New Light on ScienceThe Social & Economic Impact of the Daresbury

Synchrotron Radiation Source, (1981 - 2008)

Science & TechnologyFacilities Council

Chapter 1 Executive summary 3

Chapter 2 Introduction 11

Chapter 3 Economic impact methodology 15

Chapter 4 SRS introduction & background 23

The global impact of the SRS

Chapter 5 Impacting the world’s synchrotron community 31

Chapter 6 Addressing global challenges 39

Chapter 7 Pushing the boundaries of technology 57

Indirect impacts

Chapter 8 The generation of skills from the SRS 65

Chapter 9 Public understanding of science 75

Chapter 10 Growing UK industry 79

Chapter 11 Helping to solve industrial problems 85

Chapter 12 Exchanging knowledge with industry 97

Direct local impacts

Chapter 13 Local financial impact of the SRS 115

Seeding future impacts

Chapter 14 Providing the next generation of impact 123

Chapter 15 Shaping the future of science and innovation 131

Chapter 16 Conclusions 139

Chapter 17 Methodological issues 147

Appendices 151

Glossary 203

Acknowledgements 211

1

Contents

2

Chapter 1Executive summary

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Cleaner fuel, safer aircraft and newmedicines, not to mention two Nobel prizes,great tasting chocolate and iPods - all ofthese things have been influenced or madepossible by world leading scientific researchcarried out on the Synchrotron RadiationSource (SRS). Located at the Science andTechnology Facilities Council’s (STFC)Daresbury Laboratory, the SRS was theworld’s first 2nd generation multi user X-raysynchrotron radiation facility. The facilityceased operations in 2008 after 28 years ofoperation and two million hours of sciencewhich was undertaken by a wide-ranging,cross-discipline, national and internationaluser base.

This report is the first complete study in the worldwhich explores the social and economic impact of alarge science facility over its whole lifetime. Thisimpact has been vast and will continue years afterthe closure of the facility. This report highlights themany ways in which the SRS has impacted at theregional, national and international level. The SRShas not only impacted the scientific, industrial andskill base of the UK but has also produced impacton a world wide scale. Impacts from the SRS includethe creation of knowledge, improved quality of lifein the UK, the generation and transfer of skills,

improved competitiveness of industry, thecommercialisation of technology, financial effectsand the creation of jobs.

Global impacts

The impact of the SRS has been felt on a number ofdifferent levels. The most significant impacts areglobal and long term impacts both from theresearch carried out at the SRS and from theproliferation of synchrotron radiation sources andtheir resulting impact around the world.

Fuelling the impact of the world’s synchrotrons

The SRS was the world’s first 2nd generation multiuser X-ray synchrotron radiation facility and as suchprovided an exemplar for Synchrotron Radiationfacilities across the globe. The SRS pioneered theway for the development of 70 similar machines;this worldwide synchrotron community is providingimpact on a global scale. Staff from the SRS playeda significant role in the establishment of thesefacilities, having formal collaborations with 40%and informal collaborations with the majority. SRSstaff played a key role in training, advising andtransferring key skills and technology to thesefacilities.

The world’s synchrotron radiation facilities are usedto conduct scientific research which explores theworld through a detailed knowledge of thestructure of matter. These facilities are used in avariety of scientific fields and science carried out onSynchrotron Radiation facilities makes a variety ofcontributions to society. Examples include,addressing global challenges such as research intothe environment and energy. Synchrotrons aroundthe world have ensured the development of newdrugs, medicines, technologies; products andmaterials.

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Chapter 1

Executive summary

“The SRS was one of the world’s mostpioneering scientific inventions and Daresburycan be very proud of its outstandingachievements.1”

1 Professor Colin Whitehouse, STFC’s Director of Campus Strategy, speaking at the closing ceremony of the SRS in August 2008

One example area in which the world widesynchrotron community has had a global impact isthe area of bioscience. Pharmaceutical andbioscience companies have recognised the hugecommercial potential that lies behind understandingthe multitude of processes that take place withinliving organisms at a molecular level. Advances inStructural Biology have accelerated greatly as aresult of access to the synchrotron facilities thathave been developed around the world.

Sophisticated analysis methods and softwarepackages involving new scientific fields on the SRSwere developed and distributed and used all overthe world. For example, one of the major impacts ofthe facility has been the emergence of techniquesto facilitate structural biology, in particular proteincrystallography (PX). This technique was pioneeredat the SRS, making the UK a world leader in thisarea. This strength has supported the skills base andR&D competitiveness of the world’s pharmaceuticaland biotechnology industries. This was one of manyimpacts which were not envisaged at the outset ofthe facility. This highlights the somewhatserendipitous nature of basic science meaning thatcertain high impact developments cannot always bepredicted.

Although the overall impact of the worldwidesynchrotron community is impossible to quantify ithas been significant. With numbers of facilitiesgrowing every year, the impact of the SRS willcontinue to be felt many years into the future.

Creation of knowledge

The SRS played a key role in enabling andperforming cutting edge research in many areas ofUK and international science. During its lifetime, theSRS has collaborated with almost every countryactive in scientific research. The SRS producedbeams of light so intense that they revealed thestructure of atoms and molecules inside a widerange of different materials. Over the lifetime of theSRS, synchrotron light supported cutting-edgeresearch in biology, chemistry, materials science andphysics and opened up many new areas of researchin fields such as medicine, earth sciences (includingboth geological and environmental studies) andarchaeology. The SRS has contributed to thepublication of over 5000 papers and solved over

1200 protein structures which have been depositedin the worldwide Protein Data Bank databaserepository. The contribution to the global pool ofresearch knowledge is another example ofsignificant, yet unquantifiable impact of the facility.

Quality of life impacts

The SRS has improved the quality of our lives in aremarkable number of ways. Examples include thedevelopment of new medicines and medicalresearch such as control of host-graft rejection andHIV/AIDS. In addition, the SRS has facilitated theproduction of new materials for use in electronicsand clothing and it has led to the development ofnew detergents. It has even played a role inimproving the taste of chocolate and the safety ofaircraft by looking at the crystal formations inchocolate and metal. Recent research on the SRSeven paved the way for bigger iPod memories.Another famous example is the crystal structure ofthe Foot and Mouth Disease Virus, which createdlarge media impact and recognition in the publicdomain.

Whilst these examples directly impact on people’squality of life, they also have a financial impact onthe Government, industry and ultimately the taxpayer. For example the Foot & Mouth outbreak in2001 cost the Government and industry £8.4billion2. The structure of the Foot & Mouth DiseaseVirus was solved at the SRS for the first time andthis research has allowed vaccines to be developed.Foot & Mouth disease is endemic in many countriesaround the world and this vaccine may defray someof the negative economical and social impactswhich the disease produces.

Indirect impactsInnovation was a constant factor throughout thelifetime of the facility. This continued from the birthof the facility using a particle physics experiment tothe innovative use of equipment after its closure.This produced indirect medium to long term impactson the UK, which are continuing after the closure ofthe facility –

Improving the performance of UK industry

The SRS impacted UK industry in several ways, thefirst being usage of the facility by industry to

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2 www.archive.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/fmd/fmd_report/report/index.htm

investigate the properties of materials includingstructures of pharmaceuticals and their proteintargets. Over its lifetime, the SRS had approximately200 proprietary customers including governmentdepartments, industry, hospitals, museums,universities and other Synchrotron Radiationsources. The industry sectors which benefited themost from the use of the facility arepharmaceutical, chemical and healthcare industries.Industrial users of the facility included largemultinational companies and SMEs: customersincluded ICI, BP, Unilever, Shell, GSK, AstraZenecaand Pfizer. Indeed 48% of the companiesrepresented in the top 25 of the 2008 R&DScoreboard3 were users of the SRS. For example, theSRS was used to characterise the molecularstructure of blockers to reduce the effects of drugsgiven during operations. This allowed Organon todevelop a drug to reduce the recovery time ofpatients after operations; this drug has now beenreleased and will significantly reduce post-operativecare costs.

In addition to the usage of the facility there was asignificant amount of knowledge exchange betweenthe SRS staff and industry during construction anddevelopment of the facility. These projects involvedthe transfer of unique skills and technology toindustry on several projects and the development ofSRS technology by industry. The challenging natureof these projects and their high specifications meantthe industrial partners’ capabilities were improved,allowing them to win contracts and grow theirbusinesses. Examples of this work include jointdesign and production of the Helios compactsynchrotron source by SRS staff and OxfordInstruments for IBM, a contract worth £18million toOxford Instruments. Another example included acollaboration of e2v with SRS staff which allowedthe company to win £250million of sales afterdevelopment of an anti-multipactor coating.

Creating new companies in the UK

Skills, technology and knowledge gained on the SRShave helped in the creation of 9 new companiesand one commercial service provider. These newcompanies are in a range of areas which includescientific instrumentation, detectors, cholesterolmonitoring, software, cryogenics, mechanicalinstrumentation and drug discovery. Thesecompanies are creating impact through thestimulation of the UK’s economy and the impact topeople’s daily lives that these activities willproduce.

Delivering highly skilled people to the labourmarket

A critical mass of highly skilled engineers,technicians and instrumentation developers wasbuilt up over the lifetime of the SRS, with staffnumbers peaking at 325 in 1998/99. The skillsrequired to design, run and support the research atthe SRS was vast, requiring world class expertise ina range of technologies.

This allowed SRS staff to transfer their expertiseand knowledge to industry, universities and otherresearch establishments. Over 100 staff from theSRS transferred to academia, industry or othersynchrotrons around the world, transferring theknowledge and skills learnt at the SRS.

The SRS also developed the skills of its scientificand industrial users; over 11,000 individual usersused the SRS during its lifetime from over 25countries. In addition it also played a big part in thestudies of many students, 4,000 of which used theSRS as part of their degrees or doctorates, with2,000 post-doctoral researchers using the SRS fortheir research. The supply of skilled graduates andresearchers who are trained at large facilities suchas the SRS and then transfer to industry or otherpublic sector bodies is a key impact from research.

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3 http://www.innovation.gov.uk/rd_scoreboard/default.asp?p=13

Direct local impactsThe final level of impacts from the SRS are direct,short term and tangible and occurred through thelocation of the facility in the North West of England –

Stimulating the economy in the North West ofEngland

There was increased economic activity in the NorthWest through the creation of jobs and theconstruction and operation of the facility between1975 and 2008. This represented a direct financialimpact of £600 million, the majority of which wasspent in the locality of the SRS. Due to multipliereffects, this initial investment increased to createan estimated total financial impact of nearly £1 billion to the North West.

The SRS also acted as a purchaser of goods andservices in the local area and wider UK. Throughoutits lifetime, the SRS has traded with over 300 localbusinesses. This purchase of goods or services fromsuppliers leads to a further chain reaction ofpurchases from their supply chain and also hasindirect effects on employment, spend and taxation.

Future impactsFinally, the SRS has facilitated several activitieswhich are creating impact for many years into thefuture –

Shaping the future of science and innovation

The Daresbury Science and Innovation Campus wascreated to exploit the critical mass of expertise,facilities and industrial links that were createdaround SRS and the wider Daresbury Laboratory. Inaddition to the scientific facilities already on thesite, the Campus has led to the establishment of aworld class centre for accelerator science, theCockcroft Institute and will further benefit from twoother centres based on computational science anddetectors systems in the near future.

In addition, 100 high tech businesses from a widerange of commercial backgrounds are now locatedin the Campus’s Daresbury Innovation Centre.Tenants come from sectors including biomedical,energy, environmental, advanced engineering and

instrumentation industries. In 2008/2009,companies in the Innovation Centre delivered£14.9M in sales, secured £20.5M in investment andhad an average growth turnover of 67%. Nearlyhalf of all Campus companies have made significantuse of the facilities, services and expertise atDaresbury Laboratory. 97 new jobs have beencreated in these tenant companies since theylocated onto the Campus with many companiesexpanding their businesses, recruiting more staffand looking to increase the size of their operationson Campus.

The next generation of impact

Other facilities like the Diamond Light Source andALICE all benefit from skills, knowledge andexpertise generated at the SRS. For example, theSRS and its staff played a key role in theestablishment of the UK’s 3rd generation lightsource – the Diamond Light Source. Over £400million has already been invested in the facility,which is owned and funded at the 14% level by theWelcome Trust and currently employs around 350staff. DLS operations begun in 2007 and it hasalready had significant impact. UK industry has alsobenefited from winning major construction and hightechnology equipment supply contracts, with afurther 2000 companies supplying other productsand services to the facility.

As already highlighted, one of the most substantiallegacies of the SRS was the emergence oftechniques to facilitate structural biology, inparticular protein crystallography. This is reflectedin the £50M investment made by the Welcome Trustinto the Diamond Light Source, to carry on theprotein crystallography work started at the SRS.

SummaryEven after the closure of the SRS, it continues togenerate economic impact both in the UK andabroad. The following report details the extensiveeconomic impact that the SRS has created throughthe science and associated technology it facilitated,the assistance that the SRS has provided forindustry, the knowledge and skills that haveresulted from the facility and the funding of thefacility.

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Given the current increased emphasis ondemonstrating the economic impact of publicinvestment in large scale facilities such as the SRS,there are a growing number of studies emerginginternationally which outline the potential impactof future large scale facilities. For example, therecent study of the potential regional impact of theEuropean Spallation Source4 in Lund. Whereappropriate, the methodology of these studies hasbeen outlined later in the report for reference.

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4 http://www.skane.se/templates/Page.aspx?id=210747

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Chapter 2Introduction

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2.1 Background

Published in 2006, the Research Councils UK(RCUK) Economic Impact Group report“Increasing the economic impact of theResearch Councils”5 made a number ofrecommendations to the Governmentregarding how the Research Councils coulddeliver a major increase in the economicimpact of their investments. One keyrecommendation of the report was that theResearch Councils should report on theirimpact and set a baseline for future reporting –

Since 2007 the Research Councils have respondedwith a series of reports and activities in response tothis recommendation.

Given the unique nature of the STFC as a funder oflarge scale scientific facilities, the STFC hasundertaken a project to investigate the economicimpact of one such facility, the SynchrotronRadiation Source. Using the SRS to demonstrateeconomic impact is timely given its closure in 2008,

after 28 years of operation. This report representsthe only lifetime report of a large scale facility inthe world.

2.2 Project aimsThe main aims of the project were to illustrate theimpact of the SRS over its lifetime and highlight anyissues with gathering this data. This will provide thebasis for the STFC to formulate a framework forfuture economic impact reporting on large facilitiesand across the rest of its projects and programmes.

2.3 Research approachResearch was both qualitative and quantitative innature and encompassed a series of interviews withkey stakeholders involved with the SRS over itslifetime. These included industrial partners, SRSusers and SRS staff. The majority of the researchwas done via desk research and questionnaires forusers were also utilised. Data sources included SRSannual reports, publications of research carried outon the SRS, the SRS user database and othereconomic impact studies.

2.4 Assumptions & caveatsGiven the period of time over which the study hastaken place, there has inevitably been informationwhich was not recorded. For example, details ofcommercial companies engaged in the constructionof the SRS do not exist. This is because theconstruction was in the 1970s when the importanceof such data was not then recognised and theadvent of the desk PC had not yet taken place.

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Chapter 2

Introduction

“Research Councils should make strenuousefforts to demonstrate more clearly the impactthey already achieve from their investments. Itis difficult to measure the economic impact ofinnovations which may be delayed in time andindirect in consequence. It is important tomeasure outcomes, however difficult, ratherthan outputs.“

5 http://www.berr.gov.uk/dius/science/page32834.html

The data contained in this report is more qualitativethan quantitative, with financial economic impactgiven wherever possible. In the cases wherefinancial economic data has not been available,qualitative case studies have been used to illustratethe impacts. This also means that it has not beenpossible to put a figure on the total economicimpact of the SRS, but some financial impacts havebeen modelled. It should also be noted that allfinancial figures have been indexed to reflect themat today’s costs.

It should also be recognised that this method ofresearch could never capture the full economicimpact of the SRS – whatever is reported here is anunderestimate due to the limitations with the data.

2.5 Report structure & contentThis report sets out the impact of the SRS over itslifetime. Chapter 3 describes the economic impactmethodology used in the report and chapter 4 givesan introduction to the SRS. The remaining chaptersdescribe various outputs from the SRS and illustratethe economic impact that has resulted from theseoutputs in both the UK and abroad. Each chapterends with a summary of the impacts. The reportfinishes with conclusions from the project andhighlights issues which have arisen from theresearch.

2.6 ScopeThis report is intended to illustrate the vasteconomic impact that has come from the SRS overits lifetime and continues to make after its closure.The scientific output of the SRS has been extensiveand well documented; this report is not intended toexplore the vast scientific or technical output of thefacility. However research that has made an impactto daily lives, for example healthcare orenvironmental research, has been highlighted.

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Chapter 3Economic impact methodology

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3.1 Measurement of economicimpact

Economic impact is generally thought of asthe effect on a given economy produced bya particular project, policy or activity in agiven region or country.

The definition of economic impact whichwill be used in this report is given in theTreasury Green Book:

This definition highlights the stakeholders who“receive” the impact: consumers (through greaterchoice and cheaper products and other welfareeffects), firms (through increased profits andefficiency in production) and government (throughincreased revenue and better policies).

The definition also highlights some issues witheconomic impact measurement (which will beexplored later on in the report); that is, somecomponents of economic impact are both tangible(easy to measure) and intangible (harder tomeasure). It also defines economic impact as havingboth economic and social aspects, withmeasurement of the latter potentially more difficultto measure and quantify.

In 2007, the STFC’s parent Government department,the Department of Innovation Universities & Skills(DIUS) (now the Department of Business Innovation& Skills) introduced an economic impact frameworkas a guide to the areas which should be measuredand reported on by the Research Councils. These areillustrated in the diagram below –

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Chapter 3

Economic impact methodology

“An action or activity has an economic impactwhen it affects the welfare of consumers, theprofits of firms and/or the revenue ofgovernment. Economic impacts range fromthose that are readily quantifiable, in terms ofgreater wealth, cheaper prices and morerevenue, to those less easily quantifiable, suchas effects on the environment, public healthand quality of life.6”

6 HM Treasury’s “The Green book: Appraisal and Evaluation in Central Government” (2003) (www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/media/05553/Green_Book_03.pdf)

Figure 1, five key ways of generating economic impact from research, DIUS ‘Economic Impact Framework’ – May 2007

Delivering highly skilledpeople to the labour market

Creating new businesses

Attracting R&D investmentfrom global business

Improving public policy andpublic services

Improving the performanceof existing businesses

Economicimpact

3.2 SRS economic impact areas of analysisThe Research Councils report elements of theirprogress on economic impact to the Governmentthrough Economic Impact Baseline reports. TheSTFC’s Economic Impact Baseline from 2007/08 isdetailed in appendix 1. Utilising key themes fromthe baseline, the areas of economic impact whichwere investigated for this study are –

a) Generation ofknowledge and skillsThe major output of research is the generation ofknowledge, both codified and tacit.

Codifiable knowledge generation

Codifiable knowledge generation comes throughresearch. Any research information which ispublished or can be accessed can make an impact.The measurement of publication data, high impactpublications and other data sharing schemes are allrelevant here.

Tacit knowledge generation

Tacit knowledge cannot be codified, it is theknowledge that people carry with them and isgained and transferred through personal experience.Tacit knowledge comes through the provision ofeducation, training and skills to a range ofstakeholders at all levels from schools through toindustry. The mechanism of transferring tacitknowledge comes through the transfer of skilledpeople from one organisation to another.Knowledge can also flow through the involvementof staff on panels and committees, in networks andvia lecturing and teaching.

b) Improving UK businesscompetitiveness Improved business competitiveness for UKcompanies through –

Improved products and processes

This element of EI is concerned with how UK plccan be assisted to improve its products and

processes, for example through process, yield orcycle time improvement. This can be done viacollaborative research projects and the commercialuse of facilities and technology.

Creating opportunities for UK business

This involves ensuring that UK companies are ableto tender for work at major research centres andfacilities. In addition, new and existing businessesthat are co-located or spun-in to the Daresbury andHarwell Science and Innovation Campuses can alsobe assisted. This is done through providing business,facility, scientific and technological support fromthe STFC.

Attracting and retaining investment in the UK

This represents the ability to attract externalinvestment into the UK. Nationally this can be fromRegional Development Agencies, the other ResearchCouncils, Universities, industry and other partners.Internationally this can be from Universities, otherlarge scale facilities, international industry and theEU. These impacts can be directly measured via theinvestment from each of these partners.

Commercialisation

This area represents commercial activity throughspin-outs and the generation of intellectualproperty. The establishment of new companies isconsidered to be a key route through whicheconomic impact is achieved through research.

c) Impact to internationalpartnersThis is the contribution to the scientific andtechnological development of other countries bothin the EU and internationally at both an academicand industrial level.

d) Welfare impactsThe contribution to health, environmental, cultural,social and national security outcomes throughresearch programmes. For example, spin-outcompanies who work on home land security,cultural heritage projects such as restoration of theMary Rose and impacts via drug discovery anddisease characterisation.

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3.3 Measuring the impact of R&DThere are several groups and initiatives which haveattempted to capture the impact of R&D. Forexample, the Science Policy Research Unit (SPRU)from the University of Sussex has carried outseveral studies on the benefits of publicly fundedresearch. Martin & Salter (1996)7 and more recentlyMartin & Tang8 (2007) quote –

They highlight both conceptual and methodologicalissues but state that the benefits of publicly fundedresearch are substantial. The same report quotes theresults of several econometric studies into the EI ofpublicly funded R&D “all of which show a largepositive contribution to economic growth”. Theycite studies which find that the rate of return ofpublicly funded research to be between 20 – 50%.Their research highlights the following impacts ofresearch – new useful information, newinstrumentation and methodologies, trainedresearch scientists supporting other economicsectors, access to international networks of expertiseand information, the provision of scientists capableof solving complex technical problems to theprivate sector and spin out companies.

3.4 The impacts of largescale science facilities The economic benefits and return from publicinvestment in large research facilities is a

recognised consideration in the decision makingprocess to host them. This was explored in theCCLRC Neutron Review of 20069 (one of STFC’spredecessor Councils). This report states thefollowing level of impacts from large scale facilities –

• Direct – through the design, construction andoperation of the facility. Such impact,relatively easily quantified, is short to mediumterm in nature – at least for the 20-30 year lifeof a facility – and is primarily localised.

• Indirect – through the creation of campusessurrounding a facility – by definition localised– clustering high technology users/exploitersof a facility’s capabilities, through spin-close,spin-in and spin-out enterprises. The impact ofthe campus is harder to quantify and extendsbeyond the actual lifetime of a facility.

• Global – the diffuse and very long term impactthat arises from the establishment of a globalhub in the knowledge economy. The impact ofsuch a focus extends from the influence ofnational attitudes to an exploitation of scienceand innovation, and the establishment ofglobal contact networks – to national prestige,credibility and influence.

There is a growing body of publications on thepotential economic impact of future large scalefacilities, reflecting the recent focus on this area.These reports include several on the futureEuropean Spallation Source project in variouspotential locations, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, the AustralianLight Source and the Canadian Light Source.

In addition to potential economic reports, a reportwas undertaken by the Cabinet Office, the Office ofScience and Technology and the Office of PublicService and Science in 199315. This reportinvestigated the economic benefits of hosting largeinternational scientific facilities, in order to develop

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7 Martin, B.R. & Salter (1996), “The Relationship between Publicly funded basic research and Economic Performance”, Prepared by the Science PolicyResearch Unit (SPRU), University of Sussex for HM Treasury

8 Martin, B. and Tang, P. (2007), “The Benefits from Publicly Funded Research”, SPRU working paper 161, (www.sussex.ac.uk/spru/1-6-1-2-1-55.html)9 http://www.neutrons.cclrc.ac.uk/home.aspx10 Science at the Cutting Edge. The Future of the Oresund Region, G. Tornqvist, Chapter 13, Copenhagen Business School Press, 2002.11 Impacts of Large-Scale Research Facilities - A Socio-Economic Analysis, O. Hallonsten, M. Benner and G. Holmberg, School of Economic and

Management, Lund University, August 2004.12 “What benefits will Denmark obtain for it science, technology and competitiveness by co-hosting an advanced large-scale research facility near

Lund?” F. Valentin, M.T. Larsen and N. Heineke, Copenhagen Business School, 2005.13 “Assessment of the potential to locate the European Spallation Source in Sweden - Summary, discussion and recommendations”, A. Larsson, 2005.14 The economic impact of a large-scale facility on Yorkshire and the Humber region, Arthur D. Little, November, 2004.15 Economic Impacts of Hosting International Scientific Facilities, Cabinet Office, OST and Office of public service and science, April 1993

“Any attempt to assess and quantify theeconomic and social benefits from publiclyfunded research is beset by problems.”

a framework for appraising the benefits of suchfacilities. The analysis focused on CERN, JET, ESRFand the ILL but also considered the SRS and ISIS. Asummary of the report includes –

• Benefits to the national economy come fromdirect employment and expenditure andindustrial supply to the facility, although itdoes state that local and national impacts canbe hard to pick apart.

• Benefits to the local economy come from theskills gained by staff that work at the facilityand also include economic activity generatedby visiting staff and users. Another significantlocal impact is the clustering of other researchinstitutes and companies around large sciencefacilities.

• The report states that the most direct way inwhich large facilities have impact to the hostnation is through the national science base.The host of a large scientific facility gainsscientific prestige and leadership and theability to raise the profile of a particularscience area.

• The report concludes that the benefits ofhosting are difficult to quantify – qualitativelyor quantitatively, especially if they displaceother economic activity.

3.5 Difficulties with impactmeasurementThere are several difficulties which occur whenmeasuring economic impact as illustrated in the2007 Annual Report on the 10 year Science andInnovation Investment Framework16 –

It also states that it can take up to 6 years forpublications to result from investments in R&D.Hence it can be stated that impacts vary over time,are global in nature and are both direct and indirect.

3.6 Financial impacts &modelsIn addition to the impact of the R&D output of amajor facility there are financial economic impactsto the locality in which large scale scientificfacilities or scientific employers are located. Theseimpacts occur through the budget of the employerbeing spent in the area local to the site or to thewider UK. Budgets are spent on wages, equipmentand overheads etc in the area local to the employer.

In addition to direct spending, there is a multiplyingeffect of the repeated re-spending of this budget inthe local economy. This recognises that the directinvestment initiates an economic “chain reaction”of further spending, production, income, andemployment. Hence, there are several levels offinancial impact which are continuing to be felt as aresult of the SRS –

• Direct impacts – direct employment and directspend by the SRS.

• Indirect or “supply chain” impacts – The initialpurchase of goods or services from suppliersleads to a further chain reaction of purchasesfrom their supply chain. This also has indirecteffects on employment, spend and taxation.

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16 www.berr.gov.uk/files/file40398.doc17 SPRU (2007) provides a comprehensive literature review on the measurement of the economic impact of publicly funded research

(www.sussex.ac.uk/spru/1-6-1-2-1-55.html)

• The global nature of science andinnovation makes it particularly difficult toattribute domestic economic impacts todomestic science and innovationinvestment and policies.

• The research base having direct as well asindirect effects on economic impact alsocomplicates the attribution of impacts toinputs of the research base.“

“The consensus in the economics literature17 isthat measuring the economic impacts ofscience and innovation is highly problematic,due to the following issues:

• The time taken from an increase in R&Dspend to an increase in welfare can bevariable and lengthy.

• Induced impacts - employment and spendsupported by the spending of those employeddirectly or indirectly by the SRS.

The diagram below indicates this effect –

These effects are illustrated by an economic impactstudy18 of the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory (LBL)in California which states –

These indirect and induced impacts are calculatedby using so-called economic multipliers, which varydepending on industry sector and region in the UK.This method is commonly used, see - LaurenceBerkeley Laboratory18, UK Universities19 andpotential large facilities like the AustralianSynchrotron20. For example, the indirect economicmultiplier used to calculate the economic impact of the Intermediate Sector by Oxford Economics21

is 1.6 –

In the UK, economic multipliers are generally basedon or taken directly from the “United KingdomInput-Output Analytical Tables” produced by theOffice of National Statistics (ONS) in 2001. TheInput-Output framework brings togethercomponents of Gross Value Added (GVA)22, industryinputs and outputs, product supply and demand,and the composition of uses and resources acrossinstitutional sectors for the UK economy.

Due to the fact that most impacts occur at aregional level, the Treasury Green Bookrecommends using Regional Development Agencymultipliers or those available by EnglishPartnerships. According to SQW23, regionalmultipliers can vary between 1.2 and 2. For specificsectors in specific regions specific multipliers mustbe calculated, requiring information on thebehaviour of supply chains, wages etc. Examples ofmultipliers quoted in a selection of economicimpact reports are presented in table 1 overleaf –

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18 www.berkeley.edu/econimpact/2005-2006-econimpact-report.pdf 19 “The economic impact of UK higher education institutions”, Universities UK, (2006),

www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/Publications/Documents/economicimpact3.pdf 20 Houghton, J., Rasmussen, B. and Sheehan, P. 2003, The Australian Synchrotron Project: An Economic Impact Study, Report to the Victorian Department

of Innovation, Industry and Regional Development, October, CSES, Victoria University, Melbourne.21 www.oxfordeconomics.com/Free/pdfs/OxfordAIRTOFINAL%20.pdf22 Gross Value Added (GVA) can be used to measure the contribution to the economy of each individual producer, industry or sector in the United

Kingdom and is used in the estimation of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).23 “The economic impact and potential of higher education institutions in the North West : A report to the Northwest Development Agency”, April

2009, SQW Consulting

Figure 2, Illustration of total financial economic impact

“This money is re-spent again and again in theeconomy, creating jobs and income forbusinesses and other workers. Manyindividuals not employed by the Laboratoryand numerous businesses depend to someextent upon the ripple effects of Berkeley Labspending for their livelihoods.”

“This means that for every £1 million ofoutput generated by the Intermediate Sector,another £0.6 million of output is generatedindirectly in its supply chain in the UK.”

Directimpact

Indirectimpact

Inducedimpact

TotalEconomic

Impact

+

=

+

Due to its location in the North West of England,multipliers from this region should be used for thecalculation. However, the North West DevelopmentAgency has not produced any regional multipliersfor the R&D sector, so an approximation must bemade using existing multipliers. Hence the nationalmultipliers for the R&D sector from the Office ofNational Statistics will be used.

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Source Industry Type II Type II multiplier output employment output

Partnerships UK (2006) UK HEIs 2.52 1.99

ONS (2001) Research & development 1.44 1.23

Oxford Economics (2006) Intermediate sector 1.6

Birmingham University (2007) Birmingham University 1.4 1.7

SQW (2009) North West HEIs 1.5 1.5

Table 1, comparator multipliers for various UK industries

Chapter 4SRS introduction & background

24

4.1 Introduction

This chapter will describe the STFC, thebackground to the establishment of the SRS,its predecessor facility (the SRF) and theDaresbury Laboratory. The SRS was operatedby the Science and Technology FacilitiesCouncil (STFC) between 2007 and the end of2008 when it ceased operation.

4.2 The Science andTechnology Facilities Council

The SRS was located at the Daresbury Laboratory inCheshire which forms part of the Daresbury Scienceand Innovation Campus. The STFC was formed bythe merger of the Council for the Central Laboratoryof the Research Councils (CCLRC) and the ParticlePhysics and Astronomy Research Council (PPARC) inApril 2007.

The STFC is one of Europe's largest multidisciplinaryresearch organisations supporting scientists andengineers world-wide. The Council has a wideranging science portfolio including astronomy,particle physics, particle astrophysics, nuclearphysics, space science, synchrotron radiation,neutron sources and high power lasers.

The STFC has an approximate annual budget of£500M and in excess of 2000 staff across sevensites which include a further two laboratories inaddition to the Daresbury Laboratory: theRutherford Appleton Laboratory, part of the HarwellScience and Innovation Campus (HSIC) inOxfordshire and the UK Astronomy TechnologyCentre (ATC) located in Edinburgh. The STFC has awide ranging remit, more details of which can befound at the STFC’s website24.

At present, the STFC funds the provision ofSynchrotron Radiation (SR) facilities in the UKthrough an 86% share in the Diamond Light Sourceand a 14% contribution to the EuropeanSynchrotron Radiation Facility in France.

4.3 The Daresbury Laboratory

The Daresbury Laboratory is one of two publiclyfunded national laboratories to house large-scale,international-class scientific facilities in the UK. TheLaboratory has a proud tradition of scientificexcellence, has achieved world renown for itspioneering developments and houses severalscientific facilities, departments and support groups.The Laboratory was established in 1962 and wasinitially set up to house the National InstituteNorthern Accelerator (NINA). NINA opened in 1967and was a 5 GeV electron synchrotron acceleratordevoted to the study of particle physics. In additionto NINA, the Daresbury Laboratory housed theNuclear Structure Facility which became the world’shighest energy ion beam accelerator.

Synchrotron Radiation research at DaresburyLaboratory started in 1967 with an exploratoryexperiment to parasitically exploit synchrotronradiation produced by the NINA ring. A proposal fora formal user facility, the Synchrotron RadiationFacility (SRF)25, a so-called 1st generation lightsource, was approved in 1969 and ran from 1972until the closure of NINA in 1977. The SRF consistedof two beamlines feeding six experimental stations.The initial science programme included experimentson the absorption and reflection spectra of atomsand molecules and VUV molecular spectroscopy oforganic solids.

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Chapter 4

SRS introduction & background

24 www.stfc.ac.uk25 www.journals.iucr.org/s/issues/1997/06/00/hi0059/hi0059.pdf

The closure of NINA (and hence the SRF) wasprompted by the UK’s decision to close its nationalparticle accelerators and concentrate particlephysics research at CERN. A threefold plan emergedto replace NINA26, which included a plan for adedicated synchrotron radiation source whichwould both benefit from existing Daresburyinfrastructure and expertise and meet the needs ofan expanding synchrotron radiation community.Approval for the construction for the SRS was givenin 1975 –

4.4 The Synchrotron Radiation SourceIn the late 1970s and early 1980s, staff at theDaresbury Laboratory designed and constructed theworld’s first purpose built, multi user facilitydedicated to the production of X-ray synchrotronradiation - a so-called 2nd generation synchrotronradiation facility, called the Synchrotron RadiationSource (SRS)28. The SRS was a 2GeV electronstorage ring, operated solely for the provision ofsynchrotron radiation for multiple simultaneoususer experiments. Being the first facility of its kindbrought a significant amount of influence on futurefacilities around the world; this is just one of thebenefits that will be explored in this report.

Between the closure of NINA in 1977 and thecommencement of SRS user operations in 1981, theSR users and many of the Laboratory staff workedfor a significant period at other SR sources aroundthe world. Funded by the Daresbury Laboratory, thisestablished a strong network for the exchange ofscientific and technical information in the field whichwas exploited throughout the lifetime of the SRS.

The SRS was a world class facility dedicated to theexploitation of SR for fundamental and appliedresearch, which began operations in 1981. The SRSwas a national research facility available on a “freeat the point of use” basis to academics and viaappropriate payment mechanisms to industry. TheSRS offered a diverse set of experimental facilitieswhich delivered radiation with wavelengthsextending from the infrared to hard X-rays.Examples of techniques provided included proteincrystallography, X-ray diffraction and infraredmicroscopy.

The SRS was used to study a diverse range ofscientific subjects, a significant proportion of whichare applicable to many different industries.Research performed on the facility included biology,engineering, environmental science, materialsscience, physics and chemistry. Application areas ofthis science include understanding the basicprocesses of life at the molecular level, medicineand pharmaceutical development, the development

26

26 www.iop.org/EJ/abstract/0957-0233/3/2/01827 www.journals.iucr.org/s/issues/1997/06/00/hi0059/hi0059.pdf28 www.srs.ac.uk/srs

“The approval of this purpose-built dedicatedsource of X-rays in the UK led the way into a new era of dedicated synchrotronradiation sources around the globe.” Professor I.H. Munro27

Figure 3, the first synchrotron beamline on NINA, constructed in1966/67. (I.H. Munro & T.D.S. Hamilton)

of new materials, the environment andnanotechnology. The multidisciplinary nature of theSRS meant that there was a huge transfer ofknowledge and expertise across traditionalscientific boundaries. This “blurring” of singlesubject boundaries enabled new areas of science toopen up and contributed to a shift in attitudes offunding agencies.

The SRS served many communities and staff andinteracted with many stakeholders over the lifetimeof the facility. Each one of the stakeholders detailedbelow have experienced some level of economicimpact from the existence of the SRS.

In 2005, the Minister for Science announced thatthe SRS would close in 2008 after a two-yearoverlap with the Diamond Light Source29 whichwould take over as the UK’s national synchrotronradiation source. This resulted in a phased run-downof the SRS until its closure in August 2008. Thefollowing report outlines the high level of economicimpact that has resulted from the SRS in its lifetimeand which is continuing to be felt after its closure.

