The UK’s innovation accelerator for transport,
The Innovation Launchpad Network+ connects top academics with the Innovate UK Catapult Network through the Researchers in Residence programme. Sparking collaboration, promoting academic engagement and empowering researchers to influence change in areas that matter most.
Over 12 to 24 months, they’re tackling challenges that matter—helping UK businesses adopt new technologies and make a greater impact. Take a look at their profiles to see how they’re driving industry growth, creating practical tools, and inspiring the next wave of innovation.
Programme-wide
Sharing their knowledge
Collaborating for growth
Identifying challenges and opportunities in decarbonising UK train station. Dawid’s study is focused on assessing energy consumption within station buildings and carbon emissions generated by passengers and staff; to identify ways of reducing emissions and creating economic potential.
Find out more about Dawid, or check out his recent article series, and webinar.
Embedding innovation procurement and project management practices in rail. Ian’s work aims to help the UK rail industry better adopt technical and process innovations, examining how ideas move from concept to implementation, focusing on procurement and project management practices.
Find out more about Ian, or check out his work with the Innovation Procurement Empowerment Centre (IPEC).
Building on previous work with the Department for Transport, Andy is advancing efforts to create a National Intelligence Database (NID) for violence against women and girls (VAWG) on public transport. Andy’s research focuses on fast-tracking its development by uniting stakeholders to prototype a local database for better response and coordination.
Find out more about Andy, check out his article in the European Journal on Criminal Policy and Research or research in The Oxford Handbook of Environmental Criminology.
Co-creating Station Innovations for Net Zero and Healthy Inclusive Cities. Ges is looking to create a net zero carbon route map for Temple Meads station, while helping to encourage people to enjoy healthier onward travel into Bristol.
Find out more about Ges and read his chapter in Value Construction in the Creative Economy.
Unravelling the barriers to the uptake of shared electric micro-mobility in India.
Yasir’s work exposes the barriers to the uptake of shared electric micro mobility in India using the well-established theories.
Find out more about Yasir, or check out his latest article in Travel Behaviour and Society Journal.
Tom is working to make airport ground operations more sustainable, with the broader goal of reducing aircraft emissions through Zero Ground Emission Operations (ZEGO). His project will result in a ‘Zero Emissions Aircraft Stand of the Future’ roadmap, including benchmarking UK ZEGO test capabilities and sharing knowledge of ground and aircraft handling procedures.
Find out more about Tom, check out his research catalogue, or view content from his recent appearance at Foresight Hydrogen – Mobility Conference 2025.
As a supply chain logistics specialist, Arijit is exploring digital tools to improve delivery efficiency and reduce carbon emissions. He has developed a concept for transporting rural goods via passenger buses. The project will also investigate fuel bunkering and electric vessel charging at UK ports, focusing on optimization models and an agent-based simulation.
Find out more about Arijit, or check out his latest research.
Strategic investment for green ports and vessels. Stavros’s research aims to give a clear overview of the needs for green vessels and port operations. By evaluating the infrastructure required from the national grid to support these operations, his work will identify the investments needed to supply alternative fuels and power for a sustainable maritime system. He is also the Head of the Maritime Transport Research Group.
Find out more about Stavros, or check out his latest research.
Rachel Granger advocates for stronger urban connections and new incentives to foster them. This project will create a national Civic Capital Panel and Playbook, using case studies and stakeholder engagement to build a knowledge community and develop models for non-public investment.
Find out more about Rachel, or check out her latest research.
Katherine Sugar advocates for greater investment in energy infrastructure for a fairer net zero transition in cities. She is a postdoctoral research associate with the Energy Demand Research Centre at the University of Manchester. Previously, she was a research fellow at Oxford and Edinburgh, specialising in renewable energy and sustainability.
Find out more about Katherine, or check out her latest research.
Embedding circular economy principles into public procurement of net zero solutions. Luis is exploring how procurement can be used as a lever for public organisations to adopt sustainable principles in construction and transport, and how a shift in company behaviours may help develop the circular economy.
Find out more about Luis, or check out his project here.
Italian structural engineer Enrico Tubaldi’s experience of a major earthquake inspired his focus on structural resilience. Now in the UK, he works on protecting historic bridges from flooding, developing low-cost monitoring devices, and modeling transport network vulnerabilities. He also collaborates with the Climate Resilience Demonstrator to create digital twins of structural assets, drawing on his work with National Highways to improve risk assessment for scour management.
Find out more about Enrico, check out his latest article in the Reliability Engineering & System Safety Journal or his latest research in Earthquake early warning (EEW) systems.
Nature-based green materials and condition monitoring sensors could become two novel ingredients of sustainable highways of the future — and researcher Dr Haopeng Wang is leading the promotion of new ideas. Haopeng is currently scouring the country for some of the best new innovations in asphalt pavement design to provide recommendations for the roads sector.
Find out more about Haopeng, check out his latest article in the Journal of Road Engineering or his most recent case study.
Bridging Industry and Academia to Advance Hydrogen Technology: A Roadmapping Approach.
Dawei aims to bridge the gap between academic research and industrial application in hydrogen technology development, aligning industry’s future needs (industry ‘pull’) with upcoming research from universities (academic ‘push’).
Find out more about Dawei, or check out his latest research.
Our Researchers in Residence programme gives early career researchers hands-on experience while bringing fresh insights to our projects. Their contributions drive innovation, and in return, they gain valuable industry exposure and real-world impact.
“Working on this project has given me the opportunity to apply my research skills and passion for data to current real-world issues.”
“I love spotting patterns and connecting insights across sectors. This project is allowing me to apply that skill on a national scale, exploring innovative approaches to data harmonisation that will enhance how we gather and utilise critical information on VAWG on public transport.”
“Researchers in Residence has allowed me the opportunity to bridge the gap between academia and industry, helping pave the way towards rapid commercialisation of hydrogen technologies in the UK by providing pathways for constant cross-cutting collaborations”
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 1,200 members from 280 UK universities and industry organisations.
Please contact academia@cp.catapult.org.uk to find out more about existing opportunities in our 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
