4
news opinion
The economy grew last year at its strongest pace in more than a decade, according to revised data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), released as we were going to press
The revision has come about because the ONS has realised that the construction sector grew more robustly than was first thought. Construction is likely to have an even stronger year in 2015, now that we have got the General Election out of the way.
Of course, in the south, it‘s easy to have a skewed view of the construction sector, as it appears you can‘t move for new housing and commercial properties being built right across the Thames Valley and the South Coast.
But recent data has shown that, throughout the UK, confidence among construction firms is at a nine-year high, post-election.
Anecdotally, business people – whether entrepreneurs, professional services or corporates – who we encounter at the numerous events staged by The Business Magazine, are overwhelmingly positive about their prospects over the next year, or even five years.
The ever-present threat of a Greek default, and the continuing uncertainty over the “Brexit“ referendum are the only brakes on the UK‘s economic surge. If the City loses its global influence – and there are clear signs that banks and funds are planning to move their operations out of London if Britain exits Europe – all bets are off about the future state of the economy.
One thing‘s certain. The ‘provinces‘ need a strong London. Weaken the City and you weaken the whole UK.
David Murray Publisher
www.businessmag.co.uk
Southampton forms links with China to research high-speed rail
The University of Southampton has signed an agreement with Chinese high-speed train manufacturer CSR Qingdao Sifang (CSR Sifang) to establish a new centre for railway research and development.
The ‘China-UK Rail Transit Technology Joint Research and Development Centre‘, which also involves Imperial College London and the University of Birmingham, will undertake research to develop new technologies, materials and manufacturing processes for high-speed trains and metros.
The University of Southampton‘s Institute of Sound and Vibration Research (ISVR) is collaborating with CSR, which has manufactured around half of China‘s entire high-speed rail fleet, on research and development into biodynamics and ride comfort, vibration and noise reduction, human factors and staff training.
The ISVR established an initial collaboration with CSR two years ago. Two joint projects on cabin active noise control and passenger sound quality
are currently ongoing. The main focus of the new project is research into and the development of an active noise control seat to improve ride comfort and to reduce noise in the passenger‘s head area.
The research will be conducted using the unique range of test facilities within ISVR‘s human factors research unit.
Dr Yi Qiu, associate professor in ISVR, said: “The implementation and outcomes of the project will help advance our understanding of the characteristics of passenger ride vibration and acoustics to develop better solutions for reducing vibration and noise to improve ride comfort for high-speed trains.“
Professor Paul White, director of ISVR, added: “We hope this project marks the start of a long and fruitful relationship with CSR Sifang working towards solving some of the engineering challenges associated with high-speed rail travel.“
Details:
www.southampton.ac.uk
Multi-axis simulator for research into the biodynamics and ride comfort of high-speed trains
In the September 2015 issue of The Business Magazine
@TheBusinessMag Business THE M A GA ZINE TM
• Southern Entrepreneurs • Mergers & Acquisitions • Motoring: new car, new plate • Christmas Hospitality • Technology
Details: 0118-9766410
sales@elcot.co.uk
THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – SOLENT & SOUTH CENTRAL – JULY/AUGUST 2015
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60