Fostering Innovation at AWE

 A legacy of innovation

Since its beginnings, AWE has been synonymous with innovation in defence. We have pioneered advanced capabilities, facilities, and cutting-edge research for UK’s nuclear deterrence programme. Recently, we commissioned a new supercomputer called Damson, capable of performing 4.3 million billion calculations per second. Orion, one of the largest lasers in the world, fired its first shot in 2012, and has since been used for both defence research and by academic partners across the US and UK to help us understand the physics in extreme temperatures and pressures.

But few people know that the cutting edge work we do has had an impact further afield.

Intellectual property (IP) from AWE has contributed greatly to the UK economy. For example, boron carbide, the world’s third hardest material, was developed by research scientists at AWE to help absorb nuclear radiation at power plants – now, the material can be found in bulletproof vests, vehicle brakes and even bike padlocks. Our scientists have also perfected a technique to produce life-sized models of bones using data from hospital scans, which is now used by surgeons to plan operations for hip bone replacements. Innovations like these from AWE have been influential in the medical, manufacturing, and computing industries, and beyond.

Accelerating innovation today

Our 70-year legacy of innovation is still alive today. AWE has been working with Ploughshare Innovations since September 2019 to commercialise innovations from areas including materials science, plasma physics, and computing. Some recent innovations include:

• GMS 595: A portable battery-powered instrument used to measure gamma and beta rays for radiological protection. Essential for professionals who work in fields with radiation exposure, this technology has been licensed to John Caunt Scientific (JCS).
• Microscopy sample containment system: Developed by materials scientists at AWE, this piece of equipment can isolate sensitive or hazardous samples for microscopy, replacing current more expensive and time-intensive methods of protecting samples, and reducing risks for scientists.
• Measuring laser pulse signal: Conceived at the Orion Laser Facility, this pulse replication device passively converts a single uncharacterised pulse into a chain of replica pulses. It is especially useful in the LiDAR system of driverless cars, which help them navigate in the rain and fog.
• In-silico Cardiotoxicity Screening: A new in-silico cardiotoxicity prediction capability using quantum chemistry. The first of its kind, it allows candidate drugs to be accurately screened for adverse cardiac effects before clinical trials commence. Cardiotoxicity is one of the leading causes of failure during drug development, and earlier screening will not only result in significant savings for pharmaceutical companies but also offer a unique safety metric to regulators and consumers.

Ploughshare was set up in 2005 to commercialise innovations from the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) and are based at Porton Down Science Park. They work in collaboration with AWE and Defence Intellectual Property Rights (DIPR) to commercialise innovations through licensing and the creation of spin-out companies to give industry access to technology that is developed in our research facilities.

Intellectual property is an important contributor to accelerating innovation across wider industry. IP enables the wider UK industry and government to benefit from the potential of our research through licences, increasing competitiveness in the market and spurring further investment research and development. This in turn creates a snowball effect in growth and development for the economy by creating jobs and increasing exports.

Patenting cutting-edge innovations also incentivises further innovation by providing innovators a way to profit from the value of their work. In 2021, we also launched the Rewards to Inventors scheme, offering financial compensation to staff who identify opportunities for research to be commercialised through Ploughshare.

The future is bright

Over its decades of history, AWE has not only delivered nuclear deterrence, but also innovation to contribute to UK economy. Our team of remarkable people have pushed the boundaries of science and technology in nuclear defence with some of the most advanced research and production facilities in the world. Looking forward, we remain committed to maintaining an innovative approach to our work, and collaborating with Ploughshare to turn maximise the benefit of AWE innovation for the wider UK society.

Business and investors who wish to learn more about licensing any of the technologies mentioned here, please get in touch with Ploughshare here: www.ploughshareinnovations.com

You can also find more about innovation at AWE here