SKF and Imperial extended their collaboration in tribology research for a further five years.

SKF, founded in 1907, and Imperial College London, involved in internationally recognised tribology research since 1953, are extending their R&D partnership. The SKF University Technology Centre (UTC) in Advanced Modelling and Measurements in Tribology was recently re-inaugurated for another period of five years in an online ceremony.

The SKF UTC for Tribology hosted by the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Imperial College London was established in 2010 following a long standing collaboration between the two organisations stretching back several decades. The UTC’s fundamental research is helping to improve the performance of rolling bearings and thus to increase the reliability and energy efficiency of a vast range of machines they operate in. 

Professor Mike Lowe, Head of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Imperial, says: "We are delighted with the decision to extend the partnership with SKF for a further 5 years. The partnership has brought strong collaboration for nearly 5 decades, strengthening particularly with the formation of the UTC in 2010.  We look forward to continuing our work together and to exciting future opportunities." 

Dr Amir Kadiric, Reader in Mechanical Engineering and Co-Director of the SKF UTC, says: “Our collaboration with SKF is a long and fruitful one, having started in the 1980s and contributed to some of the most important advancements in tribology over this time. Since its establishment in 2010, the SKF UTC for Tribology has allowed us to conduct exciting new research that is helping to address a wide range of modern engineering challenges, from improving the reliability of wind turbines to decreasing frictional losses in electric vehicles. We are thrilled to continue our research partnership with SKF and look forward to making the next big breakthroughs in tribology together.”

Dr Kenred Stadler, SKF’s R&D Collaboration Manager, says: "Tight collaboration between leading academia and R&D-driven companies like SKF is key to increasing the speed of innovation in industry."

PhD students at the SKF UTC have an opportunity to work with some of the industry’s most unique test facilities, including novel set-ups for studying incipient surface damage and a unique sapphire bearing rig that enables the in-situ observation of bearing lubrication.