Southampton research is underpinning a new project that could revolutionise power cable performance.

The University of Southampton will be collaborating with energy companies, a technology innovation company and cable manufacturers to develop a new generation of insulation material for power cables, to improve their performance in onshore applications and for the growing offshore renewable energy industry.

The technology underpinning the project was initiated nearly two decades ago by University academic Professor Alun Vaughan and his team, who showed that by blending together different polymers it was possible to retain the desirable characteristics of each of the components and produce materials with significantly improved overall performance. They initially demonstrated the viability of this using different polyethylenes, before moving on to the much more challenging and novel case of polypropylene.

The attraction of polypropylene is that the resulting materials are able to withstand higher temperatures. In cable applications, this means that greater fluctuations in power flow can be accommodated, leading to improved reliability in future power networks that will include an increasing proportion of intermittent renewable generation. To achieve this, after the material development phase, the next steps will be to adapt the cable manufacturing process and to test the compatibility of the concept with the accessories system of the grid.

Over the past 20 years the concept has been developed and is now being translated to engineering a new generation of power cables with the new three-year SUSCABLE II project. The collaboration sees Southampton working with the Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult, GnoSys Global Ltd, National Grid, Scottish Power and cable manufacturers.

Alun, Head of the Electronics and Electrical Engineering research group in Electronics and Computer Science, said: “It is very rewarding to see work that we initiated as pure, curiosity-driven research being developed into real-world applications that can help provide solutions to some of the biggest energy transmission challenges facing the world today.

“We hope that the materials expertise that Southampton can bring to this collaboration will be fundamental in developing a medium voltage cable design that will be taken to market. Ultimately, our aim is to be at the forefront of this major change in cable technology and use this project as a springboard to develop high voltage cables using thermoplastics, which will provide better performance in service and can be recycled at the end of life.â€?

ORE Catapult Innovation Engineering & Programmes Director Chris Hill added: “Innovative technological improvements in the performance of onshore and undersea power cables is an important step in the drive to lengthen the life of connections between offshore wind turbines, and between wind and marine offshore renewable energy power stations and onshore connections, improving their ability to handle increasingly variable peak loads.

“Using innovative materials and testing their robustness and resilience in cable designs could lead to a step change in electrical cable technology, and ultimately drive down whole life network costs.â€?

Regius Professor Nick Jennings has been selected to advance the world-leading teaching and research of Electronics and Computer Science (ECS) at the University of Southampton.

Professor Jennings, a Chief Scientific Adviser to the UK Government, will assume the high-profile post as head of the ECS in August.

He replaces Professor Neil White, who completes an accomplished term of four and a half years which maintained the academic unit’s reputation as one of the best places in the world to study electronics, electrical engineering, computer science, web science and IT.

“I’m delighted and honoured to be the next head of ECS,â€? Professor Jennings said. “It’s a fantastic department with great staff and students.

“I look forward to seeing us continue to lead nationally and internationally in our research, education and enterprise endeavours and to making the most of the fact that we combine computer science and electronics in the same department.â€?

Professor Jennings’ expertise in the areas of artificial intelligence, autonomous systems and agent-based computing led to an appointment last year as the UK’s inaugural Regius Professor of Computer Science.

Across a distinguished career, he has generated more than £23 million in research grants, published more than 550 articles and graduated more than 40 PhD students.

Professor Bashir M Al-Hashimi, Dean of the Faculty of Physical Sciences and Engineering, said: “Nick has been doing some excellent work and I’m looking forward to working with him as Head of ECS and as a member of our Faculty Executive Group.

“This outstanding academic unit has a rich history in innovative research and enterprise combined with world-leading education, and I am confident that Nick is the best person to take it forward to even greater success.â€?

The University of Southampton is rated first in the UK for the volume and quality of research in Electrical and Electronic Engineering and 100 per cent of Computer Science research impact was recognised as world-leading or internationally excellent in the 2014 Research Excellence Framework.