27

29 www.diamond.ac.uk/default.htm

Figure 4, SRS stakeholder diagram

UK & internationalfacility users

UK & internationalcharities & museums

UK & internationalGovernments

UK Research Councils &international research

funders

SRS

Other worldwidesynchrotrons

Industry – UK &international

• Commercial access

• Supplier

• Collaboration

UK & internationalUniversities

General public (local &national)

Schools/teachers

STFC & predecessors

28

The global impact of the SRS

30

Chapter 5Impacting the world’s synchrotron community

32

5.1 Introduction

The SRS was the world’s first 2nd generationmulti user X-ray synchrotron radiationfacility and as such provided an exemplar forSynchrotron Radiation facilities across theglobe. The SRS pioneered the way for thedevelopment of 70 similar machines30; thisworldwide synchrotron community isproviding impact on a global scale. In thischapter, the influence of the SRS on theworldwide synchrotron radiation communitywill be explored, along with the globalimpact of these facilities. The SRS not onlyinfluenced the development of a worldwidecommunity of SR sources but alsocollaborated with many other scientificestablishments, themselves producing impact.

5.2 The impact of the worldwide synchrotron communityThe world’s synchrotron radiation facilities are usedto conduct scientific research which explores theworld through a detailed knowledge of thestructure of matter. These facilities are used in avariety of scientific fields and science done onSynchrotron Radiation facilities makes a variety ofcontributions to society. For example, research

addressing global challenges such as theenvironment, energy and global warming.Synchrotrons around the world have ensured thedevelopment of new drugs, medicines, technologies,products and materials.

Examples32 of the areas in which the world widesynchrotron community has had a global impact are –

• BiosciencePharmaceutical and bioscience companies havebeen swift to recognise the huge commercialpotential that lies behind understanding themultitude of processes that take place withinliving organisms at a molecular level. Advancesin Structural Biology have accelerated greatlyas a result of access to the synchrotronfacilities that have been developed around theworld in the past 25 years. Pioneered at theSRS, the technique of protein crystallographyin particular has had a world wide impact inthe structural biology field.

• Aerospace The aerospace industry requires in depthknowledge of the properties and behaviour ofmaterials under extreme conditions.Synchrotron radiation enables non-destructive,high resolution stress analysis on a timescalefar shorter than laboratory-based techniques.The ability to assess structural weakness ofcomponents and materials on a microscopicscale is crucial to ensuring safety, whilstboosting performance.

• EngineeringThe engineering industry is continually lookingto advance performance and gain a lead overthe competition. As the field of synchrotronresearch has matured and expanded fromtraditional sciences into applied engineering,

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Chapter 5

Impacting the world’s synchrotron community

“There is now hardly an area of science thathas not benefited from the use of synchrotronradiation.31”

30 A note on terminology: the light source described in this chapter include some with storage rings and some without; many operate as x-ray sourcesbut some are photon accelerators. The word synchrotron is used here to refer to all of these.31 Review of SR science”, EPSRC publication, 1994, hard copy32 These examples are taken from the Diamond Light Source website - www.diamond.ac.uk

experts have developed highly innovative andspecialised ways to meet the challengespresented by the different types ofexperiments that the growing user communitywish to embark on.

• Environmental ScienceThe complexity of current environmentalissues means that companies require expertisein a combination of areas and need advancedanalytical techniques to make realbreakthroughs. By harnessing the technicalcapabilities of synchrotron radiation sources,the environmental sector can investigatesolutions to drive their businesses forward, andmake real, high impact changes.

• IT HardwareFaster, smaller, lighter are key drivers for thedevelopment of new IT hardware components.The ability of synchrotron radiation topenetrate through layers of material,characterise materials on an atomic scale anduse time resolved studies in, for example, insitu phase transformations provide a valuabletool, supporting further research anddevelopment in the IT industry.

These are just some examples of the significantimpact that the growth of the synchrotroncommunity has had on the world. The impact of thesynchrotron community is impossible to fullyquantify but it has certainly provided significantimpact on a world wide scale.

5.3 Pioneering developments The numbers of synchrotron radiation facilities aregrowing every year, but how has the SRS impactedon this worldwide community? Many of theoperational features now considered standard in theoperation of user-focused SR facilities werepioneered at the SRS. As other dedicated sourceswere developed, the SRS model of operation wasgenerally followed. Its key features were:

• The synchrotrons were used as storage rings atconstant energy.

• The synchrotrons were designed such thatscientists could operate without special

radiation protection i.e. they did not have tobe registered as radiation workers duringnormal operation. (This was not followed fullyin some later sources, to their detriment).

• Ancillary laboratories, for example specialistbiology facilities, were located alongside thesource.

• Station scientists were appointed anddeveloped, so that they fully understood allaspects of particular techniques and beamlines.

• User support scientists were appointed to helpusers to make the best use of their beamtime.

• A commercial office was set up to provideclients with a ‘one-stop-shop’ for enquiries,scientific solutions, scheduling and reporting.

• Industrial access was offered for a fee, withnon-publication as the standard option.

• A range of services, from full data acquisitionand analysis to the provision of beam-timeexclusively to experienced commercial clients;this pattern was later adopted by a number ofnew sources33.

• Partnerships could be set up in which externalorganisations could design and build abeamline largely for their own use, but alsowith time made available through the hostingorganisation for general users.

• Operation on a 24 hours a day 7 days a weekbasis for scheduled periods. This was uniqueamongst SR facilities and pushed thetechnology required to support the scientistsworking for such long hours on experiments,for example automation via robotics to changesamples.

Due to the attraction of the outstanding sciencethat could be performed on the facility and with aworkable model evident, user-demand growing andan ever-widening range of techniques becomingavailable, it was inevitable that the number ofworking synchrotrons would increase rapidlyworldwide.

34

33 For example, the new synchrotron source ANKA, (http://ankaweb.fzk.de/)

5.4 The growth in numbersWhilst the SRS was the first purpose-builtsynchrotron, others followed soon after. It can beseen from the graph below that after the

establishment of the SRS in 1980, approximately 70additional synchrotron radiation sources followed inthe next 30 years.

35

34 Start-up dates have been chosen, as far as possible, to be the date when the SR sources were made available to users for experiments.35 www.sesame.org.jo/36 www.lnls.br37 www.nsrc.or.th

As can be seen from figure 5, there are currentlyapproximately 68 first to third generationsynchrotron facilities currently operatingworldwide34. The definitions of first to thirdgeneration synchrotrons are given in Appendix 2.

Of particular note is the fact that some of thenewer synchrotrons are being built in developingcountries for example Jordan35, China, Brazil36,Korea, Taiwan and Thailand37. The science

establishment in such countries has recognised thecapability of synchrotron sources to support theemerging science base, and to drive throughdevelopments in associated fields such as precisionengineering. For example, in addition to SESAME asdetailed in chapter 13, the Brazilian Light Sourcewas established to act as a catalyst to build a localand national skill base.

Figure 5, the growth and number of synchrotrons worldwide

Active Synchrotrons

Establishment ofthe SRS

3rd Gen

2nd Gen

1st Gen

Dedicated

Hi energy

5.5 Collaboration with other SR sourcesStaff from the SRS played a significant role in theestablishment of other SR facilities around theworld. Staff from the SRS had informalcollaborations with the majority of the world’ssynchrotrons and had formal collaborations such asagreements and memoranda of understanding withnearly half.

As the first of the major national light sourcefacilities, the SRS and its staff had a large impact onnew projects worldwide, including direct personalinvolvement in many cases. SRS staff played a keyrole in training, advising and transferring key skillsand technology to these facilities. Staff from theSRS collaborated extensively, addressing topicsincluding fundamental science, synchrotron designand operation, detector development and appliedresearch for industrial processes. In addition toworking with many of the synchrotrons across theworld, many of the SRS staff later went on toactually work at these other synchrotrons, furtherdisseminating their expertise. Some 63 SRS stafftransferred to other synchrotrons around the world, transferring their skills to these sources.

SRS staff had formal collaborations with at least 27synchrotrons around the world (around 40% of thecurrent total) and had informal collaborations withthe majority. An excerpt from the CCLRC’sQuinquenial Review in 2000 states –

In addition, SRS staff were on the Scientific orAdvisory Boards of the Australian Light Source, theCanadian Light Source, the Spanish Light sourceALBA and SESAME. One of the major interactionswas with the ESRF, with leading roles for UKpersonnel in its conception, design andconstruction. Ex-SRS staff also led synchrotronprojects in the USA, Australia and Spain.

36

Figure 6, artist’s impression of the Australian Synchrotron by night. (Courtesy: Australian Synchrotron)

“The SRS is well integrated into the world-widefellowship of synchrotron radiation sources,and every synchrotron radiation source in theworld has had Daresbury Laboratoryinvolvement during its development. For manyfacilities there have been formal links, usuallythrough membership of international advisorypanels, while for others the connections havebeen informal. For instance, in the last threeyears, the SRS has hosted visits from staff from12 overseas synchrotron radiation centres, andDaresbury senior staff have visited 17 sources.”

Finally, SRS staff were active and influential inseveral networks at regional, national andinternational levels. Significant internationalnetworks included the Integrated InfrastructureInitiative (I3)38 which seeks to integrate activity andpromote joint research activities on synchrotronand free electron laser research throughout Europe.SRS staff were important contributors to thisinitiative which is the largest such organisation inthe world. Additionally, two SRS staff werefounding Editors of the Journal of SynchrotronRadiation39, an international publication whichcelebrated its 15th year in 2008. The impact of theJournal and associated Editorial work on academicand industrial research has been significant.

5.6 The strength of collaborationThe following examples of collaboration betweenthe SRS and other countries SR programmes wereparticularly substantive in their influence –

• The Spanish science research council had aninterest in synchrotron radiation, largely driven by its intention to have a facility inSpain. In preparation for a future facility, thecouncil funded researchers at the SRS, seeingthem as “scouts” who were developing skillsfor future deployment in Spain. From 1987 to1992, 7 PhD and post-doctoral students joinedthe SRS from Spanish Universities to studybiological systems. The knowledge they gainedmeant that the Spanish Government couldmake the decision to invest in a beam-line at ESRF which ultimately led to theestablishment of the ALBA40 light source inBarcelona. Some of these researchers havegone on to be influential in the worldwidesynchrotron community, including the currentdirector of the ALBA light source, ProfessorJoan Bordas.

• INTAS41, the International Association for thepromotion of co-operation with scientists fromthe New Independent States (NIS) of theformer Soviet Union, was established in 1993.

INTAS was set up to promote scientificresearch activities and scientific co-operationbetween NIS scientists and the internationalscientific community. Funded by INTAS,Russian scientists visited the SRS to garnerknowledge on the operation of synchrotrons,in particular computing, data management andinstrument control. At least fifty publicationsresulted from this collaboration and the Siberia1 and Siberia 2 designs for Russiansynchrotrons included elements learned fromthe exchanges at the SRS. In later years, X-raymonochromators were purchased for the SRSfrom Russia, where the sole suppliers werelocated at the time.

• There was a major collaboration onsynchrotron research between the UK andJapanese research bodies, starting with aMemorandum of Understanding in 1987, and acollaboration between staff from the SRS andthe Japan Synchrotron Radiation ResearchInstitute (JASRI) starting in 199142. Thiscollaboration resulted in a substantial amountof knowledge and staff exchange whichbenefited both parties and was perceived as agreat success, generating a substantialpublication list. In addition, from 199643

onwards, there was an important collaborationbetween the Japanese research institute RIKENand the SRS in the area of structural biology.The collaboration was seen to be of greatimportance in strengthening Japanese-Angloco-operation in science and technology. Thisenabled progress to be made in theunderstanding of neurodegenerative diseasesin both organisations.

• One of the legacies of the SRS is the re-cyclingof equipment from the facility. As part of theSRS decommissioning process, equipment fromthe SRS has been released in brokering dealswith overseas sources to provide access for UKusers. For example, a detector has recentlybeen bought by a Swedish University for abeamline at ELETTRA and an X-ray mirror wasdonated to the Brazilian Light Source. Mostrecently a gift of high-tech decommissioned

37

38 www.elettra.trieste.it/i3/39 http://journals.iucr.org/s/journalhomepage.html40 http://www.cells.es/41 http://www.intas.be/42 www.srs.ac.uk/srs/agreements.html43 www.srs.ac.uk/srs/news_extras/RIKEN_Symposium_May04.htm

components has been made to the SESAMEsynchrotron. The high-tech components will beused to construct experimental beamlines forresearch into materials and life sciences. TheUK observer on the SESAME Council andformer SRS group leader, Professor SamarHasnain, Max Perutz Professor of BiologicalSciences at the University of Liverpool, stated –

5.7 Impact summary

38

• Being an exemplar first 2nd generationmulti user machine, the transfer of skillsand technology through both formal andinformal collaborations was vast. SRS staffhad collaborations with most of theworld’s synchrotron facilities.

• The SRS facilitated the growth of theworldwide synchrotron community,themselves producing extensive impact.

• Although the overall impact of theworldwide synchrotron community isimpossible to quantify it has beensignificant with impacts in fields such asengineering, bioscience andenvironmental science. With numbers offacilities growing every year, the impact ofthe SRS will continue to be felt manyyears into the future.

“I am delighted that this equipment will go toa project that unites the participating nations,enabling them to work together. It will allowthe next generation of scientists from membercountries to carry out world-class fundamentalscientific research.”

Chapter 6Addressing global challenges

40

6.1 Introduction

The SRS was a world class facility dedicatedto the exploitation of Synchrotron Radiationfor fundamental and applied research. Assuch it played a key role in the creation ofnew scientific knowledge and thedevelopment of technology that had a globalimpact. A key aspect of the success of thefacility was the interdisciplinary nature ofthe facility which pushed the boundaries ofscience in the UK at that time.

The SRS was used by around 1500 scientists peryear to study the basic structure of matter. Hence,the SRS has made a major impact on many areas ofscience, with a truly interdisciplinary programme inphysics, chemistry, materials science, biology,engineering and environmental science. Towardsthe end of its life cycle the SRS was usedincreasingly by new communities such as medicalimaging, geological studies, structural genomics andarchaeology.

The award of Nobel Prizes in Chemistry (1997 and2009) to two SRS users highlight the significantscientific output of the SRS. Sir John Walker for hiselucidation of the mechanism of the ATP cycle andProfessor Venkatraman Ramakrishnan for work onthe structure and function of the ribosome, thecell’s protein factory. Information on the researchvolume and dissemination from the facility can befound in appendix 3.

6.2 Collaboration and interdisciplinary research in the UKThe success of the SRS was in part due to theinterdisciplinary nature of the science it facilitated,a feature that was apparent from the late 1970sonwards. The experimental area of the SRS wasperhaps the only place in the country where onecould find experimental physicists, chemists,biologists, earth scientists, materials scientists,theoreticians, software scientists and engineersworking alongside each other every day. Thisinterdisciplinary approach and ‘skills blending’ wasa key aspect of the national importance of SRresearch in the UK and of its impact in the rest ofthe world.

Since its inception in the early 1980s, the SRS had asignificant impact on the scientific research of UKscientists. At this time, aside from elementaryparticle physics studies, the great majority ofresearch studies in the physical sciences wasundertaken in comparatively small university groupsand at relatively low cost. The orders of magnitudeadvantage in brilliance offered by synchrotronradiation sources to photon scientists generated asubstantial movement from academic departmentsto work at large scale scientific facilities. Thismeant that facilities such as the SRS became bothcustomer driven and customer led. It also compelledthe individual university groups to work closelytogether within the constraints of a large facilitystriving to serve the needs of a great many groups.

During the early 1980s this circumstance stimulatedthe growth of a host of new ideas and noveltechnologies in which traditional single subjectscience boundaries became of reduced importance.The interaction, in particular between physicists &

41

Chapter 6

Addressing global challenges

“The opening of the dedicated radiationsource at SRS, Daresbury, in 1981 gave rise toa new chapter for research.44”

44 Johnson, L.N. & Blundell, T.L., The Journal of Synchrotron Radiation (1999), issue 6, P.813 - 815

biologists and chemists & geologists, enabled theoriginal single discipline research areas to growmuch more rapidly than could have occurred hadthe researchers remained isolated within their hostDepartments. This collaborative andmultidisciplinary approach continued throughoutthe lifetime of the SRS. A recent example was thecollaboration between in-house physicists anduniversity colleagues in the manipulation ofnanomagnets produced by bacteria which havepotential applications in cancer therapy45.

6.3 Issues with research impactsIn addition to research dissemination and the tacittechnical knowledge which facilitated research onthe SRS, the research itself had an economic impact.The main economic impacts from the scientificoutput of the SRS occur via the applicability of theresearch to many industrial markets and areas ofeveryday life and welfare. For example, samples asdiverse as viruses, archaeological objects, corneas,pharmaceuticals and familiar every day productssuch as chocolate, shampoos and crisp wrappershave all been studied at the SRS.

The issues of time lag and attributability of researchdata were highlighted as issues when consideringeconomic impact in chapter 3. However, despitethese issues, SPRU cite studies which find that therate of return of publicly funded research variesbetween 20 – 50%.

The SRS was part of a much larger research effort,typically involving university scientists, companiesand R&D programmes over a great many years.Disentangling the SRS contribution, and coming upwith an impact figure attributable to it, is notpossible. In the absence of an accepted model toappropriately capture the economic impact ofresearch, qualitative examples are given in the restof this chapter which highlight the impact of theresearch output from the SRS with quantitativefigures given where available.

6.4 Research examples These examples, from diverse areas of science,represent a few of the tremendous achievements ofthe SRS that have had lasting impact on daily life46.It should be noted that all of these research projectshave been carried out with funding from the otherResearch Councils, without their support thisresearch would not have been possible.

6.4.1 Combating global warmingWater in our seas and oceans accounts for onlyabout 10% of the total - the remainder is storedinside rocks deep within the Earth. This is a highlydynamic system: water is sucked down into theEarth in regions known as subduction zones, andreturned to the surface at mid-ocean ridges and involcanic eruptions. A key question forenvironmentalists is – are the oceans rising orfalling? This is a vital question when considering theissue of global warming.

42

45 Staniland S. et al, (2008), “Controlled cobalt doping of magnetosomes in vivo”, Nature Nanotechnology 3, P.158-162. (see alsowww.news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7270913.stm)

46 The science examples have been taken from various SRS annual reports, CCLRC Research Highlights, SRS website, review websites and other internaldocuments and websites and contributions from ex SRS users.

Figure 7, artists illustration of global warming (Copyright: IanTragen @ Shutterstock)

A comprehensive water audit is severely hamperedby a lack of understanding of the mechanisms bywhich rocks store water. Facilities were utilised atthe SRS to address this important problem. Hydrousminerals were subjected to pressures andtemperatures equivalent to those found hundreds ofkilometres below the surface of the earth, whilsttheir composition and thermodynamic propertieswere monitored by X-ray diffraction. A notablesuccess showed that at high pressure andtemperature the mineral talc converts into a newmaterial known colloquially as the "10Å phase".The 10Å phase carries the water deep into the Earthrather than returning it to the surface, as previouslythought1. These findings will eventually help toproduce a detailed understanding of the role ofwater inside the Earth, and with it an improvedunderstanding of our environment.

6.4.2 Increasing the memory of the iPodResearch on all types of magnetic material wasperformed on the SRS, from magnetic quantum dotsto the large blocks of magnets used in modernparticle accelerators. Soft X-ray Magnetic Scatteringhas proved an especially powerful technique in thisarea as it allows the study of thin films andmultilayers, both scientifically and technologicallyimportant magnetic materials.

An example of the technique in action is acollaboration between researchers at Durham andYork Universities and SRS staff, to study cobalt-copper multilayers known to exhibit Giant MagnetoResistance (GMR)47&48. A detailed analysis ofmultilayer diffraction profiles from the magneticand chemical periodicities provided crucialinformation about the structure of magneticdomains and the relationship between magneticand chemical 'roughness' at the interfaces. Thelatter is known to play a crucial role in determiningthe size of the GMR effect and, ultimately, theapplicability of these materials to the magneticread-heads of the future.

In addition, studies of GMR on the SRS have playeda key role in the development of new electronicmemory devices that use spintronics, a new form ofelectronics that uses the spin of particles to recordinformation. This is used in devices such as the iPod,helping to fit more information on them.

This research has helped enable the development ofthe huge magnetic memory of MP3 players. MP3players have a significant worldwide market withover 220 million iPods sold globally since 2002,generating billions of pounds worth of revenueevery year.

6.4.3 Combating engineering stressTwo different types of engineering research werecarried out on the SRS. The first is generic workinvestigating the basic principles of residual stressesthat are deliberately or accidentally included in thematerial even when there are no stresses applied,and are incorporated into engineering design. This isimportant because they can lead to unexpectedfailure if not accounted for.

43

47 T.P.A. Hase et al. (2000), “Soft x-ray resonant magnetic diffuse scattering from strongly coupled Cu/Co multilayers.”, Physics Review Letters, Vol. 61,P.3792-3795

48 H.A. Dürr et al. (2000) “Magnetization profile of ultrathin FePd films”, Journal of Synchrotron Radiation, Vol. 7, P.178-181

Figure 8, Illustration of the move from CD to MP3 player

The second aspect is the direct use of synchrotronX-ray diffraction measurements for improving ourknowledge of particular engineering processes orthe effect of particular surface cycles on residualstress development. The following examplesillustrate this work –

• Work with Airbus looking at the stressesintroduced into aerospace components bypeening processes. These processes are usedeither to correct the shape of the componentor to introduce protective residual stresses toprolong the life of the component. Thisenabled scientists, led by the University ofManchester, to identify the depth andmagnitude of these residual stresses as afunction of the peening process parameters.

• Residual stresses in nuclear engineering plants,working with British Energy.

• The examination of the processing of aero-engine components for Rolls Royce. RollsRoyce used this data to refine their heattreatments for the control of stress in theirnew generation of superalloys.

In all these cases the work has led to a betterunderstanding of the manufacturing processes andbetter incorporation of those residual stresses intoengineering structural integrity assessment. Work iscontinuing on stresses in materials at the DiamondLight Source, the European Synchrotron ResearchFacility (ESRF) and the Institut Laue Langevin (ILL).

6.4.4 Solving the world’s ancient mysteries

From 1999, SRS and Daresbury Laboratory scientistswere at the forefront of the exploitation ofsynchrotron radiation in support of heritage science.

The first international conference on synchrotronradiation in art and archaeology was held at theDaresbury Laboratory in that year and hassubsequently been followed by others at Stanford,Grenoble and Berlin. The SRS was used to studyhistoric objects and processes, covering a widerange of ancient materials including parchment,paper, textiles, masonry, ceramics, glass, glazes,metals, timber, bone, paintings and pigments.

Synchrotron radiation proved to be a powerful newtool for archaeologists, conservators and arthistorians. Primary areas addressed were theidentification of states of degradation, corrosionpathways and insights in the historic productiontechnologies. The methods employed includeddetailed chemical quantification of the current stateof historic artefacts and the development ofexperiments to reproduce production methods,conservation strategies and degradation processes.

44

Figure 9, airplane turbine, one target of stress research,Copyright: Steve Mann @ Shutterstock

Figure 10, samples from this Atacameño mummy examined usingthe SRS reveals that the indigenous people in the Atacama desertwere exposed to extremely high levels of arsenic in the diet

These investigations help in the preservation of ourcultural heritage and in our understanding andappreciation of the societies which created them.Specific examples include –

• Preservation of the Mary Rose and otherhistoric timber vessels. Working incollaboration with the Mary Rose Trustconservators, studies using synchrotronradiation are playing an important part inunderstanding the role sulphur compoundsplay in the degradation of marine timbers. Thefindings from this work have helped to informthe conservation strategy of this importantartefact and other similar vessels worldwide49.

• Metal corrosion, especially of ancient bronzes.This involved a combination of a detailedstudy of historic bronzes, an investigation ofthe chemical processes affecting bronze andthe effectiveness of electrochemicaltreatments under controlled laboratoryconditions. Work at both the SRS and ESRFused a novel electrochemistry cell, and datacollection in real-time mode improved ourunderstanding of treating corroded bronzeobjects. The procedure is also aimed atcorroded lead and silver objects, thus aidingtheir preservation and their enjoyment byfuture generations50.

• Investigations into the historic development ofceramic lusterware and the evolution ofproduction technologies used at differentplaces and times since its invention in 9thcentury Iraq. This includes a combination ofstudies of historic artefacts with reproductionsof the production process under laboratoryconditions. These studies help explain thetransfer of technology around theMediterranean region and the technologicaldevelopments underpinning specific changes infinish, thus adding to our knowledge of thehistoric societies responsible for these worksof art and our appreciation of the artefactsthemselves51.

6.4.5 Battling virusesIn the 1980s, a leading virus researcher from PurdueUniversity, brought crystals of human rhinovirus-14to the SRS, which were the cause of the commoncold. This defined the early methods for tacklingsuch samples, which were very radiation sensitive,using the first SRS protein crystallography station.After this, research on the Simian Virus by scientistsfrom Harvard University was undertaken - an evenbigger virus which remains one of the biggest virusstructures solved to date. Following this, work ledby Oxford University revealed the Foot and MouthDisease Virus (FMDV) crystal structure, beingreported on the BBC Evening News. The FMDV,HIV/AIDS and the Avian Flu viruses are illustrated ascase studies below.

a) Foot and mouth diseasevirusThe research to determine the 3D structure ofFMDV was carried out by researchers in acollaboration between Porton Down, OxfordUniversity and Wellcome Biotech. At the time thiswas one of the largest structures to becharacterised at the atomic level and the firstanimal virus structure to be determined in Europe52.

The challenges faced in the characterisation werenot merely scientific. The samples had to be handled

45

49 Work undertaken by the Mary Rose Trust, Kent and Portsmouth Universities50 Work undertaken at Ghent and Warwick Universities51 Work undertaken by Barcelona and Catalunya Universities52 Work undertaken by Barcelona and Catalunya Universities

Figure 11, the hull of The Mary Rose undergoing activeconservation, on display in Portsmouth

according to strict bio-hazard protocols, with thecrystals being made available for a limited 24 hourperiod. Technical challenges included working withcrystals as small as 50 micron and the radiationdamage caused by the short wavelengths used toanalyse the sample. The expertise gained led tousage of the ESRF for yet larger viruses includingthe Blue Tongue Virus, also investigated by theOxford University team.

Knowledge of the structure of this virus, whichwould not have been possible without the SRS,suggested that the design and development of moreeffective vaccines against FMDV would be the mostappropriate approach to tackle the disease. This hasled to the development of a vaccine, providing hopefor controlling the virus in countries where it ispotentially endemic in the longer term and maycause severe economic loss.

It is not possible to give an accurate estimate of thepotential savings resulting from FMDV vaccines.However, the magnitude of the opportunity can beassessed by examining the costs of the 2001outbreak in the UK.

The costs of the 2001 outbreak are estimated byDEFRA53 at £8.4 billion, with the following split:

• Agricultural producers (£355 million).

• Food industry (£170 million).

• Tourism (£3,000 million (average)).

• Indirect costs for supply companies (£2,100 million).

• Expenditure on FMDV by Government (£2,800 million).

The figures given relate to those which are easilymeasurable, human and other costs have not beenmeasured. It should be noted that the vaccine wasavailable in the 2001 outbreak but the policy at thetime was not to use vaccines as it affected exportopportunities. However, if vaccines were used toavoid any future outbreak, the contribution of theSRS, while hard to quantify, would be significant. Ifthe knowledge gained through SRS and associatedwork could contribute even 1% to the costspresented above, this would represent a financialimpact of £84million. In contrast, the workundertaken to determine the X-ray crystal structureusing SRS was estimated to take some hundreds ofscientist days, valued at tens of thousands ofpounds.

46

Figure 12, Nature 1989; the structure of Foot and Mouth DiseaseVirus

Figure 13, Cow carcasses are readied for burning during the 2001outbreak (David Cheskin/Associated Press/PA)54

53 www.archive.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/fmd/fmd_report/report/index.htm (see economic impact of FMDV, section14)54 http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2007/08/03/cattle-disease.html

b) HIV\AIDSThe structure of the first of the 14 proteins encodedby the HIV1 virus was published in 1989, based ondata collected at the SRS. Soon afterwards, manypharmaceutical companies, includingGlaxoSmithKline, were able to use that structure asa template to hone the fit of their inhibitory drugs.Other HIV1 protein structures followed, mostnotably the Reverse Transcriptase, which wasdifficult to solve but eventually succumbed to thedetermined efforts of the SRS users.

It is estimated that the AIDS pandemic killed morethan 2 million people in 2007, with 33.2 millionpeople living with the disease worldwide56. Overthree-quarters of these deaths occurred in sub-Saharan Africa57, affecting economic growth andreducing human capital. It is expected that thisreduction in human capital will cause thebreakdown of economies and societies in countrieswith a significant AIDS population58.

The majority of anti-AIDS drugs target ReverseTranscriptase (solved on the SRS) and will form the

basis for the next generation of drugs.GlaxoSmithKline now manufacture antiretroviralswhich are recommended by the World HealthOrganisation59.

c) Avian fluHuman influenza pandemics are nothing new. In thelast century there were three major flu outbreaks;the most serious being the 1918 ‘Spanish flu’ whichis thought to have killed around 20 million peopleworldwide. The virus responsible is thought to haveoriginated from an avian virus that was introducedinto the human population. The ability to be passedfrom human to human was a crucial factor in thisvirus being able to cause such devastation. Thisexplains scientists’ current concern with thepotentially rapid spread of the avian and swine fluviruses amongst humans.

Using X-ray crystallography at the SRS, scientistswere able to study the structure of flu virusmolecules to better understand how the virusesmight transfer from animals to humans. To beinfectious, the influenza A virus binds to cells usinga series of peaks protruding from its surface. Each ofthese peaks is made from a protein calledHaemaglutinin (HA). Mutation of a few amino acidsin this protein can give it the ability to bind tohuman cells rather than bird cells. In 2005 a teamfrom the Medical Research Council worked withscientists at the SRS to characterise HA from the1918 influenza virus to gain insight into why thisvirus was so devastating for humans.

The UK government has recently published itsstrategy for dealing with national risks60. Aconclusion of the strategy is that both an influenzapandemic and the outbreak of an animal diseasesuch as avian flu are both considered to be a seriousthreat to the UK. Avian flu, or a similar illness, cancause serious harm to a major part of the UKagricultural industry. Additionally, the effect of ahuman flu pandemic has been estimated at 50,000to 750,000 fatalities, with substantial disruption tonormal life in the UK.

47

55 Nature, Sep 2004: Murine Leukaemia virus capsid structure. Insights into retroviral assembly. Steven Gamblin, NIMR Mill Hill56 http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/119410005/abstract?CRETRY=1&SRETRY=057 http://www.data.unaids.org/pub/EPISlides/2007/2007_epiupdate_en.pdf58 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AIDS59 http://www.gsk.com/press_archive/press2003/press_10162003.htm60 www.interactive.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/documents/security/national_security_strategy.pdf

Figure 14, Retroviral capsid domain solved on the SRS andfeatured on the cover of Nature55

Oxford Economics61 have carried out a study of thepotential impact of a flu pandemic developed fromavian flu –

They estimate that even the limited avian fluoutbreak in 2003 caused economic loss to Asia ofaround $20billion. The report also suggests that theminimum cost of a global avian flu pandemic wouldbe $400 billion of lost GDP. However, the reportstates that under reasonable assumptions over theduration, attack rates and mortality rates of a flupandemic, the annual cost could easily rise to morethan 5% of world GDP - representing losses ofabout $2 trillion per annum.

Fundamental research carried out at the SRS on thecauses of such epidemics may play a crucial role in

avoiding any future outbreak and transfer of thedisease to humans, which could have thedevastating impact outlined above.

6.4.5 Molecular machinesThe F1 ATPase enzyme is the “molecular machine”by which protons are pumped across cellmembranes, generating adenosine triphosphate(ATP), and storing energy within the cell. Thedetailed structure and mechanism of F1-ATPasewere determined by Sir John Walker, Andrew Leslieand his colleagues of the MRC Laboratory forMolecular Biology in Cambridge, and resulted in SirJohn Walker being awarded a share in the NobelPrize for Chemistry in 1997.

Using X-ray crystallography at the SRS incombination with other SR sources, Walker and histeam uncovered the three-dimensional structure ofF1-ATPase, the key enzyme involved in cellularenergy production62. The structure determination,at atomic resolution, took Walker twelve years ofcontinuous effort, pushing back the boundaries ofbiochemistry and crystallography. The molecule wasso complex that new methods of data analysis hadto be developed to determine the final proteinstructure. The structure was eventually published in1994 and the structure provided firm evidence tosupport the model for ATP synthesis proposed byPaul Boyer, co-winner of the Nobel Prize.

48

Figure 16, protein structure of F1 ATPase

Figure 15, the Avian Flu virus, photo from sgame @Shutterstock.com

61 www.oxfordeconomics.com/62 Abrahams, J. P. et al. (1993), “The structure of bovine F1-ATPase complexed with the antibiotic inhibitor aurovertin B.”, Proceedings of the National

Academy of Sciences, P. 6913-6917

“Clearly, the threat of a human flu variantdeveloping from Avian flu is now serious andsuch a flu virus could pose a severe risk tohuman life. Even compared to previousscenario experience, the potential impact of apandemic flu appears massive, should it occurin a virulent form.“

Scientists are finding that a malfunction in themechanism of ATP synthesis may play an importantpart in a number of degenerative diseases. It isthought that the ability to convert food energy intoATP usually diminishes as people age. Such effectscould be related to diseases which occur in laterlife, such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. It is hopedthat the insights gained from the structuralinvestigations will contribute towardsunderstanding and eventually preventing theseconditions.

6.4.7 The cell’s protein factoryProfessor Venkatraman Ramakrishnan of theMedical Research Council's Laboratory forMolecular Biology won the 2009 Nobel Prize forchemistry, shared with Thomas Steitz (YaleUniversity, USA), and Ada Yonath (WeizmannInstitute, Israel). The prize was awarded to the triofor their work on the structure and function of theribosome, the structure within the cell that turnsthe information contained in DNA into the proteinsthat make cells function.

Professor Ramakrishnan used synchrotron lightsources at Daresbury and Grenoble extensively inhis work on the ribosome. The high power X-raysfrom synchrotron light sources provided the onlyway to reveal the complex 3-D structure of theribosome at an atomic level, opening the door tounderstanding the way ribosomes function and thedifferences between ribosomes in bacterial andhuman cells. Knowing the differences betweenribosomes in bacteria and humans has led the wayto the development of new drugs to treat infectionsresistant to traditional antibiotics.

Professor Colin Whitehouse, STFC's Deputy CEO andDirector of Daresbury Laboratory said: "Synchrotronlight is an essential tool for structural biology and isbeing used around the world to study proteins andstructures of critical biomedical importance. Inorder to get atomic-level information aboutcomplex proteins, researchers first have to get themto form small crystals. Daresbury Laboratory’ssynchrotron light source, the SRS, helped ProfessorRamakrishnan identify which of his crystals werethe best to study, and these were then taken toother synchrotrons including the ESRF in Grenobleto get high resolution images."

49

Figure 17, structure of the ribosome

6.4.8 Tackling motor neuron diseaseMotor Neurone Disease (MND) is a progressive, fatalneurodegenerative disease for which there iscurrently no cure. The disease is characterised byweakness, muscle wasting and difficulties withbreathing and swallowing. At any one time, sevenin every 100,000 people are living with MND andapproximately one in every 300 deaths is related to MND.

A proportion of these cases are known to have agenetic basis, and the only established cause todate is the mutation of one of the body’s vitalantioxidant molecules, superoxide dismutase (SOD).These SOD mutations are the only known cause ofMND, but it is not known precisely why the mutantproteins are toxic.

SRS staff established an international consortiumwith research groups in the USA and Sweden totackle this challenging problem63,64,65 They led theway in understanding the effects that different SOD

mutations have on the way the SOD protein works.Results from the SRS indicated that mutant SODproteins pair up differently to the normal protein(SOD molecules exist naturally as a pair) causingthem to be less stable and that this change mightgive an opportunity for therapeutic intervention.Based on this research, drug discovery programmesincluding one funded by a UK charity (MotorNeurone Disease Association66) are underway.

6.4.9 Battling blindness The SRS was used extensively by staff from CardiffUniversity's Department of Optometry and VisionSciences, to study the structure of the cornea. X-raydiffraction (XRD) was used on the SRS from theearly 1980s to study the structure of the cornea.Visual loss caused by abnormalities in the cornea isa widespread problem but questions about thestructure of the cornea remain. Defects in thetransparent window are one of the leading causesof blindness, yet hundreds of corneal grafts fail eachyear in the UK. Researchers try to explain cornealdefects to free up health service resources –

Highlights from the work include researchconcluding that aspirin prevents the ageing of aprotein in the cornea of the human eye. Theresearch also indicated the possible role of aspirinin preventing some of the pathology of diabetes andAlzheimer's disease, and ageing in general. Thisresearch will ultimately help to optimise proceduresfor a range of corneal conditions, from treatment ofcorneal astigmatism, to recovery of good visionafter a corneal graft or cataract surgery, and evenlaser surgery to correct myopia.

