Sujit Tha, Head of Plant Breeding and Research and Peter Walley, Lecturer.
The University of Liverpool has secured three new Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTPs) with a total value of £800,000.
Fast-tracking the future of wild rocket
The first KTP will be based in the Institute of Systems, Molecular and Integrative Biology. This three-year project, led by Dr Peter Walley in partnership with the leading UK seed company, CN Seeds Limited, aims to establish a molecular breeding pipeline to advance wild rocket variety development. By breeding for disease resistance and improved product quality, the project will enhance competitiveness. Its outcomes will transform CN Seeds' breeding strategies, enabling the rapid commercialisation of superior varieties while setting a new standard for efficiency and competitiveness in the seed industry.
Dr Walley said: "This project builds on a long-standing collaboration between CN Seeds and the University of Liverpool. It's an exciting opportunity to apply cutting-edge genomic technologies to wild rocket, translating academic research into tangible impact. By integrating genomic selection and predictive breeding, we're helping to accelerate CN Seeds' breeding pipeline and drive innovation in sustainable crop development."
Sujit Tha, Head of Plant Breeding at CN Seeds, said: "This KTP with the University of Liverpool marks a pivotal step in the evolution of our breeding programme. By harnessing molecular tools and genomic selection, we can make more informed decisions and bring improved wild rocket varieties to market faster. This project aligns perfectly with our commitment to innovation, quality, and delivering value to growers in the UK and overseas."
Smarter care through assistive design
A KTP has also been awarded to Dr Farnaz Nickpour, Director of the Inclusionaries Lab, based in the Department of Materials, Design and Manufacturing Engineering within the School of Engineering. Partnering with Duchenne UK - the UK's leading Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) charity and the largest funder of DMD research - this KTP builds on Farnaz's earlier work with Duchenne UK since September 2022 and an Impact Acceleration Account (IAA) project.
The KTP applies user-centred design expertise and practices to create new assistive technology (AT) products that help people with disabilities, such as DMD, live more independently and healthily. Duchenne UK is also creating an Assistive Technology Design Hub (ATD Hub) to unite like-minded organisations in developing AT solutions in areas of unmet need.
Hayley Philippault, Head of Technology of Duchenne UK, said: "We are thrilled to be awarded this KTP with the Inclusionaries Lab at the University of Liverpool. By embedding their advanced knowledge and practices in human-centred design in Duchenne UK, people with Duchenne muscular dystrophy in the UK will be enabled to co-design the products and services we deliver."
From left to right: Hayley Philippault, Head of Technology; Cara Shaw, KTP Associate; Farnaz Nickpour, UoL Reader; Mick Card, KT Adviser; David Buckley, Technology Project Manager; Inma Gonzalez, Impact and Business Development Manager (KTP).
Smarter maintenance, safer structures
The third KTP will be based in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering within the School of Engineering. It is a two-year project led by Dr Luigi Di Sarno and Adam Mannis in partnership with PSW Integrity Limited - a local SME specialising in reliability engineering, condition monitoring and lean manufacturing consultancy for customers in the pharmaceutical, aerospace, minerals handling, manufacturing, power generation and utilities industries. The aim of the KTP is to develop an innovative 'consequence-based engineering' approach to proactively monitor and maintain the structural integrity of offshore, nuclear and wind infrastructure through a holistic system that will go well beyond current industry standards.
Dr Di Sarno said: "This KTP with PSW Integrity builds on the expertise and cutting-edge research for structural health monitoring of the Civil Infrastructure Research Cluster (CIRC), led by me, in line with recent UK Infrastructure Strategy. Our CIRC team has developed, in collaboration with other academic institutions and research centres in the UK and abroad, robust digital system assessment approaches for efficient reliability analysis of critical infrastructure. This will be adapted to enable PSW Integrity to perform proactive maintenance, aligned to sustainability priorities, working at the interface of multiple engineering sectors with business-oriented practices for asset management of green energy facilities."
Ron McKay, Managing Director of PSW Integrity, added: "The KTP provides a strong market opportunity by broadening our technical services to incorporate systemic structural integrity assessments and innovative proactive maintenance. It will expand the company's offerings for clients within an asset management framework meeting stringent regulatory requirements. This KTP will also facilitate effective knowledge transfer between the University of Liverpool and PSW Integrity, contributing to upskilling and capability development of our team."
Image: PSW Integrity work context in Offshore Engineering
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