The institution is in the UK top 3 for Electronics and Electrical Engineering and the UK top 10 for Computer Science and IT, according to the Guardian University Guide and Times/Sunday Times Good University Guide 2015.

ECS Electronics students have achieved outstanding results in this year’s competition for scholarships offered by the United Kingdom Electronic Skills Foundation (UKESF), gaining 18 places on the Scholarship Programme and consolidating the department’s reputation for consistent success at the top of the UKESF ‘league table’.

The UKESF Scholarship Programme has been running for five years. It was established by the National Microelectronics Institute (NMI) to help attract, prepare and retain talent for the UK electronics industry, and to ensure and enhance its global leadership position. Partners include some of the UK’s leading companies as well as partner universities noted for their excellence in electronics research and education.

The ECS students receiving Scholarships this year will gain a financial award of £1655 for each year of their studies, as well as the opportunity to undertake paid summer placements with some of the UK’s leading companies. ECS students will this year be joining: ARM, SCR, Plextek Consulting, Imagination Technologies, Swindon Silicon Systems, Selex ES, AWE, STFC, Nvidia, Atmel Technologies, Dialog Semiconductor, Fujitsu, and Cirrus Logic. Students also gain industrial mentoring and professional development training at UKESF Summer Workshops.

“This is another fantastic result for Southampton, with 18 ECS students being awarded new scholarships,â€? said Dr Geoff Merrett, Associate Professor in ECS. “It is a testament to the quality and enthusiasm of our students, and to the high regard that industry has for them.â€? The ECS achievement this year extends not only to the award of the largest number of scholarships (over 25 per cent of the total awarded), but to the success rate in terms of the ratio of applications to awards, which is higher than any other university department in the programme. Since the Scholarships were inaugurated, ECS has also gained more awards (51) than any other department.

Many ECS students have benefited from the Scholarship programme over recent years, as well as from the summer placements and summer school. “The UKESF programme has really helped my development as an engineer,â€? said Josh Oldfield, who is in the third year of his MEng degree in Electronic Engineering and has undertaken placements with ARM. “It has given me a chance to develop and test my skills in the engineering workplace, as well as developing my interpersonal skills, and helping the next generation of students embark on their engineering careers.â€?

In 2014 Josh was nominated for the title of UKESF Scholar of the Year, one of two finalists for this annual title awarded by the NMI. Over the course of the Programme ECS has had two winners for the title Scholar of the Year (Adam Malpass in 2011 and Ashley Robinson in 2013), as well as three runners-up: Josh Oldfield, Sam Hipkin and Tom Dell).

“We fully support the aims of the UK Electronics Skills Foundation and value highly the opportunities created for students,â€? says Professor Neil White, Head of Electronics and Computer Science. “As a department with close links to the UK electronics industry, we thoroughly support the aspirations of UKESF in highlighting the outstanding career opportunities that are open to electronic engineering graduates. We work closely with the leading companies in the UK and worldwide, and are extremely proud of the contribution that our graduates continue to make to the development of electronics.

“This year we are also extremely pleased that one-third of our 18 Scholarships have been awarded to female students, underlining the considerable efforts the department is making through our outreach programme and our Athena Swan initiative to improve diversity in our subject at university and in industry more widely.â€?

------- UKESF is a collaboration between industry, universities and the public sector, which promotes the electronics industry and its value to society and the economy, and aims to secure a sustainable supply of quality and industry-prepared graduates. It offers a sector-specific programme for employers in the electronics sector to engage with young people at school and university through to graduate employment.

ECS Alumnus and Visiting Professor Max Toti has this year seen his company Captec recognized for its success in three notable business listings.

Max set up Captec in 1985. The company designs and manufactures ruggedised computer systems that can be deployed anywhere, regardless of operating environment. Captec's expertise is to design and manufacture computers that will operate reliably, over a long life, in any environment, engineering protection for any one of many stress factors such as temperature extremes, shock, vibration, dust, and fluids. The company is increasingly developing computing platforms at the edge of technology in Mobile Computing, the Internet of Things and Wearable computing applications, with embedded software and cloud connectivity. Captec's Headquarters and operations are based in Fareham with operations in Canada and the USA.

