Partner Introduction - 1 - EC-HVEN

FP7-PEOPLE-IRSES-295130

Europe-China High Value Engineering Network (EC-HVEN)

Partner Introduction Pack:

University of Birmingham (UOB)

Partner Introduction - 2 - EC-HVEN

The City of Birmingham

Partner Introduction - 3 - EC-HVEN

The University of Birmingham (UOB)

•Origins date back to 1850

•Founded in 1900

•The ‘original redbrick’

•17,355 undergraduates, 8,738

graduates; 4,500 international

students from 150 countries

•In 2010, the University was

ranked 10th in the UK and 59th

best in the world by QS World

University Rankings

Partner Introduction - 4 - EC-HVEN

The Birmingham Business School (BBS)

• The oldest Business School in England, established in 1902

• 1,500 undergraduates and 2,000 graduates of over 60 nationalities

• 120 permanent academic teaching & research staff with board strength in Management, Marketing, Accounting &Finance, Economics

• The School was ranked 68th in the world by the Financial Times, 11th in the UK

• Wide range of accreditations: ACCA, CIM, EQUIS, AMBA, CIPD, (AACSB in process)

Partner Introduction - 5 - EC-HVEN

Key team members

Procurement & Operations Group (POM)

• Dr Chris Lonsdale, procurement and supply chain management

• Dr Glyn Watson, Inter and intra-organisational conflict, political risk analysis

• Dr Joe Sanderson, contracting and governance of large scale project, service procurement

• Dr Paul Forrester, operations management, quality management, project management

• Dr Victoria Hanna, small firm networking and collaboration, supply chain performance

• Dr Yufeng Zhang, global engineering networks, engineering value chains, emerging industries

Centre for Research on the Economy & the Workplace (CREW)

• Dr Chris Collinge, regional and local economic change, public sector governance, strategy & leadership

• Professor Helen Rainbird, global value chains, industrial relations, working place learning

• Dr Lisa De Propris, small firms and clusters; competitiveness, innovation

• Professor Mary O’Mahony, service sector innovation, productivity and international performance

• Dr Pam Robinson, global value chains, food industries

• Dr Pauline Ramirez, global value chains, knowledge intensive businesses, international food supply chains

Partner Introduction - 6 - EC-HVEN

Research Theme 1:

The design & operations of

global engineering networks (GEN) from 2004

Relevance to EC-HVEN:

•Providing a systematic view of GEN in the current business management (WP1-8)

•Establishing a theoretical preparation for understanding the unique nature of engineering and the key issues in

managing GEN (WP1-8)

Contexts How to align engineering

strategies with the changing

contextual environment?

Capabilities How do companies

successfully compete with

their global networks in

different contextual

environments?

Configurations

How to make consistent

strategic decisions for

engineering operations?

Performance

Main research question:

How do global leading

companies effectively

manage their

internationally

dispersed engineering

activities?

“Global Engineering Networks

(GEN): The Integrating

Framework and Key Patterns”,

IMechE JEM, 2007

“Global Engineering Networks

(GEN): Drivers, Evolution,

Configuration, Performance,

and Key Patterns”, JMTM, 2008

“Network Integration for

International Mergers and

Acquisitions”, EJIM, 2010.

“Managing Global Network

Operations through the

Engineering Value Chain”,

IJOPM, 2011.

Partner Introduction - 7 - EC-HVEN

Research Theme 2:

Commercializing Emerging Technologies through

International Network Collaborations from 2007

Fu

nd

am

en

tal

Researc

h

Co

mm

erc

ial

Su

ccess

Targeted

Research

Pre-prototype

Development

Pilot

Manufacturing

Transfer to

Full Production

Top-level

Roadmapping

Competitive

Analysis

Value Chain

Analysis

Partnering/

Business

De-risking

The research is concerned with understanding the role of international networks in

commercialising emerging technologies and developing tools to help people engage with

these networks where that would be helpful.

Relevance to EC-HVEN:

•Understanding engineering’s contribution in commercialising emerging technologies (WP3&4)

•Exploring novel manufacturing approaches (WP5); and providing guidance for industry to successfully transform

new technologies and ideas into innovative products and services (WP3-5)

Partner Introduction - 8 - EC-HVEN

Research Theme 3:

Procurement & supply chain management

Relevance to EC-HVEN:

• Understanding buyer-supplier relations in complex engineering supply chains

• Providing theoretical insights and practical tools for engineering procurement management based on the

concept of Power.

