The Lloyd’s Register Foundation, the leading UK charity supporting engineering-related research and education worldwide, has launched its Foresight review of structural integrity and systems performance. 

 Modern society depends on complex products and engineering systems whose failure can lead to catastrophic consequences  - the performance and safety of these systems is an area where the LR Foundation says it can make a significant difference by targeting its research funding.

The review says that structural integrity and systems performance advances can reduce the risks associated with operation and maintenance of assets. In addition, the collection and analysis of data ranging from individual systems through to global arrays of systems will create unprecedented opportunities for predicting future condition and optimising reliability.

It also points out that while it is possible to design assets following existing standards and best practices, this can result in designs that are extremely conservative in nature. With better fundamental understanding of the processes that occur, combined with advances in computing power, it will be possible to better simulate and model how assets will perform in their operating environments.

The Foresight review, launched at the National University of Singapore yesterday, guides the Foundation’s grant giving priorities in order to fund high quality research which has a real impact on the safety of life and property.

The Foundation said Singapore was chosen for the launch in recognition of both the excellent research capabilities within Singapore and its importance as a gateway to other research excellence within the region.

The Foundation’s trading group, Lloyd’s Register Group Ltd, has located one of its two Global Technology Centres in Singapore - the LR Foundation wants to engage with the best researchers globally and encourage researchers in Singapore and the wider region to engage with Foundation research programmes.

Prof Richard Clegg, Managing Director of the Lloyd’s Register Foundation said:

"Our report highlights the current best practice, technology trends and research needs so that we can enhance safety by fundamentally changing the design, manufacturing and reliability of complex infrastructures from the component to the system. We invite researchers from around the world to help us develop this programme."

Building on the findings of the review, the Foundation will identify aspects of structural integrity and systems performance on which to focus its research grants and education programme. The Foundation has awarded a £15m grant towards the establishment of the National Structural Integrity Research Centre (NSIRC), working in partnership with TWI Ltd, through their sponsorship of the Structural Integrity Research Foundation (SIRF). This will fund 83 PhDs over 10 years for which partners from around the world can apply.

"Structural integrity and systems performance advances can reduce risks associated with operation and maintenance of assets"

The review concludes that structural integrity and systems performance advances can reduce the risks associated with operation and maintenance of assets, and the number of casualties associated with their failure. 

The  Foresight review identifies the key safety challenges that exist in structural integrity and systems performance and recommends five priorities for future research and development:

1.The safety of systems containing 3D and 4D additive manufactured parts, including:

• The new field of 4D printing, where the shape of a 3D printed item can change by a self-activated process triggered by the environment
• Research into the mechanisms of in-service degradation to ensure long-term integrity of additive manufactured parts
• Ensuring appropriate recognised training exists for those operating and creating parts by additive manufacturing

2. Engineering science challenges: advancing the state-of-the-art to maximise safety, including:

• Complex loading – modelling how force is transmitted between environment and structures
• Residual stress engineering to increase fatigue life
• Assurance of long-term performance of coatings

3. Development of an economic whole-system approach to demonstrate safety and integrity

4. Data-centric engineering, including:

• Designing for data, recognising that embedded sensors, intelligent systems and data management will form part of engineering design requirements
• Promoting data availability for public use including academic research and system improvements
• Data analytics, coordinating with the work of the Alan Turing Institute to analyse data quickly and identify actions

5. Minimising the risks associated with maintenance and inspection, including:

• Use of drones and robots to conduct inspection and/or maintenance
• Developing assets and systems that are able to monitor their own condition
• Design and build structures and equipment that require no maintenance or inspection

The review was drawn together by a panel of international experts, led by Professor Michael Fitzpatrick, LRF Chair in Materials Fabrication and Engineering at Coventry University, who delivered the third Lloyd’s Register Foundation Lecture.

The Foresight review is the third in a series from the LR Foundation; the Foresight Review of Big Data launched in Dec 2014 led to a £10million research grant for the Turing Institute over five years, and the Foresight Review of Nanotechnology, published in April 2014 resulted in awarded grants totalling £9 million to three international consortia in the field of nanotechnology. 

 The Lloyd’s Register Foundation is a UK charity, established in 2012, which funds the advancement of engineering-related education and research. It is funded by the profits of its trading arm, Lloyd’s Register Group Limited, a global engineering, technical and business services organisation.

 In its first full year of operation the charity awarded grants of £16.8 million, funding 61 programmes in 19 countries, including Finland, Norway, Finland, Canada, China, USA, South Korea, Netherlands, Singapore, Greece, Australia, Brazil, South Africa and UK. Specific research being undertaken includes marine and offshore deep water engineering, geotechnics, materials performance, transport systems, environmental, Arctic shipping and nuclear energy.

The Foundation’s strategy for 2014-2020 has prioritised four research themes: structural integrity and systems performance; resilience engineering; human and social factors; and emergent technologies. 

Click here to download Foresight review in structural integrity and performance