Salary range: £41,526 - £51,034 per annum
FTE: 1.0
Term: Open-ended
Closing Date: 28 February 2021
The University of Strathclyde in Glasgow possesses a
large internationally rated Engineering Faculty with a proud history of
successful joint ventures with industrial and enterprise partners. The Advanced Forming Research Centre (AFRC),
based at Inchinnan near Glasgow’s International Airport, has now been
operational for ten years during which time Industrial, Academic and Government
partners have worked together to establish a world leading research facility
for the shaping of materials. The centre
works closely with major industrial companies including Rolls-Royce and Boeing,
and since 2011 it has been a part of the UK High Value Manufacturing (HVM) Catapult. Since its launch the AFRC has achieved a rate
of growth and industrial engagement which has surpassed expectations. As well as consolidating its primary strength
in forming and forging technology, the centre will become part of the National
Manufacturing Institute, Scotland (NMIS) which will act as a focal point for
high value manufacturing in Scotland.
The AFRC has some unique capabilities in the
area of forging research, and is also in the process of establishing ‘Future Forge’,
a high integrity hot forging research environment aimed at establishing and
demonstrating a digital future for hot forging.
As such this physical capability will comprise open-die, closed-die, and
isothermal forming capability as well as state of the art instrumentation and
process control, consistent with Industry 4.0.
Its use is primarily targeted at the highest value forged component
applications such as aerospace discs, pressure vessels for steam generating
equipment, and subsea installations. The
investment is being made based on a strategic vision for a digital future for
forging centred around improved predictive capability and process control. The centre will work with its many industrial
partners including Rolls-Royce, Boeing, Aubert & Duval, Timet, Bifrangi,
DMG Mori, and Virtalis to ensure the delivery of the vision. As part of the High Value Manufacturing
Catapult the AFRC will also drive for the creation of relevant industrial and
supply chain development within the UK.
Reporting to
the Forging
& Incremental Technologies Team Lead, the AFRC is
seeking to recruit a Technical Specialist for Forging, a unique role which will
focus on developing technical and practical forging expertise for the centre. You
will have overall responsibility for developing the centre’s practical aspects of forging operations within the AFRC,
including the development of proactive approaches to providing support to the
forging industry. In addition, the
Technical Specialist will work with the AFRC leadership team to provide expertise and input to all technical
aspects of forging equipment specification and installation. You
will play a key role in offering expert technical support to technical,
research and knowledge exchange staff, and work very closely with AFRC and
campus based colleagues who are developing the research agenda and vision for
the future of forging.
With extensive
industrial experience of high value (open die, closed die and or isothermal)
forging, and/or educated to PhD level in an appropriate discipline, with an
excellent appreciation of the practicalities of forging established through
other means, you will have an established track record in forging and a network
of contacts to go alongside it. You will have in-depth knowledge and sufficient
direct experience of a range of forging processes, manufacturing systems and manufacturing
capability improvement. You will also have an active interest in the future of
manufacturing technology and insight into associated systems. You will have a belief in the
transformational potential from digitalisation and modelling technology and a
willingness to develop expertise in these areas. You will have excellent communication and
interpersonal skills, capability of presenting to and interacting with a range
of stakeholders from industry and academia both nationally and
internationally. The successful
candidate for this unique role in UK forging will expect to become nationally
recognised as a specialist in the practicalities of forging technologies. You
will have the ability to support, guide and develop forging Technicians, Manufacturing
Engineers and Researchers, with a proven track record in staff development
through formal apprenticeship or mentoring schemes.
For informal enquiries, please contact Dr Alastair Conway, Forging & Incremental Technologies Team Lead at a.p.conway@strath.ac.uk.
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