Tata Steel, UK govt join hands to advance circular materials innovation
THE JHARKHAND STORY NETWORK Jamshedpur, October 12: Tata Steel, the UK Government and the Royal Academy of Engineering have joined hands to…
THE JHARKHAND STORY NETWORK
Jamshedpur, October 12: Tata Steel, the UK Government and the Royal Academy of Engineering have joined hands to advance research and innovation in sustainable and recycled materials, strengthening industrial collaboration between the UK and India.
The three-year partnership aims to accelerate the development and commercial application of circular materials, improve resource efficiency and support economic growth in both countries. It will also facilitate UK-India policy missions to promote knowledge exchange and generate market intelligence on circularity and resilient supply chains for critical materials and minerals.
The initiative is backed by nearly £1.9 million in funding from the UK Government, matched by £1 million from Tata Steel, combining public funding with industrial expertise to translate promising research into practical solutions.
Up to 15 Research Projects to Receive Support
The partnership is expected to support up to 15 research and innovation projects, with individual grants ranging from £100,000 to £150,000. The grants are scheduled to commence in April 2027 and will run for three years under the Royal Academy of Engineering’s Transforming Systems through Partnership (TSP) programme.
Each project will be jointly led by academic or research partners from the UK and India and must demonstrate a clear pathway towards industrial application, entrepreneurship or wider practical impact.
Successful teams will receive more than financial assistance. They will also benefit from industrial mentoring, networking opportunities and access to Tata Steel’s technical expertise, laboratories and facilities.
Projects with commercialisation or spin-out potential may receive additional mentoring and incubation support from Tata Steel, with assistance tailored to the specific requirements of each initiative.
Focus on Sustainable Manufacturing and Construction
As both countries seek to reduce carbon emissions and minimise environmental impacts while meeting growing infrastructure demands, circular materials are expected to play an increasingly important role in building resource-efficient and resilient economies.
The partnership will focus on translating research breakthroughs into scalable technologies for sustainable construction and manufacturing. It aims to bridge the gap between laboratory innovation and real-world deployment while strengthening supply chains for critical materials and minerals.
Subodh Pandey, Vice-President, Technology, R&D, NMB and Graphene, Tata Steel, said the collaboration would help accelerate the development and adoption of sustainable materials and lower-carbon industrial processes.
“The future of Tata Steel will be shaped by our capability to innovate and proliferate circular and sustainable materials, which is why we are delighted to be part of this critical partnership,” he said.
Pandey added that the initiative would help advance promising research towards industrial application while building lasting relationships between the two countries.
Strengthening UK-India Research Collaboration
Professor Ravi Silva CBE FREng, Director of the Advanced Technology Institute at the University of Surrey and Chair of the Academy’s Transforming Systems through Partnership programme, said the initiative would strengthen long-term collaboration by bringing together the complementary research, innovation and industrial capabilities of the UK and India.
He said the partnership would help develop practical solutions to growing infrastructure needs through the adoption of sustainable, circular and energy-efficient materials and processes, contributing to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
Over the past decade, the TSP programme has supported more than 300 collaborative projects connecting universities and industry worldwide, building a network of over 800 awardees.
The latest initiative builds on earlier collaborations involving the Indian Government’s Department of Science and Technology and the Indian National Academy of Engineering.
By linking academic research with industrial capabilities, the partnership seeks to accelerate the commercial application of innovative materials, advance circularity and strengthen resilient supply chains in both countries.
