Innovate 2: Applied Research at CU

GLOBAL WARNING Finding new models for a sustainable economy PREPARE FOR LANDING An innovative programme to help SMEs trade overseas SLAVES TO FASHION Alleviating poverty through entrepreneurship

ISSUE 2 AUTUMN 2007

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APPLIED RESEARCH AT COVENTRY UNIVERSITY

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Applied Research at Coventry University : Issue 2

Welcome to the second issue of Innovate, the applied research magazine from Coventry University. You may notice a theme running through this edition – a topic increasingly seen and heard in the media today – sustainability.

The University’s Applied Research Centre in Human Security is chairing a series of Roundtables on Sustainable Enterprise – multi-stakeholder learning forums which bring together diverse groups from business, government, NGOs and civil society. Through such collaboration it is hoped to find new ways of reconciling the need for resourceful, innovative and creative communities with the imperative for all enterprise to be environmentally light-footed and socially responsible.

With the flooding many of us have witnessed this summer, the need for more effective drainage solutions has been very evident.

With urban development comes the paving over of our rural land.

Members of the Applied Research Group in Sustainable Drainage talk about the ways they are tackling the problem.

And in Africa, Tabeisa, a charity dedicated to researching and promoting sustainable entrepreneurship in some of the world’s poorest communities, is creating new trading opportunities based on ethical supplier relationships.

Finally, in keeping with the theme, I’d like to point out that Innovate itself is printed on 75 per cent recycled paper. The bags we use for mailing are made from a material called ‘bioplast’, a completely biodegradable film made from potato starch, commonly used in food packaging or general packaging where a short shelf life is required.

The applied research work undertaken at Coventry University is extremely diverse and much will have an impact on our daily lives.

We pride ourselves on the work we carry out with industry, most of which has a direct impact on the productivity of our partners. I hope you enjoy reading about the various projects in this issue and if you have any comments at all, then please don’t hesitate to contact me.

Wendy Thomas Editor wendy.thomas@coventry.ac.uk

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Contents 4

Making research work for business

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Game for anything The Serious Games Institute - using latest technology to drive innovation training

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Island life The latest student facility to open at Coventry University

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Joined-up policing Post-conflict reconstruction in Africa

10

A drain on resources Developing new technologies to cope with climate change

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Healthcare with designs on the future Pioneering new approaches to changing health priorities

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COVER STORY: Global warning Finding new models for a sustainable economy

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Prepare for landing An innovative programme to help SMEs trade overseas

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Slaves to fashion Alleviating poverty through entrepreneurship

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Protect and serve The most advanced bomb disposal suit of its kind in the world today

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Bridging the skills gap Driving forward new ways for universities to work with employers

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Digital assistants get to the heart of critical care An innovative e-working scheme will help UK hospitals to improve patient safety

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Strength in diversity Improving productivity and competitiveness of SMEs in the UK

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Ultrasound thinking to combat cancer A revolutionary treatment offers a surgery-free procedure for patients

Credits Managing Editor - Karen Smith Regular Contributor - Alison Bushnell Design by Kraken Creative Printed by Emmersons This publication is available in other formats on request.

Please contact Marketing and Communications on 024 7688 8352.

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Making research work for business Increasing productivity is essential for the economic and social well being of the UK. This includes improving the ability of organisations to innovate and to develop international trade. It also includes raising the skill levels of employees. For many years, Coventry University has focused strongly on the practical implementation of research to help enhance productivity through innovation. We are particularly keen to promote applied, rather than just theoretical, research and to ‘Make Research Work for Business’. Some examples from this issue of Innovate illustrate this point.

A particularly good example is our unique Soft Landing Zone programme which we will be officially launching in partnership with UK Trade and Investment (UKTI).

This provides access to international markets through the provision of a network of offices based in science parks across the globe. Any business interested in starting up in that country is provided with dedicated office space, access to IT and meeting rooms, and ‘hands on’ support in developing their proposition, contacts and sales – including access to finance. The first offices have already opened in Malaysia and a further 13 will open in the next few months in countries as diverse as China, India, Brazil, Mexico, Turkey and Hong Kong. This project draws not only on the expertise of Coventry University Enterprises (CUE) Ltd, but also provides an ideal opportunity to make use of the experience of academics involved in international trade and business development research.

Another initiative that we will be demonstrating is our Employer Engagement Programme, an exemplar model of University and employer partnership supported by HEFCE, which is improving higher level skills and capabilities in the workplace. This pilot study is changing the way we deliver higher education by helping employers identify their development needs and then working with their employees based in the workplace to deliver relevant higher education. This project provides an opportunity to investigate the effectiveness of educational and business development activities.

The flooding suffered in certain areas in the UK this summer has highlighted the need to revisit the way in which we manage drainage. For the last 100 years we have increasingly covered our urban areas with layers of concrete and tarmac, which prevent rain penetrating the ground and slowly soaking away. Research in the area of sustainable drainage looks at ways of addressing issues which are not just a problem for the UK but has relevance internationally.

It is also not a new problem; our research in this area stretches back over twenty years. Most of this work has involved collaboration with industry on the practical solutions to this increasingly pressing problem.

Three different examples but all with something in common – they aim to ‘Make Research Work for Business’ by providing training, carrying out research, developing products or services that help make a difference.

Prof Madeleine Atkins Mr John Latham Pro-Vice-Chancellor

www.coventry.ac.uk/researchnet

(Business Development)

Vice-Chancellor

Prof Ian M Marshall Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research)

Creating space to develop The new Institute for Creative Enterprise (ICE) at Coventry University is set to open in April 2008. To be housed in a newly refurbished warehouse next to the Technology Park, the building is being transformed into flexible new facilities for postgraduate teaching and research for the Coventry School of Art and Design and the University’s Centre for Media Arts and Performance (ceMAP), including courses in Design & Digital Media, Media Arts, Media Production and Performance & Media Arts. The site will also be home to partner organisations Arts+Media Training, Theatre Absolute, Talking Birds and Imagineer.

By providing development space alongside the relevant technologies and business services, the Institute will allow small creative enterprises to develop their capabilities, and the business skills, to work on projects in the West Midlands and beyond.

Opportunities to use the facility will be offered on a long or short term basis—by day, week or month.

Specialist training for cultural organisations and new creative businesses will be available, delivered alongside development programmes offered by Coventry University Enterprises (CUE) Ltd through its Business Enterprise Works scheme. ICE will also host discussions, seminars, workshops and master-classes on the creative sector, becoming the focus for information and advice for businesses in Coventry and the surrounding area.

The Institute will be led by Director Christine Hamilton and funding has so far been secured from the Higgs Trust with a number of other applications also in progress. Through promoting an environment of collaboration, the Institute aims to develop creative partnerships between postgraduate students, academic staff and the professional cultural organisations based there.

HOW TO COPE IN AN EMERGENCY The ability of hospitals to respond to major incidents is increasingly under the spotlight.

Working with researchers from Coventry University’s Disaster Centre Emergo Team, the Health Protection Agency (HPA) is providing hospitals with the opportunity to assess their policies and protocols in managing all aspects of a large-scale emergency.

Over the last two years, the Emergo Team has developed and tested a series of emergency scenarios – the ‘Emergo Applications System’. An assessment and training tool for decisionmaking, the system is used to aid personnel involved in planning and managing the response to a complex incident. The simulation exercises are run over a period of two days and include a five-six hour, real-time exercise. Over 140 hospitals have so far taken part, involving up to 60 staff members each time, including senior consultants, accident & emergency, radiography and theatre staff, as well as non-clinical hospital management.

The Emergo Team consists of a number of expert ‘core members’ who have considerable experience in the emergency services, nursing, training and the civil service. Their skills are supplemented by those of current practising professionals, ensuring adherence to the most up-to-date policies.

Feedback from the exercises is being used by the Department of Health to enable it to make comparisons with an earlier report published by the National Audit Office in 2004, which identified a range of issues. Negotiations are currently taking place to develop and deliver a follow-on contract with the HPA, to re-visit hospitals and re-test plans, working with staff to make recommendations for improvement.