Over recent months Captec has won a place in the Sunday Times Profit Track 100 league table of 100 most profitable companies in the UK; it has been included in the London Stock Exchange list of 1000 companies to inspire Britain, and it has won one of the South's Most Ambitious Companies Awards.

Max commented: “As an ECS alumnus I am proud to attribute part of my career and company’s successes to the excellent degree that ECS gave me, and the self-confidence that it inspired. ECS has created, and continues to create a huge pool of highly talented engineers and computer scientists who are changing the world. The combined successes of ECS alumni around the world is an inspiration to all others following our footsteps, reinforcing the message that if we can do it, so can you. ECS continues to pioneer the nurturing of future talent and provide support and encouragement to its alumni to spark the new generations of entrepreneurs.â€?

Max has provided mentorship to ECS students in recent years and has also addressed graduating students in recent years, passing on some of the lessons that he has learned in his business career. He is a member of the ECS Alumni Board and will be one of the 'Dragons' in our 'Dragons Den' competition taking place on Saturday 2 May.

"We are delighted to see Max and Captec achieving this national and international success and recognition," said Professor Neil White, Head of Electronics and Computer Science. "Our students are able to experience the highest quality of education and gain excellent jobs in industry. Max's success helps provide inspiration to them by demonstrating that it's also possible to set up an innovative company, providing new opportunities for others in a highly competitive field, achieving great success and benefiting UK business. We look forward to more success in the future, from Max and other ECS graduates!"

Professor Dame Wendy Hall has been recognised by the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) for transforming the way the world views computing.

As the first ACM President from outside North America, Dame Wendy initiated the establishment of ACM Councils in Europe, India and China, extending the organisation’s scope to a borderless audience. She also focused on the education of upcoming computer science generations, promoting gender diversity and nurturing talent in computing from all corners of the world. She has been recognised for this work with the Outstanding Contribution to ACM Award, which will be presented at the ACM Awards Banquet in June.

Commenting on the award, current ACM President Alexander L. Wolf said "Hall provided leadership and inspiration at a time when the computing discipline exploded onto the international scene, promoting ACM as the foremost association of computing professionals worldwide.�

A Professor of Computer Science within Electronics and Computer Science at the University of Southampton, Dame Wendy was a founding director of the Web Science Research Initiative to promote the discipline of Web Science and foster research collaboration between the University of Southampton and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). She was President of the British Computer Society and, since 2014, has served as a Commissioner for the Global Commission on Internet Governance. In 2009, she was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE). She was elected President of the ACM in July 2008.

ACM, the Association for Computing Machinery, is the world’s largest educational and scientific computing society, uniting computing educators, researchers and professionals to inspire dialogue, share resources and address the field’s challenges.

Electronics and Computer Science (ECS) achieved excellent results in this year’s Complete University Guide. With first and second place graduate prospect scores for Electronics and Electrical Engineering and for Computer Science, these UK university league tables endorse ECS' success in ensuring its graduates have strong employability skills and industrial experience.

Electronics and Electrical Engineering at Southampton retained its third place position on a range of criteria that included student satisfaction, graduate job prospects, research, and entry standards. In this table, Southampton shares the top three places with Cambridge and Imperial College London and jointly leads the table for graduate prospects.

Computer Science at Southampton saw an increase of five places this year, bringing it to eighth place and sharing second place for graduate prospects with Cambridge.

Alongside ECS within the Faculty of Physical Sciences and Engineering, Physics and Astronomy retained its top-20 position at 19th place for the third year running.

Engineering at Southampton did well across the board, with Aeronautical, Civil and Mechanical Engineering all achieving top five places. Overall, the University of Southampton has moved up to 14th place from last year’s 16th.

