Overview
Following the first UK–EU Materials Innovation Workshop focusing on Construction and Mobility, the Henry Royce Institute is convening a second UK stakeholder workshop to explore how the UK materials community can strengthen its engagement with emerging European materials innovation programmes.
This hybrid workshop will focus on the Energy, Electronics and Health themes within IAM-I’s Strategic Research, Innovation and Deployment Agenda. It will bring together representatives from industry, academia, research and innovation organisations, and government to consider how the UK can contribute to, influence and benefit from future European materials priorities.
The session will provide an overview of current UK–EU collaboration mechanisms through IAM-I/IAM4EU, including links to EU FP10 and the wider 2028–2034 European innovation framework. Facilitated discussions will then explore how the UK can coordinate its input across the three themes and ensure that its research strengths, industrial capabilities and strategic priorities are represented in future European programmes.
At this stage of European strategic planning, industry perspectives are particularly important. Future priorities must reflect not only scientific excellence, but also the practical requirements of application, scale-up, manufacturing, regulation, supply chains and commercialisation.
Strategic Technology Area (STA) Overviews
ENERGY
Reducing greenhouse gas emissions through integrated renewable energy production, harvesting, distribution, storage and transport systems enabled by advanced materials.
This Strategic Technology Area focuses on the development and application of advanced materials to address energy sector priorities, including clean energy generation (solar, wind, hydrothermal, hydro and renewable feedstocks), harvesting, conversion, efficient energy storage (electrochemical, chemical, thermal, and hybrid), integrated energy conversion pathways, grid resilience and system-level integration and intelligent operation of energy technologies across electricity, heat, gases, and molecular energy carriers. Key challenges are interoperability, flexibility, and coordinated control across grid-scale and distributed energy infrastructure.
It promotes materials innovations for batteries, hydrogen technologies, photovoltaics, wind turbines, fuel cells, and energy conversion systems and emphasises durability, scalability, recyclability, and cost-effectiveness, while also addressing raw material constraints and circularity. By aligning materials R&I with the needs of the energy transition, the STA supports the development of climate-neutral energy systems and strengthens Europe’s leadership in clean energy technologies.
ELECTRONICS
Enabling next-generation computing, data communications, telecommunications, sensing and AI ecosystems through advanced materials.
This STA supports innovation in the electronics sector by focusing on the development and deployment of advanced materials tailored to meet the demands of rapidly evolving technologies. It addresses challenges related to miniaturisation, thermal management, performance, reliability, and the environmental footprint of electronic components and systems.
It includes enabling advanced materials for next-generation semiconductors, flexible electronics, quantum devices, and sustainable alternatives to critical raw materials. It also fosters collaboration between materials scientists, device manufacturers, and digital technology developers to accelerate the design-to-manufacturing pipeline and support the EU’s strategic autonomy in key electronic technologies.
HEALTH
Transforming healthcare through advanced materials.
This STA focuses on advanced materials that support preventive, personalised, and data-driven healthcare models that improve outcomes while reducing system burden. Advanced materials underpin technologies across the full continuum of care—from continuous monitoring and early diagnosis to targeted therapies and resilient healthcare infrastructure—enabling more precise, adaptive, and integrated interactions between patients, devices, and healthcare systems.
It prioritises materials that are biocompatible, safe, functional, and adaptable to patient-specific needs, enabling the development of next- generation implants, diagnostics, and therapeutic devices. It supports the use of modelling and advanced characterisation tools to predict device performance and biological interactions over time. It also addresses key regulatory, ethical, and manufacturing challenges related to the safe and effective integration of advanced materials into medical devices. Through interdisciplinary collaboration and translational research, this STA aims to accelerate the development of personalised, high-performance, and clinically impactful medical technologies.
Why attend?
This workshop will provide an opportunity to:
- Understand the evolving IAM-I/IAM4EU landscape and its links to future European research and innovation programmes.
- Explore how UK organisations can engage with emerging European materials innovation opportunities.
- Share perspectives on priority challenges, market requirements and areas where advanced materials could support future competitiveness.
- Identify UK strengths and capabilities across energy, electronics and health.
- Consider barriers relating to scale-up, manufacturing, regulation, supply chains and commercialisation.
- Help inform a coordinated UK position supporting future engagement with European materials initiatives and FP10.
Who should attend?
The workshop is intended for organisations interested in future UK–European collaboration in materials innovation, particularly those working across:
- Renewable energy generation, conversion, storage and distribution.
- Batteries, hydrogen, photovoltaics, wind energy and fuel cells.
- Semiconductors, microelectronics, telecommunications, sensing, computing and AI hardware.
- Flexible electronics, quantum technologies and electronic materials.
- Biomaterials, medical devices, diagnostics, implants and therapeutic technologies.
- Materials modelling, characterisation, testing and validation.
- Advanced manufacturing, scale-up and commercialisation.
- Circularity, critical materials and resilient supply chains.
- Research and innovation programmes, policy and international partnerships.
We are particularly keen to hear from industry representatives whose expertise can help shape practical, commercially relevant priorities for future UK engagement.
Format
The workshop will be highly interactive, with facilitated discussions designed to capture perspectives from across the UK materials community.
Participants will be invited to discuss UK strengths, shared priorities, collaboration opportunities and the mechanisms required to support effective engagement with IAM-I/IAM4EU and future European programmes.
Outputs from the workshop will help inform a coordinated UK contribution to European materials innovation discussions and wider consideration of UK participation in FP10.
Event details
Date: 19 August 2026
Time: TBC
Location: Birmingham (venue TBC)
Register your interest
We are currently gathering expressions of interest and considering the composition and size of participation from across industry, academia, research and innovation organisations, and government.
Please complete the registration form if you would like to participate. Places may be limited, and early registration is encouraged. The form will allow you to indicate whether you would prefer to attend in person or online.
The information collected will be treated confidentially, and your email address will only be used in relation to UK–EU Materials Innovation activities.
August 19 2026