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NEWS IN BRIEF

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GAME FOR ANYTHING Computer games technology might seem an unlikely remedy to some of the training issues facing the NHS, but a new initiative launched at Coventry University’s TechnoCentre – the Serious Games Institute – may provide the answer. By SGI Director David Wortley.

‘The use of games methodologies for training and development is not new, but as old as mankind itself’

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console certainly are, and it was the developments in these technologies that brought military training to the desktop. It is possible to recreate realistic battlefield environments and even use ‘mixed reality’ to simulate a conflict, making it accessible to large numbers of students.

If serious games provide a realistic and immersive training environment for military applications without the potential risk for loss of human life, it can also be applied to medical scenarios with similar benefits. Companies such as TruSim of Leamington Spa, a spin-off from one of the world’s most successful games companies, Blitz Games, is already pioneering their use in battlefield trauma training and triage training in first responders to disasters such as explosions in a town centre. Similarly, companies such as Infocomm have developed games-based learning for pre-natal obstetrics for healthcare visitors.

Patient self-care can also be addressed by serious games, not only in learning how to administer treatments, and controlling medical conditions, but also to influence behaviour by using electronic games to raise awareness of the potential cost of bad diets and damaging lifestyles.

The next stage in their evolution is likely to be the introduction of intelligent ‘ambient technologies’ that not only support the learning process, but also provide computer-assisted medical practices. An example of this might be a new type of X-Ray technique which involves the patient swallowing a sensor which can X-Ray the body from the inside. This could lead to the development of a realistic simulation of the individual patient’s body and enable a surgeon to practise or even perform an actual procedure on the virtual model, supported by the built-in intelligence of the ‘games engine’.

These developments are being explored in a collaboration between SGI, Coventry University’s Health Design & Technology Institute (HDTI), NHS THOTH (the national training hub) and the serious games industry. A pilot workshop has already been run and there are plans to create a national forum to develop best practices in this area. Other partners in the region include Warwick University, Birmingham University, the University of Central England at Birmingham, and the University of Wolverhampton. http://www.coventry.ac.uk/researchnet/d/440

David Wortley David Wortley is Director of the Serious Games Institute. The Serious Games Institute (SGI) is the first of its kind in the UK. It aims to support regional development by bringing together expert facilities to support the development of virtual world applications, games-based learning and interactive digital media resources for a range of uses.

Illustrations by Simon Harper

At the groundbreaking Serious Games Institute (SGI), developments in the latest computer gaming technology – designed to drive innovation and training – are underway. Serious games makes use of interactive electronic game technologies for non-entertainment purposes (such as business simulation, corporate training, and emergency and disaster management), and is particularly effective in situations where it is too costly or risky to train people in live situations.

The SGI is intended to be a national and international Centre of Excellence, and a regional hub for the emerging serious games industry. This exciting project is a new model for industrial/higher education partnerships, combining advanced research with business incubation, digital media clustering and sophisticated networking and demonstration facilities.

Jointly funded by Advantage West Midlands (AWM) and Coventry University Enterprises (CUE) Ltd, the concept for the institute originates from the West Midlands’ strength in the global electronic games market, home to some of the world’s leading electronic games companies such as Blitz Games and Codemasters. This, and the pioneering work in the adaptation of electronic games technology to serious business applications such as e-learning and simulation make this the ideal location for the SGI. Digital communications technologies have long driven major improvements in all aspects of society, including healthcare. To ensure that medical practitioners are able to keep up with new skills, rapid access to training resources and information are required. Patient training too needs to be considered with the increasing move to ‘self-management’ of chronic conditions at home.

Traditional methods of face-to-face training can be costly and often inconvenient. Whilst some primary care trusts adopt an e-learning strategy, this approach is still hindered by intrinsic limitations. One of the fundamental characteristics of healthcare is the prevalence of risk. Mistakes can obviously be very costly both in terms of human life, as well as financially through potential litigation.

Whilst conventional e-learning techniques can be used for knowledge transfer, there is still a gulf between theory and practice.

The application of serious games to the field of training can include games-based learning, visualisation and simulation. Its origin can be accredited to the USA military and its development of a serious game called ‘America’s Army’. The military reasoned that the traditional arcade ‘shoot-em-up’ games might be used to train soldiers and commanders in realistic battlefield training, without the costs and risks of running live military exercises.

The use of games methodologies for training and development is not new, but as old as mankind itself. We learn from games from the time we are born to the time we die – they are a fundamental part of learning about ourselves and the world around us. Crucially games provide us with a safe and risk-free environment in which to experiment and practise new skills.

If games are not new, then the technologies to bring realistic and immersive environments to the computer desktop or handheld

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Islandlife Can lessons on a virtual island be the answer for learners looking for much more than just a discussion board?

By buying its own island in 3D virtual world Second Life, Coventry University aims to find out.

The newest student facility to open at the University offers more than might be expected from Coventry city centre, including sea views, a campfire and boat-building.

The 3D virtual world of Second Life has been an international phenomenon, attracting more than 7 million people to create ‘avatars’ of themselves to explore and interact with other users across a vast landscape.

By taking on its own virtual island, the University plans to investigate the potential of interactive learning spaces and the opportunity for delivering both forms of learning and new ways of building student communities.

‘Second Life enables students to feel more embodied,’ says Maggi Savin-Baden. ‘Students get a greater sense of being in the same room or the same space as other participants in the process.

It’s more active.’

Maggi Savin-Baden, Professor of Higher Education Research and one of the country’s leading proponents of online innovations in education, said: ‘There is a sense when operating in cyberspace of a feeling of disembodiment, of not being present. By being able to create a bodily manifestation

of oneself, Second Life enables students to feel more embodied. Students get a greater sense of being in the same room or the same space as other participants in the process. It’s more active.’

Coventry University Island was launched at the opening of the Serious Games Institute in September alongside virtual fireworks and the online appearance of Vice-Chancellor Madeleine Atkins (in the guise of her avatar ‘Phoenix Watkins’). The first version of the Island has been divided into a number of distinct areas. There is a main centre which acts as an introduction and information hub to the island as a whole, with recognisable real life spaces such as the Alan Berry building and Lanchester Library. The Island also has a gallery, a theatre and shop spaces for selling University products and services. Around the centre are a number of smaller spaces, each of which can be run independently with its own management team and cater for a specific area of interest, such as problem based learning (PBL), maths support, performance or business. Above the Island there are a number of ‘sandboxes’, spaces dedicated to the exploration of inworld design and creation, where anyone is able to experiment and build.

A new MSc course in Clinical Management is already holding PBL groups for students on the Island, making it the first healthcare course to use Second Life as a learning platform.

Above Coventry University is at the forefront of developing a new landscape for Higher Education.

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Building public order is the missing priority in post-conflict reconstruction in Africa. Yet there can be little social reconstruction or external investment whilst crime remains high and people have little trust in the police. By Professor Bruce Baker, Applied Research Centre in Human Security.

Professor Bruce Baker Bruce Baker is Professor of African Security at the Applied Research Centre for Human Security, Coventry University and Director of the African Studies Centre. His published articles and books cover African democratisation, governance, policing, security sector reform, popular justice and informal justice. Throughout his research, he has conducted fieldwork in Zimbabwe, Mozambique, South Africa, Rwanda, Uganda, The Gambia, Sierra Leone, Cape Verde, Seychelles, Liberia and Sudan.

African states, as well as their external advisers, look to the state police to provide protection. In this they follow the western model. Yet in terms of effective crime prevention policy, this is a surprising and poor choice.

What is often overlooked is that the western model of policing and criminal justice is itself under stress due to the resources it consumes. In addition, even if such highly complex institutions can be resourced adequately, they presume an existing, effective infrastructure of electricity supply, tele-communications, transportation, data processing and the availability of pertinent skills – all of which are weak in Africa.

Despite the lack of police personnel and infrastructure, donors continue to advise and support governments to train their police forces in the attempt to make them efficient, effective, accountable and client-orientated.

Even if their training was successful, it is clear that the number of police officers is so small in all African countries that most Africans will remain un-policed by the state and reliant on their own resources for crime protection and investigation.

