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13 Jul 2006 09:15:46
Teamwork – the University of Luton does it so well, it has won a special award for promoting winning partnerships.
The University’s knowledge hub and its partners were presented with the award at the i10 Business and University Collaboration Awards (BUCA) held earlier this month.
The award was for the STEP project, a collaboration between the University of Luton’s knowledge hub and Cranfield University, which places students to work on special projects with local businesses.
The Universities linked up geography student, Sian Lloyd, with Luton waste management company F&R Cawley.
The partnership received a Special Discretionary Award, supported by the Association of Universities in the East of England.
The knowledge hub’s Veronica Rigby, said: “This collaboration is an excellent example of how the University's knowledge hub is working successfully with the local and regional business community to address real needs. By sharing knowledge and expertise, we can help companies to grow, increase employment opportunities for our graduates, and learn from industry colleagues.”
For the company, the result of this partnership speaks for itself. Staff believe the work Sian proposed could achieve impressive savings and could generate further income through recycling opportunities.
“We are delighted with the results,” said Andrew Pegg, F&R Cawley’s recently-appointed Recycling Manager. “We gave Sian the boundaries of the recycling project and asked her to give it a fresh, outside view with no pre-conceived ideas.
“In the two months she worked with us she was able to spend more time on this project than we’ve ever done. If the plans are given the go-ahead and new investment is made in machinery, it could pay for itself within a couple of years.”
Sian looked at F&R Cawley’s Materials Recycling Facility (MRF) and with the help of the project team was able to devise a plan that would improve the company’s recycling capabilities by 15 per cent, increase the throughput of waste to be sorted, and separate more unwanted waste before it goes for sorting, making the process more efficient
Sian, said: “It was such a privilege to work with F & R Cawley, helping to develop their innovative new project. They gave me valuable support but also the freedom to develop new ideas and approaches.”
Andrew added: “Sian was like a breath of fresh air. She brought enthusiasm, energy and a new approach to this complex project and helped us develop plans for the future of our Materials Recycling Facility with the potential of saving substantial amounts of money. Getting involved with the STEP programme has benefited the company greatly.”
The knowledge hub, based at the University’s Putteridge Bury Conference Centre, provides training, support and consultancy for business across the county and eastern region*. Projects include start-up support, women’s development, business networking events and knowledge transfer programmes, to name a few.
For a full list of the services available call 0800 328 5334, or visit the website www.luton.ac.uk/knowledgehub
* Some services available are often free or subsidised due to regional and national funding initiatives.
Latest news» 2006» Jul» Uni and business collaboration wins special award