50

63 Hough M.A. et al. (2004), “Structures of motor neuron disease mutants”, Proceedings of the National Academy of Science of the USA, 101, (16),P.5976-5981

64 Ray SS & Lansbury PT Jr. (2004), “A possible therapeutic target for Lou Gehrig's disease”, Proceedings of the National Academy of Science of the USA,10, (16), P.5701-5702

65 Elam J.S. et al (2003), “2Amyloid-like filaments and water-filled nanotubes formed by SOD1 mutant proteins linked to familial ALS”, Nature StructuralBiology, 10, P.461-467

66 www.mndassociation.org67 Professor Keith Meek as quoted on - www.news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/1428841.stm

Figure 18, image of the brain, Copyright: YAKOBCHUKVASYL@ Shutterstock

"By increasing our understanding of cornealproblems we can alleviate the burden ofcorneal disease on the NHS.67"

6.4.10 The green catalyst mysteryNatural and synthetic zeolites are remarkablyversatile materials; highly valued in chemical andrelated industries. Around 40 zeolites are found innature but the prospect of greener, more efficientchemistry has led chemists to attempt to makesynthetic varieties. Over 150 synthetic zeolites havenow been made, and their value to the chemicalsindustry is undisputed. They are used as molecularsieves, as ion exchangers for softening water, andperhaps most importantly, as catalysts enablingreactions between other chemicals to happen moreefficiently.

Development of unique facilities at the SRS enabledstaff at the Universities of St Andrews andPortsmouth in the UK and Valencia in Spain to studya new zeolite, SSZ-23. This zeolite worked well as acatalyst but researchers were unable to determineits shape. Researchers on the SRS found that thestructure of SSZ-23 is entirely different from therest of its chemical family, even though it works justas well as a catalyst. This discovery could be thefirst sighting of an entirely new family of zeolites. Itputs new ideas at the fingertips of syntheticchemists and could open the way for new types of'green' catalyst with more subtle behaviour.

The team from St Andrews are now applying thesame technique to investigate the atomic detail ofhow zeolites shrink when heated, with the researchcontinuing at the Diamond Light Source after theclosure of the SRS. They hope that this type of studywill help to reveal even more about the unknownfundamentals of zeolite chemistry. The solving ofthe green catalyst mystery could be just the start ofsome unexpected developments in industrialcatalysis.

51

Figure 20, zeolite catalysts play an important role in modernrefineries, Copyright: TebNad @ Shutterstock

Figure 19, eye image with test vision chart, Copyright: Ana de Sousa @ Shutterstock

6.4.11 Making industrial glass stronger

Complex materials increasingly attract attentionbecause of their industrial as well as their academicpotential. Glass is a classic example. Work on glassat the SRS has resulted in a significant change inunderstanding its structure and properties, whichenable its continued attractiveness to the buildingand automotive industries. Techniques like EXAFS,X-ray diffraction and small angle X-ray scatteringhave resulted in the determination of atomicstructures.

In a unique series of synchrotron radiationexperiments, structures at the local chemistry andnanostructure level were both directly observed atthe SRS by a team of industrial researchers andacademics from the University of Aberystwyth. Forexample, it is now possible to characterise thechannels for ionic diffusion that determine themechanical strength of glass and the inhibition ofchemical corrosion – two of the most importantfunctions of glass as an industrial product.

6.4.12 Reducing the devastation of malaria Each year there are 350–500 million cases ofmalaria worldwide68, with fatalities betweenapproximately one and three million people peryear, the majority of which are children69. It is oneof the planet’s deadliest killers and the leadingcause of sickness and death in the developingworld. Although antimalarial drugs such as quinineand chloroquinine can help to prevent thecontraction of malaria, no-one knows exactly howthey work. In 2005 a researcher from the SRSworked in combination with researchers from CapeTown University in South Africa to investigate howthe drugs worked. The aim of the research was toproduce readily available and effective drugs thatwill protect people in developing countries fromthis killer disease.

One theory about how antimalarial drugs preventpeople from getting malaria is that these drugsinterrupt a vital part of the malaria parasite’sdigestion pattern. Malaria parasites survive byeating the haemoglobin in blood cells. However, the structure around the iron in the blood cell(called the haem) is toxic to the parasite so itconverts the haem to pigment which it stores in asac inside its body. Antimalarial drugs are believedto kill the parasite by preventing the formation ofthe pigment and the key is to understand how drugscan control this.

52

Figure 21, glass structures in Canary Warf London, Copyright:StraH @ Shutterstock

Figure 22, an electron micrograph of a malaria parasite inside ared blood cell

68 http://www.cdc.gov/malaria/facts.htm69 http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v434/n7030/full/nature03342.html

The SRS was used to investigate how haem can beconverted into malaria pigment. A synthetic versionof haem was used to confirm that the pigment wasformed in the predicted manner. The current stageof the experiment involves using real haem from theparasite, which is a difficult job. The final stage ofthe research will be to insert inhibitors to try andstop the pigment from forming.

The researchers believe that their findings couldlead to a cheap and effective drug to protect peoplein developing countries and reduce the devastatingeffect of malaria.

6.4.13 Helping the 3rd world address water pollution In some parts of the world drinking groundwater islaced with arsenic and is poisoning those who drinkit. From skin lesions to cancers, arsenic poisoning isa serious problem. Bangladesh is one of the worstaffected countries, but parts of India, Nepal,Pakistan, Cambodia and Vietnam also have similarproblems.

Scientists from the University of Manchester headeda team which investigated how arsenic gets into thegroundwater. Using the SRS in 2005, they madesignificant progress in understanding arsenicpollution. The research included investigation of

where the arsenic was in the sediment and whatcaused it to be stripped off and dissolved intowater. The team analysed sediment samples fromwells in West Bengal, India and were able todiscover what kind of environment encouragedarsenic to be released into surrounding water.

The team discovered that the optimum conditionsfor arsenic release occurred as a result of bacterialaction in low oxygen and organic carbon richenvironments. The arsenic is locked up with ironoxide grain coatings in the sediment, under certainconditions bacteria dissolve the iron and thisreleases the arsenic.

In places like Bangladesh and West Bengal,groundwater is often pumped up which encouragesthe draw down of organic carbon rich water fromthe surface. Some scientists are worried thatpumping could be exacerbating the problem bystimulating the bacteria that help to release thearsenic. The team from Manchester University arecontinuing to investigate arsenic release and hopethat their work will contribute towards a solutionfor this problem which blights millions of people’slives.

53

Figure 24, researchers from Manchester University test a recentlyinstalled well for arsenic

Figure 23, a mosquito drawing blood, Copyright: Gregor Buir @Shutterstock

6.4.14 Why does a lobster change colour on cooking?The molecules causing the colouration properties ofmarine organisms such as lobsters were revealed inthe crustacyanin crystal structures in work by SRSresearchers70 and received very large media andpublic interest. The colouration of the lobster shell,famously known from its colour change on cooking,derives from a complicated mix of astaxanthincarotenoid molecules and several proteins incomplex known as “crustacyanins”.

There are wider biological implications of theselobster coloration studies, including the colours ofrare lobsters, where site-specific amino acidchanges could be a cause. Protein engineeringmolecular biology for colour tuning of an artificiallyproduced crustacyanin is also underway as a resultof this work. A future application of this work is thedesign of a colour based heat sensor.

Public interest in the question ‘Why does a lobsterchange colour on cooking?’ was especially strong,with the work featuring as a Friday EveningDiscourse at the Royal Institution in 2004, withBaroness Greenfield presiding. The Liverpool DailyPost also reported the work –

The TV and newspapers reported a new method ofdelivering the antioxidant, which is possibly cancerpreventing. Other newspapers referred to thepossibility of using protein engineering and site

specific mutagenesis to manipulate the colour,leading to potential applications in food colourantsor flowering plants.

High school students formed a second wave ofinterest with emailed requests to the SRS scientistsfor details of the research article so as to completetheir chemistry homework assignments (seeGerritsen 2002 for a summary of the work)71. Latercame more detailed science articles, such as inPhysics Today (Day 2002)72, including a descriptionof the molecular basis of the narrowing of theenergy gap between the highest occupied and thelowest unoccupied molecular orbitals. This workhighlights the role of the SRS in scientific discoveryand its ability to engage members of the public andschool children in pure science.

54

Figure 26, a fresh lobster before cooking, Copyright: AidaRicciardiello @ Shutterstock

Figure 27, a fresh lobster after cooking, highlighting the colourchange, Copyright: Alexander Raths @ Shutterstock

Figure 25, article from the Liverpool Daily Post

70 M Cianci, P J Rizkallah, A Olczak, J Raftery, N E Chayen, P F Zagalsky and J R Helliwell “The molecular basis of the coloration mechanism in lobstershell: ‚-crustacyanin at 3.2 A resolution” (2002) PNAS USA 99, 9795-9800.

71 Gerritsen, V. B. (2002). Protein Spotlight, Issue 26. Swiss-Prot/Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics.72 M Cianci, P J Rizkallah, A OlczDay, C. (2002). Physics. Today, 55, 22-23.

6.5 Impact summary

55

It is clear that the economic impact of theresearch carried out on the SRS has been vastand the impact straddles all of the economicimpact areas detailed in chapter 3. Hence theimpact from the science has come in manyforms –

• A significant amount of codifiedknowledge in the form of publicationsand the solution of many protein crystalstructures.

• The multidisciplinary and collaborativenature of science on the SRS hasfacilitated a great number of newscientific and technical developments.

• The requirement of cutting edgetechnology has additionally facilitatedleading edge science on the SRS and thetechnology itself has led to furthereconomic impact by its usage by otherlarge scale facilities and industry.

• The development of new scientifictechniques on the SRS is a significantimpact; the example of PX developmenton the SRS was a major contributingfactor for the need for 3rd generationlight sources and was responsible for theprivate sector investment in theDiamond Light Source, with an initialinvestment of approximately £50M fromthe Wellcome Trust.

• The impact to society and our everydaylives has been vast - research into drugdiscovery, the prevention of diseases,cancer diagnosis and even the assistanceof archaeology and marine animalcolouration have or will have an impacton our lives and affect otherorganisations such as the NHS. Using theFMDV example, if research at the SRSsaves just 1% of the cost of a potentialfuture outbreak, it could save the UKover £80million.

• It is also clear that a significant amountof this research has directly benefitedindustry and underpinned commercialadvances in areas such as magneticrecording media, drug design andcatalyst development. Research on theSRS has also benefited developingcountries in the fight against malaria andthe search for clean drinking water.

However, as illustrated in the chapter, it isextremely difficult to put a value on some ofthese groundbreaking research activities. Evenif one only takes the examples that havefigures attributed to them, this runs into thehundreds of millions of pounds. It is also worthnoting that the examples presented above area very small fraction of the research whichtook place on the SRS.

56

Chapter 7Pushing the boundaries of technology

58

7.1 Introduction

The success of the SRS has had a majorimpact on the UK science base. This includedcontinual development of new technologyand instrumentation that was demanded bysuch a high tech facility. This chapter willdescribe just some of the breakthroughs inscience, technology and techniquedevelopment that occurred over the lifetimeof the SRS.

7.2 How the SRS pushed the barriers of researchIn the 1970s, synchrotron radiation research wasfocused on the areas of atomic, molecular andcondensed matter physics. This changed in the mid1980s when the SRS programme was dominated bybiology and then chemistry. The development ofnew techniques and instrumentation which weremade available to the wider science communityenabled the growth of new scientific areas andtechniques, for example protein crystallography.Hence, the application to materials and biologicalscience expanded rapidly so that by the 1990s thedistribution of science areas on the SRS wasapproximately equal i.e. 25% each betweenphysics, biology, chemistry and materials. Theability to enable new science was a major impact ofthe SRS.

It is interesting to note that biology played only asmall part in the science case for the SRS in 1975but currently constitutes one of the UK’s largest

user communities. In addition, a major justificationfor the science case of the Diamond Light Sourcewas synchrotron protein crystallography which waspioneered at the SRS. In fact, the SRS wasresponsible for pioneering several techniques whichin turn facilitated the science output of the facility.

7.3 Technique & technologydevelopmentA resulting benefit of the operation of the SRS as acentral facility was the broad and rapid transfer oftechniques, instrumentation and ideas between thediverse sciences. The users of the SRS demanded themost cutting edge instrumentation to facilitate theirscience, which was developed by SRS scientists andengineers in areas such as detectors, optics,metrology, robotics, data acquisition, sampleenvironment and software.

There was an on-going programme of technicaldevelopments and upgrades throughout the lifetimeof the SRS. Funding was often made available fromexternal agencies such as the Research Councils orthe Wellcome Trust for technical developments onthe beamlines which in turn furthered the quality ofthe research output from the facility.

Protein crystallography

The technique of protein crystallography ishighlighted here due to its huge significance. Theeconomic impact of protein crystallographydevelopment at the SRS was the subject of a casestudy commissioned through RCUK and undertakenby PA Consulting. More information can be found inthe study73 but several quotes are highlighted hereto underline its importance –

59

Chapter 7

Pushing the boundaries of technology

73 www.rcuk.ac.uk/innovation/impact/default.htm

Detector developmentAmongst the most significant technicaldevelopments at the SRS were detectordevelopments, where the maximum scientificbenefit from an SR facility is realised by matchingthe detector to the SR source. This was recognisedin the 2008 Light Source Review –

Major improvements at the SRS included parallelelectron detection for spectroscopy, large multi-wire proportional chambers (MWPC), multi-elementsolid state detectors and signal processing. Suchdetectors facilitate dynamic studies in materialsprocessing. The most successful of these has beenthe MWPC based RAPID system which has beendeployed at ESRF and sold to the Diamond LightSource and SPring-8.

7.4 In-house supportA specific advantage at the SRS was related toexpert in-house support groups, particularly in theareas of electronics, computing and precisionengineering. This support drove some world-classdevelopments in pursuit of individual university

research programmes. Collective specialisedrequirements of users led to the build up of worldclass technical support groups within the DaresburyLaboratory. This required a wide range ofknowledge and skills, all of which supported theresearch output of the SRS.

Examples of user driven support developments aregiven below –

• The SRS inherited substantial and highlyspecialised computing and electronic facilitiesfrom the previous NINA synchrotron. The firstever report of a computer-controlledmonochromator was published at theSynchrotron Radiation Facility in the 1970s.Using Daresbury based electronics, particularlythe CAMAC standard interfacing system, led tothe speedy growth of computer-controlledinstrumentation, data acquisition andaccelerator safety and control systems. Manyof these ideas and some of the hardware hasbeen exported around the world, for exampleto the ESRF in France and to the ALS in theUSA.

• Even more striking developments have beenassociated with the large computing powersupported at the laboratory, through IBM andCray computers. The extensive use of theJANET academic network led to the evolutionof the Daresbury Laboratory as acomputational ‘node’ –

� This situation stimulated the growth ofcollaborative computational projects orCCP's. The best-known of these is CCP4which is a major focus for the processing ofstructural information concerning proteinsand for the analysis of data derived fromprotein crystallography using synchrotronradiation. These projects assist academicsand industrial organisations which in turncreates further economic impact throughthe transfer of knowledge and the skillsdevelopment of the users. In addition tofacilitating academic research and theimpact that this brings, the Daresbury LaueAnalysis suite also has future commercialapplications in drug discovery and newmaterials.

60

74 www.stfc.ac.uk/About/Strat/Council/AdCom/UKLSR/Contents.aspx

“Structural biology and the way it is done nowwould not be possible without the SRS and thesubsequent development of other sources.”

“Difficult proteins would not have been solvedwithout the improvements in technology andthe speed of crystallographic structuredetermination. The ribosome structure, viruses,membrane proteins and structural genomicsprojects would not have been possible.”

“The impact of synchrotron radiation and PX hasbeen vast. Imagining biological research withoutsynchrotron radiation sources is by analogylike imagining life without the computer.”

“The committee applauds the UK involvementin detector development, with examples suchas the new detectors planned for the XFEL.74”

� The software and computing supportdeveloped for the SRS supported thegeneration of research output for thefacility. This expertise and technology hasnow been utilised to facilitate research formany other facilities, university groups andindustry across the world.

� The computational science support from theCSED has now expanded to be the UK’sbiggest computational science group andran the UK’s most powerful supercomputerwhich supports advanced scientificresearch.

� The e-Science Centre has contributed to thegeneration of codified knowledge by storingand making scientific data available to otherresearchers. This world leading activity hasbeen adopted by several facilitiesworldwide.

Appendix 4 describes the full nature of the softwaredevelopment resulting from the SRS.

7.5 Impact summary

61

Many of the techniques and technologiesdeveloped at the SRS have had worldwideimpact –

• Protein crystallography has revolutioniseddrug development and the detectorsdeveloped on the SRS have been adoptedby many other facilities around the world.

• The software and computing supportdeveloped for the SRS has now beenutilised to facilitate research for manyother facilities, university groups andindustry in the UK and across the world.

Again, these developments show the trulyworldwide impact of the SRS.

62

Indirect Impacts

64

Chapter 8The generation of skills from the SRS

66

8.1 Introduction

In 2006, the HM Treasury published theLeitch Report76 which highlighted the role ofskills development in achieving economicgrowth. The skills agenda is one in which theSRS and the wider Daresbury Laboratory hashad a significant role.

Major outputs of the SRS included the attraction ofhighly skilled scientists and engineers to the North

West and the creation of skilled and qualifiedpeople, both internal staff and users. This created acritical mass of expertise at the SRS and the widerDaresbury Laboratory which continues to grow.Valentin et al (2005)77 see this establishment of alocal talent pool as the creation of a “transit labourmarket of highly specialized PhD students,academics and professionals” which will then berecruited into science and technology basedindustries.

In addition, the supply of skilled graduates andresearchers who are trained at large facilities andthen transfer to industry or other public sectorbodies is seen as a key impact from research(McMillan & Hamilton, 2003)78.

The development and support of the SRS requiredsubstantial technical infrastructure, requiring the

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Chapter 8

The generation of skills from the SRS

“...the exposure to state of the art science andinstrumentation (at the SRS) provides uniquelyvaluable education and training.75”

Figure 28, staff developing skills on the SRS

75 Excerpt from “Science and Engineering Opportunities with a MEXS”, hard copy publication by EPSRC.76 http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/leitch_review_index.htm77 Valentin, F. Larsen, M.T. Heineke, N. (2005), “Neutrons and Innovations: What benefits will Denmark obtain for its science, technology and

competitiveness by co-hosting an advanced large scale facility near Lund?”, Research Centre on Boitech Business, Copenhagen Business School, www.ess-scandinavia.org – 2nd February 2009

78 McMillan, S.G. & Hamilton R.D. (2003), “The impact of publically funded basic research: An integrative of Martin & Salter”, IEEE Transactions onEngineering Management, Volume 50, no.2, May, p184 - 191

support of highly skilled engineers, technicians andinstrumentation developers, in addition to thescientists who carried out the research. The skill ofthe staff at the SRS spanned many areas ofexpertise which was built up due to the demands ofdesigning and exploiting such a technicallydemanding facility. Much of this expertise has beenexploited by other facilities and departments andcontinues after the closure of the SRS.

In addition to the significant knowledge that wasgained from designing, building and operating theSRS, skills were also developed through the usageof the SRS. The SRS was also an important tool forthe training of graduates, post graduates andapprentices. There were also several studentshipprogrammes and training programmes which randuring the operation of the facility.

With 28 years of operation, and with a staff attimes numbering in excess of 325, it is inevitablethat employees from the SRS moved to other fieldsof work. Several staff members went on to work indifferent functions at other synchrotrons, inindustry, academia or the public sector. Thesummaries later on in this chapter give someindication of the dispersion of some of those staffmembers, but the list is not comprehensive due to alack of complete records.

8.2 Users Around 1500 individual visiting scientists andengineers used the SRS each year to carry outexperiments. The size of the user communitypeaked at around 2000 per year in the mid 1990sand at any one time there were some 100 – 200users on site when the SRS was in operation. Themajority of users came from the UK but also the EUand overseas, from over 25 countries. For example,in 2005/2006 the distribution of users included 55UK universities, 32 non UK universities, 28 industrialor other organisations from the UK and 35 non UKindustrial and government organisations - including9 other synchrotrons.

Table 3 and figure 29 opposite illustrate the numberof different users and how many visits they made tothe SRS between 2000/01 to 2006/07, with eachuser making an average of 2-3 visits per year.

Between 1991 (when an electronic data collectionsystem was implemented) and 2007, 9000individual users used the SRS over 28000 times. Ofthese approximately 36% were undergraduate orpostgraduate students. Estimating, probably veryconservatively, an additional 2000 users for theperiod between 1981 and 1991, this makes a totalof 11000 different users of the SRS. The spread ofuser type is illustrated in the graph below.

68

Scheduling Period No. of Users per year

2000/01 1195

2001/02 1020

2002/03 970

2003/04 1350

2004/05 1341

2005/06 1464

2006/07 1020

Table 3, usage of the SRS from 2000 – 2007

Figure 29, distribution of SRS users, 1991 - 2007

Spread of SRS users from 1991 - 2007

Senior HEI staff

EU funded researcher

Industrial researcher

International researcher

SRS staff

Research Council staff

Postdoctoral research staff

Postgraduate student

Estimates from the facility show that –

• On average more than 700 individuals (UK andEU post doctoral researchers and PhDstudents) used the beamlines annually.

• A total of 4000 UK students used the SRS aspart of their degrees or doctorates over itslifetime.

• A further 2000 post doctoral researchers usedthe SRS as part of their research.

This is a substantial contribution to the UKknowledge base. As an illustration, the numbers ofstudents trained on the SRS can be shown from theyear 2006/07 alone:

• 444 PhD students.

• 14 CASE students.

• 3 Sandwich students.

• 33 Students attended SR Summer School.

• 16 student supervisors.

• 2 M.Sc. SR staff students.

• 39 active SRS staff researchers.

In addition to research knowledge andqualifications that SRS users have gained throughtheir work on the SRS, there is a substantial amountof other training and skills development that occursvia facility usage. The SRS has been an importanttraining ground for aspects such as experimental setup, data acquisition, calibration, data analysis,sample preparation, health & safety etc. All of the11000 users who have used the SRS over the yearswill have been trained in some or all of these areas,dependant on their experience of SR sources. Suchmulti disciplinary R&D laboratories provide thetraining ground for staff who go on to be employedby R&D-intensive companies in the UK. Hencesupporting the development of such skills iscritically important.

An interviewee from the PA Consulting Group reporton the economic impact of the Research Councilsremarks that –

8.3 TrainingInternal studentships and training courses

An SRS studentship scheme from 2002 to 2004directly funded nine PhD studentships. The SRS hasalso contributed to funding industrial CASEstudentships. Since the SRS became eligible forindustrial partnership under the CASE studentshipscheme in 2000, between two and three suchstudentships were awarded per year. In addition,many collaborative studentships, sandwich courseand vacation students were supported by the SRS.

A variety of training courses and summer schoolswere also provided by the SRS and each sciencearea of the SRS ran its own kind of trainingprovision. From 1991, the SRS ran SR summerschools (e.g. funded by EPSRC or the EU etc) every2-3 years for PhD students and post doctoralresearchers, consisting of a seminar component anda practical component carried out on the SRS.

Another example of training associated with theSRS is the CCP4 computing project which still runs aseries of summer schools and study weekend80.Scientists and users of the SRS contributed to thecontent of these courses, utilising their expertisegained on the SRS.

69

79 www.rcuk.ac.uk/cmsweb/downloads/rcuk/economicimpact/ei2.pdf80 www.ccp4.ac.uk/ccp4course.php

“.. this is part of the ethos at the SRS: trainingand providing a service [to users].79”

Additionally, the SRS ran several “AcceleratorSchools” in which SRS staff contributed. Theseincluded –

• CERN Accelerator School81, who collaboratewith the US-CERN-JAPAN-RUSSIA JointAccelerator School (JAS) in delivery of somecourses.

• JUAS82 – the Joint Universities AcceleratorSchools, based in Geneva, supported by CERNand sponsored by several major synchrotrons.

• US Particle Accelerator School83, which hasrun courses across the US from 1987 to thepresent day.

ApprenticeshipsSince the inception of the SRS, a substantial numberof apprentices completed their training at theDaresbury Laboratory. 108 apprentices wereemployed over the years on the SRS. The greatmajority of these apprentices worked directly onthe SRS, with a smaller number on ancillaryfacilities.

Work ExperienceFor many years the Daresbury Laboratory hasinvited students for work experience. Someparticipated during their school years, whilst othersworked at the Laboratory as part of theirundergraduate or post-graduate studies. Manyworked with scientists, often on the SRS or itssupport functions; others worked in functions suchas IT or administration. Duration ranged from oneweek to six months and 454 students in totalunderwent work experience training.

A number of those who had undertaken workexperience at the Daresbury Laboratorysubsequently took up permanent employment onthe site. Some were asked about the impact andvalue of the experience, and some of their pointsare listed below:

• Students at the Laboratory were generallygiven more responsibility, and moreworthwhile projects, than was usual for manywork experience students.

70

Figure 30, Synchrotron Radiation Summer School in 2006

81 www.cas.web.cern.ch/cas/82 www.juas.in2p3.fr/83 http://uspas.fnal.gov/

• All the former work experience studentsremarked that Daresbury Laboratory was ableto combine real professionalism in theworkplace with a warm and friendly culture.

• In one instance, a student was so impressed bythe science that she switched her planneddegree from law to physics.

• Several of the students had worked on the SRSat some stage in its life, and were impressedthat they had been part of such a significantfacility.

• One student joined for a six monthsplacement, but subsequently studied for a PhDand joined the permanent staff.

• Above all, several had their preconceptionsabout science and scientists challenged - "I learned that scientists are cool andinteresting!"

8.4 Skills resulting from technology developmentThe skills required to design, run and support theresearch at the SRS was vast. The SRS staff of 325(at its maximum in 1998/99) built up world classexpertise in areas such as engineering,instrumentation, detectors, electronics, powersupplies, radio frequency, accelerators, cryogenics,vacuum, critical cleaning and a host of otherexpertise. This allowed SRS staff and support staffto transfer their expertise and knowledge toindustry, universities, schools and othersynchrotrons and particle physics facilities. This ishighlighted in the three sections below.

8.5 SRS contribution to light sources around the worldIn addition to working with many of thesynchrotrons across the world, many of the SRSstaff later went on to actually work at these othersynchrotrons, further disseminating their expertise.The list below describes the 63 SRS staff who havemoved to other synchrotrons around the world andtransferred their skills to contribute to thesesources. For example the Director of the Spanish

synchrotron radiation source (ALBA)84, ProfessorJoan Bordas, is an ex Director of the SRS.

8.6 Staff transferring to theacademic sectorInterviews show that at least 28 staff from the SRS,covering the range from technician to director level,have transferred to academic posts in universitiesboth in the UK and abroad. In addition, it is knownthat at least 5 staff have gone on to be teachers inschools and/or colleges after leaving the SRS.

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84 www.cells.es/

SR Source Scientific or Managerial Staff

ALBA 3

Diamond Light Source, UK 21

ESRF, France 9

Australian Light Source 6

Advanced Light Source, USA 7

Aarhus, Denmark 1

Okazaki, Japan 1

BESSY, Gemany 2

DESY, Germany 2

Singapore Light Source 1

ELETTRA Trieste, Italy 1

NSLS Brookhaven, USA 6

Jefferson Laboratory, USA 1

CAMD Louisiana, USA 1

Soleil, France 1

Brazilian Light Source 1

Table 4, SRS staff who have transferred to other synchrotronsaround the world

8.7 Staff transferring to theindustrial sectorOver the years, many SRS staff left to take upindustrial positions. Their destinations were notrecorded and so a comprehensive list cannot begiven here, but interviews show that at least 19 exSRS staff have moved to industry. These staff movedto a diverse range of industries includingSchlumberger, VG Scientia and BNFL and several ofthe STFC’s own spin-out companies.

8.8 Joint appointments Throughout the lifetime of the SRS it has beenbeneficial to have staff employed partly at theDaresbury Laboratory and partly in an academicinstitution, carrying out related work. Jointappointments were an important aspect to the skillsexchange between the SRS and the host university.It additionally helped to bring science drivers andchallenges to the SRS from the universities.

In the 1990s, there were around 30 jointappointments at any one time. This reduced as theSRS started its run down to closure with nine jointappointments in 2006/07. In addition, at least fiveSRS staff held visiting fellowships or professorialpositions in academic institutions in the 1990s.

The following case study illustrates the career pathof a professional associated with the SRS as anillustration of how the skills and expertise gained onthe SRS helped in his career.

72

The Dissemination of Expertise – Professor John R. Helliwell

Professor Helliwell provides an excellentexample of how SRS expertise wasdisseminated to academic and industrialorganisations throughout the world. Whilst hisexperience is more widespread than most, itdoes indicate the breath of roles and influencedisplayed by many SRS staff.

Between 1974 and 1977 Professor Helliwellconducted research in the Laboratory ofMolecular Biophysics at the University ofOxford culminating in the award of D Phil in1978. The crystallographic techniques in usethen were slow and primitive and led ProfessorHelliwell to explore the possibility of usingsynchrotron radiation in proteincrystallography. Synchrotron radiation wasseen to have potential but the idea of acentralized X-ray source was met with deepscepticism. However, in 1976 ProfessorHelliwell initiated the first synchrotronradiation protein crystallography experimentson NINA.

Shortly following a brief period of post-doctoral research, Professor Helliwell wasgiven a joint appointment (50:50) between theUniversity of Keele and the SRS to developprotein crystallography (1979-1983). With theassistance of leading engineers, thisculminated in three dedicated instruments onthe SRS. Numerous pioneering proteincrystallographic studies resulted, includingProfessor Helliwell’s involvement in the firstPX Laue diffraction patterns ever recorded atthe SRS.

During the period 1983-1985 ProfessorHelliwell was funded 100% by the SERC andwas appointed as a Senior Scientific Officer atthe SRS, in 1985 he became a PrincipalScientific Officer and was made an HonoraryLecturer in Physics at Keele University. From1985-1993 Prof Helliwell continued work onthe SRS from York University and then as aProfessor in Structural Chemistry at theUniversity of Manchester (1989-present).Between 2002 and 2003 he became the CCLRCDirector of SR Science and after this,continued at Manchester University.

In parallel with work at Manchester Universityand Daresbury, Professor Helliwell was highlyinfluential in the design and construction ofthe ESRF and became a key contributor to theESRF programme for a substantial period of

8.9 Impact summary

73

time including several ESRF Advisory Roles andScience Advisory Committee and ESRF Council.He was leader of the protein crystallographyinstruments definition group, the work ofwhich resulted in submissions to the ESRFFoundation Phase Report (the 'Red Book').Substantial knowledge transfer occurredbetween the SRS protein crystallographygroup and the ESRF, as a consequence, theEuropean pharmaceutical expenditure at theESRF is now substantial, of the order of 2.5million Euros per annum. In 1992 ProfessorHelliwell published “MacromolecularCrystallography with Synchrotron Radiation)with Cambridge University Press; this wasrepublished in paperback in 2005 by CUP.

In 2001 Professor Helliwell was the UKDelegate to the G5 (France, Italy, Spain,Germany and UK) European Working Group onthe future plans for synchrotron, neutron andlaser facilities provision in Europe.

Additional positions include:

• Honorary Scientist and Scientific Advisorwith the SRS industrial services (now STFCInnovations Ltd).

• Co-Editor of the Synchrotron RadiationNews.

• Co-Editor of the Journal of AppliedCrystallography published by the IUCr.

• Co-Editor of Crystallography Reviews

• Editor of Acta Crystallographica (1996-2005).

• President of the EuropeanCrystallographic Association (2006-2009).

• Honorary Member of the NationalInstitute of Chemistry, Ljubljana, Slovenia.

• Visiting Professor of Crystallography atBirkbeck College, University of London(2002-present).

This chapter describes the key role andnumerous routes through which the SRS hasprovided a training ground for highly skilledand specialised staff. The UK Government seesskills development as a key way of achievingeconomic growth.

• This chapter highlights the role of the SRSin providing highly skilled people boththrough general usage of the SRS forresearch (over 11000 people) and morespecifically the usage of the SRS to assistin gaining a qualification (4000 degrees ordoctorates and 2000 postdoctoralresearchers). These qualified students andresearchers are then recruited into scienceand technology based industries.

• A major impact of the SRS has beenthrough the transfer of skilled staff. Atleast 106 staff have transferred to othersynchrotrons, other academic institutionsand industry.

• This range of skilled staff is an extremelyuseful resource for industry (Zellner, 2002& 2003).

• Publicly funded research facilities like theSRS are key training grounds for R&Dintensive industries.

• They have the indirect effect of improvingUK business, providing skills and expertiseto other synchrotrons and academia, andin turn facilitating additional economicimpact.

74

Chapter 9Public understanding of science

76

9.1 Introduction

A major role of Daresbury Laboratory hasbeen its involvement in the publicunderstanding of science, engineering andtechnology (PUSET). The DaresburyLaboratory plays a lead role in bringingscience to the general public, schools andteachers and its PUSET programme formspart of an overall STFC programme86. Prior to1996 there had been a relatively low butsignificant level of public outreach done atDaresbury Laboratory with around 100public visits to the lab taking place eachyear. With the establishment of the CCLRC in1995, more resource was committed topublic outreach activities and theLaboratory’s role in PUSET started in earnest.

The number of people who engaged with DaresburyLaboratory is substantial and is illustrated in thegraph below.

Since its inception, the Daresbury Laboratory’sPUSET programme has helped to inform and engagethe public with advances in science and technologyand inspire school pupils to become the nextgeneration of scientists and engineers. Activities forthe public, teachers and schools often involve localand regional partners from the education, outreachand professional sectors to maximise impact andensure effective delivery. Although the PUSETprogramme comes from the whole of theLaboratory, the SRS was the main focus of thescience in the programme over its lifetime –referred to as “the jewel in the crown” of theprogramme. Outreach activities are also carried outon behalf of the Laboratory’s partners in theDaresbury Science and Innovation Campus and arecontinuing after the closure of the SRS. DaresburyLaboratory engages in mostly local and regionaloutreach and its staff are also involved in the STFC’swider public outreach programme.

77

Chapter 9

Public Understanding of Science

“..central facilities like the SRS afford excellenttheatre for extending the public awareness ofscience.85”

62

Chapter 9 Public Unders g of S e, Ed Tec y

“. ke R exceaware ce”

84

9.1 Introduc i

A major role f Daresbury L t has been i v publ c ders nge, (PUSET).

FC85

1996 w 100

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Figure 34, Public visits at the Daresbury Laboratory

x

– re “t own” Ou

84& M

X-ray/

Figure 31, public visits at the Daresbury Laboratory

85 Extract from SERC document “Scientific & Engineering Opportunities with a Medium Energy X-ray Source”, hard copy86 www.scitech.ac.uk/PandS/SinS/Contents.aspx

Public involvement on the DL site

Year

No

of A

tten

dees

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Offsite - young people

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9.2 Summary of activities• Each year over 3,000 members of the public

visit the Laboratory to hear about the latestdevelopments in science and technology andsee the Laboratory’s world-leading facilities.Activities for the public include free monthlylectures, visits, science festivals and open days.In 2006/2007 the SRS had 33 different schoolgroups visiting the SRS.

• In addition, 3000 school pupils per year areinspired to follow their interest in science bytaking part in programmes and activities eitherat the Laboratory or led by the Laboratory intheir school. Available activities include masterclasses, workshops, lectures, tours, scienceprojects and work experience. More recently,the Laboratory has hosted a visit for childrenfrom Chernobyl.

• Daresbury Laboratory has awarded a schoolsscience prize annually since 1996. The prize isgive to a pupil from each of 32 schools. Therehave now been 384 prize-winners.

• The Science and Engineering Ambassadors(SEAs) Programme87 is a flagship programmerun by the Science, Technology, Engineeringand Maths Network88. Ambassadors from theSRS and wider Daresbury Laboratory haveoffered their time and expertise to help inspireyoung people. Typical activities in whichAmbassadors get involved include supportingschools in science and engineering activitiesand helping with school's STEM competitions,events and awards.

• In 2005 one of the STFC’s predecessorCouncils, the CCLRC, produced an educationalCD ROM called “Seeing Science”, a teachingaid for teachers of key stage 3 pupils (11 – 14year olds). The aim of the CD ROM is toencourage more young people to study scienceand engineering at a higher level. The lessonsallow pupils to compare the methods used in aschool laboratory to those used byprofessional scientists working in the STFC’slaboratories. Material on the CD ROM includesscience from the SRS and is available viarequest from the Seeing Science website89.

Since its launch, 6000 copies of the CD ROMhave been distributed to schools across thecountry.