Professor Bashir M Al-Hashimi, Dean of the Faculty of Physical Sciences and Engineering commented: “We are very pleased to see these excellent results for Electronics and Computer Science, which reflect the high quality education our students receive within the context of world-class research activity. Our commitment to building strong partnerships with employers – as well as providing state of the art, industry relevant facilities – helps ensure that students are very much in demand by leading high-tech companies for the breadth of their technical understanding.â€?

The Complete University Guide – one of three principal UK-based rankings for UK universities – is compiled by the independent Mayflower Consultants and based on a wide range of criteria.

Davide Zilli from Electronics and Computer Science (ECS) has been named the winner of the 2015 Three Minute Thesis competition (3MT®).

Using just one PowerPoint slide and no additional props or electronic media, postgraduate researcher Davide had just three minutes to present his research. Davide’s research is focused on looking for a critically endangered insect – the New Forest Cicada – using a smartphone app that he developed to track the Cicada’s high-pitched sound.

Speaking about his research, Davide said, “In the future this app has great potential to be extended to other species such as bats and birds or even elephants and rhinos. Eventually I would like to apply everything I have learnt to supporting developing countries through work in charities or non-governmental organisations. Phones and smartphones have a huge market in developing countries, and with these platforms the possibilities are endless.â€?

Davide is completing a PhD in the Institute for Complex Systems Simulation. He is the second researcher from the Faculty of Physical Sciences and Engineering to win the University 3MT competition. In 2014, Physics student Paul Gow took the prize for presenting his research into 'Emitters for Terahertz'.

Berit Plumhoff from the Faculty of Engineering and the Environment was awarded second place with her research entitled: ‘You are what your Mother Eats’. Meanwhile, the People’s Choice award went to Alan Morris from the Faculty of Medicine for his engaging presentation on beating Alzheimer’s disease.

Davide, Berit and Alan will all be awarded with bursaries to support their research. Davide, as grand champion, will represent the University at the national 3MT® competition later this year in Manchester.

Around 180 alumni from across 55 years of ECS history attended our London alumni reception on Tuesday 12 May. The event, which has been held annually in recent years, enables ECS alumni based in London and surrounding areas to meet fellow graduates and ECS staff, and to hear about latest developments in the University and especially in Electronics and Computer Science.

This year’s event was held for the second year in BMA House, Tavistock Square, the headquarters of the British Medical Association. The most senior alumnus present was Professor Anthony Davies, who graduated BSc Electrical Engineering in 1961 and is now an Emeritus Professor of Kings College London. Also present was Mike Payne, one of the founders of SolidWorks, who graduated in 1965. Every decade of the School’s history was represented, with an especially good attendance by recent graduates.

In his address, Professor Neil White, Head of Electronics and Computer Science, reminded alumni that there are many ways of being involved with ECS and its students, including the 'ECS Alumni, University of Southampton' group on LinkedIn, which now has over 1500 members. "Our current students really benefit from the interest and continuing involvement in the School of significant numbers of alumni who take part in the Careers Fair, give presentations in ECS, and sponsor projects and prizes. We very much value these contributions and the successful interactions that result."

In addition to networking and meeting friends and colleagues, alumni were able to hear a presentation by Principal Enterprise Fellow Dr Reuben Wilcock, about Future Worlds, an exciting new project for ECS and the Faculty of Physical Sciences and Engineering. Future Worlds - to be launched officially later this year - will provide a range of opportunities enabling alumni to be involved in student enterprise and activities as mentors, investors, employers, and supporters. It will also offer involvement in all business-related and entrepreneurial activities in ECS, as well as providing wide-ranging information on the people, the events and new ventures that are making the running in exploiting new technologies.

Alumni wanting to be involved in Future Worlds can email future@ecs.soton.ac.uk to register their interest and to find out more.

The new, EU funded, Open Data Incubator for Europe (ODInE), which involves academics from Electronics and Computer Science at the University of Southampton, is today calling out to startups across the UK and Europe, to apply for a place on its new programme with the chance to secure up to €100k grant funding.