In Liberia, with funding from the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), the research closely examined the policing institutions, both state and non-state. The multitude of state agencies together with the customary chiefs, neighbourhood patrols, community policing forums, commercial security companies, and work-based

associations were all investigated as to their coverage, services, effectiveness and legitimacy.

The research found that the state police were extremely limited in terms of numbers and resources and that most people rarely saw them and did not rely on them. As for the non-state security organisations, these were found, for the most part, to be real resources for local security that the state could, if it chose, use much more effectively in its efforts to combat crime.

‘Most Africans remain un-policed by the state and reliant on their own resources for crime protection and investigation’ In a concluding workshop in Monrovia, Professor Baker presented his research findings before the Minister of Security and more than 100 other security stakeholders from the state and non-state sectors. In it he argued the case for the government to broaden its understanding of the security sector to include all policing groups, and to base its forthcoming national security policy on a multi-layered approach which envisages a partnership between state, communitybased and commercial policing. The details of the first part of his research have already been published in a number of journals. http://www.coventry.ac.uk/researchnet

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A DRAIN ON RESOURCES With many thousands of homeowners this year affected by the worst flooding to hit the UK in decades, the need for better drainage solutions has never been so evident. Dr Sue Charlesworth and Dr Stephen Coupe from the Applied Research Group in Sustainable Drainage talk about their work in this topical area.

Flooding, pollution and water shortages – themes that appear in the media on an increasingly frequent basis. Recent scientific reports, now almost universally accepted by political decision makers, point to an uncertain future for many world climate patterns. And as has been evident to many in the UK this year, more frequent episodes of extreme weather are currently the most visible aspect of climate change.

Even without the changes brought about by global warming, the problems of urban flooding would still be with us. Development produces impervious areas, and as urbanisation increases – particularly in densely populated areas such as the South East – so will flooding. Where large areas of previously undeveloped land are paved over, the net result is more water channelled towards rivers.

Diffuse pollution from both rural and urban environments (from contaminated run-off) is also a growing concern.

‘Each of us uses around 220 litres of water every day, yet less than 18 of these are for life sustaining purposes’ At Coventry University, the Applied Research Group in Sustainable Drainage is tackling the problem through a range of new technologies for surface water drainage systems. With 20 years experience, its research includes work leading to the development of porous paving systems and the examination of biofilms and geotextiles in the breakdown of pollutants. The centre has links with a number of industry practitioners such as Hanson Formpave, Tarmac, Permavoid and the Sports Turf Research Institute.

Sustainable drainage systems (SUDS) are a major component in the adaptation of the UK’s urban infrastructure to cope with climate change. Traditional surfaces such as concrete and asphalt prohibit the absorption of rainwater. Mimicking nature, SUDS’ resilience to floods and protection from pollution comes from its deployment of a network of permeable surfaces, conveyance devices and temporary water storage areas.

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Hanson Formpave – Aquaflow TM It is a fact that each of us uses around 220 litres of water every day; yet of these, less than 18 are actually used for life sustaining purposes.

The rest are for non-potable uses (for example, flushing the toilet). All of these 220 litres however, are being passed through the expensive water purification process and stored in massive land-consuming reservoirs. In industry, the potential environmental and financial savings to be made by harvesting rainwater are considerably greater still.

The built environment provides two main catchment areas – the roof of a building and associated hard landscaping such as driveways.

The Hanson Formpave Aquaflow™ SUDS system has been developed in collaboration with researchers from Coventry University’s SUDS team and can be used in car parks, industrial estates, pedestrian areas, etc.

Rain infiltrates the permeable concrete block paving (around the edges between each block) into a unique stone sub-base where it is cleaned to remove pollution. A geotextile ‘barrier’ layer beneath retains silt washed into the system, which in turn traps heavy metal pollutants such as lead. Any oil is rapidly degraded by naturally occurring micro-organisms, preventing downstream contamination – accepted as good practice by the Environment Agency. A tank system is used to harvest non-drinking water for re-use, or else discharged in a controlled manner into watercourses or sewers.

The design of the Aquaflow™ system is continually evolving as research progresses, and the newest developments were on display in the ‘Hanson EcoHouse’ full-scale concept building at BRE’s OFFSITE2007 exhibition in June. The exhibition showcases examples of modern construction and advanced technologies coming together to deliver higher performing, more sustainable (near zero-carbon emission) smarter buildings.

The Hanson EcoHouse incorporates the new Aquaflow™ water harvesting and geothermal energy solutions. Taking roof water from the Hanson EcoHouse and the adjoining properties, the water harvesting site occupies 40m2, holding 3,000 litres in its tank – the equivalent of 300 standard WC flushes and 30 days’ supply for nonpotable uses. Water in the tank is transferred to toilet cisterns by an electric pump and any excess is discharged via an overflow to ordinary storm drains.

The geothermal energy apparatus that supplies the ground source heat pumps (GSHP) are slinky pipes, buried within in an Aquaflow™ tank, but separate from the water harvesting area. An area of 65m2 is set aside. GSHP are very efficient when compared to standard heating/cooling methods as they acquire most of their heat from the ground rather than by combustion – for example, for every unit of energy used to run the heat pump, between four and eight units can be obtained from the ground.

Above Permeable paving solutions and the Hanson EcoHouse two of the innovative solutions being developed through collaborative partnerships forged between Coventry University and leading commercial organisations.

Photography Kraken Creative

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Tarmac – AquifaTM Pervious Pavement On a larger scale, sustainable drainage and Porous Paving Surfaces (PPS) are needed to help keep roads and airports, for example, open in extreme weather conditions. Coventry University SUDS research team is working with Tarmac to investigate the contaminant and oil retention behaviour of porous paving surfaces (PPS), including Tarmac’s Aquifa™ Pervious Pavement product.

As a leading supplier of aggregates and asphalt, the problems faced by Tarmac in dealing with excess rainfall and pollution need to be tackled very differently to those of Hanson Formpave’s block paving. With no individual ‘blocks’, removing surface water via infiltration between the blocks is obviously not an option. With a single continuous surface, the paving material itself must be porous in order to prevent large volumes of surface water running off that and causing flooding.

The research presently being carried out aims to assess the effectiveness of the Aquifa™ PPS in dealing with excess water, oil and also particulate associated pollutants (PAPs). This is carried out by dropping engine oil and street dust, accessed from Coventry’s CV1 street cleansing department, onto test rigs made up of various PPSs, and then simulating a rainfall event. The run-off is then analysed for traces of the pollutants – oil, heavy metals and suspended sediment in the effluent water. Preliminary results indicate excellent performance of the PPS test rigs. The results will be used to shape future development of the product. The work is due to feature in a programme on technologies developed to mitigate extreme weather conditions as part of the Radio 4 ‘Connect’ series, and will also be presented at the SUDSnet Conference to be held at Coventry University on 14 November 2007 at the TechnoCentre.

Whilst the systems above are undoubtedly opening up many interesting possibilities for the UK’s sustainability agenda, their wider potential on an international scale raises many more again. In the developing world competition can occur between rural communities dependent on agriculture for the limited supply of water available.

Localised water harvesting – re-using water where it falls rather than having to divert it over great distances – could have a significant impact in such areas, potentially removing the need for expensive (and often controversial) dam projects. Research into the system’s potential for irrigation is presently being investigated in Nigeria.

Back on home soil, the success of SUDS as a powerful drainage tool is now widely recognised as good practice, and by law, its use must now be considered in all new developments. Until its application becomes even more widespread though, let’s hope for some good weather…

Dr Sue Charlesworth Sue Charlesworth is Director of SUDS and Principal Lecturer in the department of Geography, Environment and Disaster Management. Her international research profile is mainly in urban environmental geochemistry and urban hydrology. She is the project manager of the Tarmac Aquifa™ study and also Director of Studies of PhD, MRes and MSc students.

Dr Stephen Coupe Stephen Coupe is Research Manager at Hanson-Formpave Ltd and Associate Lecturer at SUDS. He is an industryrenowned expert in SUDS, geotextiles and pollution control in permeable paving.

He is supported by eight years of research in partnership with Formpave and the Faculty of Engineering and Computing at Coventry University.

Applied Research Group in Sustainable Drainage Systems (SUDS) SUDS investigates the technologies, and promotes the environmental and social benefits, of surface water drainage systems.

