Scientists behind an engineering consultancy in Southampton which helped save an ancient warship have celebrated their successes after reaching a 10-year milestone.
nC 2 , which is based at the University of Southampton, has become an established name across the UK's engineering industry since its launch in 2015.
The experts are specialists in material sciences - working from the University's labs to stress-test and improve the quality of safety components used across tech: keeping planes airborne and trains running on time.
Now, talking for National Engineering Day, its founder Professor Nicola Symonds has revealed how the unit grew from a start-up to a consultancy with a million-pound turnover in just a decade.
"Material sciences underpins everything that's been engineered - from the fingerprint-ID function on your mobile to making bionic limbs for amputees," said Nicola, who is one of the few female chartered engineers in the UK.
"Companies want to understand how the materials used in their innovations react to different environments - whether they will fail and if so why. nC 2 is a bridge between industry and Southampton's vast academic expertise and equipment.
"Our specialist knowledge and access to the University facilities is unlike materials test houses, and means we can measure materials to a very high level of accuracy to understand how they behave in certain conditions."
Becoming a million-pound business
In the last decade, nC 2 has grown to a team of eight engineers and scientists who have supported nearly 200 companies, and recently achieved a million-pound turnover.
One of their longest running projects has been to support the National Museum of the Royal Navy's conservation of HMS Victory in Portsmouth , protecting it from fungus and the destructive deathwatch beetle.
"HMS Victory is the oldest commissioned warship in the world, but rainwater inside its woodwork caused fungus to grow, which attracts the beetle," added Nicola who, before nC 2 , was a scientific officer for the Royal Navy.
"Through our testing, we investigated the materials used for glues, caulking, bolts and paints so that she can last at least another 50 years."
Air crash investigations
But it is not all materials testing.
The team also works to save lives by investigating the causes behind transport accidents - including the tragic helicopter crash that killed Leicester City football club's owners in 2018.
This is a specialism built directly on Nicola's internationally-acclaimed career as a forensic investigator for the Ministry of Defence, and now Professor of Forensic Engineering, analysing incidents and accidents involving military jets and helicopters.
She said: "I'm proud of our investigative work to better understand why the helicopter crashed, it was a tough challenge given the intense scrutiny across the media.
"We discovered that a crucial ball-bearing on the tail's rotor had seized which led to a series of mechanical failures and caused the crash.
"Our findings informed the government recommendations which will improve helicopter safety in the longer term."
Inspiring more women engineers
After a decade of success, the nC2 team are now hoping to inspire a new generation of engineers and scientists - particularly among young female students.
Nicola is a self-confessed trailblazer for women in engineering, having graduated from the University of Southampton's aeronautics and astronautics degree in the 1990s.
In 2023, she was named among the UK's top 50 female engineers by the Women in Engineering Society , and has more recently become a fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society.
Nicola added: "I am passionate about celebrating and promoting the role of women engineers in the industry.
"There are still not enough women in engineering - nor enough studying it at university level. It has improved since I was a student but we need to do more to encourage girls.
"nC2 employs more female scientists than men - we are now getting out into schools to spread the word. I hope our decade of success inspires a new generation of women to see the incredible opportunities that careers in engineering can bring."
