First industry-ready graduates from the Institute for Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering

The Institute for Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering (AME), a joint collaboration between Coventry University and Unipart Manufacturing, held a special ceremony in the Cathedral grounds to mark three years since its launch.

Seven graduates picked up their BEng degrees, having all secured employment, with five of them directly involved in industry for firms in the automotive, motorsport and metals sector. Other students on the first cohort are continuing on to complete their Masters.

“This is a fantastic milestone for us and highlights how a new approach to developing future manufacturing talent can work,” explained Carl Perrin, director of AME.

“We set out the vision in 2014 to create the UK’s first ‘Faculty on the Factory Floor’, an ambitious vision that linked up industry and academia and changed the focus of learning to real life experience of shopfloor projects and giving them access to the latest technology.”

He continued: “It’s an approach that has worked as we have produced much more rounded engineers that are comfortable operating in a high pressured working environment and understand the dynamics of being part of a team.

“I’m delighted for our first cohort, especially with the fact that five of them have gone into industry-related positions. Three of them have started work at Unipart Powertrain Applications (UPA), one is working with SAPA Hydro and another is starting his career in the motorsport arena.”

The Institute for Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering is located on the Unipart Manufacturing site in Coventry and is housed in a 1700m² purpose-built hub.

In addition to creating industry-ready graduates, AME also boasts a team of technology specialists and professors who are working together to develop new powertrain and energy transfer solutions for automotive, aerospace and renewables.

This has included over £7 million of funded projects and already led to Unipart securing a new fuel rail project for the Ford Fox engine and the start of production on a lightweight exhaust system for Aston Martin.

AME www.ame.co.uk