** See pictures of the event here **

The second of our 50th international events took place in Hong Kong on Friday 15 May 2015. Led by the Innovative Manufacturing GRP, this event brought together Warwick and Hong Kong experts working in the field of innovative manufacturing to focus on the theme of Sustainable Futures: Design to be Green. It took place at the British Council, 3 Supreme Court Road, Admiralty, Hong Kong . The event was organised by the University of Warwick and supported by colleagues in our local Hong Kong office.

The University’s Global Research Priorities programme is part of Warwick’s strategy to bring together our major areas of research strength around key global priorities and challenges currently confronting the world. With ten themes in total, the programme supports multi-disciplinary research by offering a platform from which to showcase our world-leading research, and a forum in which to engage our multiple research users throughout the research process.

It is increasingly recognised by manufacturing industries that there is a growing and time-critical need to turn away from using non-sustainable manufacturing feed-stocks to ones based on materials that are more rapidly formed in nature, derived from waste and/or that are responsibly and sustainably sourced. There is also a recognition that soon we will need to move away from using processes that are perceived publically, and known scientifically, to be environmentally detrimental if we are to sustain land/water resources and reduce our carbon footprint. To achieve this, manufacturing needs to recognize that it needs to be more efficient with the resources it has, design and develop a more closed-loop approach to resource use whilst reducing the environmental impact of associated manufacturing processes.

Groups within the University of Warwick have been working collaboratively at the forefront of this critical research area. This event demonstrated how diverse disciplines can come together across the whole supply chain to deliver greener, novel and superior alternatives to current systems.

The event capitilized on Warwick’s long standing links with Hong Kong. Warwick has substantive academic partnerships in the city, and we look forward to developing these relationships further through exploring possibilities for collaboration in the above areas of research and beyond. We also have a vibrant and engaged alumni community of nearly 3000, and enjoyed celebrating our 50th anniversary at this event with our former students.

** See pictures of the event here **

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Programme:

16.00 – 16.15	Registration
16.15 – 16.30	Introduction and Welcome
16.30 – 16.50	No Time to Waste, Dr Guy Barker, Life Sciences (more information)
16.50 – 17.10	Sustainable Bioplastics from renewable sources, Dr Andrew Clark, Chemistry (more information)
17.10 – 17.30	Lean, Mean and Green, Dr Kerry Kirwan, WMG (more information)
17.30 – 17.50	Chair’s Comments and Q&A
18.30 – 20.00	Reception: Welcome by Professor Sir Nigel Thrift, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Warwick; Drinks and Canapés Short talk by Dr Kerry Kirwan on Warwick's work on the use of sustainable materials in F3 racing