Planning guidelines now recommend that SUDS systems, such as rainwater recycling, porous pavements and ponds, be considered in all new developments to ensure that any risks of flooding are minimised. The SUDS team can provide expert advice through research, consultancy and training. Training includes a taught MSc in Sustainable Drainage and River Catchment Management as well as other postgraduate qualifications and opportunities for continuous professional development.

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Healthcare with designs on the future Across the world, the delivery of personal health and social care services is developing fast. The Health Design & Technology Institute (HDTI) at Coventry University is pioneering new approaches to changing health priorities to meet the demand.

There is a move to give people greater control over how and where health products and services are delivered. This is particularly relevant for individuals with long term conditions such as diabetes, asthma or arthritis and the challenge for healthcare systems is to enable them and their carers, to manage independently at home. These priorities are also relevant to disabled and older people. Avoiding hospital stays not only gives more cost-effective care but is also overwhelmingly preferred by users. People want to retain control over their own lives and they want to exercise greater choice over how and where services are delivered.

Coventry’s new facility brings the University’s research and teaching expertise in community-based health into direct contact with healthcare businesses, practitioners and patients. It will be housed in a £6 million state-of-the-art building being constructed on the University campus within the rapidly growing Technology Park.

Finance is being provided by Advantage West Midlands (AWM) and the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE).

As resources are moved towards healthcare delivery in the community, opportunities for new, well-designed and properly researched healthcare products and services are now emerging.

Coventry’s HDTI provides an environment where consumer and patient needs are brought to the fore, and where innovation is a priority. The outcome is a creative partnership to develop new products and new systems of care provision.

‘People want to retain control over their own lives and they want to exercise greater choice over how and where services are delivered’ The role that small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) play is critical to success within the health sector – it is estimated that 80 per cent of companies operating in the medical device sector are SMEs. The Institute can draw upon a wide range of expertise to assist SMEs: there will be business start-up space in the building itself, as well as access to business services such as grants and marketing advice.

The new Institute building will house design studios, laboratories, workshops and test areas where researchers and clients can explore and evaluate new ideas: it is increasingly recognised that involving

end-users and patients alongside healthcare practitioners in the design and evaluation of new products and services ensures better outcomes for them. The building will have good access for disabled visitors and will act as a showcase for best inclusive design to enable the widest possible use of its facilities. Indeed, the role of inclusive design will become more important as the business opportunities within an economically active population which is elderly or managing a chronic condition are increasingly recognised.

People who work in this sector (or are thinking of working in this sector) may wish to consider enrolling on one of the new crossdiscipline courses currently being offered through the HDTI. For more details of the courses, contact the University on 024 7688 7667.

Simon Fielden, the HDTI’s Director, comments: ‘We are building an institute which will have unrivalled facilities for developing products and services from initial concept, through prototyping, to full evaluation and the formulation of a marketing plan. We are dedicated to the community sector, have a strong research and design base, and can draw upon patient and user groups to provide real-life feedback.’

www.coventry.ac.uk/hdti

Global WARNING The current model of capitalism has led to global warming and global terrorism, says Professor Malcolm McIntosh. Stakeholders from every area of society, Government, business and the range of professions, all need to start talking to each other to work out a new way forward.

‘Two pressing issues need reconciling: the need for resourceful, innovative and creative communities that reward enterprise, and the imperative for all enterprise to be environmentally light-footed and socially responsible.’

If there’s one fact which has emerged clearly from the roundtables, it has been the importance of ongoing conversations.

Although organisations might have their own individual plans and interests regarding more eco-friendly policies or Corporate Social Responsibility, no-one is talking to anyone else about what’s achievable and creating a consensus. The question is, in a multi-polar world of competing stakeholder interests, who will actually stand up for people and planet above all else? Vested interest groups will naturally tend to work for their own causes, even while acknowledging the common good. New constitutions, arrangements and governance systems that address this hard reality will be needed for a sustainable enterprise economy to ever become a reality.

The central proposition of the roundtables is that only collaboration across sectors and between professions, age groups and disciplines will provide solutions to the scientific global climate change consensus, international sustainable development policy, and the millennium development goals. Two pressing issues need reconciling: the need for resourceful, innovative and creative communities that reward enterprise, and the imperative for all enterprise to be environmentally light-footed and socially responsible.

All of the contributions will be captured for a major conference at the Eden project (24-26 October 2007), "The Next Great Transformation: Sustainable Enterprise", which will involve UN Secretary-General Ban-Ki Moon, Tim Smit of the Eden Project, James Smith, Chairman of Shell UK and Katie Stafford, Marks & Spencer. There is also a book to be published in 2008 which offers an overview of new models for a sustainable economy.

Professor Malcolm McIntosh A former BBC documentary film-maker, Malcolm McIntosh has been a pioneer of teaching and research in ‘corporate citizenship’ in the UK and internationally. In addition to his role as Director of the Applied Research Centre for Human Security (ARCHS), he acts as a special advisor to the UN’s Global Compact and DEFRA’s UK Sustainable Development Commission.

Discussions so far have been eclectic, ranging from the big picture to the detail. Looking at, for example, the central role of integrity and clear values. In a post-modern world of spin, of ‘anything goes’, market-driven values and frenetic management styles, people are looking for authenticity, whether it be in what they eat or the culture of their workplace. The importance of reconciling people to huge change has been covered. Now, more than ever, the world needs to embrace a love of change, partly because it is being forced through issues like climate change and people must change to survive. But first people need to re-establish what it means to be human in order to develop new organisational structures. Modest adaptation of existing organisations, institutions and behaviour patterns will not serve us well – it will not be enough. As one person on a London Roundtable said: ‘before we look at systems, let’s look at the people and then look at new systems.’

Another common theme was the loneliness and risk involved in acting as a champion of sustainable enterprise. Current business models don't accommodate an understanding of it: financially, structurally, legally or socially, and the current descriptions of sustainable business are unhelpful as they are generally measured against existing economic models. Entrepreneurs work by taking risks, using their intuition, ploughing their own furrow. But the responsibility for society and the aim of the this project is to help bring about systemic change to support the pioneers – in business funding, in how we think about profit, in transport infrastructure – until sustainable entrepreneurs are simply the norm. http://www.coventry.ac.uk/researchnet

Applied Research Centre for Human Security (ARCHS) Human security is a people-centered approach to global security which recognises that lasting peace and social justice cannot be achieved unless people are protected from threats to basic needs and rights. Threats to security include climate change, an inequitable global economic system, bad governance, corruption, abuse of human rights and violence. ARCHS works in collaborative partnerships with business, government, civil society, individuals and their communities to find solutions to the problems that people face in their everyday lives.

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There aren’t many issues that will get HM Treasury, an organic farmer, a civil engineer, IT and retail corporations and ethical fashion campaigners around a table together.

But since the start of the year, the Applied Research Centre in Human Security has been playing host to an intriguing mix of senior figures all committed to finding new models for a sustainable economy, to designs that are rooted in environmental awareness, and in the importance of a more equitable wealth distribution. The Roundtables on Sustainable Enterprise (RSE) started in London with a series of six meetings involving Lord Michael Hastings of KPMG, and have since taken place in Cape Town, Brussels, Geneva, Toronto and Sydney.

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PREPAREFORLANDING Trading internationally is now becoming a reality for many SMEs as a result of an innovative programme offering assistance in setting up an overseas office. Coventry University Enterprises‘ Tim Luft talks about the Soft Landing Zones.

Business people arriving in a foreign country generally know where they are stopping.

Hotels, perhaps even restaurants, will have been selected and pre-booked. There may even be a tourist guide in the luggage – after all, knowing something about the place where business is planned, its history and its culture, is a sensible step prior to engagement.

Eating and sleeping however, are not the aim of the visit – successful business is. And pre-arranging an office base in the chosen market would seem to be a sensible approach. Coventry University Enterprises’ (CUE) UK Soft Landing Zone programme can now provide the answer.

Marketed as ‘UK Basepoint’, the concept of the ‘soft landing zone’ refers to the prepreparation of a work environment within a foreign country, tailored to the needs of companies seeking to do business in that location. The service offers businesses new to a market a formal place from which to trade.

