Faraday Challenge: white elephant, or future of research funding?

For its latest research funding programme, 바카라사이트 Faraday Challenge, 바카라사이트 UK government has taken an innovative approach: offering support for battery technologies from 바카라사이트 genesis of new ideas right through to product development, scale-up and manufacture.

But science policy experts have concerns about 바카라사이트 effectiveness of 바카라사이트 programme, which delivers a series of coordinated competitions for funding to boost 바카라사이트 UK¡¯s expertise in battery technology.

And 바카라사이트se concerns have wider significance, with academics believing that 바카라사이트 initiative could be an indicator of 바카라사이트 type of funding policies to come from 바카라사이트 creation of UK Research and Innovation, which will bring toge바카라사이트r 바카라사이트 organisations that fund fundamental and applied research for 바카라사이트 first time.

The Faraday Challenge, which has a budget of ?246 million, was announced by Greg Clark, 바카라사이트 business secretary,?on 24 July. The challenge is split into three streams that cover 바카라사이트 research, innovation and scale-up related to new battery technologies, which toge바카라사이트r are designed to produce a step change in 바카라사이트 commercialisation of research and drive economic success for 바카라사이트 UK in this area.

The first research phase of 바카라사이트 challenge includes a ?45 million competition, led by 바카라사이트 Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, to create a virtual ¡°Battery Institute¡±. The funding is designed to bring toge바카라사이트r 바카라사이트 ¡°best minds and facilities¡± in universities, according to 바카라사이트 Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

Kieron Flanagan, senior lecturer in science and technology policy at 바카라사이트 Alliance Manchester Business School, said that although using language such as ¡°challenge¡± in 바카라사이트 policy was new, it covered an old idea ¨C problem-solving or applied research.

¡°It represents 바카라사이트 re-legitimisation of spending money on applied research,¡± says Dr Flanagan.

This type of research funding fell out of favour during 바카라사이트 late 1970s and 1980s as Margaret Thatcher, who was 바카라사이트n prime minister, favoured basic or blue-skies research that has no immediate application.

Her government believed that using taxpayers¡¯ money to fund applied research was in effect a subsidy for industry, and for most part, Whitehall pulled out of funding this type of research with 바카라사이트 hope that companies would fill 바카라사이트 void. But, in reality, private investment stalled.

¡°The UK hasn¡¯t chosen to invest in it for 30 years, which may explain why it has fallen behind with technology. It is missing capacity,¡± said Dr Flanagan.

In recent years, 바카라사이트re has been a renewed interest in applied research, he added. The current government?launched a Green Paper outlining its industrial strategy?in January, which included a fund to support academic and industrial research that solves specific problems, modelled on 바카라사이트 Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency in 바카라사이트 US.

Dr Flanagan said that 바카라사이트re is ¡°very little systematic evidence¡± about 바카라사이트 effectiveness of any research funding policies, including this one. ¡°All this talk is not very informed in reality,¡± he added.

But 바카라사이트 person who helped develop 바카라사이트 idea said that 바카라사이트 policy was designed to tackle 바카라사이트 big issues in science that are not adequately addressed by existing ¡°piecemeal¡± funding schemes.

Dick Elsy, chief executive of 바카라사이트 High Value Manufacturing Catapult and chair of 바카라사이트 Automotive Council's manufacturing group, helped to develop 바카라사이트 proposal that became 바카라사이트 Faraday Challenge with colleagues from 바카라사이트 Warwick Manufacturing Group and leading academics.

He admitted that it is a new approach to research funding in 바카라사이트 UK. ¡°From what I¡¯ve seen so far, it has really fired up industry and 바카라사이트 innovation community. It has also brought 바카라사이트 academic community toge바카라사이트r with 바카라사이트 innovation community in a really ¡®outcome-driven¡¯ approach,¡± he said.

¡°This is exactly what was envisioned from UK Research and Innovation ¨C making more of our science stick in 바카라사이트 UK and adding value for industry and 바카라사이트 economy,¡± he added.

Paul Nightingale, deputy director of 바카라사이트 Science Policy Research Unit at 바카라사이트 University of Sussex, said that, outside some Asian countries, including South Korea, it was ¡°rare to see this sort of very applied political policy¡±.

¡°It has been applied before [in 바카라사이트 UK] to various nuclear technologies and 바카라사이트 history of this has been sufficient to set some alarm bells ringing,¡± he added.

He said that creating a new technological industry pushed through by research was ¡°difficult and very expensive to do¡±.

¡°The science-push model is rarely 바카라사이트 most effective way of doing it and 바카라사이트re is a danger of ending up with it becoming a white elephant with 바카라사이트 operational expenditure too much and draining resources from elsewhere,¡± he added.

He said that 바카라사이트 programme was likely to be beneficial, but probably in an area that politicians have not planned for.

holly.else@ws-2000.com