• 60 – 70 teachers per year visit the lab toreceive training on curriculum hot topics, goon placements to understand more about thework of the Laboratory and attend masterclasses. For example in 1996 a group of eightvocational teachers from Germany visitedDaresbury Laboratory as part of a week'sprogramme focusing on education andtraining. The group were given the opportunityto shadow staff to get a taste of the work ofthe Laboratory. The visit was judged to be verybeneficial by the teachers themselves who saidtheir time spent had been “very useful”.

A full list of PUSET activities that the Laboratoryundertakes can be found in Appendix 5.

9.3 Impact summary

78

87 www.stemnet.org.uk/Ambassadors_SEAs/Who_are_SEAs.cfm88 www.stemnet.org.uk/?referred89 www.seeingscience.cclrc.ac.uk/home.aspx

The PUSET programme creates economicimpact through its contribution to theknowledge economy as highlighted in theprevious chapter. This programme has hadsocietal impacts by encouraging interest inscience with the aim of increasing the uptakeof physical sciences and maths at school level,educating and informing the general public,inspiring the next generation of scientists andeducating teachers.

Chapter 10Growing UK industry

80

10.1 Introduction

The technology from the SRS has beencommercially exploited through direct sales,patents, licences and spin-out companies. Inrecent years the commercialisation oftechnology from the SRS has been managedby the STFC’s commercialisation company,STFC Innovations Ltd90.

Additionally, there have been indirect spin-outs in which the SRS has played some partin educating those staff or users who havegone on to start up companies themselves.

10.2 STFC Innovations LtdSTFC Innovations Ltd is the technology exploitationcompany of the Science and Technology FacilitiesCouncil. Wholly-owned by the Council, STFCInnovations Ltd manages commercial activitythrough spin-outs, licensing and trading. STFCInnovations Ltd has the exclusive rights to thecommercial exploitation of the intellectual propertyof the STFC's laboratories. By working closely withthe technical inventors, the team progressindividual projects through various business modelsto the point of implementation – either as acommercial licence or spin-out company. Since itsinception in 2002, STFC Innovations Ltd has spunout ten companies based on STFC technology and iscurrently working on spinning out a further fivenew ventures. STFC Innovations Ltd is alsoresponsible for commercial access to STFC facilitiesand services.

10.3 SRS spin-outsFive spin out companies have been created tocommercialise technology associated with the SRS –ARES (no longer in existence), Quantum Detectors,L3T, Histone Technology and DSoFt Solutions. Inaddition, a sixth spin-out Cryox, has recently spun-out of the STFC as a result of cryogenic capabilitybuild up through the SRS and the STFC laboratoriesat the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory and the UKAstronomy Technology Centre. These spin-outs aredetailed below.

Quantum DetectorsQuantum Detectors91 was created in late 2007, topromote wider exploitation of detectors that weredeveloped for the SRS by the STFC’s Engineering andInstrumentation Department. Quantum Detectors ispart owned by the STFC and Diamond Light Source,using their experience in the development of bothdetection technology and turnkey detector systems.Due to its success with detectors from the SRS, theSTFC is a leader in the synchrotron detector market.

Quantum detectors offers technology previouslyunavailable to commercial customers, providingspecialist solutions for research and industry. Themarket of large scale facilities for detectors whichQuantum Detectors will initially address accountsfor £20M pa, in which the products will address25% of the market.

L3 Technology (L3T)Established in 2003, L3T92 is a spin-out from the SRSset up to commercialise a new method ofcholesterol monitoring – making the availability ofimmediate, accurate tests for high cholesterol atyour local GP’s surgery a step closer. L3T currently

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Chapter 10

Growing UK industry

90 http://www.stfcinnovations.co.uk/default.aspx91 www.quantumdetectors.com92 http://www.l3technology.co.uk/

employs four people and has recently secured asecond round investment of £1.75m, enabling thecompany to commercialise its patented technology.The company has secured a total of £2.75M ininvestment to date.

Coronary heart disease, of which a majorcontributing factor is high cholesterol, is set tobecome the biggest killer disease worldwide by2010. There are several types of cholesterol, someof which are good for you and some of which arebad. Existing over-the-counter tests do notdistinguish between good and bad cholesterol sothe results don’t give a full picture of the patient’shealth. For accurate diagnosis, current tests rely ona doctor taking a blood sample from the patient andsending it to a laboratory for analysis – the resultscan take days. L3T’s technique provides accurateresults in minutes.

The L3T approach means that doctors will be ableto provide a high cholesterol diagnosis withunprecedented laboratory-standard accuracy, withjust a pin prick of blood from the patient – allwithin a minute. The system works by placing theblood into a cartridge, which is then inserted into a‘miniature lab’, the size of a laptop, for immediateblood lipid and cholesterol analysis. It is expectedthat the immediacy and accuracy of the test couldsave the NHS millions of pounds, improvingpatients’ health through enabling an immediate andprecise prescription of drugs. Almost a billioncholesterol tests are carried out worldwide everyyear - the potential future economic benefits areobvious.

Histone TechnologyHistone Technology93 was established in 2004 tocommercialise the production of DNA bindingproteins known as histones. Histone Technology iscommercialising a suite of biochemical techniquesdesigned to extract high volumes of histones fromthe nuclei of cells. Initial work was carried out onchicken erythrocytes due to their cheapness andrelative availability, resulting in a supply deal withAbcam94 and a number of sales. Although the chickproteins have achieved some success, the market

really wants human nuclear proteins and this iswhat the company is now concentrating on. Thecompany has successfully isolated the human formsand are now in the process of validation after whichthey intend to market the human proteins.

DSoFt Solutions DSoFt Solutions95 was set up by two staff from theSRS computing group with expertise in theintegration of electronic hardware and software.They have developed techniques to take outputsfrom a wide variety of equipment, and present it inan accessible and user-friendly form. This expertisecan be deployed to make researchers’ experience ofcomplex systems, such as light sources, asstraightforward and efficient as possible. DSoFtSolutions design, construct, test, implement andsupport a wide range of scientific, engineering andtechnology applications using a variety of platformsand languages.

CryoxCryox96 is a new company formed in 2008 tocommercialise cryogenic & superconductingtechnology - in growing demand across diverseapplications in science and industry. Backed by theScience and Technology Facilities Council, andbased at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Cryoxhas exclusive access to leading edge cryogenictechnology from STFC Research Laboratories. Thisworld-class resource is now available through Cryox under licence or in products and servicesoffered under the Cryox brand. Expertise incryogenics from the SRS and across the STFC’sfacilities and programmes has allowed this newventure to be set up.

10.4 Instrument designtechnologyWhile not a direct spin-out of the SRS, InstrumentDesign Technology97 (IDT) was formed in 2000 by anex SRS engineer Paul Murray and 2 other STFC staffmembers and is currently located at the DaresburyInnovation Centre. Paul Murray, the ManagingDirector of IDT has worked at several SR sources –

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93 www.srs.ac.uk/BioMed/projects/chromatin.htm94 www.abcam.com/95 www.dsoft-solutions.co.uk/96 www.cryox.co.uk/index.html97 www.idtnet.co.uk

the SRS, the ESRF and the APS - and used expertisedeveloped here to exploit the opportunity to supplyleading-edge instrumentation to scientific markets,principally to SR facilities. The company initiallyworked on beam line design and consultancy andstarted to build and design hardware around 2002.IDT provide the world's synchrotron communitywith a design and project management resource instate of the art mechanical precisioninstrumentation. IDT was awarded a Department ofTrade & Industry SMART award for DCM Goniometerdevelopment in 2003.

IDT have designed and built two beamlines for theAdvanced Photon Source (APS), one for theCanadian Light Source and one for the AustralianLight Source. The company has also providedequipment for the Diamond Light Source, the SwissLight Source and PETRA 3 at DESY.

The market in which IDT operates is verycompetitive; IDT is the only UK company with thesecapabilities. IDT currently employ 10 people (two ofthese staff are former SRS technicians) and wasinitially self funded through a consultancy projectfor the APS. IDT’s turnover has been £1M per yearfor the last 3 years and is expected to rise to £1.5 –2M over the next 3 years. IDT estimate that 30 –40% of this turnover is spent on local companies.Their suppliers are mostly in the North West ofEngland with all of their components (e.g. motorsand X-ray and optical components) being bought in.IDT use SuperClean (see below) to cleancomponents and find benefit from interaction andan “exchange of ideas” with Daresbury Laboratoryscientists and engineers.

10.5 Indirect spin-outsBEDE Scientific InstrumentsBEDE Scientific Instruments98 evolved from the needto cut silicon crystals for mirrors andmonochromators for facilities like the SRS. Thefounders of Bede Scientific Instruments, Mike Hartand Keith Bowen were important users involvedwith the SRS since its inception and were on the 1st SR users committee. Mike Hart was also aScience Director of the SRS.

Keith Bowen (Warwick University) and Mike Hart(Bristol University) and later Brian Tanner (DurhamUniversity) worked closely together on developingsome of the early stations for the facility. After thisinitial involvement they became major consultantsfor X-ray work and provided consultancy to the SRSon silicon, which was being considered as a materialfor the monochromators crystals at the time. Workwas undertaken at the SRS investigating the crystalquality of silicon through x-ray topography work.The early engineering technology of double crystalmonochromators was developed during the courseof this work.

Bede Scientific was spun-out from DurhamUniversity in 1978 and by the early 1980s they wereadvising companies on silicon and cutting crystals.Keith Bowen developed an X-ray topography stationin collaboration with the SRS for the Beijing storagering which included a silicon monochromator. Thisand other work allowed them to develop theirexpertise in silicon monochromators, allowing themto grow their business into other areas. Thecompany went on to manufacture semiconductormetrology tools for control of wafer quality withinthe semiconductor industry. Listed on the StockExchange from 2000, Bede Scientific became aleading supplier of High Resolution XRD metrologyfor the semiconductor and compound industrieswith revenues of $11.6M in 2007 and was acquiredby Jordan Valley Semiconductors UK Ltd in April200899.

Astex Therapeutics Ltd100

Astex Therapeutics Ltd101 a world leader infragment-based drug discovery, was founded in1999. The founders included Dr Harren Jhoti,Professor Sir Tom Blundell, FRS, Professor ChrisAbell, and Dr Roberto Solari. Both Professor Blundelland Professor Jhoti were users of the SRS in the1980s. Astex was a regular user of the PX capabilityof the SRS and entered into a contractualagreement for access to the SRS in 2001.

Astex has established strategic collaborations withmajor pharmaceutical companies102. For example,Pfizer have taken a non-exclusive, worldwidelicence of Astex's cytochrome P450 intellectual

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98 www.bede.com99 Information on Bede Ltd has not been reviewed by anyone at the former organisation as they were unavailable for comment100 Case study adapted from PA Consulting report on the “Economic Impact of the Research Councils” and an interview with Astex Ltd101 www.astex-therapeutics.com102 www.astex-therapeutics.com/investorsandmedia/pressdetail.php?uid=57

property103 which extends the bioavailability ofdrugs in the body. Interviewees from the PAConsulting EI case study on PX at the SRS104 stated -"The development of compounds binding to P450by Astex Therapeutics is a good example of thesuccessful use of PX at the SRS for drug discovery".Additionally - “it is hard to imagine how suchcompanies could exist without access to SRfacilities such as the SRS.”

Since Astex began its operations it has raised morethan £77 million in equity capital and venture loans.This example illustrates how useful the SRS hasbeen to Astex users of the SRS, contributing to theknowledge of the founders and subsequentlycontributing to the capabilities of the company.

10.6 Patents and licencesA number of patents have resulted from bothaccelerator and experimental applications on theSRS and royalties have accrued from both thelicensing of inventions and copyrighted designs. Inall, twenty-five patents were registered directlyfrom work on the SRS, twelve of which are stillactive. Of these, seven have been licensed to STFCspin-out companies (L3T and PETRRA105) and one islicensed to an external commercial customer.Royalties received for the licence of SRS technologyfrom mid 1990s to 2008 brought in revenue of £1Mfrom 15 different licenses. These licences were soldto 10 industrial customers and 1 other synchrotron.

10.7 SuperCleanIn addition to spin-outs from the SRS, a cleaningservice is offered to commercial customers. High tech industries such as aerospace, medical,defence, communications and electronics havebenefited from high precision cleaning techniquesdeveloped at the SRS due to a supply chaincollaboration service business. SuperClean106 usestechnology and expertise developed to cleancomponents on the SRS to offer critical precision

cleaning for a wide range of high technologyapplications including defence, aerospace, medical,communications, electronics and other industries.SuperClean is a trading name which representscollaboration between the SRS Vacuum ServicesGroup and Longworth Process Technology107 and isan established contract cleaner and manufacturer ofcleaning technology.

Even the tiniest traces of contamination can causehuge problems in a manufacturing or scientificenvironment. Organisations are outsourcing theircleaning to SuperClean which offers ultra highspecification cleaning and can provide massspectroscopic analysis of cleaned components.

10.8 Impact summary

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103 www.astex-therapeutics.com/partnering/cyp450.php104 www.rcuk.ac.uk/innovation/impact/default.htm105 http://www.petrra.com/index.htm106 www.superclean.dl.ac.uk107 www.bmlongworth.com

• The economic impact ofcommercialisation of SRS technology has resulted in 6 spin-out companies andone commercial service provider. Inaddition, one company has been spun-outby ex SRS staff members and two havebeen spun-out by ex SRS users.

• These examples illustrate how the skills,expertise and technology from the SRShave been successfully exploited to createnew businesses and hence generateimpact in the economy and create jobs.

• In addition, some of these companiesoperate in industry sectors that aredirectly of benefit to everyday life, forexample cholesterol testing or drugdevelopment.

• These examples show how theexploitation of cutting edge science canbe translated to meet the real needs ofour society, directly benefiting both theUK economy and the health and well-being of people, on an international scale.

Chapter 11Helping to solve industrial problems

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11.1 Introduction

Throughout the life of the SRS, there was aconscious effort to explore the potential forthe use of the facility by other organisations.The SRS was primarily focused on theacademic community in the early years of itsoperation. However, as time and attitudes tocommercial usage of academic facilitieschanged, it became apparent that access tothe SRS also had value for proprietarycustomers. This chapter presents an accountof the industrial usage of the facilityundertaken by direct contractualengagement with commercial clients forproprietary work. As highlighted earlier inthe report, the usage of the SRS by industrybecame significant with 48% of the 2008R&D Scoreboard108 using the SRS in itslifetime.

As an attempt to indicate the scale and impact ofthis contractual work, data of certain metricsrecorded over the life of the facility is presentedwherever possible in quantitative form. However, itshould be appreciated that, due to the strictcommercial confidentiality surrounding this work, inmany cases data concerning the economic andcompetitive advantage gained by commercialclients was never revealed and cannot bepresented. It is therefore necessary to represent theeconomic impact of the commercial work throughthe details of the data recorded in house and thosecases in which permission has been granted byindustrial partners.

Hence in the following chapter (and subsequentcommercial chapters) it is only possible to identify

those clients where explicit permission has beengiven. This does not exclude the use of statisticaldata and it is possible to present both quantitativeand qualitative information relating to commercialuse of the SRS, without breaking confidentialities.

11.2 Early commercial useEarly use of synchrotron radiation was initiated byan Industrial Consortium made up of Shell, BP andICI. The funds raised by the first five years of theIndustrial Consortium contract were specificallyidentified in the written agreement as contributingsubstantially to the capital necessary for theconstruction and commissioning of a new materialsscience station; this subsequently was one of the‘flag-ship’ stations on the SRS, used extensively byboth academics and industrialists.

Due to marketing activities aimed at widening therange of industries making use of synchrotronradiation for their R&D programmes, new contractswere written with Unilever, a Swiss academicinstitute (fronting for one or more industrialbackers) and with a number of other UK industrialorganisations who had become alerted to thepotential use of synchrotron radiation for materialscharacterisation.

During these early activities, the use of the stationson the SRS and the acquisition of data were usuallycarried out by the companies’ own staff, with thestandard support from a station scientist. Thisinvolved a substantial degree of training for thecommercial scientific staff. This meant that thosestaff members not only learned how to set up theSRS station and take data, but also became moreaware of the details of the techniques available andthe potential for the SRS to further enhance theircompany’s research and development programmes.

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Chapter 11

Helping to solve industrial problems

108 http://www.innovation.gov.uk/rd_scoreboard/default.asp?p=13

In addition, the pharmaceutical company, Glaxo,entered into contract for the provision of a proteincrystal structural characterisation service. Glaxo’srequirement was to submit crystals and have theSRS staff carry out data acquisition and initialanalysis. The data would then be returned to thecompany for their own staff to fully resolve theprotein structure. The SRS staff provided theirexpertise in data acquisition and interpretation andthis model became the standard pattern for a futureindustrial service. Using this model, both Glaxo andUnilever also bought dedicated SRS staff time tocarry out analysis of a particular problem.

An important factor in this early usage of thefacility by industry was the IP ownership modeladopted by the SRS. In this model, the user ownedall of the IP which resulted from the sample and theDaresbury Laboratory owned any IP which arosefrom development of technology which had to begenerated to manipulate the sample. This was amodel which was different to that of overseassynchrotrons and hence made the usage of the SRSattractive to commercial customers. This also meantthat the SRS was the first facility to developstandard terms and conditions associated withcommercial use.

11.3 The growth in commercialuseFrom the commencement of marketing activities in1988 up to the mid 1990s there was a sustainedgrowth in the use of beams from the SRS byindustrial users, measured both by the number ofcommercial contracts and by the number ofexperimental station hours allocated for such work.On a number of stations the industrial demandapproached or even occasionally exceeded the 10%limit of total station time allocated for commercialuse. Statistics of this development were publishedin a number of scientific journals109,110,111, both forpublicity and to provide information for othersynchrotron radiation laboratories that had startedto work directly with industry112.

An internal Daresbury Laboratory report113 of 1997provides statistical data of the industrial use ofsynchrotron radiation by industry during the period1990-96. This data indicates that over 11,000 hourswas allocated to 20 individual companies with 2500hours allocated to 13 individual academicintermediaries which were funded by industrialprincipals to carry out research projects. Aconservative estimate for these shifts allocated (at1996/97 prices) is £2.3M. The break-down of thecommercial use by industrial type is shown in figure32 below. As the industrial nature of the principalsbehind the contracting academics was undeclared,the academic clients are shown as a single group.

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109 ‘Industrial Applications of Synchrotron Radiation', P. Barnes, J. Charnock and N. Marks, Nucl. Insts. and Meths., B56/57 (1991).110 ‘The use of Synchrotron Radiation in Industrial Research’, P. Barnes and N. Marks, Nucl. Insts. and Meths., A314 (1992).111‘Industrial Applications at the Daresbury SRS’, P. Barnes, J. Charnock and N. Marks, Synchrotron Radiation News, 1993, Vol 6, No 6. 112 ‘Synchrotron Radiation Projects of Industrial Interest, N. Marks, Proc of 6th European Particle Accelerator Conference, Stockholm, 1998113 ‘Industrial Liaison Activities of S.R. Department 1990 -96, N. Marks, internal Daresbury Laboratory Report, Nov 1997

Figure 32, use of SRS beam by industry from 1990 to mid 1996;broken down according to type of industry

Petro chemicals

General chemicals

Pharmaceuticals

Healthcare

Micro-mechanical

Academics

Space technology

Others

Use of SRS beam by industry 1990 - 1996

11.4 Working with BP and ICIExamples of the kind of work carried out byindustry are given in this section. The STFC isindebted to BP and the current owners of ICIintellectual property for allowing some of theinformation relating to both company’s use of theSRS for their research programmes to be madeavailable. Also to Professors Richard Joyner andRichard Oldman, who provided the details below.

BPThe BP programme was coordinated from theirresearch centre in Sunbury, which carried outcorporate work in addition to more applied researchprojects for both BP Oil and BP Chemicals. BP’s maintopic of interest was heterogeneous catalysis,probably amounting to about 90% of the workdone on the SRS. Prof. Joyner’s particular area ofexpertise was extended X-ray absorption finestructure (EXAFS), a major spectroscopic techniquewhich identifies the position and bond of a targetelement in a solid or liquid compound. Much of thework involved in-situ catalyst studies, with reagentgases including propane and nitrous oxide.

Investigations were also carried out on alkali-metalpromoters for catalysts. The effect had beendiscovered in Japan, but BP optimised thistechnique, with the SRS playing some part in thiswork. Generally the SRS work was undertaken toimprove general understanding of the catalyst andits operation, rather than to improve particularmaterials or processes. Other projects includedstudies of the degradation of zinc dithio-dihydrophosphate, an oil additive. Work was also carriedout on the SRS to determine trace metal levels inoil-bearing rock cores.

ICIScientists within the major research departments ofICI were among the first industrialists to recognisethe potential of the SRS, which they used for abreadth of applications. During the fourteen yearsof ICI research at Daresbury, at which time ICI was

one of the largest chemical companies in the world,virtually every one of its divisions participated,using all the major techniques available on thesynchrotron.

The research ranged from the short-term andtactical, to more strategic, fundamental research.Towards the end of the consortium’s operations, theICI portion was shared with Zeneca, formerly ICIPharmaceuticals, which had separated from theparent company. Conservatively, it is estimated thatICI spent more than £1 million at the SRS, but thisamount was much less than the cost of ICImanpower employed. Typically, ICI deployed a teamof four or five PhD scientists to work on varioustechniques at the SRS. Alongside thoseexperimentalists were several scientists whoseexpertise lay in modelling or data analysis. It wasestimated that for much of the research, a 24-hourshift of beam-time resulted in a man-month of deskwork on analysis, modelling, dissemination andpublication.

Even now, more than 20 years after the experimentsbegan their financial, scientific and operationalbenefits cannot be disclosed in detail; only a smallproportion of the work was published externally.However, a list of topics, with a short summary foreach, is given in Appendix 6, to provide anindication of the diversity of the topics studied. Insummary, the details in Appendix 6 show that avery wide range of products and processes wereexamined. Much of the research was used toenhance the fundamental understanding rather thanto lead directly to new products and processes, andconsequently the exact financial benefits cannot bedetermined precisely. However, as an example, thesafeguarding of the patent for electrode coatings,detailed in the Appendix, may well havecontributed to the success of ICI’s electrode coatingbusiness. This technology is now installed in manytens of cell rooms worldwide and has created amulti-million pound UK business, substantial enoughto win the Queen’s Award for Export.

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11.5 On-going commercialaccess Work carried out by the commercial office at theSRS indicated that the facility was relevant to awider range of industries than previously thought,including major companies involved in materials,specialised chemicals, and other areas, to whichsynchrotron radiation would be relevant to theirR&D needs. Market analysis indicated that thesecompanies would need specialised support by SRSstaff in carrying out experiments and analysis.Hence a new materials characterisation service (the“Daresbury Analytical Research and TechnicalService” – DARTS) was created to offer an extendedservice to industry.

The new service built up a data base of 62commercial (industrial) clients and 15 academicinstitutes wishing to obtain beam-time throughcommercial access. It is likely that much of thecommercially oriented academic access was toperform work for an industrial sponsor who wishedto retain the intellectual property of the results,without publication. Some degree of the nature ofthis work can perhaps be deduced from the stationutilisation statistics.

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Year Customers ‘Jobs’per year per year

1997 15 19

1998 11 20

1999 18 56

2000 19 41

2001 18 52

2002 17 49

2003 10 18

2004 18 44

2005 18 36

2006 15 19

2007 16 32

TOTAL JOBS: 386

Table 5, performance of the DARTS service between 1997 and 2007

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20

Museums and accademic

Pharmaceuticals

Biotechnology and health care

Chemical

Materials

Legal and consultancy

Petrochemical

Automobiles and Aerospace

Instruments, electronics &

photonics

Defence

Power & environment

Number of clients

Figure 33, number of clients using the DARTS service from 1997 to 2007, according to industry type

As with the early work, the details of the performedwork are confidential and hence it is not possible toprovide a detailed list with the client’s identities.However, statistical data is presented in the table 5,detailing the number of customers and ‘jobs’performed per annum between 1997 and 2007.Figure 33 shows the number of clients, according toindustry type, using the DARTS service in thatdecade. Figure 34 details the income during the sameperiod expressed as a percentage of the total income.

During the period from 1997 to 2007, recordsindicate that total income from the industrialservice amounted to nearly £2M. It is clear fromfigures 33 and 34 that the pharmaceutical industrywas the largest single commercial sector makinguse of the service. Most of this work remains highlyconfidential, though it is possible to provide somedetails of the impact of work performed by somecustomers who have agreed to have their workpublished in case studies, some of which are givenfor reference in Appendix 7.

The area of drug discovery is highlighted below as anumber of pharmaceutical and biotechnologycompanies use protein structures, derived fromprotein crystallography work at the SRS, to assisttheir drug discovery programmes. The informationbelow is adapted from the PA Consulting case studyon protein crystallography on the SRS114.

11.6 Drug discoveryThe knowledge of protein structure can increase theeffectiveness of drug discovery, in particular thegeneration and optimisation of lead drugcompounds. This knowledge has the potential torealise benefits in two ways: offering a completelynew product to the market; and reducingdevelopment costs.

Whilst it is clear that the pharmaceutical industry’suse of the SRS (and other synchrotrons) has had animpact on structure based drug discovery, it isextremely difficult to quantify the contribution ofthe SRS to any drug discovery. One researcherinterviewed by PA Consulting states –

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114 www.rcuk.ac.uk/innovation/impact/default.htm

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50

Museums and accademic

Pharmaceuticals

Biotechnology and health care

Chemical

Materials

Legal and consultancy

Petrochemical

Automobiles and Aerospace

Instruments, electronics & photonics

Defence

Power & environment

%

Figure 34, income from DARTS service from 1997 to 2007, expressed as a percentage of the total, according to industry type

“...its contributions are blunted by the lengthof time required for drug development fromtarget identification through to theidentification of a library of compounds,clinical trials and finally regulatory approval.The costs involved reduce the perceivedimpact and benefit of PX in drug discovery anddevelopment.”

Bearing this in mind, the following benefits havearisen from the use of the SRS –

• Reduced development timeThe Association of the British PharmaceuticalIndustry115 states that the cost of developing anew medicine is estimated at more than $700million and takes between ten and twelveyears, with no guarantee of commercialsuccess. The SRS has played a role in drugdiscovery programmes by enabling structuralinsights that lead to more effective drugdevelopment. The application of highthroughput PX techniques and computationalmethods for drug design contribute to reducingthat development time. It is impossible toestimate the value of this contribution buteven if it is a small fraction then the impact isstill many $millions per drug.

• Earlier market exploitationA new blockbuster drug116 will generaterevenues of close to $1,000 million per annumfor 10 or 12 years. The SRS could provideresults inaccessible to other techniques and ifthe time to market could be reduced by just sixmonths, then $500 million additional revenuecan potentially be generated. This assumesthat the new drug does not displace anexisting product. Of this a small but significantproportion would be expected to be attributedto the PX insights.

The markets which are relevant to structure based(or guided) drug discovery are extremely significant- cancer chemotherapy117 ($42,000 million),influenza118 ($3,000 million), HIV119 ($8,500million), multiple sclerosis120 ($5,000 million) andrheumatoid arthritis121 ($8,000 million). If work onthe SRS has contributed as much as 0.5% towardsthe revenues for drugs in these markets then theeconomic impact remains hugely significant,

ranging from $15 million to $200 million of revenuein various therapeutic areas.

ExamplesThere are a number of examples of contributions todrug discovery from the SRS –

• BioCryst Pharmaceuticals122 based in the USAdesign drug candidates using detailedknowledge of the structures of active sites oftargeted enzymes. The structure of the enzymepurine nucleoside phosphorylase123, provided astarting point to design new drugs to targetdiseases such as psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis,multiple sclerosis and Crohn’s disease124,125.

The company was set up in 1986 to developsuch inhibitors on the basis of codifiedknowledge gained from the use of the proteincrystallography capability at the SRS. Thecollaboration between the company’s founderand SRS station scientists was particularlystrong. Quoted in Scientific American, thecompany stated –

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“The real aggravation arose when weproceeded to the detailed structuraldetermination. In the early years we had todepend on an X-ray source that generatedrelatively low-intensity waves. The resultinglow-resolution diffraction patterns enabled usto discern the overall shape of the molecules,but we could not properly place the individualatoms. We eventually filled in the missingdetails in collaboration with John R. Helliwellof the Daresbury Laboratory SynchrotronRadiation Source in England. The synchrotronemitted the intense X-rays needed for high-resolution imaging.”(Quote from reference 123)

115 www.abpi.org.uk/statistics/intro.asp116 www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blockbuster_drug117 Chemotherapy Market Insights, 2006-2016: A Critical Analysis of Cancer Research, Treatments, Pipelines, and Commercial Opportunities (Spectra

Intelligence, 2006)118 The worldwide Influenza market (Business Communications Company, 2006)119 The Global Anti-Virals Market: R&D Pipelines, Market Analysis and Competitive Landscape (Arrowhead Publishers, 2006)120 The Global Market and Future Outlook for Neurodegenerative Disorder Therapies (Arrowhead Publishers, 2007)121 www.imshealth.com/web/content/0,3148,64576068_63872702_70261004_78677274,00.html122 http://www.biocryst.com/123 Three-dimensional Structure of Human Erythrocytic Purine Nucleoside Phosphorylase at 3.2Å Resolution Ealick, S.E.; Rule, S.A.; Carter, D.C.; Greenhough,

T.J.; Babu, Y.S.; Cook, W.J.; Habash, J.; Helliwell, J.R.; Stoeckler, J.D.; Parks, R.E. Jr.; Chen, S.-f.; Bugg, C.E. Journal of Biolological Chemistry, 1990, 265,1812-1820.

124 Bugg, C. E. et al. (1993), “Drugs by design”, Scientific American 269, P.92-98125 Bu, Y. S. at al. (1995), “Structure-based design of inhibitors of purine nucleoside phosphorylase”, ActaCrystallographica Section D51, 529-535

Today BioCryst has extensive researchprogrammes and compounds in clinical trialson a range of disease targets. One inhibitor ofthis enzyme is in clinical trials and has beenlicensed to Roche126.

• One interviewee commented that“GlaxoSmithKline did [a significant amount of]work on the influenza virus. Haemagglutininand neuraminidase structures were completed17 or 18 years ago from which drugs havebeen developed.”

• As already mentioed, the SRS played asignificant role in the identification of the first14 HIV proteins. The HIV1 protease is anotherexample of the success of structure based drugdesign. A number of companies investigatedthese structures via proprietary research or incollaboration with academic researchers usingthe SRS (from 1989 to 1993 and later)127,128.An interviewee remarked that “a large numberof structures were determined involvingresearchers and synchrotrons all over theworld, including the SRS.” The structuresallowed the development of a cocktail ofinhibitors (to overcome the development ofresistance) as new anti-viral treatments(Abbott Laboratories and Merck ResearchLaboratories).

• Avidex Ltd, a biotechnology company, used theSRS to determine the structure of wild-typeand mutant CD8+ T-cell receptors and theircomplexes with antigen-peptide complexes.The company then engineered the receptors toselectively bind oesophageal cancer cells andinduce an immune response129.

• Astex Therapeutics Ltd were regular users ofthe SRS until 2004 and pioneered the use ofhigh throughput protein crystallography usingchemical fragment-based screening. Their drugdiscovery program focuses on kinase inhibitorsas anticancer agents and uses the knowledge

of the structure of human cytochrome P450enzyme isoforms (2003/04) to extend thebioavailability of drugs in the body. Pfizer havetaken a non-exclusive, worldwide licence130 ofAstex's cytochrome P450 intellectual property.

• Research scientists from Organon Laboratoriesdeveloped a novel method for reversing theeffects of neuromuscular blockersadministered during operations performedunder general anaesthetic, additionallyeliminating many of the commonlyencountered side effects from anaesthesia,thus aiding the recovery.

Data was collected on the SRS that allowedthe structure of the blocker to be solved,confirming that the drug design process hadbeen successful. Clinical trials have shown thisnew method to reverse the effects of theneuromuscular blocker twice as fast asconventional treatments and with none of theside effects. Human clinical trials have takenplace and the drug has recently been releasedinto the market. Schering-Plough and Organonhave released BRIDION131 for the reversal ofneuromuscular blockers. A recent press releasefor the drug states –

The impact on post operative intensive carecosts through use of this drug is expected tobe significant.

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126 www.biocryst.com/bcx_4208.htm127 Wonacott, A. et al. (1993), “A series of penicillin-derived C2-symmetrical inhibitors of HIV-1 proteinase – structural and modelling studies”, Journal of

Medicinal Chemistry 36, P.3113-3119128 Lapatto, R. at al. (1989), “X-ray analysis of HIV-1 proteinase at 2.7 Å resolution confirms structural homology among retroviral enzymes”, Nature 342,

299-302129 Chen, J. et al. (2005), Structural and kinetic basis for heightened immunogenicity of T cell vaccines”, Journal of Experimental Medicine 201, P.1243-1255130 www.astex-therapeutics.com/partnering/cyp450.php131 http://www.bridion.com/hcp/index.asp

“Schering-Plough Corporation todayannounced that the EuropeanCommission has approved BRIDIONinjection, the first and only selectiverelaxant binding agent and the first majorpharmaceutical advance in the field ofanaesthesia in two decades.”

Other structure based drug design examples includeanti-tuberculosis agents, drugs for sleeping sicknessand compounds targeting malarial proteins. Overall,many of the 3D structures determined at the SRShave been of human proteins or proteins fromorganisms that affect human well being. Knowledgeof the 3D structure of such proteins can allowchemists to tailor the design of pharmaceuticals tobetter fit and exert an effect on the target. This hasled to some drug designs that are currently bearingfruit in improving worldwide healthcare and thequality of life132. Hence the SRS has been a keyresource for the UK bio-community andpharmaceutical companies.

11.7 Facility brokering serviceIn addition to providing the full analytical service,with interpretation and explanation of data, SRSstaff aided their clients with pressing or demandingproblems by providing a facility brokering service.One of the customers supported in this way was aMiddle Eastern company which became involved ina patent dispute. The SRS was approached by a UKacademic who had been contacted by the endcompany, having acted as an expert witness on suchcases for some years. The academic and the clientrecognised that the SRS had the capability todetermine some facts about a chemical productwhich could prove the validity of a key patent.However, the Daresbury SRS was unavailable withinthe very tight time-scale required by the client.

Staff members used their networks and connectionsto facilitate access to the ESRF within a few days –a much faster turnaround than is normal for ESRF.Daresbury Laboratory scientists verified the dataquality and interpretation, and supplied the resultsto the client in a format that could be used forpatent defence. The project was perceived by theclient to have been a very successful exercise andhe subsequently approached the SRS to undertakefurther sample characterisation.

11.8 Industrial access through grant-awarded academicsIn addition to the academics with industrial backerswho entered into commercial contracts for beamaccess, it was known that other academicsaccessing the facility through the research councils’peer review system were, in some instances, incollaboration with industrial partners. Whilst sucharrangements are seldom identified on grantproposals, these liaisons were demonstrated bothby the presence of the industrial company’s staff onthe experimental station during data acquisition andalso by inclusion in the author lists of publishedpapers. These collaborating companies choseacademic liaison in preference to a directcommercial contract on the SRS. It is noteworthythat some of the most outstanding, highly citedwork performed on the SRS has been supported inthis way. For example, the University of Oxford’sdetermination of the 3-D structure of the Foot andMouth Disease virus in conjunction with theWellcome company, before their merger with Glaxo.

In an attempt to assess the scale of such indirectindustrial use, academic papers identified in the SRSAnnual Report 1994/95 were examined and allinstances of industrial companies’ staff beingincluded as co-authors noted. The list of companiesproduced by this exercise is shown in the firstsection of Appendix 8. Additionally, EPSRC wasapproached and a further group of commercialcollaborators was identified from grant applicationdata; this group is shown in the second section ofAppendix 8.

This exercise demonstrates that, during a typicalsingle year, a total of 56 organisations (34 UK basedand 22 overseas), who did not pay for direct access,chose to enter into collaboration with entitledacademics in order to access the SRS. The natureand scale of the resulting work was difficult toassess. However, even though there are no recordsof the work undertaken or the beam-time required,the evidence suggests that this access was similar involume to the direct commercial access and issignificant when considering the impact the SRS hashad on industry.

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132 Stevens, R. C. (2004), “Long live structural biology”, Nature Structural & Molecular Biology 11, P.293-295

11.9 Micro-mechanical components for the nuclearindustry LIGA (German acronym - LIthographie,Galvanoformung und Abformung)133,134 is a genericlithographic technology developed to producemicro-mechanical components for the nuclearindustry. Synchrotron radiation is an essential partof the process, the intensity and parallelism of theX-rays allowing greater and more accuratepenetration of the photo-resist than is provided bymore conventional sources. In the 1990s, manysynchrotron sources around the world wereinvolved in exploration of the technique. Thesystem was developed at the KFK Institute,Karlsruhe135 (now the FZK). It was soon recognisedas having considerable potential for many micro-mechanics applications and its use spread to a muchwider range of industries.