The incubator programme, which is being announced at the 2015 World Wide Web Conference in Florence, has places for 50 startup businesses over the next two years. ODInE is being delivered by the Open Data Institute (ODI), University of Southampton and six other European partners, and has received €7.8m of EU funding from the EU’s Horizon 2020 funding programme. New startups will be recruited every two months on a rolling basis.

Elena Simperl, Associate Professor in Electronics and Computer Science at the University of Southampton, one of the ODInE delivery partners, said: "ODInE is both timely and unique. It is timely because, as open data enters the agenda of big and small industry and governments all over the world, we need to do more to ensure that the effort that went into publishing the hundreds of thousands of open data sets now available bears fruit. This can be achieved only by creating ecosystems, such as ODInE, in which open data is used to create economic and social value. It is unique because it gives companies the freedom to work on open data projects that matter to them, and to the society, using any technology, for no equity. A rarity in the accelerator marketplace."

ODInE has been modelled on the ODI’s highly successful Startup programme, which has so far supported 18 companies, nine of which have now graduated from the scheme. Together these companies have secured over £4m in funding and investment since joining and they employ over 70 people.

ODInE is aimed at small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) building a business around open data. Interested startups should register via http://opendataincubator.eu/. Applicants need to submit a short proposal presenting the idea and the budget required. The applicant must be registered with the European Commission as an SME at the time of submission.

Successful applicants are eligible for:

• a grant of up to €100,000 per company
• expert advice from business mentors
• peer-networking and support
• technology and data sets
• coverage in The Guardian datablog
• brokering introductions to business angels and venture capitalists.

Funds can be spent on salaries, equipment, consumables, travels, subcontracting to other parties (e.g. for marketing or legal support), and indirect expenditure (office space, office infrastructure etc. calculated as 25% of the total direct costs).

Each proposal will be assessed using the following criteria:

• Idea - the strength and novelty of the open data idea.
• Impact - the value proposition and potential scale; market opportunity and timing and the social, environmental, economic benefits.
• Team and budget - the knowledge and skills of the team, the capacity to realise the idea and appropriateness of the budget.

The selection team will prioritise those who work on things that matter.

Gavin Starks, CEO at the Open Data Institute, said: “ODInE offers startups access to the latest open data and business expertise, with funding that can make a real difference. In the existing ODI programme we found that startups valued being immersed in an open data ecosystem with others going through the same experience. We are excited that this new programme will be Europe-wide, given Europe’s thriving startup ecosystem and its leadership in areas such as smart cities.â€?

Eight partners, including the ODI, bid for the EU funding to develop ODInE: University of Southampton, The Open Data Institute, Telefonica Open Future, The Guardian, Wayra, Fraunhofer, Open Knowledge Foundation (Germany).

Electronics and Computer Science at The University of Southampton has been ranked as number one in the UK for Electrical and Electronic Engineering according to the 2016 Guardian University Guide. This is the eighth time in the last eleven years that Southampton has topped the table for Electrical and Electronic Engineering.

The University is also ranked in the top 10 by The Guardian for Computer Science and Information Systems in the same guide, rising one place to number seven.

The Guardian tables are based on data from the UK’s National Student Survey and Higher Education Statistics Agency, covering teaching quality and feedback, spending per student, staff/student ratios, job prospects, a “value addedâ€? criteria (comparing students’ degree results with entry qualifications), and entry scores.

The Guardian has traditionally put a strong emphasis on student-centred issues in the construction of their league table, which continues to be an important factor in student choice, particularly in the international market.

“We are delighted with these excellent results for Electronics and Computer Science, which reflect the impact of high quality education and world-class research activity on employability for our graduates.â€? said Professor Neil White, Head of Electronics and Computer Science at the University. “This is great news for prospective students who are thinking about coming to Southampton to study on our degree programmes later this year; our students can be sure that when they graduate they will be in demand by the leading high-tech companies in the world.â€?

The University of Southampton has consolidated its position amongst the UK’s top 15 institutions by placing 14th overall in The Guardian. The climb of five places from last year follows Southampton’s rise to 14th in the recent table published by the Complete University Guide.