Modernising the UK's health and social care system is a priority for government and for the country as a whole. To do this, wide ranging organisational and funding reforms are being put in place. An unprecedented investment to renew the built and technical infrastructure for delivering care is also underway: new hospitals and primary care centres are being built, information and communication technology is being upgraded and new technologies for diagnosing and treating disease are being introduced. If world-class infrastructure is to be delivered, this investment must achieve its full potential. The aim of HaCIRIC is to establish a new research centre to help accomplish this. HaCIRIC's focus is on the built and technical infrastructure for health and social care, and the interaction between infrastructure specification and the way patients are treated. Improving the way this is planned, delivered and managed is at the core of HaCIRIC's activity. What are the challenges? The health and social care system is one of the most complex and rapidly changing organisational and technical environments in any sector of the economy. Many stakeholders are involved in delivering care, funding mechanisms are convoluted, and patterns of demand and use are changing, as are government health policies. All this places new pressures on the underlying infrastructure. These are compounded by two problems. First, there is an historic legacy of out-dated buildings and cultures within the care system. Second, the life cycles of the various elements of the infrastructure / buildings, medical and information technology / are mismatched. Each involves complex supply chains, multiple users with their own needs and differing institutional and funding arrangements. All these have to be reconciled. For example, the current PFI programme for new hospitals involves supply contracts for thirty years or more, but incorporates technologies which have five year life cycles to help deliver diagnostics and therapies which are undergoing rapid evolutionary change. Modernising the health and social care infrastructure will therefore require innovative approaches. HaCIRIC will help develop the tools and processes which will embed 'innovation as normal business' amongst those responsible for delivering the investment in infrastructure. Its research programme has been developed in partnership with all the key stakeholders from the care system, including the Department of Health, the NHS, the Department of Trade and Industry and the supply industries. Seven research themes have been identified:- Managing innovation in a context of technological change- Procurement for innovation- Innovative design and construction- Care delivery practices- Delivering improved performance through operations management- Knowledge management in complex systems - Design and evaluation of integrated systems HaCIRIC is a collaboration between existing research centres at Imperial College London and the Universities of Loughborough, Reading and Salford. Additional partners from other universities, industry and the care system will be involved in specific research projects. Together this represents a resource valued at more than 11m, of which 7.0m consists of EPSRC support, 2.9m is from the four existing research centres, 500,000 is from the Department of Trade and Industry and 720,000 is from industrial partners. HaCIRIC will therefore represent a substantial resource and a unique capability in skills and knowledge to find solutions to the key healthcare infrastructure problems of the 21st century.

The increasing demand for low and zero carbon buildings in the UK has provided significant challenges for the energy intensive materials we currently rely on. At present somewhere between 20% and as much as 60% of the carbon footprint of new buildings is attributable to the materials used in construction; this is predicted to rise to over 95% by 2020. If the UK is to meet agreed 80% carbon reduction targets by 2050 it is clear that significant reductions in the embodied carbon of construction materials is required. What also seems clear is that current materials and systems are not capable of delivering these savings. The drive for an 80% reduction in carbon emissions, a decreasing reliance on non-renewal resources and for greater resource efficiency, requires step changes in attitude and approach as well as materials. Improvement in construction systems, capable of providing consistently enhanced levels of performance at a reasonable cost is required. Modern developments in construction materials include: eco-cements and concretes (low carbon binders); various bio-based materials including engineered timber, hemp-lime and insulation products; straw based products; high strength bio-composites; unfired clay products utilising organic stabilisers; environmentally responsive cladding materials; self healing materials; smart materials and proactive monitoring; hygrothermal and phase change materials; coatings for infection control; ultra thin thermally efficient coatings (using nano fillers); ultra high performance concretes; greater use of wastes; and, fibre reinforcement of soils. However, very few of these innovations make the break through to widespread mainstream use and even fewer offer the necessary step change in carbon reductions required A low carbon approach also requires novel solutions to address: whole life costing; end of life (disassembly and reuse); greater use of prefabrication; better life predictions and longer design life; lower waste; improved quality; planned renewal; and greater automation in the construction process. As well as performance, risk from uncertainty and potentially higher costs other