Set up in partnership with Government body UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), it aims to establish a network of British incubator offices around the globe. The offices, which are located on key university science parks, will be open to UK companies which are either considering, or are at the early stages of, undertaking international business.

Many UK businesses now recognise the need to work with emerging markets on a whole range of levels. The programme has therefore targeted first those places in the world that are on everyone’s lips for example

– China, India, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong and Poland Offices are closely tied to the British High Commission and British Embassy in each country. And new countries are being added to the list every month.

‘The programme has targeted China, India, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong and Poland... and new countries are being added every month’ Within these destinations safe and secure sites have been set up for users. As well as desk space in a dedicated office – with IT services, telephone answering and post forwarding – businesses signing up will also be able to take advantage of a number of support services. Each company will be allocated a dedicated business support officer to provide advice or call in expertise on all legal, financial, cultural and practical issues of doing business in a particular country. Help in finding potential partners or access to local support services such as translators are also offered in the package.

Where the service really makes sense is through the partnership with UKTI, the Government organisation charged with helping UK businesses with overseas trade.

Businesses can access UKTI support in a seamless way, giving participants the potential to benefit from subsidies on travel and accommodation.

The basic cost for the first six months can be as low as £250, and for this relatively nominal fee businesses gain the prestige that comes with having a base in the country. Users have repeatedly stressed its importance of this advantage not least in demonstrating to potential partners a real commitment in the country.

PIXELearning is a highly innovative ‘serious games’ company specialising in the application of computer game/simulation approaches to business education, vocational and management skills development.

The company is developing fast from its headquarters on the University’s Technology Park in Coventry, and was interested in developing operations in India. Its main aims at this time were to investigate the market for possible re-sellers, establish a research and development team to support new product development, and to meet with potential customers.

The programme team at CUE and staff at UKTI (both within the UK and in India) worked together with PIXELearning Managing Director, Kevin Corti, to help the business explore new international markets. Key meetings were set up and introductions facilitated through a dedicated visitor programme to India; basic market reports regarding the games industry in India provided; access to local University graduates organised a dedicated research and development team secured and a grant to cover 50 per cent of Kevin’s travel and accommodation costs awarded.

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Photography Kraken Creative

UK Trade & Investment

UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) is the Government organisation that helps UK-based companies succeed in an increasingly global economy. Its range of expert services are tailored to the needs of individual businesses to maximise their international success, by providing companies with knowledge, advice and practical support.

Its dual aims are to enhance the competitiveness of companies in the UK through overseas trade and investments, and also to attract a continuing high level of quality foreign direct investment, through providing assistance to overseas businesses that want to set up locations in the UK. UKTI is an international organisation with headquarters in London and Glasgow.

Across its network UK Trade & Investment employs around 2,300 staff and advisers, including overseas in UK embassies, high commissions, consulates and trade offices, and in the nine English regions. It brings together the work of the Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) and the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform.

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The Soft Landing Zone programme is an extremely cost-efficient way for small companies to establish an overseas sales presence and takes away many of the practical difficulties of being able to operate, both physically and virtually, overseas. The programme aims to attract small to mediumsized companies, particularly those involved in research and development and high growth technology, which may be interested in joint research and development projects, outsourcing, setting up a second office or undertaking a joint venture.

It will also offer a reciprocal service for foreign owned companies interested in doing business in this country, via a network of UK science parks.

If British industry is to compete in a global market then a global presence is required.

The UK Soft Landing Zone will provide innovative businesses with a relatively riskfree opportunity to do just that, through university science parks. History over the past 100 years has seen innovative British industry relocate from rivers and sea ports to key manufacturing hubs – science parks may well prove the future for forward-thinking UK companies. www.ukbasepoint.com

Tim Luft Tim Luft is an ICT Programmes Manager for Coventry University Enterprises Ltd and an honorary research fellow at Coventry University. He has a commercial background in the establishment of large-scale, public private partnerships, focusing upon technology transfer. He has been involved in developing the ICT/Innovation department within the regional development agency of the West Midlands and has since been the lead on the roll-out of large scale e-business and broadband programmes.

Coventry University Enterprises Ltd Coventry University Enterprises (CUE) is a wholly owned-subsidiary of Coventry University and the vehicle through which all commercial, income-generating work is handled. CUE seeks to maximise the commercial potential of the University’s skills, expertise and resources.

To this end, it provides a gateway to these capabilities for a range of external bodies and assists other parts of the University to access and exploit commercial opportunities.

CUE focuses on innovation, design, health, environment and ICT at a regional, national, European and international levels. It has supported thousands of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) through their initial establishment and with specific projects, as well as having a solid history with larger companies such as BT, Jaguar and Hewlett Packard.

In addition, CUE has considerable experience of working closely with public organisations and government bodies. It has long-standing working relationships with the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform. It has a leading position in relation to regional policy development, and a track record of direct delivery of innovation and business supportrelated activity.

Self-help

massage

For many parents of children with disabilities, the typical role of primary caregiver takes on a much more complicated dimension, balancing time-consuming and complex treatment regimes with other aspects of family life and work commitments. Higher levels of stress are frequently reported, often leading to anger, frustration, depression, anxiety, denial, guilt or a sense of isolation.

However, it has been found that enabling parents to participate more fully in their child’s treatment can help alleviate such symptoms. Training aimed at promoting relevant skills and competencies is very important and has been shown to help reduce stress in both mothers and fathers.

A Training & Support Programme (TSP) developed by Dr Lesley Powell at Coventry

University teaches parents simple massage techniques for use in the home. Consisting of seven, weekly, one-hour sessions, parents learn how to carry out gentle massage on their child. One-on-one instruction is given by a qualified therapist, tailored to the needs of the specific parent and child concerned.

The TSP helps parents feel that they are doing something to help their child, as well as increasing the sense of closeness and bond between them. Over time, parents have reported reduced feelings of psychological distress and a greater overall satisfaction with life. It can also be beneficial to the child in many different ways, including improvements in sleep patterns, mobility, eating and bowel movements, or perceived emotional well-being.

SAME but DIFFERENT Life at university can be challenging in any number of ways for students, and difficulties in their home and personal lives will often complicate the learning experience. Now researchers at Coventry University’s Centre for Media, Arts and Performance (CeMAP) have designed and produced a new resource pack, Same but Different, aimed at helping staff in higher education deal constructively with a range of issues which students may have to face. The pack contains a series of short films (on DVD) which cover issues such as mental distress, elder care, cross-cultural tension, disability, sexuality and age discrimination.

Understanding and supporting students through such issues helps to maximise the learning experience, and enables them to interact with the wider world feeling confident and empowered.

The ways in which sensitive issues are handled is therefore crucial. The workbook which accompanies the films provides ideas and questions for trainers to use in staff development sessions. Word versions of the workbook are included on the DVD, enabling trainers to create their own tailor-made handouts.

Same but Different leads on from the earlier Meeting the Challenge project, drawing on research from universities, the National Union of Students, SKILL and other equality and diversity organisations, as well as from students themselves. Developed in response to a brief from the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) to develop ‘imaginative and useful applied projects’ to support its Leadership, Governance and Management agenda for higher education, the pack has been highly praised for its relevance and user-friendliness. www.coventry.ac.uk/samebutdifferent

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NEWS IN BRIEF

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SLAVES to fashion With many leading high street brands now going ‘ethical’, fair trade is becoming an increasingly important selling point. However for Tabeisa, a charity dedicated to promoting entrepreneurship in some of the world’s poorest communities, creating new trade based on ethical supplier relationships is its starting premise.

‘Many of the women making the dresses previously lived on less than a dollar a day. Since the Design4life competition, they now earn between eleven and twelve’ A critical area of the whole project is the encouragement and promotion of entrepreneurship. So staff and community development programmes have been designed and developed. Project team members also visit schools to promote entrepreneurship at all levels of education.

During the last eighteen months over seven hundred staff and community groups have completed a Tabeisa entrepreneurship programme and some have also now registered on the Tabeisa Masters in Entrepreneurship course.

