.
GreenwichÕs Director of Regional
Development Professor Alan Reed,
said: ÒDriving regeneration through
education was never going to be
a quick and easy fix. By providing
local people with higher education
opportunities and a raft of courses
specifically tailored to meet the
needs of local industry and
community services such as health
and social care, we are acting as
a catalyst for change.
As the range of degree course
available has expanded at
Medway so has the selection of
course and training programmes
specifically tailored to meet the
needs of local services,
businesses and industry.
ÒAdditionally we are directly
contributing our knowledge and
expertise to the regeneration of
the Thames Gateway.Ó
An example of the UniversityÕs
applied expertise is The Wolfson
Centre for Bulk Solids Handling
Technology, which is housed at
the UniversityÕs Medway campus.
The Centre has specialised in
solving materials handling
problems since 1973 and now
enjoys an international reputation
for its work.
The Centre began its existence
researching problems associated
with pneumatic conveying of
powders and granular solid
material in pipelines and has
since expanded its areas of
interest to include hopper and
silo design, and instrumentation
and control of bulk solids
handling systems.
Maintaining links with the
business world, the university
encourages students to take
placements as part of their
course. The Greenwich Research
and Enterprise, formerly the
Research, Enterprise and
Regional Affairs (RERA) Office,
aims to increase interaction with
business. The department is a
one-stop-shop for any business
wishing to get in contact with
any part of the university.
University of Greenwich
Old Royal Naval College
Park Row, Greenwich,
London SE10 9LS
Tel: 020 8331 8000
www.gre.ac.uk
Case Study
Another major success story to
come from the University of
Greenwich at Medway, is Carbon8
Systems Ltd. The company, which is
a major spin-out company from the
University of Greenwich, was formed
in 2006 and has developed an
environmentally-friendly solution to
treating hazardous waste materials.
Carbon8 Systems uses accelerated
carbonation technology (ACT) to treat
hazardous wastes and remediate
contaminated soil. The accelerated
process produces inert secondary
aggregates, which can be used in
construction and engineering
projects, together with significant
quantities of waste carbon dioxide,
the key greenhouse gas, which is
locked into the material.
Wastes successfully treated by
Carbon8 Systems include slag from
steel manufacture, galigu from soap
production, contaminated soil from
firework manufacture, North Sea oil
drill cuttings, cement kiln residue
and water treatment sludges.
If the technology gets widely adopted
then it could capture more than one
million tonnes of waste carbon
dioxide, meeting five per cent of the
UK carbon emission reduction target
by 2012.
www.c8s.co.uk