19 Dec 2001
Through the BAE Systems Virtual University (VU) the company has developed a new University Partnership Programme in consultation with EPSRC (Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council) who is supportive of the approach.
This involves aligning the synergistic requirements of all the company's businesses and investing in University Partnerships to make best use of and further develop academic teams with the skills that are needed to address BAE Systems' requirements in Research and Technology, Training and Education, and Recruitment.
The first two Strategic Partnerships will be in Systems Engineering at Loughborough University and Aeronautical Engineering at Cranfield University. Initially the primary investment will be in research programmes.
BAE Systems will work with each Partner to develop a network comprising groups of academics from other universities, which together will have the capability to address the full range of cross-disciplinary business requirements of the whole company. It is expected that each Partnership will involve a number of other universities. The intent is to concentrate the company's resources into the universities selected. Further Partnerships will be announced next year.
The VU links Research and Technology with Learning and Development, providing a gateway to academia for project managing a world wide network as a part of BAE Systems 'knowledge factory'. The VU team was created to reflect BAE Systems' determination to improve the capabilities of the organisation through the development of its' people.