Procurement and Operations Management Group (POM) at BBS has been active in the area of

procurement and supply management since 1994. Its distinctive approach, widely published within

the management literature, informs both its research, teaching and CPD activities.

Key activities in the area of procurement and supply management include:

• A procurement-specific executive MBA, now in its 19th year.

• CPD delivered to organisations including Department of Health / NHS, IBM and BP.

• Funded research projects including:

2010-13 ESRC CASE, Implementing Sustainable Procurement Strategies

2005–07 EPSRC, Business Relationship Optimisation in UK Food Supply Chains

2002–03 DTI/Shipbuilding and Ship Repair Association, Shipbuilding Supply Chain Improvement

Programme

2001–03 EPSRC and partners including Interbrew, Rolls Royce, HSBC and Conoco, Competitive

Advantage through Supply Performance

Partner Introduction - 9 - EC-HVEN

Research Theme 4:

Service sector innovation & international performance

Indicators for evaluating

international performance in

service sectors

www.indicser.com

FP7-244709, 3 years from Jan 2010, Coordinator UOB, 8 partners

The main objective is to develop indicators which

are able to provide information on the

determinants of growth in service sectors in the

European Union.

The Impact of Service Sector

Innovation & Internationalisation

on Growth and Productivity

www.servicegap.org

FP7-244552, 3 years from Mar 2010, Coordinator UOB, 13 partners

The main objective is to study the impact of market

services on aggregate economic growth in the EU by

examining (i) productivity and its drivers in service

industries; (ii) firm strategies in the knowledge-based

economy, & (iii) internationalisation of service markets

and growth.

Relevance to EC-HVEN:

• Gaining a global view of engineering services from the economic perspective

• …

Partner Introduction - 10 - EC-HVEN

Research Theme 5:

Regional economic development

Relevance to EC-HVEN:

• Exploring what’s high value engineering(HVE) and mapping the key activities/capabilities

• Understanding HVE skill/capability development and industrial policies from a regional view

• The role of knowledge networks around businesses,

universities and governmental agencies in promoting

economic change

• The evolution of sectors and clusters of strategic

importance for local and regional economies (e.g. automotive,

creative industries)

• The impact of economic and labour market changes upon regional, city and neighbourhood trajectories

• The coherence of concepts applied to spatial

economic change (‘path dependence’, ‘cluster’, ‘innovation’)

and associated theories

• The development and evaluation of policies responding to economic changes affecting cities and regions

Partner Introduction - 11 - EC-HVEN

My wish-list for participating EC-HVEN

Alongside the three Strategic Objectives, I am keen to see the following

results of endeavour:

•Gaining a systematic view of the emerging trends, main opportunities and key

challenges of global engineering networks.

•Creating a coherent methodology for studying network collaboration issues in

high value engineering areas.

•Helping industrialists in the Europe, China, and the rest of the world to

successfully capture opportunities in high value engineering areas.

•Integrating our knowledge in the above areas with an accessible format,

probably publishing a book with the Cambridge University Press.

•Securing additional research funding to continue our investigations in high

value engineering, advanced manufacturing and innovation.

Partner Introduction - 12 - EC-HVEN

My contribution to the three EC-HVEN objectives

SO1: Increasing awareness of the importance and potential value of engineering and networking within the community of high

value engineering research.

• Organising workshops

• Writing/editing positioning papers/reports

• Introducing EC-HVEN research in relevant events

• Developing external links with a broader scope of research/industrial organisations

SO2: Providing a supportive environment for building collaborative research projects focusing on high value engineering

capabilities and novel concepts of operations.

• Facilitating communication between research partners

• Exploring synergies among work packages and research themes

• Encouraging methodology discussions/developments for high value engineering

networks in a long ran

SO3: Establishing a framework for global network collaborations in high value engineering areas.

• Integrating research outcomes with an accessible format

• Establishing the HVEN consortium involving a broader scope of researchers and

practitioners

• Securing continuing researching funding around the main themes of HVEN

Partner Introduction - 13 - EC-HVEN

Key contacts for partners

Yufeng Zhang

Tel: +44 (0)121 414 6695

Email: zhangys@bham.ac.uk

www.birmingham.ac.uk/staff/profiles/business/zhang-yufeng.aspx