Early work at Daresbury by staff from KFK and aspin-off company, ‘Micro-parts’136, which enteredinto contract for the provision of synchrotronradiation, demonstrated that the radiation in an SRSX-ray station was ideal for the technique. Hence,the SRS was one of the most suitable sources inEurope to support a LIGA industrial programme. Itwas clear that the radiation from the SRS was avaluable tool for this process and a major initiative,to attract and inform UK industry of the potential ofthe technique, commenced in 1994.

The initiative resulted in the creation of a ‘LIGAClub’, with full industrial membership offering themembers technology advice and the production oftwo different micro-components based on bespokedesigns specified by the member. Four organisationsentered into full membership of the club, BNFL,BICC, Oxley Developments (an SME electronicscomponent company) and De Montfort University

(representing a number of automotive principals). A ‘LIGA Interest Group’ was also formed with 54members, which included major multi-nationalindustries, SMEs and academic institutions.Meetings and workshops were organised and liaisonwith the two German based organisations arranged.Appendix 9 gives the aims of the LIGA InterestGroup and a list of the member organisations.

An example of a primary LIGA product is shown inFigure 35. The production of the LIGA devices at theSRS demonstrated a number of significant technicaldifficulties. In spite of these problems, marketingactivities continued137 and the use of LIGA for deeplithography is still active today. Many of thecompanies which had first been introduced tomicro-technology as members of the LIGA InterestGroup continue to benefit from the technology thatthey learned at that time and are currently active inthis field138.

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Figure 35, LIGA structures produced for DTI North West, as amarket demonstrator (scale note - the smallest devices shown arethe array of 12 sensors (top left) - each is less than 0.5 mmacross, with detail less than an order of magnitude smaller (notresolved in this reproduction)

133 Becker, E.W. et al. (1986), “Fabrication of microstructures with high aspect ratios and great structural heights by synchrotron radiation lithography,galvanoforming, and plastic molding (LIGA process),” Microelectric Engineering, vol. 4, P.35

134 W Bacher et al. (1995), “The LIGA technique and its potential for microsystems-a survey”, IEEE Transactions on Industrial Electronics, Vol 42, No5135 www.fzk.de/fzk/idcplg?IdcService=FZK&node=Home&lang=en136 www.boehringeringelheim.de/produkte/mikrosystemtechnik/microtechnology137 D.W.T.Tolfree (1996), ‘Infrastructure and Technology Transfer Programmes for Micro-technology in the UK’, Proceedings of Commercialization of

Microsystems, Kona, Hawaii.138 D.W.W.T. Tolfree & M.J. Jackson (2008) “Commercialising Micro-Nanotechnology Products”, Chs 1-9, CRC Press

11.10 Impact summary

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As can be seen from this chapter there hasbeen significant impact to industry through theusage of the SRS –

• Hundreds of industrial partners workedwith the SRS to improve their productsand processes. These customers werewide ranging, including governmentdepartments, industry, hospitals, museumsand universities. From 1990 to 2007, theincome generated by this proprietaryusage was over £4M, which was re-invested into the facility.

• The exact financial impact to thecustomers of the SRS cannot be quantifiedbut one can assume that this workcreated opportunities for UK industry andwould have gone some way to increasethe turnover and competitiveness of thecompanies assisted, in addition toimproving the quality of life in the UK. Inparticular the SRS was a key resource forthe UK bio-community andpharmaceutical sectors, leading to somedrug designs that are impactingworldwide healthcare.

• Welfare impacts will also have been feltby public sector customers such ashospitals, cancer research organisationsand museums; their usage for diseaseprevention and cultural studies hasimpacted daily lives in the UK.

Chapter 12Exchanging knowledge with industry

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12.1 Introduction

The majority of the commercial activitiesdetailed in the previous chapter involvedknowledge transfer between SRS staff andthe commercial client. When a commercialuser interacted with the facility, SRS staffsupport was not restricted to technicaldetails but often included discussion andadvice on measurement techniques andpotential for future developments. Discussionsfrequently included scientific issues involvedin performing data analysis and explainingconclusions of the work. Hence, knowledgetransfer is inherent in all such activitiesdetailed in the previous chapter.

However, there have also been many commercialactivities where the knowledge transfer was morethan just incidental to the prime activity of thecollaboration. In these cases technology transferwas either the exclusive aim of the contract or it wasa vital and sustained feature of the deliverables.Examples of such projects are given in this chapter.

In addition, there was a significant occurrence ofknowledge exchange in those cases where

technology development occurred between the SRSand a supplier of a particular technology. In order todesign, build and operate such a technicallydemanding facility as the SRS, it was necessary forthe staff involved to become expert in a range ofdifferent technologies. The construction of both theaccelerator complex and the experimental beam-lines for the SRS involved major in-house design,followed by the purchase of equipment fromcommercial companies and subsequent assembly inthe facility.

In some instances essential technologies weredeveloped with industry, to the benefit of both theLaboratory’s experience and to the industrialpartners involved. Whilst in these cases there maynot have been direct, intentional technologytransfer, there was still a significant benefit to thecompany both in finances and experience. Thesebenefits occurred both at the construction stage ofthe facility, and throughout its lifetime as newtechnical developments opened up new researchmethods and goals, and continued almost to theend of the facility’s operation. The satisfactoryoperation and development of the SRS thereforerequired an ongoing procurement exercise, thenature of which changed with time. The success ofthese procurement initiatives depended ontransparent, effective and willing communicationbetween those tasked with the procurement of thecapital equipment and the manufacturers. It istherefore not surprising that significant, two-wayknowledge transfer occurred during the purchase ofmajor items of equipment. There was then an on-going interplay between supplier and demanderwhich, of necessity, resulted in the successfultesting and delivery of equipment which was fit-for-purpose. This serendipitous or indirect knowledgeexchange through technology development andequipment procurement is also detailed in thefollowing chapter.

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Chapter 12

Exchanging knowledge with industry

“I am delighted that the SRS continues toenable excellent science to be done, and thatit is used by so many researchers from a widerange of organisations. The reports show thatit plays an important role in helping thetransfer of technology from the science baseto users – something that the Government iskeen to foster.139”

139 Sir John Cadogan, Director-General, Research Councils, 1995, presentation at the Daresbury Laboratory

12.2 Direct knowledge exchangeThis section details a number of contractsspecifically oriented on knowledge exchangebetween the SRS and a commercial partner.

12.2.1 Building a compact synchrotron source During the mid 1980s, the UK company OxfordInstruments (OI), which specialised in super-conducting technology, approached the DaresburyLaboratory requesting support in the design andconstruction of a compact synchrotron source foruse in X-ray lithography. The company had receivedan enquiry from IBM (USA) to design and build asuperconducting storage ring for this purpose; thebasic ring was to be sufficiently compact to allowtransport by air and was to be designed withmultiple beam-lines so as to support an active andintensive lithography programme.

The accelerator was jointly designed by OxfordInstruments and SRS staff under the terms of twocontracts, one covering the provision and licensingof background intellectual property and the othercovered the provision of consultancy during thecontract. The SRS accelerator staff were responsiblefor the design and engineering of several of themajor components of the source, its testing andcommissioning. Oxford Instruments successfullytendered to IBM for the contract, citing the role ofthe SRS scientists as a major component in winningthe contract.

The compact storage ring was subsequently named“Helios” and the design and construction went toplan. During testing and commissioning in Oxford,an additional contract was tendered which securedthe services of the Daresbury radiation protectionofficer to fulfil the health and safety requirementsof the contract. The Helios source was successfullydelivered to IBM, and performed according to theirspecification. The Oxford Instrument’s Helios projectmanager subsequently published a report on thissuccessful collaboration140 in which he states –

A photograph of Helios I undergoing initialcommissioning at Oxford Instruments is shownbelow.

After this initial success, the company was able toapply the skills and experience learned in the HeliosI exercise to manage the in-house design of asecond accelerator (Helios II) in a fully independentway - the hallmark of truly successful technologytransfer. Helios II is fully operational at theSingapore Synchrotron Light Source141 and issupporting a strong academic and industrialresearch programme, including LIGA. This workcertainly pump-primed generic accelerator andphoton science expertise in Oxford Instruments. The following financial figures (at 1990 price levels)are provided to indicate the size and significance ofthe Helios project to Oxford Instruments and theirrecognition of the work performed by SRS staff –

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Figure 36, Helios I undergoing initial commissioning at OxfordInstruments

140 M.N.Wilson, (1994), “Technology Transfer on the Helios Project”, Proc of 4th European Particle Accelerator Conference, London 141 H.O.Moser et al (2004), ‘Singapore Synchrotron Light Source - Helios II and Beyond’, Proceedings of 9th European Particle Accelerator Conference,

Lucerne

“With a 99.5% uptime in 1993, Helios I hasestablished itself as one of the world’s mostreliable storage rings. None of this could havebeen achieved without Oxford’s collaborationwith Daresbury, a collaboration thatcontinues.”

Oxford Instruments also commented on this activitywhen they were asked to input information into aHouse of Commons Science and Technology SelectCommittee hearing on Engineering and PhysicalSciences Based Innovation in 1998142. An excerpt ofthis is given below –

Another indication of the quality of the SRS staffinput to this project was the fact that they won theResearch Council Inventors’ Awards for design anddelivery of HELIOS.

12.2.2 Developing equipmentfor other SR sourcesAs part of an ongoing programme of improvementsto the SRS experimental facilities, scientific andengineering staff developed an in-house design for adouble silicon crystal X-ray monochromator. These

instruments select a narrow band of radiation, withvariable wavelength, from the broad synchrotronradiation spectrum emerging from the source andare essential equipment in any synchrotronradiation facility. The double crystal monochromatorwas developed principally for use in X-rayspectroscopy studies, and the design achieved alevel of precision and stability equal, if not superior,to any commercial instrument then available. Aftera number of the instruments had been installed onSRS experimental stations and results published,international interest was stimulated by the qualityof the design, and two further monochromatorswere assembled and sold directly by the Laboratoryto overseas sources (ESRF and ELETTRA). These twodirect sales were regarded as final prototyping, withthe Daresbury engineers refining the design to makea commercially viable package.

The design was then offered as a licence to variousmanufacturers, with a tender exercise being used todetermine the successful company. The exclusivelicence was won by the UK vacuum specialistcompany, Vacuum Generators (VG), part of theFisons conglomerate. Earlier, the DaresburyLaboratory had entered into a non-exclusivecontract with VG, to provide ongoing technical helpand advice. In addition to providing themanufacture of monochromators, the new contractsupported further development work of the basicdesign and customised modification to meet theneeds of the customer.

This collaboration was extremely successful withconsiderable interest developing as new SR sourceswere proposed and funded. This was substantiallyaided in the USA by the appointment, by VG, of aleading USA vacuum science equipmentmanufacturer and distributor, Kurt J. LeskerCompany143, as their agent. As a result, multipleorders were received for instruments to be installedon the USA national synchrotron source, the APSChicago.

Subsequently, in excess of 17 monochromatorswere manufactured by Fisons VG and sold to newsynchrotron radiation sources, many as exports toUSA, Europe and elsewhere. Appendix 10 lists thesales of the SRS designed double crystalmonochromator made by Vacuum Generators,

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142 www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm199900/cmselect/cmsctech/195/195ap63.htm143 Pwww.lesker.com/newweb/index.cfm

Element Cost

Helios I £8750K

Royalty paid by OI to SRS relating to the sale of Helios I £401K

Helios II £9636K

Royalty paid by OI to SRS relating to the sale of Helios II £215K

Table 6, royalties for Helios project

“We would like to make it clear that thebusinesses which have been built on the basisof the technologies developed in theseGovernment (or former Government)Laboratories would not exist today withoutthe knowledge generated in those laboratoriesand in a number of cases the peopletransferred to the industrial sector.”

under the terms of the exploitation licence. It isrecorded that the total value of the sales made byVG was £2.1M and the total royalty paymentreceived by Daresbury Laboratory from VG was£96K.

This technology transfer resulted in a number ofbenefits, including exports for the UK, enhancedsales for a British company, and royalty receipts intothe SRS. However, probably the most significantadvantage to the synchrotron radiation sourcesworld-wide was the further improvements andupgrades to the instrument’s functionality andperformance that resulted from the variedrequirements of the different customers requestingspecialised features on the monochromators.

12.2.3 Improving safetysystemsAn essential part of any accelerator complex is thepersonnel safety system which monitors staff accessto high radiation areas and prevents theintroduction of ionising beams into these areaswhen occupied. This system must be of the highestreliability and subject to exhaustive testing todemonstrate complete effectiveness before an

operating licence can be issued to cover thecommissioning of the accelerator. A system hadbeen developed in-house for the SRS, controllingaccess to both the accelerator and experimentalareas; the system provided complete computermonitoring so that area status and faults could bedisplayed to operators. The operational history ofthis system demonstrated no fail-to-dangerincidents throughout the life of the SRS.

During the construction of the EuropeanSynchrotron Radiation Facility144, a number ofpersonnel safety systems were considered and theSRS design was chosen as the preferred system. SRSstaff were consulted and supported the ESRF inproducing a specification for construction. Thecontract was awarded to N.E. Technology145 whosubcontracted it to a North West company, HorwichElectronics146 - an SME local to the SRS, which hadproduced the electronic crates and modules for theoriginal SRS safety system. A second contract, forhalf of the experimental area system, was placedwith AEA Technology, Culham, who again usedHorwich Electronics as a sub-contractor. Tocomplete the system, ESRF placed the final contractdirectly with Horwich with ESRF and SRS staffjointly managing the production and commissioningof the remaining electronic units.

The value of the three contracts for this systemamounted to approximately £1M (1993 prices), ofwhich an appreciable fraction was received byHorwich Electronics. Daresbury Laboratory chargeda technology transfer fee and a royalty paymentpro-rata to the contract values. This contractdemonstrated the multiple benefits that can accruefrom such commercial activity:

• The support of and supply of vital equipmentto an international laboratory of which the UKwas a member

• The economic and technical benefit to a smalllocal electronics manufacturer

• Financial income to the SRS to support furtherdevelopment of the facility

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144 www.esrf.eu/145 N.E. Technology Ltd, Bath Rd., Beenham, Reading, Berkshire. Acquired by Saint-Gobain in 1995 and eventually merged into the Bicron-NE business

unit. See - www.powerhousemuseum.com/collection/database/?irn=365888146 Horwich Electronic Laboratories, Longworth Road, Horwich, Bolton, BL6 7BN; (Tel: 01204 650555); no web site.

Figure 37, the first double-crystal monochromator manufacturedby Vacuum Generators in May 1995 and delivered to the newAdvanced Photon source (APS)

12.3 Technology developmentThis section explores the nature of some of themore specialised and advanced technologies thatwere required for the synchrotron source andexperiments and how interaction with the supplychain resulted in significant technical knowledgegain for the commercial contractor.

12.3.1 Developing magnettechnologiesTesla Engineering147 located in West Sussex,manufacture electro-magnets for particleaccelerators. This is a highly specialised marketposition, with Tesla having no UK competitors andwith only four other accelerator magnetmanufacturers trading in the whole of WesternEurope. During the initial construction of the SRSstorage ring, Tesla Engineering was a small companywith modest production facilities but which had thebenefit of a skilled work-force and a managementthat was highly experienced in magnet technology.Tesla successfully tendered for the production ofthe quadrupole magnets which were subsequentlyinstalled in the SRS and operated without problemover the life of the facility.

Later, during the significant upgrade to the magnetlattice of the SRS, Tesla again supplied the magnetswhich were added to the SRS ring. During the life ofthe SRS there was on-going contact between SRSaccelerator physicists and Tesla Engineering; thecontacts were both formal for magnet procurementand informal technical discussions at meetings andconferences.

A major issue that was highlighted from the on-going collaboration was that Tesla needed to obtainand operate its own precision magnet measurementequipment. This capability allowed the company toexpand its supply profile, offering a completeengineering package of magnet supply, from initialdesign to final delivery of fully tested andmeasurement magnets. With advice from SRSscientists, this equipment ensured that thecompany’s technical competence and its tradingcompetitiveness was enhanced.

After winning a contract in excess of £2M for 240magnets for the Diamond Light Source, Teslacommissioned and operated a measurement rig asadvised by SRS staff. The Diamond procurementteam included ex SRS staff who worked with Teslato overcome initial technical problems with thesystem. This expertise came directly fromknowledge gained on the SRS, both from interactionwith other laboratories (particularly CERN) and fromexperience gained during the building, operationand up-grading of the SRS facility.

The result of this work is that Tesla Engineering nowhas fully functional and operationally provenmagnet measuring equipment that it can cite incontractual quotations and use to offer anenhanced commercial service to customers, thusimproving its competitiveness and expanding itsmarket potential.

Considering the role that the SRS has played in thedevelopment of his company, Dr Michael Begg,Managing Director of Tesla Engineering wrote:

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147 www.tesla.co.uk/

“It is useful to companies such as Tesla to beable to talk to people in physics laboratoriesand to ask questions about how varioustechnologies work. During my time at Tesla I have often asked questions about materials,measurements, cryogenics, assembly methodsas they relate to magnet building. No practicaladvice can be given unless there are still labs,such as the SRS, doing real projects thatenable people to learn about new andinteresting things.

Also, it is challenging to companies such asTesla to be asked to make things that are newand different. Novel and difficult requirementsare often specified by physicists and engineersworking in facilities such as the SRS. Withchallenging requirements comes hightechnology and with high technology comesjobs and profits.”

The fruitful relationship with the DaresburyLaboratory scientists and Tesla Engineeringcontinues, with Tesla recently winning the contractto provide magnets for the EMMA system (seechapter 14) at a cost of £300K.

12.3.2 Insertion devicedevelopmentThe introduction of specialised ‘insertion devices’into the SRS allowed the generation of synchrotronradiation with higher intensity and different spectrato that which had been previously generated.Stations which received radiation from theseinsertion devices became the most advanced,provided the highest quality beams and contributedstrongly to the outstanding success of the SRSexperimental programme.

Insertion devices can, broadly, be categorised intothree distinct types - undulator magnets, wigglermagnets and wavelength shifters. The principalinsertion devices used on the SRS are listed inAppendix 11 together with the details of anycommercial involvement. The insertion devices that

were assembled at Daresbury Laboratory were builtusing many components purchased fromcommercial suppliers, either as catalogue items orbespoke according to an SRS design. The principaland most demanding items were:

Permanent magnet blocks: A wide range ofpermanent magnetic materials are commerciallyavailable, with sintered rare-earth alloys having thehighest energy density. The SRS wigglers used suchmaterial, specified and purchased fromVacuumschmelze GmbH & Co., a Germanmanufacturer of specialised magnetic materials148.

Precision motor drives: The inter-pole gaps inpermanent magnet insertion devices need to bevariable, with high precision and repeatability; theyalso have to drive against the very strong forcesbetween the poles. All Daresbury Laboratory builtvariable gap insertion devices used motor drivesmanufactured by McLennan149, a UK company thatspecialises in servo controlled motion drive systems.This company’s products have also been used inother equipment and further reference is made laterin the chapter.

12.3.3 Helping e2v productdevelopmentRadio-frequency (RF) power equipment has animportant role in particle accelerators, providing thelongitudinal electric field that is required toaccelerate the particles. The design andconstruction of RF windows (usually a ceramicplate) is an exacting technology which is crucial forthe successful operation of the accelerator. Overthe life of the SRS there was strong and effectiveon-going communication between the SRS radio-frequency experts and the principal UKmanufacturer of high power RF power sources,e2v150. The company has undergone severalchanges of ownership and throughout all thesechanges the company has continued to maintain aclose contact with Daresbury Laboratory and SRSstaff. The following information has been suppliedby a retired senior member of the Company151, withthe Company’s permission –

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148 www.vacuumschmelze.de/dynamic/en/149 www.mclennan.co.uk150 www.e2v.com/151 Dr David Wilcox (ex e2v) - Private communication

Figure 38, Multi-pole wiggler 6/14 prior to installation in the SRS

12.3.4 Building the capacity ofthe vacuum science industryIn the late 1970s when the SRS was being designed,the major part of the vacuum industry in the UKwas centred on the low to high vacuum regions, i.e.pressures of ~ 10-7 to 10 8 mbar. There were anumber of specialist companies which had thecapability of producing vacuum systems whichoperated at lower pressures than this, well into thetrue UHV (Ultra High Vacuum) regime (i.e. <10-9

mbar). However, this was by and large confined tothe manufacture of small scale laboratory andresearch systems. It was beyond the routine

capacity at the time of such companies to producethe necessary vacuum vessels for the SRS, whichwas required to operate at a base pressureapproaching 10-10 mbar. The large number of suchvessels and the short production time scales alsoplaced a considerable strain on the capacity of mostfirms willing to take on such work. It was thereforenecessary for the SRS to embark on a process ofeducation of a number of companies as to how theycould fulfil the requirements of the project. It wasthe smaller and more specialist firms that took upthe challenge, the larger vacuum companies at thetime either being unwilling to diversify or seeing itas a diversion from their base markets.

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“At the time the SRS was commissioned, e2v(then EEV) was already closely involved with theengineering team at the Daresbury Laboratory. Ashort while later, the company was engaged bythe SRS team to manufacture replacementceramic RF windows, as there had been a numberof unaccountable failures due to crackedceramics caused by, it was thought, multipactorbombardment. Multipactoring, as its namesuggests, is a phenomenon involving repeatedbombardment of a surface by electrons. Thesolution to this problem was the development ofantimultipactor coating.

At the time e2v also happened to be suffering arecurring and intractable problem of the crackingof ceramic RF output windows on its new rangeof wideband television klystron amplifiers. This,too, seemed to be caused by multipactoring. Thesolution to this was to adapt the coating methodused on the SRS for application to TV klystrons.At a stroke, this reduced the problem to such agreat degree that failure for this reason was nolonger a matter of concern. From then onwards,the method was applied to all TV klystrons andsubsequently to all TV Inductive Output Tubes(IOTs).

This was an example of the transfer of some keyknowledge from the SRS project to amanufacturer, the lasting value of which was not

foreseen at the time. It is also worth noting thatthe knowledge was not directly related to thetechnology of the product being manufacturedbut rather to an incidental problem havingsimilarities with that on the SRS and seen to havea common cause and common solution. Were itnot for the close working relations between theSRS team and the e2v’s personnel, it is quitepossible that the existence of this panacea wouldhave remained hidden.

At the time immediately preceding theintroduction of the coating, the ceramic crackingproblem was placing the TV klystron business ate2v (then EEV) in jeopardy. Subsequent to itsintroduction, and quite quickly thereafter, theCompany’s position in this market rose from beingone of three or four world suppliers to being theoverwhelmingly dominant one. This huge successcontinued with the introduction of IOTtechnology and even today, some 20 years on,e2v looks forward to at least another ten years ofprofitable business for TV IOTs and klystrons.What is more, the products will, of necessity,continue to incorporate the anti-multipactortechnique first witnessed on the SRS. As afinancial measure of its worth, the sales valueduring the lifetime of these productsincorporating the coating is estimated to reach ofthe order of £250 million, of which some 90% to95% will have been exported.”

The routine achievement of UHV in laboratorysystems had been available since the 1960s and hadbeen successfully implemented on a large scale inaccelerators overseas, notably at CERN. Howeverthis had not impacted on UK industry significantlyand CERN had carried out much of the specialistwork in-house. The SRS team did not have facilitiesavailable to take this approach but were able todraw on the available knowledge to support UKindustry.

It rapidly became clear that industry would not beable to make the necessary investment to providethe complete range of processes required for theconstruction and processing of vacuum vessels tothe necessary high standard. In particular, since theSRS could not guarantee a large volume of businessto individual companies, the return available tothem from the installation particularly of expensivelarge scale cleaning and baking kit might not justifythe investment required. Therefore some of thesespecialist facilities were provided by the SRS andmade available to industry, either free of charge forSRS work or at a commercial rate for othercommercial orders. Some companies concernedwere prepared to adopt new manufacturingtechniques, such as clean welding, and learn how towork with new materials, like specialist stainlesssteels to produce high-integrity vessels andassemblies. Also, skilled SRS staff were able tospend time in the companies, both carrying outwork themselves and training staff in thesecompanies to carry out the particular processingwork themselves.

This cooperative approach, with the SRS providingdesigns, specifications and procedures which werethen implemented by willing companies, resulted in

a built machine which met the necessary operatingcriteria. Subsequently, UK industry was able to usethese procedures and the experience and skillsgained to win orders from accelerator laboratoriesand other large projects in Europe and worldwide.However, later rationalisation in the industry meantthat a number of these companies eitherdisappeared or withdrew from the market.

In addition to the vacuum vessels, the completevacuum systems for both accelerator andexperiments required a large amount of ancillaryequipment. These also were required to meet UHVstandards and created further specialised technicalchallenges for suppliers. The way that these weremet for pumps, gauges, pump and gauge controllersand residual gas analysers, with fruitful interactionbetween the project and industry, is detailed inAppendix 12.

Although it has proved difficult to get quantitativeinformation from UK vacuum companies regardingthe effects on their business with the SRS, most arehappy to acknowledge that the expertise anddemands of the SRS vacuum team has put them in aposition to be internationally successful andrecognised as competent in the demanding field oflarge scale UHV. Many use the procedures,standards and methodology developed by the SRSas the basis for their own quality control systems.They also acknowledge that interaction with thehighly skilled and knowledgeable SRS staff provideda stimulus to ensure that their own expertise wasup to the mark.

Richard Davies, Managing Director of CVT Ltd, haskindly supplied the following statement:

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12.3.5 Securing contracts forUK industryBeing an extremely important piece of kit for theSRS, there was an ongoing major initiative toimprove existing monochromator designs and totake advantage of the advances in materialstechnology and engineering techniques to developbetter, higher quality instruments. This occurredthroughout the life of the SRS.

Prior to the construction of the SRS, NINA scientificand engineering staff had been involved with a UKcompany, Bird & Tole152 to build and improvemonochromators. The contact with the SRS wasoriginally channelled through the University ofReading. For nearly twenty years, during the build-up of the SRS experimental area, there was a fruitfulinteraction that provided the facility with high

quality monochromators and helped Bird & Toleestablish itself in this market, helping them togenerate export orders.

SRS scientific staff carried out the basic opticaldesign and provided a detailed mechanicalspecification for the various necessary movements,i.e. the accuracy and tolerances required for themechanisms. Bird & Tole would then turn the initialideas into a mechanism that could be built as anengineering reality. Details of the on-goingcollaboration have been recorded in a privatelypublished booK153; this provides details of 23instruments built by Bird & Tole either for the SRS orfor other overseas synchrotron facilities, with theadvice and support from SRS scientists. Appendix 13lists the instruments and the laboratory for whichthey were destined. The strong collaborationbetween different research laboratories working in

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152 ‘Bird and Tole’ still exist but are now part of ‘Cougar Engineering Services’; they no longer manufacture monochromators; see:http://www.birdandtole.co.uk/

153 ‘Don Tole’s Monochromators’, compiled by W.B.Peatman and J.B.West; private publication by Daresbury Laboratory, 1986; copy available on loan fromthe Laboratory’s library.

“CVT Ltd was formed in the late 1970s as abreakaway from the VG Instruments Group. Atthat time we had four employees working in an800 sq ft industrial unit in Milton Keynes. Bycontrast, our former employers and biggestcompetitor, VG, were turning over in excess of£50M and operating out of multiple factories inthe south east and north west of England. Wewere aware of the potential that synchrotronswould have for our particular speciality,manufacture of UHV chambers and mechanisms,and our start up coincided with the constructionof the SRS facility at Daresbury Laboratory.

Daresbury operated a policy of tendering for buildto print manufacturing which was perfect for astart up company such as ours, the currentindustry wide practice of the contractor beingtotally responsible for design and functionalitywas introduced 20 years later. This tender processallowed us to win contracts that were within ourcapabilities and in this process we were veryenthusiastically assisted and encouraged byDaresbury staff who were both keen to have a

strong British vacuum engineering industry andunstinting in their sharing of knowledge andexperience.

CVT was not the only company in this happysituation, I know of several others that weretreated in the same way. As CVT grew, we wonlarger and more complex projects eventuallybeing awarded a running contract for themanufacture of vacuum chambers for Daresbury(we still hold a similar contract for the RutherfordLaboratory) and enabled us to win significantcontracts at other European synchrotrons (MAXSweden £1M, ESRF France £3M, BESSY Germany£5M).

I know that Daresbury's primary function was toproduce world class science and in this they haveexcelled but our experience shows that theiractive role in the development of SMEs is alsovery important and should be considered as amajor influence in the way that all UK researchfacilities are structured.”

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Figure 39, photograph of the high resolution grating mechanism installed in a Bird & Tole monochromatordeveloped for an up-grade on SRS beamline 6.1

154 www.cas.web.cern.ch/cas/CAS-Prog-2004.html155 www.bessy.de/?idcat=22&changelang=5

the area of VUV/soft X-ray is apparent from thenumber of instruments that were loaned to otherlight-sources either for testing or to providetemporary cover in an on-going research programmethat was experiencing instrument difficulties.

It must be emphasised that the contracts with Bird& Tole were always placed after open competitionvia the tendering process, but no-one else couldcompete on the grounds of excellence in design andreasonable price. The titles of the monochromatorsgiven in Appendix 13 indicate that the originaldesign concepts for the instruments originated atJapanese laboratories; names such as ‘Miyake’ and‘Seya-Namioka’ indicate such origins. It is ademonstration of the prevailing spirit of theacademic collaborations at that time that suchdesigns were freely communicated betweenlaboratories, without any thought being given toownership of intellectual property. It was thereforein the same spirit that the SRS teams, working inthis area of science, modified and improved onthose basic concepts; they worked with Bird & Toleon the engineering realisation of the developments,informed sister laboratories (particularly the BESSYlaboratory in Berlin) of the improvements andencouraged and helped Bird & Tole to build and sellthe more advanced instruments to other researchinstitutes.

With this free multi-way transmission of data anddesigns, it is difficult, after the significant lapse oftime, to ‘pin-down’, who did what and who had thebright ideas that resulted in the major steps forwardin instrument design, with correspondingimprovements in experimental data quality.However, the situation is neatly summed up by textin the cited publication154 relating to the BESSY155

1-meter Seya-Namioka monochromator (item 7 inthe list of Appendix 13), which states:

“The very first monochromator that BESSYobtained was the 1-metre Seya-Namiokamonochromator, originally built for the Fritz-Haber Institute in Berlin for use at the Bonnsynchrotron and moved from there whenBESSY1 started operation. It was also the firstBird & Tole monochromator to be exportedfrom England. It is perhaps the only exact copyof a monochromator that Bird & Tole had thepleasure of building, being a copy of JohnWest’s 1-metre Seya at Daresbury (item 6 inthe list of Appendix 13). Even the drawingswere unchanged............”

Dr J.B West, the SRS staff member mentioned above,has provided much of the information in thissection156 and adds the following comment:

A photograph of the Bird & Tole high resolutiongrating mechanism developed for an up-grade onSRS beamline 6.1 is shown in Figure 39.

The above information all relates tomonochromators developed for the VUV and soft X-ray programme. However, high qualitymonochromators were also essential for the hard X-ray experimental programme. The outstandingexample of successful design for hard X-rayinstruments is the double-crystal monochromatordeveloped by SRS staff for extended X-rayabsorption fine structure (EXAFS) measurementsand subsequently licensed to VG for commercialexploitation as described earlier in this chapter.

12.3.6 Developing and transferring detector technologyThe significance of detectors, as essentialcomponents in any experimental assembly, isobvious. For all of the many techniques available onSRS experimental stations, the radiation emergingfrom the experimental sample has to be ‘detected’and then recorded electronically for analysis. Thespatial and energy resolving power of the detectoris a determining factor affecting the quality of theexperimental results in addition to the timeresponse of the detector. In many cases the SRSexperimental stations were ‘detector limited’, as aremost SR instruments. Consequently, throughout thelife of the SRS, there was an active detectordevelopment programme. Investments in STFC’s in-house detector innovations, along with beamlineoptics developments and accelerator designupgrades, kept the 2nd generation SRS competitivewith newer 3rd generation SR sources in cutting-edge sciences. Appendix 14 lists the twenty worldclass in-house detector developments that tookplace over the lifetime of the SRS. Thesedevelopments meant that the SRS was one of thefew SR facilities which had detector system thatwas matched to the station’s output, keeping thefacility competitive until the end of its lifetime.

Examination of the data in appendix 14demonstrates a number of particular features –

• Of the twenty different detectors that werebuilt specifically for the SRS, twelve weredeveloped exclusively at DaresburyLaboratory, three in collaboration with theRutherford-Appleton Laboratory and theremainder in collaboration with academic orcommercial partners;

• A number of these detectors have attractedinterest from other light sources (Spring-8,Diamond Light Source, ALBA, ESRF). The STFCand Diamond Light Source spin-off companyQuantum Detectors is now marketing nine ofthese designs and there has also been stronginterest in a number of other designs from twocommercial companies (Canberra159 and EG&GOrtec160).

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156 Dr J.B.West (senior SRS scientist, now retired); private communication.157 www.nsls.bnl.gov/158 www.esrf.eu/159 Scientific instrument manufacturer and distributor ‘CANBERRA’, an AREVA company; see - www.canberra.com/default.asp160 www.ortec-online.com/index.html

“In the end, the collaboration produced someof the finest VUV monochromators anywherein the world, as was widely acknowledged atthe time. The proof of the pudding was in theeating: we were able to carry out experimentsthat people elsewhere in the world could notdo, and this contributed greatly to the Lab'shigh reputation internationally in VUVspectroscopy. I think it would be fair to saythat Bird & Tole certainly did benefitcommercially from the interaction withDaresbury Laboratory. Through our contactsthey secured contracts in the USA at NSLSBrookhaven157. They also became well knownin Grenoble (ESRF158) and made componentsfor instruments there, as well as completeinstruments at BESSY (and) a soft X-rayinstrument at Super-ACO” (French light-source, now shut-down).

Throughout the life of the SRS, there was sustainedinteraction with the companies Canberra and EG&GOrtec, to the mutual advantage of both the SRSexperimental programme and the commercialcollaborators. An example, detailing the ongoingdevelopment and resulting ‘spin-offs’ from oneparticular detector are chronicled –

“The requirement for compact, high rate,fluorescence detectors for the SRS was appreciatedearly in the life of the facility and a 13 elementgermanium detector, for use on station 8.1, wasobtained in the early 1990s. The initialinstrumentation for this detector made use ofequipment coming from the Daresbury NuclearStructure Facility during its rundown and gave abasic system that could be used. However, this wasnot very easy to operate.

The design of a more user friendly instrument wasinitiated by the SRS solid state detector team.Interactions with Canberra commenced and gaverise to a new specification of smaller diodes in amore compact configuration; this detector becamethe standard fluorescence configuration sold toseveral synchrotrons. The existing analogue systemcoupled with Canberra detectors worked well forseveral years but with beamline MPW16 beingproposed it was clear that to handle the rates influorescence experiments proposed on station 16.5a new approach was required and work began on ahigh rate direct digitisation system. This system,which would become XSPRESS, would overcomesome of the limitations in analogue systems andgive greater user flexibility; additionally a highernumber of channels - at least 30 - were required forthe detector for 16.5.

The quest for a new detector was won by Ortec whodeveloped a 30 element high rate germaniumdetector which was matched to XSPRESS. This was anew development for Ortec and offered advantagesin the front end electronics design, of whichXSPRESS could take.

Once this system was completed, the requirementswere seen for a more compact system for the newlyrefurbished focusing optics station 7.1. This resultedin the first truly monolithic germanium detector forXAFS (C-TRAIN,) which could be coupled toXSPRESS. In this development not only was the

state-of-the-art detector developed by staff at Ortecbut a new high rate preamplifier was developed atthe Rutherford Appleton Laboratory. This systemwas subsequently adopted for the SRS station 9.3and later for the Belgiun beamline, DUBBLE, at theESRF. Upgrades to XSPRESS have now taken placeand a C-TRAIN XSPRESS2 system is in place onbeamline I18 at Diamond.”

12.3.7 Engineering challengesHigh quality mechanical engineering is the cornerstone of any facility such as the SRS and, withongoing development of the accelerator, beamlinesand experimental stations occurring throughout thelife of the facility, there was a continuousdevelopment in this area supported by DaresburyLaboratory’s permanent team of engineers. Thenature of the tasks varied considerably and includeda major up-grade to the accelerator lattice, theongoing assembly and addition of insertion devicesinto the accelerator, the ongoing addition of newbeamlines and the development of existingbeamlines. The latter included the completeconstruction of new state-of-the-art facilities,including robotics.

