The Cockcroft Institute celebrates three major milestones

11 Apr 2017 11:37 AM

The Cockcroft Institute is celebrating partnership, funding and new laboratories and office space as it relocates to its new building at STFC’s Daresbury Laboratory, within the Sci-Tech Daresbury campus in Cheshire.

The move is a mark of growth for the Institute, which is a partnership between the Universities of Lancaster, Liverpool, Manchester and Strathclyde, and STFC’s Accelerator Science & Technology Centre (ASTeC).

The Cockcroft Institute delivers world class research and development in next generation accelerator science and technology, providing real economic and societal benefit to the UK, from security to cleaner energy, to radiotherapy and other medical applications.

Moving on to the main Daresbury Laboratory site brings members of the Cockcroft Institute and its PhD students conveniently closer to the world leading particle accelerator research facilities, most notably ‘VELA’, which is making world leading accelerator technology available to UK industry, and ‘CLARA’, which is meeting the technological challenges that are paving the way for the UK’s next generation of accelerator technology.

Professor Peter Ratoff, Director of the Cockcroft Institute, said: “Today marks a celebration for the Cockcroft Institute, as we formally recognise the accession of University of Strathclyde to full member status and our relocation into newly optimised labs and offices that bring us closer to particle accelerators on site.”

Professor Susan Smith, Head of STFC’s Daresbury Laboratory, said: “We are passionate about making a bright future for society. From advancing chemistry and biology to developing new diagnostics for cancers, our accelerator technologies are playing a vital role in solving 21st century global challenges. It’s fantastically exciting to combine three huge opportunities which grow, funding, facilities and expertise together. Our current and future programs will see significant benefits such as accelerating R&D towards future light sources.”