Academia

Helping academia & research institutions deliver real world impact

Our aim is to increase the impact of research activity and maximise its exploitation. Driving real world innovation by verifying market opportunities, finding delivery partners, and identifying future customers and initiaves.

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What we do At a glance Join the network Opportunities Across the network

Taking Applied research to market

Join our Academic Network

We facilitate research driven partnerships that solve critical issues in three key areas and across six markets.

People's Experience

Places prosper when they understand and design for the needs of people. Connected Places Catapult has access to a range of capabilities which help partners to understand changing needs and to design for experience.

Connected Intelligence

The infrastructure that enables digital connectivity within and between places as well as the technology and intelligence that enables data-rich insights, modelling and analysis.

Climate Action

We convene the markets to spark disruptive innovation and scale up Net Zero and resilience technologies, by developing the business and operational case for adoption and deployment.

Innovation imperatives into markets

Place Leadership

Integrated Infrastructure

Maritime & ports

Air mobility & airports

Rail & stations

Homes & housing

We connect research to businesses and government departments, accelerating change & solving critical issues

We develop researchers’ entrepreneurial mindsets to access industry, improve market offerings, and open up entirely new markets

1,100+

Members

270+

Universities and Industry Organisations

We deliver innovation funding programmes such as the Department of Transport’s Transport Research and Innovation Grants and Researchers and Residence. Academics are given opportunities to develop and scale their innovations with support from the Catapult. Our newly launched Affiliates Network strengthens the Catapult’s reach and impact in key innovation ecosystems.

JOIN THE ACADEMIC NETWORK

Our Academic Network is an environment for exchange of ideas, knowledge, learning and the opportunity to promote collaboration. Join our network today, which already has over 1,100 members from 270 universities and industry organisations. Apply your academic expertise through opportunities such as our Researchers in Residence scheme.

Join the Academic Network
“Being a member of Connected Places Catapult’s Academic Network has allowed me to have better visibility over relevant events, projects and funding opportunities. The support offered by the Academic Engagement team has been very helpful in identifying areas where the impact of our project can be further exploited.”

Dr Donya Hajializadeh  Senior Lecturer in Bridge/Structural Engineering, Director of Employability, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Surrey

Opportunities within the network

Access to industry
To strengthen your networks, keep up to date with current challenges faced by companies and be best placed to meet industry needs.
Access to opportunities
To keep up to date with opportunities funded and supported by the Catapult and or our partners, such us: Innovation Funding Programmes, including Transport Research Innovation Grants and Researchers in Residence.
Sector reports & publications
Access focused research and tailored reports from us and our partners, delivered straight to your inbox.
Signposting to funding
To extend your understanding of the funding landscape, hear of the funders you have not considered before, including private investors in innovation.
Dissemination of research
To share your research findings, tools and methodologies with our networks, to promote application and increase impact
Events
To participate or contribute to our networking events and those of our partners

Take a detailed research needs assessment

We created the platform to support universities and research & technology organisations to exploit and share their intellectual property.

After registering with the academic network, researchers are invited to share details of their work to receive specific methodical and technical feedback from our sector specialists and social and economic modelling teams.

We undertake a significant amount of analysis to provide the quantitative inputs into this process, confirming the viability of innovative research.

Join the network to find out more

Across the network

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Results found
Article
Meet the academic detecting bridge defects using an instrumented train
Efforts by a senior lecturer at the University of Surrey to analyse complex data generated by a measurement train could help to improve structural engineers’ understanding of when bridges need attention.
Article
Professor Chris Smith: Green maritime ambitions need greater focus
Connected Places Catapult’s new Affiliate explains why the UK must do more to meet the carbon challenge in shipping.
News
Applications open for Transport Research and Innovation Grants
Innovators with ideas to address the UK’s most pressing transport challenges are encouraged to apply
Opportunity
Transport Research and Innovation Grants 2023
Transport Research and Innovation Grants (TRIG) provide early-stage funding for innovations in science, engineering, or technology delivered by The Department for Transport's (DfT) project delivery partner, Connected Places Catapult.
Opportunity
Freight Innovation Fund Accelerator 2024
The Freight Innovation Fund Accelerator will support up to 10 Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) to trial their solutions in real-world environments to help solve pressing challenges within the freight sector.
Article
Meet the Academic building trust in Artificial Intelligence
Gopal Ramchurn grew up watching robots and humans interact in television programmes such as Knight Rider, before embarking on a research career considering the possibilities of AI in transport and sport. But the university professor does have concerns about the technology’s direction of travel.
Opportunity
Join the Researchers in Residence scheme
Funding of up to £50,000 is available to academics keen to become part of a growing cohort of specialists helping to forge closer ties between universities, industry and the Catapult Network.
Article
Durham researcher uses AI to aim high with drone safety
Several established and promising academics have received funding through the Transport Research and Innovation Grants (TRIG) programme in recent years. In the second of a series of profiles about grant recipients finding success, we speak to Dr Hubert Shum – an associate professor of computer science at Durham University.
Innovation imperatives
Industry Focus

Part of The Catapult Network

Connected Places Catapult is a company limited by guarantee, registered in England under company number 11837978. Its registered office is at 1 Sekforde Street, London, EC1R 0BE.​