Major projects required high standards and mainlyinvolved engineering that was available fromquality local engineering companies who undertookprecision manufacture and assembly. TSWEngineering Ltd161 (formally Willaston EngineeringCo), which is a small engineering company local toDaresbury Laboratory in Birkenhead, suppliedsignificant quantities of machined components andlight fabrications over the life of the SRS. Due to thelinks with Daresbury, TSW has now delivered to theoverseas facilities CERN162 and DESY163. Another

110

161 www.tswengineers.co.uk/162 http://public.web.cern.ch/Public/Welcome.html163 http://www-hasylab.desy.de/164 www.senar.co.uk/

“The requirement for compact, high rate,fluorescence detectors for the SRS wasappreciated early in the life of the facility anda 13 element germanium detector, for use onstation 8.1, was obtained in the early 1990s.The initial instrumentation for this detectormade use of equipment coming from theDaresbury Nuclear Structure Facility during itsrundown and gave a basic system that couldbe used. However, this was not very easy tooperate.

The design of a more user friendly instrumentwas initiated by the SRS solid state detectorteam. Interactions with Canberra commencedand gave rise to a new specification of smallerdiodes in a more compact configuration; thisdetector became the standard fluorescenceconfiguration sold to several synchrotrons. Theexisting analogue system coupled withCanberra detectors worked well for severalyears but with beamline MPW16 beingproposed it was clear that to handle the ratesin fluorescence experiments proposed onstation 16.5 a new approach was required andwork began on a high rate direct digitisationsystem. This system, which would becomeXSPRESS, would overcome some of thelimitations in analogue systems and givegreater user flexibility; additionally a highernumber of channels - at least 30 - wererequired for the detector for 16.5.

The quest for a new detector was won byOrtec who developed a 30 element high rategermanium detector which was matched toXSPRESS. This was a new development forOrtec and offered advantages in the front endelectronics design, of which XSPRESS couldtake.

Once this system was completed, therequirements were seen for a more compactsystem for the newly refurbished focusingoptics station 7.1. This resulted in the firsttruly monolithic germanium detector for XAFS(C-TRAIN,) which could be coupled toXSPRESS. In this development not only wasthe state-of-the-art detector developed bystaff at Ortec but a new high rate preamplifierwas developed at the Rutherford AppletonLaboratory. This system was subsequentlyadopted for the SRS station 9.3 and later forthe Belgiun beamline, DUBBLE, at the ESRF.Upgrades to XSPRESS have now taken placeand a C-TRAIN XSPRESS2 system is in place onbeamline I18 at Diamond.”

local engineering company LVW Senar164, alsobased in Birkenhead, supplied precision engineeringcomponents to the SRS. As a direct result of theclose links with the SRS, they now also supply asignificant amount of components to the RutherfordAppleton Laboratory.

In the early years of the SRS construction, completeturnkey solutions were not available from industryand the laboratory needed to develop expertise ofdelivering high specification devices to meet theneeds of the science. The demand was forintegrated systems using multidisciplinary

technology, an area of strength which had beendeveloped within the laboratory by engineers andscientists making use of proven techniques and highquality components. Through supply andcollaboration, a range of companies, which couldmeet such requirements, was established. A list ofsuch competent and experienced suppliers thatwere used for SRS engineering requirements is givenin Appendix 15, totalling 22 companies. Experiencein supplying to the SRS has also enabled thesecompanies to obtain contracts from other institutesrequiring similar high specification devices.

111

This chapter highlights the impact that the SRShas made both to UK companies and othersynchrotrons world wide. Significantadvantages came to the synchrotron radiationsources through improvements and upgrades infunctionality and performance that resultedfrom the varied requests for specialisedfeatures such as the monochromators.

The examples above are only a small numberof case studies which illustrate the range andimpact of just some of the technology andknowledge transfer activities that the SRS hasbeen involved in with UK companies. Thesecases alone show the significant impact thatthe SRS has made to the companies involved,allowing them to develop products for sale toother companies and synchrotrons and helpingthem to win new contracts for business.

The 22 supplying companies identified, honedtheir manufacturing and measuring techniquesto meet the demands of that specialisedsegment of the market. Over the life of thefacility, this resulted in major gains to themanufacturers, creating competitive advantagein both the range and effectiveness of theirtechnologies, products and processes and theoptimisation of their designs to win

competitive tender exercises. This was both tosupply synchrotrons abroad and other UKcompanies.

One company alone, e2v, have stated thatdeveloping their antimultipactor coating incollaboration with the SRS was worth £250Min business to their company. Additionally, CVTquote gains of £8M in contracts and TeslaEngineering have benefited from at least£2.5M in new contracts. In addition, the threedirect knowledge exchange examples givenresulted in 22 contracts being won by thecompanies involved to the value of £21millionshared between Oxford Instruments, VacuumGenerators and Horwich Electronics.

Hence the examples given here represent again of at least £300M in sales for UKcompanies as a direct result of technology andknowledge gained from the SRS which wasleveraged by the companies to win subsequentcontracts. This also created further indirectimpacts in which the initial purchase of goodsor services from suppliers led to a further chainreaction of purchases from their supply chain.It should also be noted that this figure is likelyto be an underestimate due to the difficulty incollecting data on this kind of work.

12.4 Impact summary

112

Direct local impacts

114

Chapter 13Local financial impact of the SRS

116

13.1 Introduction

High quality research facilities are recognisedas important contributors to regionaldevelopment and knowledge-driveneconomies both in the UK and abroad.Indeed the establishment of the UNESCO-sponsored SESAME synchrotron radiationfacility involving eight countries (Bahrain,Cyprus, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, PalestinianAuthority, Pakistan and Turkey) recognisesthe significant regional economic effectsthat these facilities create. UNESCO calls it“a quintessential UNESCO project forcapacity building through science”165 andsignificant benefits to the region have alreadybeen felt. Other examples are the ESRF inGrenoble and the SOLEIL Project in Paris,both highly valued in their respective regions.

The SRS made a significant contribution directly tothe economy of its local region and the wider UKover its construction and 28 year operationallifetime. In addition, the SRS has attracted asignificant amount of external investment to thefacility over its lifetime - not only from theGovernment and the Research Councils, but alsofrom external sources such as the EU, and commercialand private funding from the UK and overseas.

A significant amount of the annual budget of theSRS was spent in the region local to the facility aswell as the wider UK and abroad. In particular, the

annual salaries of the staff have had a significantimpact on the local economy. These direct fundspaid to employees and companies are then re-spentin the local and greater economies, creating a rippleeffect of financial impacts. In addition, facility users,visitors and attendees at events and conferencesalso brought income to the region via theirexpenditure in local hotels, and on taxis etc.

13.2 SRS funding & investmentThe SRS was used primarily by academics and publicsector scientists funded by their host institutions orvia a UK Research Council or international equivalent.Over its lifetime the operation of the SRS wasfunded from the Science Vote by the UK Government.

From its construction in 1977 until 1994/95, the SRSwas funded directly by the Science and EngineeringResearch Council (SERC). Between 1994/95 and2003/04, the SRS was funded through Service LevelAgreements with the other Research Councils; themajority of funds coming from the EPSRC, but alsothe BBSRC and MRC, and with some funds fromNERC. Following the CCLRC Quinquennial166 Reviewin 2004/05, the responsibility for funding the SRSchanged to the CCLRC direct vote funding. Thisfunding model continued until 2007 when the STFCtook over funding responsibility for the SRS until itsclosure at the end of 2008. This is illustrated in thediagram below.

Including initial construction costs anddecommissioning costs, the total expenditure on the

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Local financial impact of the SRS

Figure 40, SRS funding timeline

165 www.sesame.org.jo/pdf/DevCountries.pdf 166 Pwww.berr.gov.uk/dius/science/researchcouncils/quinquennial_reviews_of_cclrc/page13198.html

SRS funding sources over its lifetime 1975 - 2008

SERC

1977 1994/95 2004/05 2007 2008

Research Councils CCLRC STFC

SRS over its lifetime was approximately £600M. Itshould be noted that this figure has been indexed toreflect costs at today’s prices.

The funding for the SRS came from several differentsources in addition to the funding from the UKGovernment. The SRS attracted additional fundingfrom the European Union through its Frameworkprogrammes (FP3 – FP6), the Wellcome Trust, UKUniversities, charities and income from commercialactivity. This totalled over £25M in externalinvestment. External investment through joint workwith European Universities was also prolific butcannot be quantified. An example of this type ofwork is given in appendix 16.

13.3 Breakdown of SRS budget The SRS operating budget was spent on pay,recurrent items, capital equipment items andoverheads. The breakdown of the budget on theseitems between 1994/95 and 2008/09 can beillustrated in the diagram below167.

As can be seen from the diagram, the majority ofthe expenditure on the SRS was on staff costs,recurrent items and overheads.

13.4 Job creation & salaryThe SRS acted as a large and significant employer inthe North West area over its lifetime. The staffnumbers from the SRS and its associatedprogrammes peaked at 325, with an averageworkforce of 229 per annum over its lifetime. This isshown in figure 42.

The vast majority of staff from the SRS resided inareas local to the Daresbury Laboratory, includingLiverpool, Manchester, Warrington and Cheshire.Staff location data from 2007 indicated that 99% ofstaff were resident in the area local to the SRS, withthe remaining staff in residence in another areas ofthe UK. Using staff salary data between 1989/90and 2008/09 and extrapolating back to 1977/78, thetotal cost of wages paid directly to staff was £220Mover the lifetime of the SRS, with a significantamount of this money going into the local economy.

13.5 Impact to local and national businessesThe SRS acted not only as an employer in the NorthWest, but also as a purchaser of goods and servicesin the local area, the wider UK and abroad.Throughout its lifetime, the SRS traded with over300 local businesses and spent money on itemssuch as consumables, small equipment items andmaintenance.

Around 90% of the total spend on the SRS wasspent in the area local to the laboratory, with 37%being spent on wages, 34% on recurrent items and22% on overheads. This totals £534M over thelifetime of the facility. The remaining 10% of thebudget was spent on large capital items - some withUK companies and some with internationalcompanies.

As highlighted in chapter 3, this purchase of goodsor services from suppliers leads to a further chainreaction of purchases from their supply chain andalso has indirect effects on employment, spend andtaxation.

118

Figure 41, breakdown of spend on SRS over its lifetime

167 The data is not available to investigate years previous to this, although this spread is believed to be typical over the lifetime of the SRS.

SRS Budget

Capital7%

Resource93%

Equipment over £3k

Assets underconstruction

Staff costs 37%

Overheads (training, travel &

accomodation)

22%

Recurrent items(e.g consumables, small items

of equipment, electricity)34%

Specific examples of development and technologytransfer projects with local and wider UK businesseswere given in chapters 11 and 12. An example of abusiness from the North West which benefited fromsupplying the SRS is given below. Note that thecompany wished to remain anonymous.

119

Figure 42, the number of staff working on the SRS and associated programmes over the lifetime of the facility

168 http://www.isis.rl.ac.uk/169 http://www.jet.efda.org/index.html

Year

Number of staff working in the SRD over its lifetime

The company is part of the £100M business ofits parent company which operates in the UK,France, Germany, the Netherlands and theRepublic of Ireland. The company is situated inChester and employs around 105 staff, andspecialises in lead products with key marketsin building construction and applicationsrelating to radiation shielding. This applicationcrosses many sectors, including nuclear plants,nuclear medicine, X-ray enclosures, radiationshielding and defence.

The company have supplied shielded chambers(hutches) to large scale facilities in the UK, thefirst being the SRS with ISIS168 (the STFC’s

neutron facility), Diamond and JET169 following.The company have also subsequently suppliedhutches to other synchrotron facilities aroundthe world including the ESRF in France, the SwissLight Source, the Canadian Light Source, and theNational Synchrotron Light Source and ArgonneNational Laboratory, both in the USA. The grouphave recently been awarded the contract tosupply the hutches to the ALBA synchrotronsource in Barcelona. Competition for the supplyof hutches within Europe is confined to two tothree other companies based in France andGermany. The supply of hutches to large scalescientific facilities is worth approximately £2mper annum to the company.

The company stated that the location of a largescale facilities in the UK allows strongrelationships to be built up. Those relationshipspromote close communication which is essentialin finalising the design and exact requirementsof the customised products to be installed. Thisclose relationship also builds up confidence in

This example illustrates the effect the SRS had on abusiness in its locality. The SRS was the first UKfacility that the company supplied to whichdeveloped their skills, expertise and reputation tothe extent to which they could then supply to otherfacilities both in the UK and abroad. Therefore aripple effect is felt by the company in which theycan subsequently win more and more business andgrow their company as a direct result of the firstcontracts with the SRS.

13.6 Modelling secondary economic effects As detailed in the preceding sections and in chapter3, there was a multiplying effect of the repeated re-spending of the SRS budget in the local economy;the induced economic impact through salary andthe indirect impact through industry supply chaineffects. This recognises that the direct investmentinitiates an economic “chain reaction” of furtherspending, production, income and employment,creating both indirect and induced economicimpacts. These secondary economic effects havebeen approximated using multipliers taken from theONS Input-Output Analytical Tables, last revised in2001. Therefore using the multiplier of 0.44 for theinduced economic impact and 0.23 for the indirecteconomic impact, the secondary financial impact of

the SRS is estimated to be £398M. It should benoted that this figure is an approximation as exactmultipliers for the SRS are not available. Additionalnegative effects such as displacement of economicimpacts from other regions have not been considered.

13.7 Impact summary

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As this chapter has shown, large scaleresearch facilities are important contributorsto regional development. A significant amountof the annual budget of the SRS was spent inthe region local to the facility In particular, theannual salaries of the staff, equipment andmaintenance costs were all locally funded,creating local economic impacts. Addingsecondary effects to this initial spending effectmeans that the SRS created significant localregional growth.

Impact on employment

• The SRS has supported an average of 229direct jobs for every year of its operation.

Direct and secondary financial impacts

• The SRS budget had a total financialimpact of £594M over its lifetime, with£534 spent in the local area over its 33year lifetime (including construction,operation and decommissioning). 37%was spent on wages and 34% was spenton recurrent items with local businesses.

• The indirect and induced financialeconomic impact resulting from the SRSbudget was £398M, with impacts mostlyoccurring in the area local to the SRS. Thisrepresents the financial ripple effect ofthe SRS budget spend over its lifetime.

Therefore the total financial economic impactof the SRS was approximately £992M, with themajority of this impacting the local economy.(this figure presumes that the net economicimpact is equal to the gross impact, in additionto the stated multiplier effects.)

the capabilities of the suppliers. The beamlinescientists are often highly mobile, working indifferent international facilities within a close-knit scientific community; therefore, theexistence of the UK facilities is important insustaining an international reputation.

The association of the company as a supplier tothe UK and international synchrotron markets isperceived as raising the profile of the companyand their products, especially within the smallscientific community which is mobile on a globalscale. Similarly, the company perceive that theircredibility has also been raised, with the kudosof being associated with these large-scale, high-technology facilities. The synchrotron sector isseen as a pioneering market area which allowsfor new market opportunities.

Seeding future impacts

122

Chapter 14Providing the next generation of impact

124

14.1 Introduction

The development of the technology, skillsand instrumentation developed at the SRSled to the establishment of other scientificfacilities and centres of excellence,themselves creating significant impact.

The following examples illustrate how theskills, technology and know-how built up inthe UK through the construction andoperation of the SRS have led to the nextgeneration of scientific facilities in the UK.

14.2 Diamond Light Source

In 1993, the Woolfson Review171 on synchrotronradiation provision in the UK reported that UKresearchers required a new facility to replace theSRS and continue the success of the facility. To thatend, scientists and engineers at the DaresburyLaboratory and elsewhere began developing plansfor a new 3GeV X-ray source, subsequently calledthe Diamond Light Source.

In 2000, it was announced that the Diamond LightSource would be sited at the Rutherford AppletonLaboratory. The SRS users and staff had a significantimpact on the establishment of the Diamond LightSource172, with the users of the SRS helping to buildand develop the science case for the Diamond LightSource. In 2002, SRS and ASTeC delivered the formalDesign Study Report from which the facility wassubsequently constructed. SRS and ASTeC staff thuscontributed to the early conception, design andexpertise for the establishment of the facility. Todate, some 21 people have transferred to theDiamond Light Source, taking with them the skillsand knowledge gained on the SRS. Duringconstruction, SRS staff played major technical andmanagerial roles in supporting the newly formedDiamond Light Source team and were also involvedin the early operation of the facility. Collaborationbetween the facilities occurred in areas such asbeamlines, detectors, accelerator physics, RFdevices, magnets, vacuum, power supplies andinsertion devices.

In addition, two beamlines have been transferredfrom the SRS to the Diamond Light Source for XAS(X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy) and SAXS (SmallAngle X-ray Scattering). A team of SRS scientists,engineers and technicians used their skills andexperience from the SRS to model and re-engineerthe beamline components for their new roles at theDiamond Light Source.

Construction of the facility began in early 2003 andDiamond became operational in January 2007. Thefacility employs around 350 staff and is run by aJoint Venture funded by the UK Governmentthrough the STFC (86%) and the Wellcome Trust

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Providing the next generation of impact

“The SRS has kept the UK at the forefront ofscientific research and now passes its batononto the new Diamond Light Source inOxfordshire, the UK’s direct successor to theSRS. Diamond will continue to build on thepositive legacy of synchrotron light research inthis country.170”

170 Professor Ian Munro, one of the original founders of the concept that synchrotron light could be used to perform science, and who was responsible forthe plans for building the SRS and its operation, speaking at the SRS closure ceremony, August 2008

171 EPSRC 1993172 http://www.diamond.ac.uk/default.htm

(14%). The facility employs around 350 staff and isrun by a Joint Venture funded by the UKGovernment through the STFC (86%) and theWellcome Trust (14%). Phase I investment of £250million included Diamond’s buildings and the firstseven experimental stations. The construction ofthe building and the synchrotron hall wasundertaken by Costain Ltd173, a British constructionand civil engineering company.

Phase II funding of £120 million for a further 15beamlines was confirmed in October 2004. Thefacility represents the largest UK scientificinvestment for 40 years and can ultimately host upto 40 beamlines. Building on the impact of the SRS,the Diamond Light Source is already producingimpact both at the UK and international level.Examples of current research are projects on HIV,DNA, cancer and Bird Flu, some of which werestarted on the SRS.

14.3 Accelerator Science andTechnology CentreKnowledge of accelerator science and theassociated skilled staff was an extremely importantoutput of the SRS. To utilise and exploit thisexpertise, the UK’s Centre of Expertise forAccelerator Science and Technology (ASTeC) wasset up. Originally based at the Daresbury Laboratorybut now also incorporating staff from theRutherford Appleton Laboratory, ASTeC was formedin 2001 as a centre of excellence in the field ofaccelerator science and technology. The Centrecarries out programmes of research and design insupport of STFC’s large facilities, based on theprevious long experience of its staff in developingthe SRS and later the design of the Diamond LightSource. The remit of ASTeC has also expanded tocover both a wider range of future acceleratorbased facilities (e.g. particle physics and neutronsources) and also on the development of generic

126

Figure 43, Diamond scientist examining a fragment of the Mary Rose, research started on the SRS. Courtesy of Diamond Light Source Ltd.

173 http://www.costain.com/

underpinning technologies. This represents asignificant transfer of both knowledge and skills toother scientific areas. ASTeC also continues tosupport upgrades of existing STFC facilities such as ISIS.

In addition to the development and design of theSRS, other related achievements of ASTeC and itsstaff include:

• The concept and detailed design of Diamond,the UK’s 3rd Generation SR facility, andsubsequent technical assistance throughoutthe construction process.

• Design, construction and commissioning ofALICE, an energy recovery demonstrator and aunique accelerator and photon science testbed for the UK.

• Design and construction of EMMA, the world’sfirst non-scaling fixed-field alternating-gradient(FFAG) accelerator to be added to ALICE (seenext section for more info on EMMA andALICE).

• A major role in the UK collaborationsundertaking R&D on Linear Colliders andNeutrino Factory schemes.

Hence the staff at ASTeC have expertise in all typesof accelerator and participate both in design studiesand construction projects. As a centre of excellence,ASTeC offers high quality advice and services tostakeholders on development and application ofadvanced accelerator systems. The significance ofthe upsurge in interest in accelerator technology issubstantial –

14.4 ALICEThe SRS also facilitated subsequent acceleratorbased experiments, including the Accelerators and Lasers in Combined Experiments (ALICE)prototype system. The ALICE project, an energyrecovery test facility at the Daresbury Laboratory, is the first particle accelerator of its kind in Europe.

The facility consists of a laser driven photoinjector,two super-conducting linear accelerator modulesand a mid-infrared free electron laser (FEL). This isthe only free electron laser in the UK.

Some of the applications for ALICE technologyinclude cancer treatment, the development of high-efficiency solar cells and nano-fabrication. ALICEhas attracted funding totalling around £20 millionfrom the STFC, North West Science Fund, EPSRC andBBSRC.

ALICE applications - advancing cancer treatmentThe British Accelerator Science and RadiationOncology Consortium175 (BASROC) is an umbrellagroup of academic, medical and industry specialistsin accelerator and medical technology with the aimof promoting the use of accelerators in science,industry and medicine. BASROC has been awardedits first grant from the RCUK Basic TechnologyResearch Programme for the project calledCONFORM176 (COnstruction of a Nonscaling FFag forOncology, Research, and Medicine).

The project is based on fixed-field alternatinggradient (FFAG) accelerator technology and is led bythe University of Manchester and the CockcroftInstitute with other university and institutepartners. The following 3 parts to the project arefunded –

• EMMA - The Electron Model of ManyApplications. This is the design andconstruction of a 20 MeV electron accelerator.EMMA is an entirely experimental machineused to learn how to design non-scaling (NS)FFAGs for a variety of applications. It issituated at the Daresbury Laboratory usingALICE as the electron injector. Magnets for

127

174 Prof Mike Poole, Former Director of ASTeC, 2008175 www.basroc.org.uk/176 www.conform.ac.uk/

“Until less than five years ago, the onlyaccelerator expertise in the UK was atDaresbury and RAL. That expertise is nowspreading around with a renaissance in theHigher Education Institutes. In 2001, there wasjust one PhD thesis on the subject ofaccelerator science: now there are more than50 in progress.174”

EMMA were produced by TESLA, continuingthe fruitful relationship with the UK companyas detailed in chapter 12.

• PAMELA - The Particle Accelerator for MEdicaLApplications.This is a design study for aprototype proton NS-FFAG to demonstratebiological experiments for usage in hadrontherapy. The intention is to build a completefacility for the treatment of patients usinghadron beams. It is proposed to constructPAMELA at the Churchill Hospital in Oxford forthe Department of Radiation Oncology andBiology and strengthen the case for hadrontherapy in UK.

• Applications – the final phase of the projectwill focus on exploitation of FFAG technology

in a wider context than just medicalapplications. There is already major interest inhigh power capabilities of relevance toaccelerator driven sub-critical reactors and thetransmutation of nuclear waste.

14.4 The impact of the SRS on accelerator science and technology in the UKThe impact of the SRS on accelerator science andtechnology can be shown schematically in thefigure 45. It can be seen that the SRS has beenpivotal in supporting the development ofaccelerator science in a remarkably wide range ofapplications.

128

Figure 44, the ALICE & EMMA facilities

14.5 Impact summary

129

177 DAPS is the Daresbury Advance Photon Source, a design study for a high brilliance soft X-ray. 4GLS (the 4th Generation Light Source) is a precursorstudy to the New Light Source and the Neutrino Factory is a proposed particle accelerator complex that will produce the most intense and focusedbeams of neutrinos ever achieved

Figure 45, the SRS and its influence on Accelerator Science177

Another significant impact of the SRS has beenthe establishment of other large and mediumscale facilities and centres of excellence whichbuild on the skills, expertise and technologydeveloped over the SRS lifetime.

These facilities will themselves in turn providesignificant economic impact to the UK.Substantial investment has already been madein these facilities, a percentage of which hascome from the private sector. In addition,these facilities will –

• Provide fertile training grounds for thedevelopment of skills.

• Be significant employers.

• Their research will provide a huge benefitto our everyday lives.

• Generate financial impact through spendon equipment and wages.

• Provide opportunities forcommercialisation and the ability forindustry to both utilise the facilities andprovide equipment for these facilities.

NINA andNSF

4GLS

ERLP

ALICE

NLS

UK industrialand medical

uses

NS-FFAG

EMMA

PAMELA

FFAG

DAPS

Helios DIAMOND

Neutrinofactory

ASTeC UK in highenergy physicsaccelerators,linear collider

LHeC etc.

CockroftInstitute

Universityacceleratorexpertise

SRS

130

Chapter 15Shaping the future of science and innovation

132

15.1 Introduction

The development and support of majorresearch facilities, such as those at theDaresbury Laboratory, requires substantialtechnical infrastructure, including a criticalmass of highly skilled engineers, techniciansand instrumentation developers. Otherfactors such as the site neutrality and eventhe stability of the bedrock (which isessential for some high technology facilities),were all key factors in attracting otherfacilities and businesses to the DaresburyLaboratory site over the years. Appendix 17describes the facilities and businesses thatlocated onto the Daresbury Laboratory siteand their connection to the SRS.

Building on the success of the SRS, it wasrecognised by many groups and organisations thatthe Daresbury Laboratory had a continuing role toplay for science and technology, not just in theNorth West, but nationally and internationally aswell.

In 2006, the Government formally announced thecreation of the Daresbury Science and InnovationCampus (DSIC)178 and its sister campus, the HarwellScience and Innovation Campus (HSIC) inOxfordshire. One of the principal drivers for theformation of campuses was the recognition of theconsiderable untapped potential that existed forSTFC laboratories housing large-scale facilities andemploying a critical mass of expertise to engagemuch further with industry.

The main reason for the creation of the campuseswas to –

15.2 Daresbury Science andInnovation CampusThe Daresbury Science and Innovation Campus is aninternationally recognised location for high-techbusinesses and leading-edge science. It represents afundamentally new approach to driving UKcompetitiveness in global science and innovation.

The Campus provides a unique environment forinnovation and business growth with knowledgesharing, collaboration and networking, and offersmajor opportunities to a wide range of sectorsincluding: biomedical, materials chemistry,advanced engineering and manufacturing. Inaddition, the STFC manages a number of leadingedge facilities through the Daresbury Laboratory,which are of key importance across these sectors.

Daresbury SIC was formed by the NorthwestRegional Development Agency (NWDA), the Scienceand Technology Facilities Council (STFC), HaltonBorough Council and the research intensiveuniversities of Lancaster, Liverpool and Manchester.To date there has been a significant investment inthe Campus and two flagship buildings have beenestablished - the Daresbury Innovation Centre andthe Cockcroft Institute.

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“...generate the critical mass to achieve a stepchange in knowledge transfer from largefacilities, maximising opportunities for businessengagement and commercialising the fruits ofresearch.179”

178 http://www.daresburyinnovation.co.uk/179 http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/budget/budget_06/assoc_docs/bud_bud06_adscience.cfm

One of the Campus’ primary objectives is toestablish strong, co-operative links with industry ona national and international basis. Daresbury SIC isalready playing a significant part in engaging withindustry and the high-tech SME sector in the NorthWest by providing the ideal environment forcollaboration and cross-fertilisation of ideas.

Future development on the Campus will focus onthe three major scientific and technologicalelements, namely Daresbury Laboratory, theTechnology Gateway Centres (including theCockcroft Institute) and the Daresbury InnovationCentre (and successive units concentrating onbusiness incubation and expansion). In addition, theCampus itself will expand as an exciting public-private partnership vehicle for science andinnovation.

15.3 Business at the heart of scienceThe Campus’ flagship accommodation facility forhigh-tech businesses is the Daresbury InnovationCentre. The Daresbury Innovation Centre is home to100 high-tech businesses, ranging from small start-ups to strategic units of large multi-nationalcorporations. Although the Daresbury InnovationCentre (DIC) acts primarily as an incubation centrefor leading-edge, hi-tech SMEs, it also providesaccommodation for small teams allied to largerbusinesses, including personnel for global, blue chiporganisations such as IBM and SGI.

The vision of the enterprise is that tenants in thecentre are focused around science and technologyand their work should have identifiable synergieswith programmes at the Daresbury Laboratory.

The Innovation Centre provides –

• A recognised research & development focusedenvironment with an STFC account managerand links to a wide network of research-intensive universities.

• Opportunities for technological andcommercial collaboration, and fast access tocommercial and academic contacts through ahigh-tech focused ecosystem.

• Tailored business support and connections tomajor funding streams.

An annual survey carried out in 2009 of the DICCompanies reveals that –

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In 2008-2009 -

• Average growth rate in turnover of thesecompanies has been 67%.

• There has also been very significantgrowth in investment at 55%.

• Companies delivered £14.9M in sales, andsecured £20.5M in investment.

• The number of “Supernetworker”Companies who have collaborations withother DIC companies, STFC and the NorthWest Universities has increased from 12to 17. It should be noted that this specificgrouping of companies realise asignificantly higher sales growth thanaverage (106% in 2008).

• 48% of Campus companies have madesignificant use of the facilities, servicesand expertise at Daresbury Laboratory.

• The companies developed 137 newproducts, 32 already in the market place.

• 17 companies filed new patents.

• 55% of the companies are now usingBusiness Link services, and 43% are usingUKTI services, as a direct result of thepurposeful involvement of theseorganisations with the DIC activities.

• 64 new high-level FTE jobs were createdin 2008 and 97 since the companiesmoved to the campus.

• The DIC “Breakfast Networking” Events,held monthly, continue to be extremelysuccessful. Typical meetings attract in theregion of 120-150 attendees, not onlyfrom DSIC and the campus partners, butalso much further afield.

Many Campus companies are expanding theirbusinesses, recruiting more staff and looking toincrease the size of their operations on Campus. TheDaresbury Innovation Centre has proved to be asuccessful venture and many of the companies havestated unequivocally that they based themselves onthe Campus to be located adjacent to DaresburyLaboratory so as to gain access to its facilities, skillsand knowledge base.

15.4 Big science supportingsmall businessThe support labs of the SRS, housing more than £3Mof state-of-the-art scientific equipment, are nowavailable at the Daresbury Laboratory for use bysmall high-tech start-up companies and academicresearchers. The STFC Innovations TechnologyAccess Centre (ITAC) offers flexible and affordableaccess to a wide range of cutting-edge scientificequipment in 16 fully-equipped biological, imaging,materials and physical science laboratories. Thisprovides businesses and researchers with the idealenvironment to carry out high-tech research anddevelopment work.

Access to high specification laboratory space at lowcost and low commitment can be difficult to obtain,especially at the proof of concept stage, thesefacilities provide the ideal environment for bothstart-ups and the R&D teams of established

companies. Businesses located in the Centre canmake full use of the wide range of facilitiesincluding leasing their own exclusive-use, ‘lock andleave’ laboratories. Also provided are a number ofmulti-user laboratories available on an hourly basis(“hot labbing”). Analytical user facilities include asurface science and imaging laboratory whichcontains a suite of electron microscopes and opticalmicroscopes. There is also an instrumentationlaboratory which includes a range of spectrometers,calorimeters, chromatography facilities and twodesignated X-ray diffractometers.

Two companies on Campus already benefiting fromthe ITAC facility are Byotrol180 and BioEden181.Manchester-based Byotrol is the first long-termtenant at the Centre following the recent relocationof their principle microbiology R&D operations tothe North West. Byotrol has developed a patented,next generation hygiene technology, described ashaving the characteristics of the ideal biocide.Byotrol is using the Centre to develop specificversions of the technology for the healthcare, foodproduction, animal welfare and consumer markets.Bioeden, based in the Daresbury Innovation Centre,is an international business with an innovativeprocess for collecting stem cells from children’s milkteeth, and is using the space within the ITAC facilityfor storage of their backup cell bank.

A presence in the Centre puts companies at theheart of the rapidly growing Daresbury SIC network,which, in addition to providing specialist supportfrom STFC’s own highly skilled scientists, enablescompanies to tap into the knowledge base of theleading North West academic institutions.

15.5 Cockcroft InstituteThe Cockcroft Institute182 was created in 2006 andis an international centre for accelerator scienceand technology in the UK. It is a joint venturebetween the Universities of Lancaster, Liverpool andManchester, the STFC’s ASTeC and the NWDA. TheInstitute has satellite centres in each of theparticipating universities.

The Institute provides an academic focus linked toexisting educational infrastructure and STFC’s

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180 http://www.byotrol.co.uk/home181 http://www.bioeden.co.uk182 http://www.cockcroft.ac.uk/

Figure 46, the Daresbury Innovation Centre

scientific and technological facilities. This enablesUK scientists and engineers to take a major role ininnovating future tools for scientific discoveries andin the conception, design, construction and use ofthe world’s leading research accelerators. TheCockcroft Institute model is a template for futureresearch institutes at both Campuses.

15.6 Future development ofDaresbury SIC - TechnologyGateway CentresIn 2007 the STFC announced a series of researchinstitutes at both of the STFC’s Campuses based onfive capability areas designed to strengthen thetechnology impact of their activities. The maindrivers for these Technology Gateway Centres183 areto further exploit STFC’s technology base, improveconnections with universities and industry and toincrease the impact of the Campuses and STFC’sfacilities as locations for research and collaboration.

The capabilities being developed are:

• Computational Science and Engineering.

• Detectors.

• Space Technology.

• Imaging.

DSIC relevant centres are described in the nextsections.

15.7 Hartree CentreIn order to make best use of the cutting edgescience and discovery emerging from the early daysof the SRS, a sound theoretical basis was requiredto substantiate the experimental results. Thesedevelopments were taken up world-wide and led tothe establishment of a large computational sciencedepartment at Daresbury. In recognition of theseskills and capabilities, the Hartree Centre will be anew kind of computational sciences institute for theUK, bringing together academic, government andindustrial communities, focusing on multi-disciplinary, multi-scale, efficient and effectivesimulation. Its location on the campus will provide astep-change in modelling capabilities for strategicthemes in energy, life sciences, the environment andmaterials. It is anticipated it will comprise a 1000m2

computer room, 150 - 200 staff, training rooms andaccess grid infrastructure.

15.8 Detector Systems CentreSimilarly, the cutting edge science and discoveryemerging from the SRS demanded newinstrumentation, notably high resolution and highcount rate detector systems. This led to theformation of a world-renowned detector systemsunit at Daresbury Laboratory. The new DetectorSystems Centre seeks to establish a dynamic, openinnovation, technology centre with a critical massof expertise from STFC, academia and industry todeliver training and catalyse new advanced productdevelopment in the UK. Its core objective is tomaximise the impact of STFC's research programmein detector technology. The Detector SystemsCentre builds on STFC's world class reputation formicroelectronics training and the development anddelivery of specialised, high performance detectorsystems. The Centre will seek to maximise theimpact of emerging sensor technologies on a widerange of economically important application areas.These include: energy, lifelong health and wellbeingresearch, climate research, environment andsecurity.

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183 www.scitech.ac.uk/ResFac/Gateway/GatewayCentres.aspx

Figure 47, Lord Sainsbury with Cockcroft Institute staff at ademonstration of a prototype RF cavity at the opening of theInstitute

15.9 Future plans Plans are being progressed to develop the Campus,including discussions with blue-chip companiesabout the potential to locate at DSIC. A JointVenture with a private sector partner is also beingpursued, following a similar model to the HarwellScience and Innovation Campus184.

In parallel with these developments, a frameworkfor the Campus has been developed whichvisualises an expansion of the Campus to reach outto and include Daresbury Park (the business park tothe south of Daresbury Laboratory). In total,approximately 600 acres may be encompassed inthe campus over the next 30 years and around 2000people could be employed by 2040.

15.10 Impact summary

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184 www.stfc.ac.uk/PMC/PRel/STFC/JVHarwell.aspx

The high quality specialist knowledgedeveloped at Daresbury Laboratory as a resultof the SRS has been a key contributor to theformation of the Campus. DSIC, through theDIC, has delivered a dynamic, successful, high-tech business incubator which is deliveringeconomic impact in collaboration with STFCand HEIs.

As is evident in this chapter, one majoreconomic impact of the Campus has been thelocation and support of the ~100 companieswhich reside in the Daresbury InnovationCentre. These companies have generatedsignificant sales, attained investment andincreased turnover since locating on theCampus. A very significant percentage of thecompanies have benefited from interactionwith staff from the Daresbury Laboratory anda significant amount of collaborative work hastaken place between the companies in the DICand with STFC and university staff. The DICforms the kernel for the future growth of thecampus, evidenced by the commencement of athird building adjacent to the CockroftInstitute.

The DIC forms the kernel for the future growthof the campus, evidenced by a third buildingbeing built adjacent to the Cockcroft Institutefor industrial grow on space. The plans toestablish the new building and to develop theTechnology Gateway Centres are ensuring thatthese activities continue to grow and makeimpact in the future, building on the legacy ofthe SRS.

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Chapter 16Conclusions

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Introduction

This report represents the first completelifetime study of a large scale facility in theworld and demonstrates the significantimpacts that arise from such a facility.Demonstration of this impact is valuableimpact evidence for the STFC and itsstakeholders and provides a fitting legacy forthe recently closed facility.