important barriers to innovation include: lack of information/demo projects; changing site practices and opposition from commercial competitors offering potentially cheaper solutions.. A recent EPSRC Review has recognised the need for greater innovation in novel materials and novel uses of materials in the built environment. The vision for our network, LIMES.NET, is to create an international multi-disciplinary community of leading researchers, industrialists, policy makers and other stakeholders who share a common vision for the development and adoption of innovative low impact materials and solutions to deliver a more sustainable built environment in the 21st Century. The scope of LIMES.NET will include: adaptive and durable materials and solutions with significantly reduced embodied carbon and energy, based upon sustainable and appropriate use of resources; solutions for retrofitting applications to reduce performance carbon emissions of existing buildings and to minimise waste; climate change resilient and adaptive materials and technologies for retrofitting and new build applications to provide long term sustainable solutions. In recognition of their current adverse impacts and potential for future beneficial impacts, LIMES.NET will focus on bringing together experts to develop pathways to solutions using: renewable (timber and other plant based) construction materials; low-impact geo-based structural materials; cement and concrete based materials; innovative nano-materials and fibre reinforced composites. Through workshops and international visits the network will create a roadmap for multidisciplinary research and development pathways that will lead to high quality large research proposals, and an on-going virtual on-line centre of excellence.

This proposal from Loughborough University outlines the case to renew the funding for the Industrial Doctorate Centre for Innovative and Collaborative Construction Engineering (CICE) as part of the Industrial Doctorate Centres call aginst the Towards Better Exploitation element of the EPSRC Delivery Plan. In partnership with an established industry base, CICE is delivering a high quality research and training programme that: meets the core technical and business needs of the construction industry; enhances its knowledge base; and produces high calibre doctoral graduates that can drive innovation. The Centre addresses a wide range of research issues that concern the UK construction industry including: Innovative Construction Technologies; Construction Business Processes; Advanced Information and Communication Technologies; Sustainable Design and Construction; and Transport and Infrastructure. Many of these areas have been highlighted in various reviews of the industry including the Latham Report, the Technology Foresight Report, the Egan Task Force Report, and more recently the National Technology Platform's research priorities. It also contributes to the EPSRC Delivery Plan as part of the knowledge transfer research and training activities. The research areas of the Centre align with the Engineering and Science for Sustainability research theme, as outlined in the EPSRC's Research Priorities and Opportunities, and fall under the 'Construction and the Built Environment' and 'Transport' sub-themes. Within the Construction and Built Environment, the Centre builds on existing strengths in the Department of Civil and Building Engineering established as part of the Engineering Doctorate Centre and other related industry based research to address some of the EPSRC research priorities to improve efficiency across the supply chain, including: encouraging the uptake of ICT to promote efficiency; improving building performance to minimise impacts on the environment ; and the analysis and design of civil engineering structures . Within the Transport area Sustainability and Innovation are key themes of the research that centres on transport operation and management, transport telematics, and minimising energy use and environmental impact . The Engineering Doctorate Centre (CICE) was established in 1999 and has subsequently recruited a total of 94 research engineers sponsored by a total of 63 large, medium and small companies. Loughborough University is a research intensive institution, which integrates its research and teaching activity at every opportunity to provide a top quality research led learning experience for all its students. The Department of Civil and Building Engineering has consistently achieved high research rating in the RAE assessments and the last RAE results were 5* in Built Environment. The Engineering Doctorate is part of Loughborough University's excellent doctoral research training programme, which in addition to supporting the pursuit of a particular project aims to provide a basic professional training to support the research and offer personal development opportunities. The training programme integrates taught and research elements tailored to suit the needs of the research engineer, project, and the sponsoring company while maintaining the expected quality of the academic standards required for a doctoral study. The Centre is managed by the Director, Prof. Dino Bouchlaghem supported by a Deputy Director, a Centre Manager and an Administrator. A Centre Management Board consisting of the Director, Deputy Director, and Industrial Representatives meets twice a year and is chaired by a senior industrialist from one of the sponsoring companies, oversees the work of the Centre and provides direction and guidance on strategic matters. This proposal has the full support of the University and has been subject to an internal review process to ensure synergy with the University's Research Strategy.