Tabeisa’s involvement in Ghana started a couple of years ago following its success in South Africa. Backed by the EU and the UK’s Department for Education and Skills, Tabeisa had managed to set up

and expand hundreds of businesses, creating thousands of jobs. It was consequently invited into Ghana. Here it found that access to European markets and better product designs were desperately needed if there was to be sustainable economic growth.

Global Mamas, located on Ghana’s Cape Coast, is one co-operative to benefit from Tabeisa’s support. Consisting of 38 individually owned small businesses, it employs around 200 women – mostly batik makers and machinists (seamstresses) – with around another 100 trainees. Together they produce a range of beautiful handcrafted clothing and accessories.

The Tabeisa Design4life competition invited aspiring student fashion designers in the UK and Ghana to create a cotton dress in batik print to be sold in Topshop, one of Britain’s leading fashion retailers. From over 60 entries, two winning designs were chosen, which then went to Global Mamas for mass production. This is the biggest order the co-operative has ever had and it is enabling it to expand, providing a fair income to even more women.

Showcased at the opening event of last year’s Ethical Fashion Show in Paris, the dresses were launched in Topshop this spring, enjoying prime position in the main window display of its Oxford Street store.

Receiving high-profile media coverage, the launch was covered on BBC Breakfast, BBC lunchtime News, BBC World, Reuters, British Satellite News and Sky. The dresses were a huge hit with shoppers and sold out within four days. Topshop has subsequently placed more orders with Global Mamas for future designs.

‘Products bought from Global Mamas help the women who are living in poverty to make some much-needed money for their families. All the proceeds go directly to them’, said Professor Conlon. ‘Many of the women involved in making the dresses have previously been used to living on less than a dollar a day. As a result of the Design4life competition, they are now earning between eleven and twelve dollars a day.’

Plans are presently underway to take the Design4Life experience to other African countries such as South Africa and Kenya with a fashion, textiles and jewellery design competition. www.tabeisa.com

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From the same window that British traders used to supervise the loading of slaves onto ships on the Gold Coast over 200 years ago, a beautiful Ghanaian model gazes out. High up in Cape Coast Castle, the room offers panoramic views of the town, harbour and coastline – ideal not only for overseeing a gruesome slave trade and former colony, but also a perfect location for a modern day fashion shoot – a positive demonstration of today’s good relations between the two countries.

The models wear the winning designs of a pioneering competition designed to spark sustainable trade between Ghana and the UK and European high streets. Design4Life Ghana was initiated by Tabeisa, a charity set up in 1994 with the aim of alleviating poverty through entrepreneurship.

Tabeisa is a consortium of six higher education institutions: two in the UK (Coventry University and the University of Greenwich) and four in South Africa.

Coventry University Professor Jane Conlon MBE, Chief Executive of Tabeisa, explains the kind of support provided: ‘Tabeisa helps people to start their own business or get their project going by providing business advice, user-friendly learning materials and assistance in finding and developing suitable markets.’

Above Photographed at Ghana's Cape Coast Castle - a Ghanaian model wearing one of the winning 'Design4Life' competition batik print dresses - sold in the UK through TopShop.

Just one of the many handcrafted products available for sale through Tabeisa's trading arm: Exclusive Roots www.exclusiveroots.com

Jane Conlon Professor Jane Conlon is a member of staff at Coventry University. She is Chief Executive of the Tabeisa company, a consortium of South African and British universities, of which Coventry University is one of the founding members.

In January 2006 Jane was awarded an MBE for her services to disadvantaged communities in Africa.

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Research being carried out at Coventry University could have a dramatic impact on specialists working in the extremely sensitive and dangerous area of bomb disposal.

Photography Kraken Creative

The NP Aerospace bomb disposal suit, the ‘Mark VI explosives ordnance disposal (EOD) suit’, is the most advanced of its kind in the world today. Developed in close conjunction with the British Army, never has a piece of equipment of this nature been so extensively tested throughout all stages of its development.

Made of a material called ‘aramid’ – the generic name for the brand Kevlar – the suit is designed to protect the bomb disposal operative whilst rendering safe any explosive devices. However, it is clearly vital that the suit does not cause any serious detrimental effects which might impede an operator’s ability to undertake such a demanding task. The suit makes use of scientific developments, advances in materials and innovative design to provide the wearer, with improved protection, substantially improved mobility, flexibility, visibility and the ability to work in more confined spaces.

The company is presently working with two teams at Coventry University to investigate new advanced sensing technologies, as well as looking at ways to minimise the thermal strain of such protective clothing on the wearer.

Advanced sensing technology The dense, heavy protective clothing worn during assignments means that operators often experience high, uncomfortable and potentially dangerous temperatures. The aim of the research is therefore to develop a ‘wearable’ wireless heat sensing system, suitable for deployment in manned bomb disposal missions.

The intended system should be capable of making autonomous decisions related to the actuation of the cooling system within the suit to increase the comfort of the wearer. In addition, it will allow an external observer to remotely monitor the health and comfort of the operator.

Systems for deployment in this situation are constrained in several ways however. First, they must be as small as possible to minimise any discomfort. Second, the power available is limited and must last throughout the duration of the mission. And third, whilst wires carrying signals within the suit are impractical, wireless communications are limited by the signal jammers carried by the operator. The combination of these factors mean that an innovative solution is needed in order to meet the goals.

Researchers at the University’s Cogent Computing Applied Research Centre, Dr Elena Gaura and PhD student John Kemp, have developed a prototype sensing system for testing and experimentation purposes. A further, more advanced, prototype is currently in design. As well as being a step towards the final product, this prototype allows the collection of additional data related to conditions within the suit and their impact on the wearer. These in turn will allow future prototype revisions to be refined.

A visualisation application has also been developed for the purpose of testing and experimentation. This allows the data to be represented in a much more intuitive and easy-to-understand format, allowing quicker interpretation of the results. This application also forms the basis for the remote monitoring component of the final system.

Future research will look at modelling and decision-making engines, backed up by practical experimentation based on both the prototype sensor and visualiser systems.

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‘Whilst protection against potential blasts is obviously essential, wearing an EOD suit can have negative effects on the heat balance of the body’

Thermal strain Researchers Dr Doug Thake and Dr Mike Price from the University’s Human Performance Applied Research Group are testing the thermal strain associated with wearing a bomb disposal suit in hot environments. Whilst protection against potential blasts is obviously essential, wearing an EOD suit can have negative effects on the heat balance of the body, resulting in heat storage and rising body temperature, until exhaustion finally occurs.

The suit weighs approximately 30 kilos for an average male, without its body cooling pack, and the body can lose up to 1.5 kilos of sweat per hour whilst wearing it. The overall aim of the study therefore, is to be able to quantify physiological strain by assessing how hot and tired the wearer feels whilst wearing various different suit combinations.

Although few manufacturers use physiological assessments of personal protective clothing, the team of physiologists and sport and exercise scientists were approached by NP Aerospace to conduct a comprehensive study involving physiological, perceptual and psychological responses during simulations in temperatures of around 40ºC. Designed to answer questions such as ‘what is the magnitude of heat stress?’ and ‘how does increased body temperature affect physical and mental performance?’, various combinations of the suit have been tested, including two forms of protective trousers and the use of a dry ice-based cooling system.

The testing programme is based upon occupational activities and includes slow walking on a treadmill, unloading and loading weights from a rucksack, crawling and searching activity, arm cranking and cognitive tests. Aspects of hand-to-eye co-ordination and psychological performance are also assessed.

Tests are carried out in four 15 minute cycles, throughout which measurements are taken on core body and skin temperatures, as well as heart rate. Participants are regularly asked to report on how hard they are working and how hot they feel. The body’s hydration status is assessed by measuring body mass, urine and blood samples before and after participation.

The investigations undertaken so far have demonstrated a dramatic increase in physiological strain. However, physiological benefits have been shown to arise from a combination of cooling ambient air (via a dry ice-based device) and lighter-weight trousers (designed to optimise thermal comfort and mobility). Further studies to address the relationship between thermal variables and perceived thermal strain are now needed.

The suit has been featured on North One Television’s ‘I didn’t know that’ programme, screened on the National Geographic channel.