This report has provided a framework andmethodology through which the impact assessmentof the STFC’s past and future investments can becarried out. It has also developed the STFC’s inhouse expertise in the field of economic impactstudies.

The project has also highlighted many of themethodological issues which are faced when tryingto measure the economic impact of research andtechnology.

Due to lack of emphasis on the economic impact ofresearch in the past, much of the relevant data fromthe SRS was not captured. This made researchingthe full impact of the SRS difficult; indeed theevidence presented in this report does not representthe full impact of the facility.

Another important conclusion that can be madefrom this report is that although it has provided aframework within which to estimate the futureimpact of projects, the full impact of future projectscan never be predicted in this manner. This is due to

the serendipitous nature of research. This effect ishighlighted in this report by the emergence of thetechnique of protein crystallography which was notincluded in the original case for the facility.

Summary of impactsAs has been highlighted in this report, the economicand social impact of the SRS has been vast andcontinues to impact years after the closure of thefacility. Whilst it has not been possible to put atotal figure on this impact, the report highlights thegreat many stakeholders who have benefited fromthe facility. The SRS has not only impacted thescience and industrial base of the UK but has hadimpact on a world wide scale. It has also played asignificant role in the regional economy of theNorth West. The key areas in which the SRS hasimpacted are highlighted below –

The SRS has provided impact on a global scale

• The SRS was the world’s first 2nd generationmulti user X-ray synchrotron radiation facilityand as such provided an exemplar for SRfacilities. This pioneered the way for thedevelopment of 70 similar machines aroundthe world with SRS staff having formalcollaborations with 40% of these facilities andinformal collaborations with many more. Stafffrom the SRS played a key role in training,giving advice to staff and the transfer of skillsand technology. In addition, the SRS secured

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Conclusions

inward investment from other Europeancountries to guarantee their usage of the SRS,which on many occasions meant the transferof skills to their particular countries.

• The SRS has had a significant impact to itsinternational partners in the worldwidescientific community through scientificcollaborations. Staff from the SRS havecollaborated with partners which haveincluded universities, museums, hospitals,industry and research institutes in the UK,Europe and further a field (for example theUSA, Japan and Russia), in projects to studysubjects such as biological systems and variousdiseases. This means that the SRS has helpedthe UK play a major role in the global sciencebase and has enhanced the UK’s internationalreputation.

R&D from the SRS impacts people’s daily lives

• Helping the ageing population with researchinto Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease.

• Improving the health of the nation throughresearch into Motor Neurone Disease, eyedisease and the production of new medicines.

• Improving everyday products –

� MP3 players.

� Chocolate.

� Electronics.

� Clothing.

� Detergents.

� Aircraft.

• Helping to solve global challenges - HIV/AIDS,global warming, water pollution in the 3rdworld, Foot & Mouth Disease, Bird Flu &Malaria.

• Protecting the world’s history.

The scientific and technicallegacy of the SRS continues tobe felt

• The SRS has brought scientific prestige to theUK through the world leading science that hasbeen done on the facility, for example itsworld leading structural biology programmeand helping to win Nobel prizes.

• The SRS has helped to sustain and improve theUK’s science base and research infrastructureand has played a key role as a central researchfacility, from which the UK’s science base hasbenefited from.

• In addition to the world class R&D that hasresulted from the SRS, the facility has createdthe knowledge and expertise that has allowedthe next generation of accelerator facilities tobe built in the UK. The establishment of theSRS, the world’s first 2nd generation lightsource, paved the way for the UK’s 3rdgeneration light source (Diamond Light Source)in addition to a potential 4th generation lightsource and other facilities such as ALICE. Inaddition, accelerator science capability wasgained through the experience of developingthe SRS. This was reflected in the establishmentof the Accelerator Science and TechnologyCentre which is now a partner in the CockcroftInstitute together with the key North Westuniversities. The Institute’s remit is to research,design and develop particle accelerators.

The SRS has delivered highlyskilled people to the labourmarket

• Staff skills – A critical mass of highly skilledengineers, technicians and instrumentationdevelopers in addition to users of the facilitywas built up over the lifetime of the SRS withstaff numbers peaking at 325 in 1998/99. Theskills required to design, run and support theresearch at the SRS was vast, requiring worldclass expertise in areas such as engineering,

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instrumentation, and many technologiesincluding; detector, power supply, radiofrequency, accelerator, cryogenic, vacuum &critical cleaning and electronics. As one expertquoted – “Without the SRS the UK would havelost its electron storage ring expertise”.

• Staff transfer – This has allowed SRS staff andsupport staff to transfer their expertise andknowledge to industry, universitiessynchrotrons and particle physics experiments.Over 100 staff from the SRS have transferredto academia, industry or other synchrotronsaround the world, transferring the knowledgeand skills learnt at the SRS to these otherbodies.

• Apprentices – Since the inception of the SRS,108 apprentices completed their training atthe Daresbury Laboratory. The great majorityof these apprentices worked directly on theSRS, with a smaller number on ancillaryfacilities.

• Developing skills of users – The SRS alsodeveloped the skills of its scientific andindustrial users; over 11,000 individual usershave used the SRS during its lifetime from over25 countries. In addition it also played a bigpart in the studies of many students, 4,000 ofwhich used the SRS as part of their degrees ordoctorates and 2,000 post-doctoral researchersused the SRS for some aspect of their research.The supply of skilled graduates and researcherswho are trained at large facilities such as theSRS and then transfer to industry or otherpublic sector bodies is a key impact fromresearch, whilst additionally retaining andattracting scientists to the area.

The SRS inspired young peopleto take up science & increasedthe public’s awareness ofscience

• The SRS was the “jewel in the crown” of theDaresbury Laboratory’s Public Understandingof Science programme. In order to inspire the

next generation of scientists and engineers,the Laboratory hosts 3000 members of thepublic and 3000 school pupils per year to hearabout the latest developments in science andtechnology and take part in programmes andactivities.

• For many years, the Daresbury Laboratory hasinvited students for work experience. Someparticipated during their school years, whilstothers worked at DL as part of theirundergraduate or post-graduate studies. Manyworked with scientists, often on the SRS or itssupport functions; others worked in functionssuch as IT or administration. A total of 454students underwent work experience at theLaboratory.

The SRS has improved theperformance of UK industry

• Over its lifetime the SRS had partnerships with200 proprietary stakeholders includinggovernment departments, industry, hospitals,museums, universities and other SR sources.The industry sectors which benefited from theusage of the facility included pharmaceuticals,biotechnology, healthcare, oil & petroleum,aerospace & defence, energy and automotive.Industrial users of the facility included SMEsand large corporations from both the UK andabroad. 11 out of the top 25 companies in theUK R&D Scoreboard (2008) benefited from theSRS including ICI, BP, Unilever, Shell, GSK,AstraZeneca and Pfizer.

• Pharmaceutical, biotechnology and healthcarecustomers were the biggest users of the SRSand particularly benefited from the strengthsof SRS staff in the area of structural biology.One of the major impacts of the facility hasbeen the emergence of techniques to facilitatestructural biology, in particular ProteinCrystallography using synchrotron radiation.This technique was pioneered at the SRS andthe UK is world class in this area. This strengthhas supported the skills base and R&Dcompetitiveness of the UK’s pharmaceuticaland biotechnology industries. This is reflected

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in the £50M investment made by theWellcome Trust into the UK’s replacement forthe SRS, the Diamond Light Source, to carry on the protein crystallography work started atthe SRS. The following quote highlights thisimpact –

It should be noted that the technique ofProtein Crystallography was not in the originalscience case for the facility. This highlights thesomewhat serendipitous nature of basicscience and that certain high impactdevelopments cannot always be predicted.

• There was a significant amount of knowledgeexchange between the SRS staff and industryduring the construction and development ofthe facility. These projects involved thetransfer of unique skills and technology toindustry on several projects and thetechnological development of some key SRScomponents by UK industry. The challengingnature of these projects and their highspecifications meant the industrial partner’scapabilities were improved, allowing them towin subsequent contracts and developproducts for export. The study identifiedcontracts worth nearly £300M which werewon by UK industry as a direct result ofworking with the SRS.

• The SRS also acted as a purchaser of goods andservices in the local area and wider UK.Throughout its lifetime, the SRS has tradedwith over 300 local businesses, investing onsmall items such as consumables, small itemsof equipment and maintenance. This purchase

of goods or services from suppliers leads to afurther chain reaction of purchases from theirsupply chain and also has indirect effects onemployment, spend and taxation.

The SRS created newcompanies in the UKSkills, technology and knowledge gained on the SRShas helped in the creation of 9 new companies andone commercial service provider. These newcompanies are in a range of areas which includescientific instrumentation, detectors for academicand commercial applications, cholesterolmonitoring, software, cryogenics, mechanicalprecision instrumentation and drug discovery.

The SRS stimulated theeconomy in the North West ofEngland

• There was a direct financial impact to theNorth West through financial investment inthe facility. This impacted on UK industry withthe SRS working with over 300 businesseslocal to the facility, creating indirect effectsdue to impact on the supply chain of thesebusinesses. This financial impact has alsocreated jobs – staff numbers peaked at 325also creating induced economic impacts viaspend of wages and creation of new jobs.

• The SRS budget was £594M overits lifetime,with £534 spent in the local area over its 33year lifetime (including construction, operationand decommissioning). 37% was spent onwages and 34% spent on recurrent items withlocal businesses. The indirect and inducedfinancial economic impact resulting from theSRS budget was £398M, with impacts mostlyoccurring in the area local to the SRS. Thisrepresents the financial ripple effect of the SRSbudget spend over its lifetime.

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185 BBSRC Review of UK Structural Biology, Polaris House (1996).

“The UK owes its leading position inStructural Biology to SRS Daresbury. Thepharmaceutical industry also places highvalue on access to SRS Daresbury.185”

• Therefore the total financial economic impactof the SRS was approximately £992M.

The SRS developed aknowledge base and skills tofacilitate the realisation of theDaresbury Science andInnovation Campus

• The Daresbury Science and Innovation Campuswas created to exploit the critical mass ofexpertise, facilities and industrial links that hadbeen created by the SRS and the widerDaresbury Laboratory. In addition to thescientific facilities already on the site, theCampus has led to the establishment of aworld class centre for accelerator science, theCockcroft Institute and will further benefitfrom two other centres based oncomputational science and detectors systemsin the near future.

• 100 high tech businesses from a wide range ofcommercial backgrounds are now located inthe Daresbury Innovation Centre. Tenantscome from sectors including biomedical,energy, environmental, advanced engineeringand instrumentation industries.

• In 2008/2009 companies in the InnovationCentre delivered £14.9M in sales, and secured£20.5M in investment and the average growthrate in turnover of these companies was 67%.48% of Campus companies have madesignificant use of the facilities, services andexpertise at Daresbury Laboratory. 97 new jobshave been created in these tenant companiessince they located onto the Campus with manycompanies expanding their businesses,recruiting more staff and looking to increasethe size of their operations on Campus.

• The success of the companies on the Campushas generated a requirement for grow-onspace for DIC tenants and new businesses.

• In 2009 there were approximately 800 peopleworking on the Campus, which include staff inthe Cockcroft Institute, tenant companies inthe Daresbury Innovation Centre, DaresburyLaboratory staff and students, contractors andvisiting scientists. This figure is expected toreach 2000 employees by 2040.

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Chapter 17Methodological issues

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17.1 IntroductionThis section highlights some of the methodologicalissues that have been raised as a result of thisproject.

17.2 Methodological issuesResearch surrounding the limitations of economicimpact measurement was highlighted in chapter 3.Several methodological difficulties wereencountered when trying to convert the outputdata from the SRS into impact data, confirming theissues highlighted in chapter 3. These include –

• Timescales – in some instances, research andtechnological output from the SRS has not yetfully impacted, highlighting that research maytake decades to impact. Hence, choosing theappropriate time to asses impact after theproject is finished is an important issue.

• Attribution – there are always several inputs tothe research process meaning that it can bedifficult to attribute impact to any one source.Inputs to the SRS included funding, supportand expertise from several sources includingnational and international universities,research councils, RDAs and industry. It hasbeen difficult to untangle how much impactthe SRS has been directly responsible for, forexample, the research was generally a smallpart of an overall research programme andwas funded in collaboration with otherResearch Councils.

In addition, as projects progress through timethey are also often in collaboration with otherpartners and funded through other routes.

When impact is finally realised, deconstructionof the STFC’s role and specific impact may be acomplex issue.

The project also highlighted a particular issueregarding how to track the commercialimpacts of large scale facility users such asspin-outs or licenses funded by other researchcouncils or universities. There is no doubt thatthe facility facilitates commercial activity butthe amount of credit that the STFC should takefor this is not clear.

• Confidentiality – any paid commercial accessto facilities is subject to confidentialityagreements. Companies are generally reticentto make details of research or turnoveravailable in the public domain. Hence theimpact in this area is clearly an underestimate.

• Industry contacts – in addition toconfidentiality issues, it was difficult to findthe correct contacts, especially in largecompanies. Several companies had also wentinto administration. There were also severalinstances where the staff who had beeninvolved in the original research had left thecountry and could not be contacted.

• Electronic records – the SRS was built in thelate 1970’s before the advent of the PC,making it difficult or impossible to accesssome data. For example, there was no recordof which companies were involved in theconstruction of the SRS. In these instances,people’s memories were the only resource.

• Quantification of impact – The quantitativeand qualitative nature of the data contained inthis report highlights that the quantification ofimpact is not possible in all cases.

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Appendices

152

STFC delivers economic impact throughout thewhole range of its diverse programme and since2006 has required Knowledge Transfer/Exchangeplans to be included with applications for researchfunding. STFC plays a dual role as a funding agencysupporting research in universities and majorinternational centres as well as operating the twonational Science and Innovation Campuses (SIC) atDaresbury and Harwell, the research facilities basedat the two sites and the UK Astronomy TechnologyCentre at Edinburgh.

• Daresbury Innovation Centre (DIC) currentlyhosts 71 companies (compared with 55 in2006/07) co-located alongside STFC’slaboratory, with over new 50 jobs created byDIC companies since locating there.

• 50% of companies in the DIC havecollaborated with each other, with 23 jointdevelopments involving DIC companies withSTFC and/or North West universities.

• 78% of DIC companies have made significantuse of DL facilities, services and expertise.

• Over 4500 people work on the Harwell SIC insome 120 organisations (80 in 2006/07).

• STFC has signed the Joint Venture partnershipat HSIC to take forward the delivery of theCampus initiatives.

Through our research programmes, facilities andwholly-owned exploitation vehicle CLIK, STFC hascreated spin outs (full list in Annex 2) and enabledcompanies to develop new capabilities which theycan exploit commercially in wider markets;

• L3T is a spin-out from Daresbury Laboratory setup to commercialise a brand new method ofCholesterol monitoring using a highly accuratefluorescent assay. L3T have patented a novel wayof measuring all of the cholesterol sub-fractionswith unprecedented accuracy;

• e2v won £250m of sales after development ofan antimultipactor coating in collaborationwith the SRS at Daresbury.

• Constellation Technologies, a newly formedspinout from CLIK, has been awarded the ‘bestimprover’ award and is taking gLitetechnologies from CERN to offer commercialaccess to Cloud (the new internet) computing.

• Understanding the foot and mouth diseasevirus (FMDV) structure, which led to thedevelopment of vaccines, would not havebeen possible without the Daresbury SRSfacilities during the 1980s. FMDV is a majorkiller of livestock, and the 2001 outbreak hadestimated direct costs totalling £8.4b186.

Providing highly skilled peopleThrough its facilities STFC plays a key role ineducation, training and skills provision at all levelsfrom schools and apprentices to PhD andfellowships, both within its programmes andthrough the provision of courses.

• 999 people engaged with all level of trainingcourses (2006/07).

• There was an increase of 73% for qualifiedscientists using facilities in 2006/07 comparedto 2005/06.

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STFC economic impact baseline (2007/2008)

186 http://archive.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/fmd/fmd_report/report/index.htm (see economic impact of FMDV, section14).

• 150 individuals from 7 SMEs have receivedNVQ level 3-5 training in advancedinstrumentation and engineering at theHarwell SIC.

• 110 work experience placements at RAL andDaresbury in 2006/07.

Science and Technology Gateway Centres. TheScience and Innovation Campuses at Daresbury andHarwell will act as important national focal pointsfor science-based collaboration and knowledgeexchange with academic and industrial researchers.The first three proposed Centres are: DetectorSystems Centre, Hartree Centre, and ImagingSolutions Centre.

STFC is the funding agency for PhD studentships ata national level for key areas of physics and willmaintain this to ensure a strong flow of trainedresearchers both to maintain the health of theresearch discipline and to feed out into the widereconomy, where evidence shows that students arehighly desirable in high technology, computing andfinancial industries (source: HESA data).

• Over 45% of PhD students enter universityresearch on completion.

• 16% enter public sector/government (2003).

• There has been a steady increase in enteringprivate sector by over the last ten years (28%in 2003).

STFC has a strong record of scientific publication bythe scientists it supports and the researchers whouse its facilities which can be used as an indicatoron research output efficiency.

• On average there were 930 multidisciplinarypublications from the large facilities for 2005-2008.

• Increase in publications from the astronomycommunity from 1893 in 2006/07 to 1902 in2007/08.

STFC programme is contributing to the productionof highly trained people and the knowledge base onwhich long term economic development willdepend.

• STFC directly funds over 200 PhD students peryear.

• STFC provides training for over 900 PhDstudents from a range of disciplines.

• 39 joint appointments with HEIs (21 in2006/07).

• 63 visiting fellows (from and to) large facilities(56 in 2006/07).

Improving UK businesscompetitivenessImproved products and processes

Commercial use of the STFC facilities andtechnology programmes has grown:

• Over 2007/08 CLIK brought in commercialwork with a total value of £347k, including£143k for access to the synchrotron.

• 14 collaborative projects with industry with avalue of £15.6m (75 with a value of £11.9m in2006/07).

• 170 facility beam days used by commercialpartners in 2007/08 (across all the facilities)compared to 82 in 2006/07. The breakdown ofusage was 37 individual companies, drawnfrom 8 industry sectors.

There are clear examples of new or enhancedproducts resulting from STFCs Technology and Skillsbase.

• CLIK records on average 20 ideas/technologyprospects per year (2005-2008).

• 14 Proof of concepts are funded per year(average 2005-2008).

• There are growing numbers of partnershipsbetween university researchers (39 jointappointments with HEIs) and our laboratorybased staff (105 collaborative projects).

Creating opportunities for UK business

STFC has played an active role in ensuring that UKcompanies are able to tender for work at major

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research centres. Through an initiative with UKTIand sponsorship of the SIKTN it is promoting acoherent national programme to ensure that UKcompanies get the widest knowledge of theopportunities open to them and early intelligenceabout new developments.

• Value of contracts placed with UK companiesfrom ESA: €48.2m (€39.2m in 2006/07).

• Value of contracts placed with UK companiesfrom ESO: €20m (€2.7m in 2006/07).

• Value of contracts placed with UK companiesfrom CERN: CHF 11.4m (CHF 26.5m in2006/07).

CERN/Industry interaction

The UK remains ahead of other member states for the third year running, for commercialopportunities exploited by both industry andinstitutions (Figure 48).

Attracting investment in the UK

Our facilities and Campuses are already attractinginvestment in commercial and outreach activities,and our grant-based programmes have attracted co-sponsorship from other RCs and OGDs who wishto access our knowledge base.

• The NWDA are investing over £50m inDaresbury SIC over (X) years (£8.5m in2006/07), including approx £200k/yearbusiness support fund and a budget of£600k/year to operate the Innovation Centre.

• At Harwell SIC the new Joint Venture (JV)Partner, Goodman International, has broughtinward investment to HSIC by capitalising theJV. The JV (signed August 2008) will increaseoverall site investment and development.

Commercialisation

STFC has a strong track record of spin out formationthrough CLIK, which has incubated a number ofcompanies including L3 technology Ltd, ThruVisionLtd, Microvisk Ltd, Oxsensis Ltd, Petrra Ltd, LiteThruLtd, Quantum Detectors Ltd and, Bi-Au Ltd. It hasalso worked closely with universities andinternational centres to encourage anentrepreneurial approach which has yieldedsuccess.

• On average seven licences created each year(2005-2008).

• Average commercial income (non-sales) fromlicences is £77k per year (2005-2008).

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Figure 48: CERN commercial opportunities exploited per member state.

CERN commercial opportunities exploited per member state

UK

Germ

any

France

Italy

Switz

erlan

d

Nether

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Spain

Swed

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Bulgaria

Denm

ark

Czech

repu

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Norway

Austria

Portu

gal

Finlan

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Polan

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Belgium

Greec

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Hungary

Slova

k Rep

ublic

Improving public serviceResearch that originates from STFC can be used toimprove health and security.

Health

• PETRRA, the novel positron camera, has beenjointly developed by the Rutherford AppletonLaboratory and the Royal Marsden Hospital.The camera has been installed in the scanningsuite at the Royal Marsden Hospital and isideally suited to finding secondary tumours incancer patients who need a whole-body scan.

• MeditrEn Limited is designing systems thatmeasure how many calories a person needs.This can be used to measure people sufferingfrom obesity and malnutrition.

Security

• ThruVision products are used to imageconcealed objects on moving people at adistance without any radiation and withoutrevealing any anatomical detail. ThruVisiondeveloped its proprietary technology byadapting space imaging technology originallydeveloped at the Rutherford AppletonLaboratory (RAL), UK which began in 1985.

• Symetrica, based at Southampton University,as developed a range of hand-held gamma raydetectors to detect terrorist activity. Thedetectors are capable of differentiatingbetween dangerous materials and other,natural, substances.

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STFC Economic Impact Highlights

Economic impact area

Highly skilled people

Attracting and retaining investment in the UK

Activity and measure

2007/08

• Collaboration – qualifiedscientists using UK facilities:2463

• People flow – Large facility staffinvolved with internationalcollaboration and visiting fellows:523

• PhD students directly funded:272

• CASE studentships hosted in STFCdepartments: 31

• Income from internationalcollaboration: £12813k.

• Harwell SIC: 120 companies.

• Daresbury SIC: 71 companies

2006/07

• Collaboration – qualifiedscientists using UK facilities:4139

• People flow – Large facility staffinvolved with internationalcollaboration and visitingfellows: 215

• PhD students directly funded:207

• CASE studentships hosted inSTFC departments: 40

• Income from internationalcollaboration: £5142k

• Harwell SIC: >80# companies

• Daresbury SIC: 55 companies

Table 7, STFC Economic Impact Highlights

157

# Figure based on UKAEA estimate* 2005/06 figure

Economic impact area

Improved products and processes

Commercialisation

Activity and measure

2007/08

• Major user satisfaction measurepresented by academic andprivate sector responses for large UK facilities: 86% (target85%)

• Number and value ofcollaborative projects with HEIs:105 (£40.4m)

• Number and value ofcollaborative projects withindustry: 14 (£15m)

• Percentage of projects reportingsuccessful technology output ortransfer in final report (PIPSS, FoF& Faraday): 60%

• Successful completion of the PRI,PIPSS or Faraday project asdemonstrated through a viableproposal for industrialengagement: 4 out of 8

• 26 companies collaborating onPRI, PIPSS and Faraday covering 7 commercial sectors

• Equity investment in Spin-outCompanies: £9.09m

• New businesses: 11 (2005-2008)

• Licences: 28 (2005-2008)

• Licence revenue: £92k pa

• Proof of concept funding: 52 (2005-2008)

2006/07

• Major user satisfaction measurepresented by academic andprivate sector responses forlarge UK facilities: 88% (target85%)

• Number and value ofcollaborative projects with HEIs:29 (£11.0m)

• Number and value ofcollaborative projects withindustry: 75 (£11.9m)*

• Percentage of projects reportingsuccessful technology output ortransfer in final report (PIPSS,FoF & Faraday): 80%

• Successful completion of thePRI, PIPSS or Faraday project asdemonstrated through a viableproposal for industrialengagement: 19 out of 21

• 19 companies collaborating onPRI, PIPSS and Faraday covering6 commercial sectors

• Equity investment in Spin-outCompanies: £3.77m

• New businesses: 10 (2005-2007)

• Licences: 23 (2005-2007)

• Licence revenue: £56k pa

• Proof of concept funding: 31 (2005-2007)

Table 7 continued, STFC Economic Impact Highlights

158

First generation light sources These are synchrotron-based facilities where the SRusers operate entirely ‘parasitically’. Despite severetechnical problems many ‘ground breaking’experiments were carried out using first-generationsources in Japan (Tokyo), the UK (Daresbury),Germany (Bonn and Hamburg), France (Orsay), Italy(Frascati) and in the USA in Gaithersburg andWisconsin.

Second generation light sourcesSecond-generation sources are storage-ring basedfacilities specifically designed and constructed foruse in diffraction, scattering and spectroscopicexperiments. They are normally based on electronstorage rings, but some positron rings are also used.The world’s first medium energy, user based X-rayfacility, the SRS, offered easy, safe access to thebeam at locations, called ‘stations’ where thephoton beam was matched to the usersrequirements for their experiments. Specialisedsample containment, sample manipulation, datacollection and analysis based on local computerfacilities rapidly grew around each station.

Third generation light sourcesThird generation sources are electron storage ringsbuilt specifically to accommodate insertion devices.These are multipole magnet arrays, called wigglersand undulators, which are designed to generatepartially coherent radiation over selected photonenergy and wavelength ranges. Insertion devicesyield many orders of magnitude enhancement inphoton brilliance above that achievable from dipolebending magnets. The first, and one of the world’smost successful third generation sources, is theESRF constructed in 1994 in Grenoble France. Thereare various geometries for third generationmachines but all are essentially re-circulating‘insertion device’ electron accelerators which canprovide partially coherent radiation across a hugerange from ~10 eV to ~100 KeV, with brightness(also called brilliance) of up to 1019

photons/sec/mm2/mr-2/0.1% photon energybandwidth. Higher energy machines of 5 GeV to > 7GeV yield the greatest brightness and substantiallymore hard X-ray flux at ~>100 KeV, but result in avery large circumference storage ring (of the orderof a kilometre). Consequently, there are significantlyhigher capital and running costs because of the verylarge size of the buildings needed, and the length ofmany beamlines, which can themselves be up to theorder of a kilometre, but typically 60 to 80 metres.

159

Appendix 2

Definitions of light sources

Fourth generation sourcesFourth generation sources are effectively free-electron lasers offering coherent x-radiationradiation with immense peak brightness of up to1034 units needed or more. This exceptionalbrightness is also manifest in the narrow (i.e. shorttime) pulse structure of the emitted X-rays which, inprinciple, might enable holograms and generalstructure studies of proteins and other molecules tobe made in the sub picosecond time domain at anatomic level.

Fourth generation sources, none of which arecurrently in operation, present a considerabletechnical challenge in terms of photon beammanipulation and probably also of sampleirradiation and survival. Linear accelerators feasiblefor such work are to be found in Hamburg Germany(TESLA) and Stanford USA (SLAC). Smaller lowerenergy machines based on Energy Recovery Linacs,have also been proposed e.g. at Daresbury Lab andthese offer the great challenges and opportunitiesfor future growth in the field. An X-ray ERLP withbrightness intermediate between the ‘perfectsynchrotron specification’ and the X-ray lasers classis being investigated e.g. at Cornell in the USA, andwith which the Daresbury Laboratory’s longerphoton wavelengths producing ERLP has obviouslinks.

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SRS research outputThe major output of research is the generation ofknowledge, both codified and tacit. Any researchinformation which is published or can be accessedcan make an impact and is measured throughpublication volume and impact data. The 10 yearScience and Innovation Framework187 documentrecognises that –

The SRS has made a major impact to the field ofresearch, producing over two million hours ofscience in its lifetime. This contribution is reflectedin the great number of scientific publications andcitations of these papers which resulted from thefacility’s usage –

• Since its inception the SRS contributed to thepublication of at least 5404 papers which havebeen entered onto the SRS database188.

• These papers have been cited over 80,000times.

• The most cited SRS publication was on theLight Harvesting Protein189, important fortrapping sunlight by anaerobic bacteria. Thiswork was carried out by Glasgow Universityand Daresbury Laboratory scientists and waspublished in 1995. This paper had amassed1373 citations by August 2008.

• Science from the SRS has resulted in 10 highimpact factor publications per year (Nature,Science & PNAS), with a further 15 per year inother high impact journals such as Cell, PRL,Angewandte Chemie and the Nature specialistjournals.

• Over 1200 protein structures solved using theSRS have been placed in the Protein DataBank.

The number of publications and high impactpublications is given in the table overleaf from 2000to 2006 shows a relatively constant high rate ofpublication.

These figures do not include the accelerator-relatedpublications. Accelerator staff traditionally tend notto publish in journals and instead use theproceedings of the major conferences. For example,the biennial European Particle AcceleratorConference (EPAC), with Daresbury Laboratory staffcontributing 30 papers at EPAC-96 and 29 papers atEPAC-98.

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Appendix 3

SRS research output & usage

187 www.berr.gov.uk/files/file40398.doc188 This is known to be a significant underestimate as all of the publication data has not been collected. This data is known to be totally accurate from

2001 onwards.189 McDermott, G., S. M. Prince, A. A. Freer, A. M. Hawthornthwaite-Lawless, M. Z. Papiz, R. J. Cogdell and N. W. Isaacs. (1995) “Crystal structure of an

integral membrane light-harvesting complex from photosynthetic bacteria”, Nature 374, p517-521

“A key output from research is the volume ofresearch articles published worldwide, aspublication is a significant channel by whichresearch findings are disseminated.”

On average 600 experiments took place on the SRSeach year varying in length from 1 day to 3 weeks.The size of the user community peaked at around

1500 per year from the late 1980s and declined inproportion to the reduction in portfolio ofinstruments as the SRS operations were run down.

SRS usageThe table below illustrates the usage of the SRS between 2000/01 to 2006/07.

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Calendar Year Total (refereed) High Impact Other high impact Publications Publications journals

(Nature, Science & PNAS) (Cell, PRL, Angewandte Chemie& the Nature specialist journals)

2000 357 3 16

2001 442 6 17

2002 427 8 11

2003 484 13 19

2004 490 8 15

2005 545 12 19

2006 434 11 9

Table 8, publications from the SRS from 2000 - 2006

Scheduling No. of No. of No. of days No. of Users No. of UserPeriod Operating Experimental scheduled for per year Visits

Stations Sessions User Experiments

2000/01 39 1113 2754 1195 2091

2001/02 39 926 2183 1020 1762

2002/03 38 936 2242 970 1495

2003/04 35 1251 3466 1350 2293

2004/05 35 999 2827 1341 2179

2005/06 33 1313 3716 1464 2478

2006/07 28 931 2491 1020 1744

Table 9, usage of the SRS from 2000 – 2007

IntroductionIn the early stages of the development of the SRS, itwas recognised that computational science wouldbe a very important contributor to the effectiveexploitation of the facility. This work was carriedout by the STFC’s Computational Science andEngineering Department190 (CSED), whose work hasexpanded well beyond the initial SRS requirementsto become the largest computational science groupin the UK. The CSED currently provides world-classexpertise and support for the UK theoretical andcomputational science communities, in bothacademia and industry. The major output of theCSED is the development and application ofpowerful simulation codes, usually in collaborationwith university research groups, in core areas ofquantum chemistry, molecular simulation, solid-state physics, materials simulation, engineering andenvironmental simulations.

In 1979, before the opening of the SRS, the firstCray supercomputer in the UK was installed at theDaresbury Laboratory, initially for nuclear research,but later for the SRS software programmes. Higherperformance computers were installed over theyears, and in 2002, the most high-poweredcomputer service available to UK academicresearchers (HPCx) was installed at the Laboratoryas part of a consortium with Edinburgh University.

Throughout the life of the SRS, very high levels ofcomputing capability were required to optimise itsoperation, and to collect as much meaningful dataas possible. However, in the early 1980s, much ofthe envisaged hardware and software did not exist.Consequently, the software development work onthe SRS was novel, demanding and emulated inother synchrotrons around the world. The SRSsoftware generated by the team falls into four maincategories as shown schematically as follows:

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Appendix 4

Software development

190 http://www.cse.scitech.ac.uk/

Software applications in the Daresbury SRS

Experimental process

Accelerator andStorage Ring

Data AcquisitionBeamlines Data Analysis andInterpretation

Data StorageCataloguing and

Retrieval

E-ScienceFacilities

DeploymentProgramme

ComputationalScience andEngineering

(CSE)

Generic DataAquisition

System (GDA)

BeamlineControl

Figure 49, SRS Software Applications

There has been a significant programme ofresearch/development on each of these softwareareas over the lifetime of the SRS, each of which isconsidered below.

Beamline control Electronics were used to control the beamlines. Theautomation of beam steering and beam injectionmade the SRS the first computer controlled lightsource in the world.

Generic data acquisition system and relatedtechnologiesBy the mid-90s, data acquisition systems comprisedprimarily of PC-based systems running Windows andLINUX operating systems driving a diverse range ofhardware ranging from PC-based cards throughserial RS232 to VME crate-based systems. Thisvariety was matched by the variety of languagesused e.g. FORTRAN, C and VisualBASIC.

In later years it became apparent that such diversitywas unsustainable due to pressure on funding forboth equipment and support effort. A solution wastherefore required which would reduce the supportoverhead while maintaining the users’ ability toperform a wide range of science. At the same timeit was noted that users were becoming moresophisticated and starting to combine multipletechniques in their experiments. As a result itbecame much more important that data acquisitionsoftware had a consistent look and feel as well aspredictable behaviour.

These requirements coincided with the building ofthe first multi-technique station on the SRS –MPW6.2. This utilised the newly designed RAPID2detector and provided facilities for EXAFS, non-crystalline diffraction and X-ray diffractiontechniques. The station provided an ideal platformto develop new generic software which wouldutilise the latest hardware and softwaretechnologies and form the basis of the Generic DataAcquisition (GDA) software.

The key features of GDA were –

• Processor and operating system independence.

• Modularity – i.e. providing the ability to reusecomponents as required.

• Ease of configuration.

• A scripting interface to allow experimentprototyping.

• Ability to incorporate and interact with 3rdparty hardware and software – vital whenusers brought their own experiments whichoften used commercial software for dataacquisition and analysis.

This philosophy was particularly powerful in thework carried out by SRS scientists to developmethods for the automation of the proteincrystallography beamlines. Funded primarilythrough Biotechnology and Biological SciencesResearch Council grants and the European Union, e-HTPX was developed as an electronic resource forhigh throughput protein crystallography (PX). Thegoal of the project was to unify the procedures ofprotein structure determination into a single all-encompassing interface from which users caninitiate, plan, direct and document their experimenteither locally or remotely from a desktop machine.This process required information handling,automation, hardware and software developmentsand was designed to pipeline the process of PX191.A core part was the automatic collection of X-raydiffraction data which uses work from the DNAproject with the aim of completely automating thecollection and processing of X-ray PX data. The firstversion of DNA was released in 2004, and itsstructure is shown opposite.

Another key area in generic data acquisition is theProtein Information Management System (PIMS),which began in 2003/04, funded by grants from theBBSRC. The aim was a targeted solution for realisingcrystals suitable for PX experiments using alaboratory information management system forprotein sample preparation (which includesselection, cloning, expression, purification,characterisation, and where applicable,

164

191 www.clyde.dl.ac.uk/e-htpx/index

crystallisation) and automated data deposition inthe Protein Data Bank192. PIMS, originally conceivedby a contributor to CCP4, is one of the BBSRCStructural Proteomics of Rational Targets initiatives.This software system will contribute to theMembrane Protein Structure Initiative, acollaboration between eight leading UK academiclaboratories (including the Daresbury Laboratory).The initiative co-ordinates skills, information,techniques and resources in a project to develophigh throughput methods for the expression,purification, crystallisation and structuredetermination of integral membrane proteins, whichare often of significant interest to thepharmaceutical industry as drug targets.

Indeed the software and data management systems(e-HTPX, PIMS and DNA) can be commercialisedunder a similar arrangement as for CCP4: free foracademic use, while commercial users pay anannual subscription. Other software that has arisenfrom work at the SRS in PX and that is nowemployed by other SR Facilities, neutron facilitiesand by many users around the world includes thehighly cited Daresbury Laue Software193.

Computational science and engineering In the early stages of the development of the SRS, itwas recognised that computational science wouldbe a very important contributor to the effectiveoperation of the facility and funding was securedfrom the SRS for six staff to work on computationalscience and the associated software.

Many of the earliest experiments on the SRS werecompletely novel. The brightness and coherence ofthe source led to unprecedented levels of detail inthe results – and the meaning of that detail was notalways obvious. The purpose of the group was touse theoretical models to predict scientificobservables. By comparing the predictedmeasurements with the observed data, the teamwere able to enhance data analysis andinterpretation. The current Computational Scienceand Engineering Department now comprises morethan 70 people, whose work has expanded wellbeyond the SRS requirements initially envisaged. Itis the largest computational science group in the UK.