Above Rigorous testing of the Mark VI explosives ordnance disposal suit (EOD)

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Bridging the skills gap The UK must develop a more highly skilled workforce as a matter of urgency. A high-profile employer engagement programme delivered

by Coventry University’s School of Lifelong Learning is driving forward new ways for universities to work with employers. The Dean of the School of Lifelong Learning, explains.

enables the programme to dovetail with, and give synergy to, employers' existing training practices.

Some employers are still sceptical about the ability of higher education (HE) to adapt to their needs, and so designing ways that HE institutions can engage with them – and their employees – is central to the programme’s success. Whilst research shows that private and public sector employers need to develop qualifications for middle managers and senior supervisors, for some, university-based learning often lacks the necessary flexibility.

In this innovative approach, by involving employers more closely, listening to them and identifying their needs, a programme can be developed and delivered which explicitly meets their business requirements.

Customised learning and assessment is based on real-work issues from the learners’ organisation, and work-based delivery and assessment mean that time ‘off-thejob’ is kept to an absolute minimum. The qualification essentially combines HE with professional development to help develop business skills.

‘Based around real organisational issues, instead of classroom-based theory, students are able to apply real-world solutions and then expand their knowledge’ Each employer engaged in the project is supported by a dedicated Learning & Development Consultant, (LDC), who works with them exclusively to combine the role of lecturer, assessor and consultant. Innovative methods of delivery use case studies from the organisation to ensure that learners are engaged with the challenges of their own workplace. Using a ‘cradle to grave’ approach, LDCs support the identification and diagnosis of needs, design and delivery, as well as the follow-up evaluation of the programme’s impact on organisational and personal performance.

Although the project is still in its early stages, successful outcomes are already being reported on a number of levels.

Employer research shows that the approach develops capability, talent and potential.

Through the supporting role of the on-site LDCs, suggestions and ideas given by ‘students’ have changed ways of thinking in their organisation.

Many of the students have lower level qualifications and would never have attempted a University qualification – the programme is therefore engaging a whole new set of students and opening up the opportunity for further studying at a later stage in their careers.

Based around real organisational issues, instead of classroom-based theory, students are able to apply real-world solutions, and then expand their knowledge and understanding by seeing a theory work in practice. LDCs act as a coach/mentor rather than a teacher, challenging traditional ways of learning from the outset as there is no formal ‘course’ delivery. This approach has been very well received by both students and their employing organisations. And even those who already hold degrees have recognised the worth of the delivery model and are gaining practical applied skills.

In addition to delivering this programme, SoLL is also undertaking applied research into areas addressed by the project – in particular, the role of the University’s teaching staff based at employer organisations; building and managing relationships with large employers; and the interface between University systems and customised on-site delivery.

Dr Darryl Bibby Dr Darryl Bibby joined the University in 1999 and is the Dean of the School of Lifelong Learning. Formerly a Director of marketing, he brings commercial experience into HE. Based on the belief that universities should be providing the learning that employers and organisations need, the School of Lifelong Learning has seen student numbers grow by around 2,500 in the last 2 years.

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To meet the Government’s target of becoming a world leader in skills by 2020, a 29 per cent rise in high-level workers is necessary. These findings come from the publication of the Leitch Review of Skills earlier this year.

The report sets out a compelling vision of the UK's long-term skills needs, advising that responsibility for achieving such ambitions lies jointly with Government, employers and individuals. Despite a backdrop of continued economic strength, some aspects of the country’s skills base remain weak. With emerging economies such as India and China growing dramatically, there is obviously increasing competition from overseas.

In today’s service-led economy, the UK’s natural resource is its people.

Despite rising school and college standards and strong growth in graduate numbers however, much of this potential remains untapped – skills are the key to unlocking this. Increasing the number of employees attaining higher level skills will have a significant impact on the UK’s competitiveness and productivity. Consequently, the drive to develop higher skills has gained momentum, and the development of the workforce – knowledge, skills and capability – has become a policy imperative for the Government, played out in a number of White and Green Papers.

In December 2006, Coventry University’s School of Lifelong Learning (SoLL) was awarded £3.5 million by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE), over a period of three years, to implement its Employer Engagement Project ‘Work-based Learning: Combining Capability and Competence’.

SoLL is working with a number of major national and international organisations to deliver the new programme, including the AA, Caterpillar, NHS and the Carter & Carter Group plc. Sponsored and supported by each organisation’s HR team, this close collaboration

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Digital assistants get to the heart of critical care Of the 78% of hospital doctors who admitted to making mistakes which harmed a patient, only 19% said they reported the error. A new scheme involving the e-working expertise of the University will help improve safety by capturing vital information on mistakes direct from critical care areas, explains Peter Haine.

Around 900,000 incidents where NHS patients are either ‘harmed’ or ‘nearly harmed’ are estimated to occur in UK hospitals every year. 10% of admissions patients for general hospital care suffer from serious and largely preventable errors. However, the concerted efforts to respond to the issue by analysing reports and targeting training have been hampered by concerns abut under-reporting and the quality of information recorded.

Research has looked into the causes of under-reporting of critical incidents and suggested ways to drive improvement, including the use of ward rounds, staff reminders and the use of technology such as handheld mobile computers. The advantage of Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) is their ability to allow staff to collect data on the job, and for information to be forwarded immediately to the risk management team via a wireless network for analysis. Carefully designed systems can provide an easier method of reporting, greater control and flexibility, and potentially also increase the volume of reports and the quality of information.

The current system for clinical adverse event (CAE) reporting at University Hospitals Above NHS staff use hand-held mobile devices to improve patient safety in the UK.

of Coventry and Warwickshire is handled using a paper based system. This has all the attendant risks of inaccurate data being recorded. There are also delays arising from the logistical problems of paper handling and poor lines of communication to the existing CAE recording system. Feedback from the Clinical Governance team to the individual reporting the incident is limited or non-existent, while interpreting and transferring information from paper into the central incident recording database is a time consuming and laborious task. There is also the issue of subjectivity in how the written information is assessed in terms of risk and is categorised by the Governance team.

‘10% of admissions patients for general hospital care suffer from serious and largely preventable errors.’

In 2006, a team of experts was brought together to develop specialist PDAs, involving the Applied Research Centres in Health and Lifestyle Interventions and eWorking together with Savant

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Enterprises, University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, and the Coventry School of Art and Design. The team secured a £15k capital grant to pay for project hardware (PDAs, tablet PCs), and a Knowledge Transfer Enterprise Grant from Coventry University to cover the costs of an evaluation of the user requirements for the study.

A series of application design workshops and interviews were held at the Hospital. As well as informing Savant as to the best way to lay out the screens, the workshops gave

an opportunity for the end-user to handle and use the PDAs. The screen designs evolved quite markedly from the initial designs put forward by Savant’s developers.

Minimising the need to enter text was a key requirement with drop lists and tick boxes being used whenever possible. A range of different PDAs was made available to the Team for selection and they eventually settled on a PDA with a built-in keyboard which would make sure the ‘story’ element of any incident could be properly captured.

Eight members of the Clinical Care Outreach Team piloted the application and provided feedback on their experiences for five months, solely using their PDAs for reporting on incidents. There are now opportunities for the system to have a wider influence in the NHS, with interest being shown at the Healthcare Computing 2007 Conference and the Ergonomics Society Conference. The next step will be an important one. The aim will be for the project to concentrate on feedback, making sure the person reporting the incident is given information on best practice to reduce the likelihood of the problem happening again.

John Latham The Centre for Applied Research in eWorking has been established to help organisations to develop and implement new, ICT enabled working practices that significantly improve the overall performance of the organisation whilst enabling employees to benefit from a more flexible working environment.

The Applied Research Centre in Health and Lifestyle Interventions provides high quality applied research, consultancy and training, underpinned by health psychology.

The Centre’s activities are focused on self-management of long-term health conditions and disability; health behaviour and health services management.

http://www.coventry.ac.uk/researchnet

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STRENGTH in diversity In today’s competitive world, the UK’s future prosperity depends increasingly on the practical application of innovation. Located at Coventry University on its award-winning Technology Park, the West Midlands Technology Network is helping to improve the productivity and competitiveness of hundreds of SMEs through the transfer of knowledge and skills from the region’s universities.

When Sony Ericsson took over Marconi, Plastic Products ABC Ltd saw a downturn in business while the two companies merged their operations. The prospect of re-building a customer base in a market dominated by China, India and Eastern Europe left them with some stark choices.

Plastic Products ABC had the expertise and operations to diversify, but at what potential cost and what level of risk? Given all the support services available to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) out there, their first thought wouldn’t have been a university. The day-to-day issues of one SME aren’t expected to even feature on the radar.

But it was their work with the West Midlands Technology Network (WMTN) which gave them the inspiration and direction to transform the business.

‘Firms don’t need more consultancy…what really matters is having someone who can make things happen’ Funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the European Social Fund (ESF), the WMTN operates by bringing together specific and complementary resources and expertise from each of the institutions. The WMTN has recently announced that in the four and half years since it was set up, it has generated over £50 million in terms of sales created

for small firms in the region, with 1,300 jobs safeguarded or created.

Firms don’t need more consultancy. They know what the issues are, they can see the potential in what they’re doing. What really matters is having someone who can make things happen. And this is what has made the WMTN so effective. There appeared to be a niche opportunity for Plastic Products ABC in automotive accessories, and an aerodynamic sports utility roof box. The WMTN gave them a project manager to provide the link between business needs and the academics and students working around the region.

WMTN confirmed the product potential through market research and moved Plastic Products ABC through to the final stages, providing the specialist equipment needed

to produce prototypes, and testing the aerodynamics of the new designs in the Coventry University wind tunnel. The strength of the service is in the diversity of the team that can be offered. This meant Plastic Products also had input in creating the new brand identity of Dartz Performance for the roof box product, which they now believe will be the lever for opening up new international markets.

Diversifying is a risk. But universities can now help companies to seize new opportunities and act as a ‘critical friend’ who offers expertise, facilities that might normally be out of reach, and, importantly a dose of confidence. www.wm-technet.co.uk

The WMTN is a consortium of five major universities and colleges, bringing together some of the very best innovation centres in the region:

Coventry University - The Design Institute - The Design Hub

University of Wolverhampton - The Institute for Innovation and Enterprise - School of Engineering and Built Environment - School of Computing and Information Technology

Staffordshire University - Electronics Design Support Centre

The Design Institute is a joint research venture between the School of Art & Design and the Faculty of Engineering & Computing, uniting the University's design researchers. It reflects a growing recognition of the innovation and wealth creation benefits of collaboration between design disciplines. The Institute's primary areas of research include: automotive design; information design; design methods and processes; and design for safety and reliability.

The Design Institute SME Support Programme can provide a comprehensive package of product design, innovation, development, knowledge engineering, marketing, financial management and technology transfer. Its aim is to help new and existing small firms improve their competitive position through the application of leading-edge design and product development technologies. This fully-funded programme of support is delivered by project staff recruited specifically to provide assistance tailored to the individual needs of small firms.

University of Central England - Jewellery Industry Innovation Centre - The Technology Innovation Centre

Coventry University Design Hub

- The Product Design and Realisation Centre.

With a clear focus on the University's international strength in product design, the Design Hub provides accommodation for small to mediumsized design companies and companies where design is an integral part of their business strategy.

Together the unique network delivers a focused package of high quality support. Since its launch in January 2003, it has helped over 750 companies to enhance their products and services through the application of knowledge and innovation. The key to the WMTN’s success has been its ability to engage with SMEs by providing practical support to develop all elements of a partner’s activities, from product design to the implementation of processes that improve management and distribution.

It comprises 17 air-conditioned units, let on flexible lease terms.

It provides an ideal environment for design-led companies which are innovative in their approach and which will benefit from opportunities to work with the University to grow and develop their business and ideas.

Walsall College

Coventry University Design Institute Coventry University has established an exceptional reputation for expertise in the area of design, and has provided practical, user-friendly support for new product development to small firms and new business start-ups in the region for almost two decades.

The Design Hub has recently acquired world-class facilities to further support the design process including a presentation suite with three image projection walls; a workshop with exterior access for practical working, modelling and making; meeting room and training space; and a networking area for like-minded designers.

Left Plastic Products ABC are not only supplying to major companies such as Jaguar and London Taxis International, but have recently designed and manufactured their own product - 'Piggybax' which is a portable logistics solution on long-haul vehicles, available for retail.

Photography Kraken Creative

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West Midlands Technology Network

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ULTRASOUND THINKING to combat cancer A revolutionary new ultrasonic treatment for cancer offers a surgery-free procedure for patients in the UK. Ultrasound has proved very effective in this area as Professor Tim Mason, Head of Sonochemistry at Coventry University, explains.

Ultrasound has been employed in a variety of ways in the medical field for many years – diagnostically to look inside the body and observe a growing foetus, in physiotherapy as a tool to aid the rejuvenation of muscles and pain control, and now in the treatment of tumours.

‘Feedback has been extremely positive, with no reports of pain, side-effects or marking on the body’ High intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) employs equipment which emits high frequency sound waves. Patients lie over a small bath of water containing two concentric ultrasound transducers. One transmits a low-power diagnostic beam, allowing the doctor to visualise the tumour and guide the treatment; the other produces a high-power focus which targets and kills the cancerous cells by heating them to temperatures of up to 90ºC. The present work at Coventry grew from the Fifth Meeting of the European Society of Sonochemistry in Cambridge in 1996 with a group of Chinese researchers who developed the HIFU system. A subsequent visit to

Chongqing in 1999 showed the operating theatre instrument in action; later introduced and described to a UK funding group, it was eventually brought back to the Churchill hospital in Oxford where trials and tests on the effectiveness of HIFU on kidney and liver cancers have recently been completed.

Feedback from UK patients who have been successfully treated using the new technology has been extremely positive, with no reports of pain, side-effects or marking on the body. Patients are also often able to return home the next day. Follow-up MRI scans have shown the tumours to be dead and even beginning to shrink.

Unfortunately HIFU is only useful to treat a single tumour or part of a large tumour, and cannot be used to treat those which are more widespread. It is therefore not suitable for people with cancer which has spread to more than one place in their body. HIFU can also not pass through either solid bone or air, so is not suitable for the treatment of every type of cancer.

In addition to its use in cancer therapy, sonochemistry is already being applied to a wide range of other areas including land and water remediation, the generation of nanoparticles and the extraction of medicinal compounds from plants.

Prof Tim Mason Professor Tim Mason is Head of Sonochemistry at Coventry University.

He has been researching the applications of ultrasound for the past 25 years and is scientific advisor to the implementation of its medical application in the UK. He is an Honorary Professor at Chongqing Medical University in China.

Sonochemistry Applied Research Centre The Sonochemistry Centre was established in 1994. It retains its primary aim of securing and maintaining a position of international excellence in a variety of applications of power ultrasound in chemistry and processing technologies. The Centre is a national and international resource base for topics related to power ultrasound and provides expertise on applications of sonochemistry to academic institutions, companies and government organisations.

MEETINGS INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION

Inside the next issue

Contact us

Knowledge Transfer: Coventry University's Centre for Media Arts and Performance is providing a Championship Football Club with dynamic matchday solutions.

If you would like to find out more about any of the articles within this issue, if you have a general enquiry about applied research, or to subscribe to future issues of Innovate, contact us at the following:

The Coventry SMART campus: how a unique commercial partnership with CISCO is transforming the campus landscape.

Telephone: 024 7623 6364

Institute for Creative Enterprise: A first glimpse of the University's creative hothouse.

Website: www.coventry.ac.uk/researchnet

Email: cpu.cad@coventry.ac.uk

AUTUMN 2007 INNOVATE 32

Do you need to find an innovative solution to a difficult problem?

At Coventry University, our applied research teams work closely with your organisation, applying their knowledge and expertise to devise inventive and original solutions for real-world problems.

At a local, national and international level, we work with clients across the public, private and voluntary sectors.

From art to design, health to sports, regeneration to human security, mathematics to engineering, computing to communications – we can find a solution that’s right for you.

Applied Research at Coventry University www.coventry.ac.uk/researchnet

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