Throughout its operation, the ComputationalScience and Engineering Department has played a

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192 www.mole.ac.uk/lims/project/ 193 Helliwell, J. R. et al. (1989) “The recording and analysis of Laue diffraction photographs”, Journal of Applied Crystallography 22, P.483-497

Figure 50, DNA Architecture

DNA Architecture

• Modular system

• ResponsibilitiesGUI & BCM

• Design Decisions

• Common GoalmilestonesDeliverables

• Transfered to GDA project

DNA Database

BCM

DPM MOSLM

Diffraction Image Scheduler Expertise

ExecutiveSystem

DNA Logger

DNA GUI

BeamlineDiffractometer

Detector

SampleChanger

LIMS Databases

part in networking and distributing computingpower throughout the UK academic community. Inthe early years, staff members supported JANET(Joint Academic NETwork) in the UK. More recentlythe CSED has been highly regarded for its series ofCollaborative Computing Projects (CCPs), several ofwhich are directed towards optimising theinformation which can be extracted fromexperiments carried out on synchrotrons. They aredefined as follows:

Outputs from the CCPs are shared freely with UKacademics - overseas academics pay, unless theytoo are collaborators and industrial organisationshave to pay for access.

Whilst some of the CCPs were directed towardsmaking best use of the outputs from the SRS (seebelow) others were developed to work on topicswhose relationship to the SRS was more peripheral.Examples are:

• Electronic Structure of Molecules (CCP1).

• Continuum States of Atoms and Molecules(CCP2).

• The Computer Simulation of Condensed Phases(CCP5).

• Molecular Quantum Dynamics (CCP6).

• Study of the Electronic Structure of CondensedMatter (CCP9).

• High Performance Computing in Engineering(CCP12).

• Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR)Spectroscopy (CCPN).

• Collaborative Computational Project forBiomolecular Simulation (CCPB).

The CCPs which were most significant in realisingthe potential of the SRS, and other sources worldwide, are described in more detail below. TheseCCPs are still in operation.

CCP3 – Surface Science

Theoretical and experimental scientists worktogether in this CCP whose aim is to facilitatethe interpretation of data from a range ofsurface analytical techniques such as XANES,EXAFS, X-ray absorption, and X-rayphotoemission spectroscopy. (Non-synchrotrontechniques such as Low Energy ElectronDiffraction are also supported.)

The developed software includes codes for theanalysis of experimental data, which can beused alongside software for calculation ofsurface properties, thereby making possible theinterpretation of complex surface science data.

CCP4 – Software for macromolecular X-raycrystallography

The CCP4 project is widely recognised as amajor contributor to the widespread use ofmacromolecular crystallography in thebiological and chemical sciences. It was set upin 1979, originally by the Science andEngineering Research Council, and is nowsupported largely by BBSRC.

The software consists of a suite of programmeswhich work together to manage the dataacquisition, analysis and interpretation. Thesoftware is designed so that it can be operatedin the researcher’s host university. Everymacromolecular crystallography group in theworld uses CCP4 to some extent. There is oneUS package which could be a seriouscompetitor, but it has not penetrated themarket to any great degree.

The packages are free to academic researchers,and industrial users are charged a fee of theorder of £8k. There were around 100commercial licences in existence in 2008,

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194 http://www.ccp.ac.uk/

“The Collaborative Computational Projects(CCPs) bring together leading UK expertise inkey fields of computational research to tacklelarge-scale scientific software development,maintenance and distribution projects. Eachproject represents many years of intellectualand financial investment. The aim is tocapitalise on this investment by encouragingwidespread and long term use of the software,and by fostering new initiatives such as HighEnd Computing consortia.194”

generating ~£800k per year; overseasorganisations hold about 80 – 90% of theselicences. The CCP4 staff provide email andhelpdesk support, and oversee the continuingdevelopment of the software. The drivers forsoftware development are ease of use,particularly for those biologists with minimalsoftware expertise, and the capability to tacklemore complex proteins. Future developmentswill concentrate on enhanced automation,including methods to select the best crystalsfor full crystallographic study. The group alsodelivers training workshops, conferences andsimilar gatherings worldwide, with a strongpresence in India and China.

CCP13 - Fibre Diffraction and SolutionScattering195

This project began in 1992, and was directedtowards the development of software for smallangle scattering and fibre diffraction. Theproject was considered highly successful,generating software, instigating a journal(Fibre Diffraction Review) and acting as a focusfor the international community working onthis topic.

The number of refereed scientific papers usingthis software has been recorded since 1992,and totalled 465 up to 2006196. However,funding ceased in 2005, but the software iscurrently stored at Diamond, and madeavailable to researchers, although is not beingdeveloped further.

The e-Science Facilities Deployment ProgrammeBy the 1990s, the SRS was generating vast amountsof data, much of it held in ad hoc fashion by stationscientists, users, and others. There was no centralstorage facility and no formal processes or policiesfor data access, storage, retrieval, publication orretention.

In 1999, it was recognised that it would be desirableto find ways of making this large amount of data –much of it captured using public funds – availableto a wider range of scientists. The decision was

taken to set up an e-science facility, charged withcapturing the wealth of information beinggenerated not only by the SRS, but also by othermajor facilities.

In its early stages, the project set itself the task ofcapturing, cataloguing and making available theraw data generated by the SRS. It then becamepossible to link the raw data to the analysed andinterpreted data. The facility to capture details ofexperimental procedures was then added, and inthe fully developed phase (2008) the system wasalso capable of capturing all the stages of theunderlying processes, from proposal, throughexperimental design, data collection, interpretation,publication and archiving.

Station scientists and users on the SRS assisted theearly stage definition of the e-science project. Theyhelped to test the concept and mechanisms, andthereby contributed to the definition of the requiredsoftware and hardware. By linking data fromdifferent facilities, such as the SRS, ISIS197 and theCentral Laser Facility198, scientists were able toassemble fuller information on research topics asdiverse as biology and high-energy physics. The e-science project constructed access mechanisms tomake it feasible for scientists to access andunderstand data from fields distant from their own.This has obvious implications for education, both attertiary level and in schools and colleges, and canhelp young scientists to determine, more quicklythan previously, what has already be done in theirfield of interest.

The e-science project is also still helping to extractas much value as possible from collected data. Theaccessibility of raw data, and the ease of finding itthrough the catalogues, allows researchers to goback and reinterpret historical information, by useof new techniques, or in the light of newinformation from other sources.

The project is world-leading: nothing similar hadbeen achieved elsewhere, and the model has beenadopted by major research facilities around theworld, including:

• ISIS (STFC).

• Diamond (STFC shareholding).

167

195 www.small-angle.ac.uk/196 Pwww.small-angle.ac.uk/small-angle/Publications.html197 ISIS, The pulsed neutron and muon source at Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, www.isis.rl.ac.uk198 http://www.clf.rl.ac.uk/

• Central Laser Facility (STFC).

• Neutron Science facility in Oakridge, USA.

• ESRF, Grenoble.

• Institute Laue Langevin, Grenoble.

• Australian Neutron Source.

• Canadian Light Source.

This activity has formed the e-Science FacilitiesDeployment Programme which is part of the STFC’se-Science Centre which was one of the four foundingmembers of the Digital Curation Centre199. Its staffhelped to write the proposal and were involved inthe research work of the first phase of the centre. In2005, they initiated a commercial assessment of thepotential for a practical curation service.

In 2008, the e-Science Facilities DeploymentProgramme was the largest and mostcomprehensive Laboratory InformationManagement System in the world. It captures,stores and makes accessible all the stages of anexperiment on a major facility – it was conceived,tested and proved on the SRS.

Highlights in software developmentOver the lifetime of the SRS, there were severalinstances where software development at the SRSwas world-leading. Some examples are given below.

Ethernet

As the amount of data being obtained from the SRSincreased, it became clear that data links werecomparatively slow and cumbersome. As thenumber of stations increased, the data transmissionrates could not keep up. About this time,asynchronous Ethernet links were becomingavailable, and standards were emerging. SRS stafftook the existing hardware and wrote the protocolsfor faster data transmission. Although standardprotocols later emerged, the Daresbury Laboratorystaff worked with their own protocols for quitesome time. Indeed, Daresbury Laboratory staff

helped develop those standards and still sit on theStandards Boards. The advantage to the users wasthat the Ethernet development took out delays inthe system, and so data processing could be carriedout close to the time of the experiment – with greatbenefits for speed and quality of experimentation.

Detector control software

Detector control software was at one stage worldleading, primarily driven by demanding experimentson two-dimensional, time-resolved diffraction ofmuscle.

EXAFS data analysis/interpretation

The EXAFS data analysis was driven both bytheoretical work and the development of theanalysis code. The code was so efficient thatexperimentalists could get feedback in just a fewminutes, allowing them to explore theoretical fits atalmost the same time as they were gathering data.

LAUE crystallographic analysis

The Daresbury Laboratory Laue Software Suite200 isa set of programs developed for the processing ofLaue X-ray diffraction data. This software analysispackage was established with SRS scientists incollaboration with colleagues in CSED201.

The software has also been adopted by the InstitutLaue-Langevin on both LADI (biological) andVIVALDI (chemical) neutron crystallographyinstruments and at the Los Alamos Neutron FacilityLANSCE on its PCS (Protein Crystallography neutronScattering) Instrument.

The Daresbury LAUE Analysis suite is mainlyfacilitating academic research in dynamic and time-resolved X-ray crystallography as well as neutronLaue crystallography. However, it is expected toeventually facilitate commercial applications wherestructural intermediates and protonation statedefinition would benefit applications such as drugdiscovery or new materials. Glaxo Smith Kline forexample has already jointly supervised projects202 inimproved protein structure definition for thrombin,a key protein in blood clotting for which inhibitorscan be important.

168

199 www.dcc.ac.uk/200 http://www.srs.ac.uk/px/jwc_laue/laue_top.html201 Y.P. Nieh, J. Raftery, S. Weisgerber, J. Habash, F. Schotte, T. Ursby, M. Wulff, A. Haedener, J.W. Campbell, Q. Hao and J.R. Helliwell "Accurate and highly

complete synchrotron protein crystal Laue diffraction data using the ESRF CCD and the Daresbury Laue software" (1999) J. Synchrotron Rad. 6,995–1006.)

202 With Professor J. R. Heliwell of Manchester University

Open daysThe first Daresbury Laboratory open day took placeover 5 days in June 1997 with 3,500 visitors takingpart in exhibitions and events. In addition to 5 daysof schools activities, lectures were given on theLaboratory, science in general and local companies.In addition, a series of events took place in 2005 tocelebrate the 25th anniversary of the SRS includinga tour of the SRS and other scientific facilities, astaff and family day, as well as a public open day,all attracting over 4000 people to the Lab.

Quotes from people attending included:

In all, 98% of the comments were positive and theonly negative comments concerned the weatherand the need for more time.

Talking ScienceThe “Talking Science” programme includes eveninglectures and schools and special events atDaresbury Laboratory. Since its inception in 1998,Talking Science events have taken place on a near

monthly basis with 10 events occurring annually.Lectures and events are on many different aspectsof science (lecture titles from the currentprogramme include “Preventing Crime”, InvisibilityCloaks” and “Science and Sport”) and are free to allmembers of the public.

The views of many of those who regularly attendthese lectures were summarised by Dr Peter Owen,a member of staff in Daresbury, who has attendedthe lectures since they began. Dr Owen alwaysfound the lectures to be very worthwhile indeed.Even though the quality can vary, they are alwaysof interest, and many of them are outstanding. A substantial proportion of the lectures are given byeminent scientists, such as Prof Robert Winston.The breadth of subjects covered is very wide,ranging from sub-atomic physics to biology. There isno other venue in the area where it is possible tohear, and indeed meet, scientists of this standing,and the lecture series is highly valued by the localcommunity.

The lectures attract large numbers of children, evento those events which are not specifically designedfor children. Whilst some lose interest over theyears, others have become more and moreinterested, to the point where they bring theirfriends.

Science festivalThe Daresbury Laboratory also hosts a mini sciencefestival on an annual basis203. The Laboratory actsas the venue and hub for a regional showcase ofoutreach work. The 2008 festival has the title “STFCDaresbury Laboratory & North West BritishAssociation for the Advancement of Science Mini

169

Appendix 5

Daresbury Laboratory public understanding ofscience activities

203 www.scitech.ac.uk/PandS/SchEdu/Labs/DLscienceweek.aspx

"Good for families and particularly children tobe exposed to the wonders of science."

"All the staff were absolutely brilliant withchildren and us non-scientists, explainingthings at a level we could understand."

"Excellent introduction to real science foryoung and old alike."

Science Festival”. Industry is involved in thesefestivals and past participants have included UnitedUtilities, AstraZeneca, Scottish Power and Greenall’sBrewery. The programme illustrates the Lab’s role asan open place which encourages the public toengage in science, technology and engineering.

The comments of one visitor give a flavour of theexcitement engendered by the event –

Support for communication ofscience in the North WestStaff at Daresbury Laboratory, have beenparticularly supportive of the work carried out bythe North West Science Alliance (NWSA), a networkof people from academia, industry and the publicsector who aim to take science to the generalpublic.

Staff at Daresbury, particularly Tony Buckley and hiscolleagues, were instrumental in starting the NWSA.They provided facilities, practical support andencouragement, and it is agreed that the networkwould probably not have progressed withoutsupport from Daresbury Laboratory.

NWSA also acts as a forum, disseminatinginformation about related topics such as NWDAactivities and the North West Science Strategy.

Also through the NWSA, Daresbury Laboratory staffcontributed to the Manchester Science Festival andthe Liverpool Science Festival in 2008. They alsosupported a local arts festival in Bollington, which iswidening its remit to include science as well as arts.

Some quotes from Dr Lorelly Wilson, who is amember of NWSA, illustrate the distinctivecontribution made by Daresbury staff:

Offsite activitiesThe PUSET programme also includes work which iscarried out offsite with schools through workshopsand activities. The Laboratory is involved in 4/5such events per year and reach 400 – 500 studentsannually.

The laboratory also engages and assists in theevents of other organisations. These include eventsin partnership with regional partners at the Scienceand Industry Museum in Manchester; this variesfrom 4-5 events per year reaching between 100 –1000 attendees per year. The Laboratory also workswith regional academic partners – see case studyopposite.

Royal Institution Christmas lecturesProf Tony Ryan of Sheffield, a frequent user of theSRS, was invited to present The Royal InstitutionChristmas Lectures in 2002. Using the theme of aspider’s web, he introduced the audience to thescience of polymer crystallisation and techniques offibre spinning. In the lecture theatre, he had a 3⁄4 sizemodel of a beamline built, showing how it could beused to study real-time spinning of polyethylenefibres. Video screens attached to the beamlineshowed real outputs from the SRS experiments. As aresult, a synchrotron experiment was seen by morethan one million Channel 4 viewers.

170

“Overall, Daresbury has done a lot for sciencein the region. People at Daresbury areremarkable in that they ‘think outside ofthemselves’. They have contributed tosupporting science in the region because it isthe right thing to do.”

“My eight-year-old son was delighted by theday. He found the hands-on sciencefascinating, and was delighted that he couldhandle items which flashed, burned and madesmells. There is no doubt that the enthusiasmof the lecturers and demonstrators capturedhis attention and imagination. For weeksafterwards, he played with samples he hadbeen given on the day.”

171

Case Study – DNA Model Building and TheGuinness Book of Records

Background

As part of an EPSRC grant, a Keele Universityacademic with a strong interest in the PublicUnderstanding of Science initiated the building ofthe DNA model in a shopping centre in Stoke. Theproject was supported by Daresbury Laboratory,and is recognised in the Guinness Book of WorldRecords.

The Project

The academic had conceived the idea of a verylarge DNA model which could capture theimagination of children and the public in general.He planned to build it in The Potteries ShoppingCentre, Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, on DNA day, 9thMarch 2002.

Daresbury Laboratory became involved at theproposal stage, when the project was seekingfunds. Daresbury hosted the meetings, helpedsecure grant funding from the EPSRC, broughtothers into the project, and, most important ofall, provided engineering expertise without whichthe model could not be safely built.

Engineering Support

An engineer at Daresbury realised that it wouldnot be possible to use the same design for a 10metre high model as was used for a 1 metre highmodel – which could simply be a molecular modelsupported on a wooden rod.

He designed a metal rig with spacers, whichallowed the model to be built in-situ, supportingit on a rigid system of wires. He also did thestructural analysis to ensure that the modelwould be stable enough to be in a public area.

The design fulfilled its remit perfectly and parts ofthe model are still on display in the receptionarea of the Daresbury Laboratory and at KeeleUniversity.

Other assistance

Daresbury Laboratory’s communications staffwere helpful in liaising with the shopping centreto facilitate the project. They also used theirmedia connections to ensure excellent coverageby TV, radio etc. Because of the influence ofDaresbury staff, several MPs and other dignitarieswere encouraged to attend.

The Event

The model was built by 3,000 school children inthe Stoke-on-Trent shopping centre, withbroadcast and print media present, and with localVIPs participating.

Although the shopping centre managementdeclined to reveal attendance figures – due tocommercial confidentiality – they stated that itwas their busiest day of the year, on a par with aSaturday before Christmas. There were trafficjams all around the centre.

Consequences

The whole science communication communitytook an interest in what had been achieved. Theacademic has lost count of the number of reports in which his work has been described, butit has been cited by the British Association,EPSRC, NESTA, Science Year and many others. It is seen as a flagship event – the first time therehad been such a high-profile event in a publicplace.

Even now, many years later, the academic is oftenasked to talk about the event, and has done so inat least 18 countries, including some as far afieldas Eastern Europe and Asia. He also carried out asimilar model building activity in 2008.

In 2004, the academic’s work on the topic wasrecognised by his becoming a finalist in the EUDescartes Prize for Science Communication.

172

FilmsA major product of ICI’s Films Division was polyesterfilm. The ICI /SRS team was the first to drawpolyester film in situ, and anneal it at 90C, whilefollowing microstructural changes by small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and fibre diffraction (WAXS).The work contributed to the understanding not justof film stretching, but also of fibre spinning, and thethen relatively new PET bottle blowing process.Further work on the SRS elucidated microstructuralfeatures in the walls of blown bottles.

Terephthalic acid Studies combining single crystal diffraction andLaue diffraction at the SRS, together with opticaland electron microscopy, were used to study thestability of the terephthalic acid monomer used inPET production.

The studies showed that crystal twinning was ableto stabilise an otherwise metastable crystal form.The understanding was used to help optimisestorage and handling of the monomer.

PolyurethanesRigid and flexible polyurethane foams wereexamined by in-situ micro-topography, leading to adeeper understanding of the three dimensionalstructure of the walls of the polymer cells. For thefirst time, foam morphology could be studied at the20µm level, deepening understanding of therelationship between the structure and theobserved physical properties.

The observed structure could be used to direct andrefine finite element modelling of foam structures.Whilst some of this work was eventually carried out

at the European Synchrotorn Radiation Facility(ESRF), it was stimulated directly by work at theDaresbury SRS.

In addition, SAXS studies on the SRS were used todetermine relationships between formulations,particularly the hard- and soft-block components,observed structure, and physical properties.

PEEK and PEKPolyetheretherketone (PEEK) and polyetherketone(PEK), now sold under the trade name Victrex, arehigh performance polymers, which can be usedunfilled, or as composites containing, for example,carbon or aramid fibres. Collaborating withresearchers at the University of Keele, ICIresearchers used SAXS and WAXS to examine theeffect of drawing and annealing of PEEK and PEKfilms and fibres204. In addition, novel high-resolutionpowder diffraction studies showed distinctivefeatures of the oligomers of the etheretherketone.

BioPolIn the mid-1990s, ICI developed a polymericmaterial, BioPol, based on polyhydroxybutyrate(PHB). Certain micro-organisms produce PHBnaturally as an energy storage medium, and it canbe ‘harvested’ from such organisms, and thenprocessed in conventional plastics processingfacilities. The resultant polymer is similar in physicalproperties to polypropylene, but has the advantagethat it is biodegradable. BioPol did, however, sufferfrom embrittlement in use, and the SRS was used tostudy the embrittlement process, and tocharacterise the micro-crystallisation which wasfound to occur.

173

Appendix 6

Examples of research undertaken by ICI on the SRS

204 Polymer, Vol 35, no 18; 1994, pp 3875-3882.

Electrode coatings and membranes for electrolysisChlorine and caustic soda are manufactured in verylarge quantities by the electrolysis of brine. In muchof the 20th century, liquid mercury was used as anelectrode in the electrolysis cells, but disquiet aboutthe use of mercury led to the processes beinggradually replaced by membrane electrolysers.

ICI had large mercury cell plants, and, anticipatingthe need to replace them, invested heavily in thecleaner membrane cell processes. As part of thisdevelopment work, ICI developed and patentednovel catalytic coatings for the anode and cathodeof membrane cells. A key point of the patent wasthat the active materials, ruthenium and titanium,formed two solid solutions. By combining severalSRS techniques, the ICI researchers were able toprove that the product was indeed in the requiredform, and so were able to sustain the patent claims.Even before ICI – later Ineos - installed membranecells on its own plants, it established a businesssupplying the proprietary electrode coatings toother producers. The business built productionplants in the UK and Taiwan, and the electrodeswere installed in plants as far afield as Colombia,China, Japan, Germany and the USA.Complementing this work, research was undertakento understand the process by which the activemembranes acclimatised in a working electrolysiscell. SAXS studies on the SRS were used to followthe changes in membrane structure.

Colours & fine chemicalsICI had a substantial pigments business, based atBlackley in the UK. Working with the University ofStrathclyde and corporate researchers, highresolution XRD and Laue diffraction studies werecarried out. The main focus of the research was thestudy of very small crystals and their growth. Theoutput from the research, coupled with modellingwork, was used in the optimisation of processingconditions.

PaintsMetal soaps are used in paints to promote drying. Inthe past, lead soaps were used but have morerecently be replaced by less harmful alternativessuch as zinc soaps. The synchrotron was used tostudy the morphology of the drying paint film withdifferent additives.

ZeolitesHigh resolution powder diffraction studies ofzeolites were carried out in studies supported bythe Petrochemicals Division of ICI. The workallowed refinement of the structure of the zeolitesand was supportive of patent applications.

In addition, work was carried out on the templateswhich were used to define the pore structure ofspecialised zeolites. These templates are typicallyquaternary ammonium salts, chosen to havedimensions close to those required in the zeolite.After formation of the zeolite, the template wasremoved by heating. Synchrotron studies werecarried out to determine the positioning of thetemplates within the zeolite lattices, and therebytheir “structure directing” effects.

Polypropylene catalysisICI’s Plastics Division at Welwyn Garden City wasinterested in the performance of the Ziegler-Nattacatalysts used in the production of polypropylene.They constructed a plastic cell containing monomerand the catalyst, TiCl4. Carrying out thepolymerisation at the SRS, they were able todemonstrate by EXAFS that the active species wasTiCl4, and not TiCl3, as had been postulated bysome researchers.

174

Naphtha reformingICI’s Petrochemicals Division made use of naphthareforming catalysts which were essentially mixturesof platinum and rhenium on alumina. There was astrong interest in studying the detailed structure ofthe platinum-rhenium catalyst to determinewhether or not the metals were alloys, and whatthe crystallite size might be. Several lengthy studieswere carried out to examine various modificationsto the catalyst forms, and also to seek replacementsystems.

Methanol catalysisICI’s Catalyst Division, later named Katalco, carriedout extensive studies of the copper- and zinc-basedcatalysts used in methanol production. Theresearchers were particularly interested in thepreparation of the catalyst, its reduction and aging.They carried out calcination and reductionprocesses in a dedicated cell within the XRD andEXAFS beamlines. By combining these results withmicroscopy of starting and end materials, theresearchers were able to elucidate the crystalstructure and morphology of the active species.

Methanation catalystsSupported nickel catalyses the methanation ofunsaturated hydrocarbons. As in the case ofmethanol catalysts (above), the calcination stepprior to reaction is crucial in achieving goodperformance. Studies on the Daresbury synchrotronshowed correlations between the initial form of thenickel and the nature of the precursor material.

Catalytic coatingsIn collaboration with the University of Keele andthe University of Manchester, detailed studied werecarried out to determine the orientation of smallmolecules such as CO2 absorbed on ZnO. The use oftechniques such as NEXAFS allowed the researchersto determine the orientation of the absorbedmolecules.

Other studies• Investigation of alternative catalysts for CFC

replacements.

• Studies of the structure and folding of starchmolecules.

• Examination of the catalysts used in theproduction of Arcton.

• Studies on ammonia catalysts.

• Numerous protein crystallography studies forZeneca, previously ICI Pharmaceuticals.

175

176

Engineering moleculesResearchers within Avidex Ltd (later bought byMedigene) engineer molecules to have particularinteractions with cell surface proteins. The SRS wasused to ensure that the engineered molecules werebinding to the target protein at the desired locationand orientation. In one instance, a sulfide bond'sbinding site was crucial to securing a patent. Theprotein crystallography study demonstrated that thebond was indeed in the desired location, therebyensuring that the patent was granted. Arepresentative of the company explained that "Ifyou can show a crystal structure, no-one can argueanymore."

There have now been about ten such studies, andthe lead product entered into Phase 2 clinical trials.Confidence in the work meant that the company setup a new commercial venture called Immunocorewhich Medigene has now divested. Overall, proteincrystallography using the SRS has proved to be apowerful means of confirming and demonstratingthe scientific benefit - and hence the value - of theinventions.

Faith, hope and clarityPolymer film manufacturer, UCB Films, requestedevaluation of a coated polypropylene film used infood packaging, which degraded over a period oftime resulting in increased opacity of the materialwhen stored. The problem appeared to be related tothe processing conditions under which the films hadbeen manufactured. The challenge was to produce amore reliably transparent crisp packet. Rapidturnaround time from receipt of samples to resultsof investigation was required to allow knowledgegained to be fed back into the manufacturingprocess.

The SRS was used to examine the two polymersystems that the bags are manufactured from usingits multidisciplinary facilities and the source of theproblem was identified. This meant that UCB Filmswas able to alter its production conditions toeliminate hazing. The rapid solution of the problemallowed the manufacturer to demonstrate aproactive and trouble-shooting approach to itscustomers. Loss of production was kept to aminimum, whilst the manufacturer’s reputation wasenhanced.

A patent case of plagiarismOne of the world’s top pharmaceutical companieswas having a problem with generic manufacturerswho were thought to be infringing a valuablepatent on a top-selling drug. The company inquestion had patented a particular crystalline formof the drug and was looking to prove that thegeneric manufacturer was selling this form illegally.A successful challenge might increase the patentlife of the product by a number of years, with aconsequent substantial increase in income.

Many drug formulations only include a smallamount of active ingredient with the result thatdetecting which crystalline form is present becomesdifficult using conventional laboratory X-raysources. The challenge in this case was to see if anyof the patented crystalline form was present in thecompetitor’s formulation - and the resulting analysishad to be rigorous enough to stand up in court.Analysis on the SRS showed that the patented formof the drug was present in the generic offering. Inthis case, the X-ray powder diffraction experimentscarried out showed that the generic manufacturerinfringing the patent and led to the successfuldefence of the court case. The drug manufacturersuccessfully retained the rights to exclusively

177

Appendix 7

Commercial case studies

market their patented drug for a further six years.This one experiment saved the company severalmillions of dollars in lost revenue.

Oiling the wheels of industryFor motor oil to operate efficiently, it has to havethe correct consistency and achieving this mayrequire the use of additives. Infineum producespecialist lubrication oils that contain inorganicchalk-like particles coated with a waxy detergentlayer. Conventional analysis techniques were unableto determine the precise effect these additives werehaving on the formulation and so the optimumcomposition could not be easily determined.Infineum’s own techniques had provided insufficientdata to characterise the additives in detail.

A particular challenge was the response time: it hadto be rapid so that modification could be made tothe formulation without major loss of productiontime. Researchers at the SRS employed techniquesto examine a large number of formulations ofparticles and detergent composition in the oil. Thischaracterisation allowed quantification of processchanges, control of properties and performancecharacteristics of the finished product andprediction of the various interactions betweendetergent molecules and other additives in thefinished oil. The results allowed Infineum to define anarrow range of formulations that gave optimumoperating performance. Loss of production time waskept to a minimum due to the rapid turnaround timebetween receiving the sample and reporting backthe results.

Diamonds are foreverIndustrial diamonds have a multitude of uses intoday’s market place, ranging from simple cuttingtools to coatings on the windows of fighter jets.However, quality control is very important - themanufacturing process can impart strain into thesynthetic diamonds which makes them less useful.A particular manufacturer of industrial diamondsapproached the SRS with a large number ofdiamonds which required screening to identify goodquality samples from poorer ones. While themethod of assessing strain in crystals is welldocumented, the challenge for this analytical

project was to find a method of screening thecrystals that was fast, reliable and reproducible.

The experimental technique chosen to carry out thisscreening was X-ray diffraction. Additionally, byusing the extensive knowledge available of the SRSstaff, a novel crystal alignment procedure wasdevised and constructed. This allowed faster datacollection, thereby making substantial savings intime which were passed on to the customer as alower price per sample. Forty samples were turnedaround in 16 hours - experiments of this type on alaboratory source would be expected to takeseveral hours each. The manufacturers were able toget a quick, straightforward result which allowedthem to directly correlate growth conditions withperformance and were able to change theirprocesses accordingly.

Delivering bespoke instrumentationThe exploitation of experimental facilities todetermine, for instance, structural information atthe molecular level, can require specialised andnovel test equipment to be designed and built. Onecustomer required the use of an environmental cellto control temperature and humidity of theirsamples during data collection. It was not viable forthem to develop such equipment in-house as themeasurements formed only a small part of a widerR&D project. The challenge was to identify a cost-effective away to deliver the instrumentationrequirements in order to achieve the projectobjectives.

The design and construction of instrumentationcapable of the controlled variation of temperatureand humidity, in conjunction with synchrotronfacilities, requires specialised skills, knowledge andexperience. SRS scientists have significant expertisein this field and readily undertook the developmentof purpose-built equipment. This was done within ashort lead-time and was combined with guaranteedcompatibility with the synchrotron radiationbeamline on which the experiment was to beperformed. The results from the experiment werevital to the successful completion of the particularproject and costs and development times weresignificantly reduced.

178

i) Industrial partners/non-academics collaborating with academic users of the SRS and publishing alongsidetheir academic collaborators:

UK Non UK

British Biotechnology AMOCO Oil Co. (US)

British Gas CSM, Rome (I)

Cadbury-Schweppes Daimler Benz (D)

Castle Cement Deutsche Aerospace (D)

Defence Research Agency (**) Dow Europe, Ternuezen NL)

Glaxo Exxon (US)

ICI (x 2) BM Zurich (CH)

Kodak IBM (US)

Paramins Exxon (UK) LGIT-IRGM (Fr)

PHLS Centre NEC (J)

Pilkingtons Parke-Davies (US)

Pirelli Cables Philips Res (NL)

RSSL Schotte Glassware, Mainz (D)

Schlumberger Shell Lab. Amsterdam (NL)

Unilever (x 2) Eye Associates, Otttawa (C)

Wellcome Eye Res. Inst, Boston (US)

Zeneca (Macclesfield) Kentucky-Lions Eye Res.Inst. (US)

Zeneca (Blackley) NIH, Bethsada (US)

British Museum Univ. Hospital, Leiden (NL)

Imp. Cancer Research Foundation

Institute of Ophthalmology

Manchester Eye HospitaL

Moorefield’s Eye Hospital

Natural History Museum

National Institute for Medical Research

**through the MoD Research Grant Scheme

Totals 24 UK + 20 non-UK = 44

179

Appendix 8

Commercial companies/organisations collaboratingwith academics entering through the peer reviewsystem 1994 – 95

ii) IIndustrial partners collaborating with academic users of the SRS identified by EPSRC from research grantapplications:

UK Non UK

AECL Research Pfizer Central Research Agency

Bruker (UK) Roche Products Ltd

DTI

Fisons

Hirst Magnetic Instruments

NESTEC

Proctor & Gamble

Rolls Royce

Smith Kline Beecham

VG Semiconductors

Totals 10 UK + 2 non-UK = 12

180

Aims:• To encourage companies to use LIGA

technology for the manufacture ofmicrostructures.

• To bring together people with an interest inthe development and application of LIGAtechnology and provide a forum for theexchange of ideas.

• To disseminate knowledge through the transferof technology from Daresbury Laboratory, theGerman LIGA specialists and elsewhere.

• To raise companies’ awareness of thedevelopment in microfabrication.

• To promote innovative projects and Europeancollaborations.

• To seek funding support for strategic researchand development.

• To publicise LIGA through promotionalmaterial, publications, seminars and training.

Member organisations:

181

Appendix 9

Aims and member organisations of the LIGAinterest group

Advanced Technical Mouldings;

Advanced Robotics Research Ltd.;

Ai Cambridge;

Amersham International plc;

Applied Microengineering Ltd.;

Armstrong Projects;

BICC Cables;

BNFL plc;

British Aerospace;

British Gas plc;

British Telecom (Development andProcurement);

Buxton Wall McPeake Ltd.;

Cambridge University (Dept. of MaterialsScience and Metallurgy);

Coventry University;

Crompton Plastics Ltd.;

De Montfort University;

Defence Research Agency;

DTI Northwest ;

Dundee University (Dept. of Applied Physicsand Manufacturing);

Egli Research;

Europtics Ltd.;

Fisons Instruments;

Flight Refueling Ltd.;

Fluid Film Devices Ltd.;

GEC-Marconi;

Gillette UK Ltd.;

ICI Wilton Research Centre;

182

ICI Chemicals and Polymers;

Imperial College (Dept of ElectricalEngineering);

Institute of Dental Surgery (Dept. of Bio-Materials Science);

Intravascular Research Ltd.;

ITT Cannon;

Lancaster University Dept of Engineering;

Liverpool JMU (School of Eng. & TechnologyManagement);

Liverpool University (Dept. of IndustrialStudies);

London Hospital, The (Dept. of ConservativeDentistry);

Loughborough University of Technology;

Lucas Automotive;

National Health Authority;

NIMTECH;

NIS Ltd.;

Oxford Instruments (UK) Ltd.;

Oxley Developments Ltd.;

Peter Cockshott Associates;

Phase Separations;

Polyfiltronics;

Portex Ltd;

Scapa Filtronics;

Spectra;

Strato Consulting Ltd.;

Surface Technology Systems Ltd.;

Surface Transforms Ltd.;

Videojet Systems International;

Vu-Data Ltd.;

To the Advanced Photon Source (APS) (USA):

DND-CAT 2 off sales value ~£300KIMCA-CAT 2 off ~£250KMR-CAT 1 off ~£120KGSE-CARS 2 off ~£240K

To the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) (France):

UK-CRG 1 off ~£120KDUBBEL 2 off ~£240K

To BESSY-II Germany):

PTB Berlin 1 off (special twin axle) ~£260K

To CCLRC (UK):

SRS Daresbury 1 off ~£90K

To Oxford Instruments (UK):

Various 5 off ~450K

Total Value of Sales to VG: ~£2.1M

183

Appendix 10

Sales of the SRS Double Crystal Monochromatorby VG

184

185

Appendix 11

Insertion devices used in the SRS to generatespecialised radiation for particular experiments

Name

SC Wiggler 9

SC Wiggler 16

MPW 6

MPW 14

MPW10

HU56

Type and location

Super-conductingwavelength shifter;beamline 9.

Super-conductingwavelength shifter;beamline 16.

Multi-pole wiggler;beamline 6.

Multi-pole wiggler;beamline 14.

Multi-pole wiggler;beamline 14.

Undulator;beamline 5.

Notes

First insertion device in the SRS installed in Nov. 1982; single central high-field pole-pair;NbTi coils cooled with 4.2K liquid helium;produced 5 T at the electron beam;fed radiation to 7 separate stations;designed and built at Rutherford-Appleton Lab;

Single central high-field pole-pair;NbTi coils cooled with 4.2K liquid helium;produced 6 T at the electron beam;fed radiation to 5 separate stations;designed and built by Oxford Instruments to an SRS specification.

SRS design (magnet and engineering);built by Sincrotrone di Trieste from SRS design;introduced/taught SRS staff how to accurately assemble strong PMarrays and correctly mount them;very strong 2T magnet, 200mm period;motor control/mechatronic system from Mclennan. measured at DL.

Identical to MPW 6.

SRS design (magnet and engineering);components procured from industry and assembled at SRS;world record 2.4T magnet, 220mm period;magnet blocks from Vacuumschmelze;motor control system from Mclennan;measured at DL.

SRS design (magnet and engineering);replaced old in-house built undulator;advanced variable polarisation control;56mm period, gap and phase control;magnet blocks from Vacuumschmelze;motor control system from Mclennans;measured and shimmed at DL.

186

Vacuum pumpsThe SRS used as, its workhorse pumps, sputter ionpumps and titanium sublimation pumps (TSPs).Since these were standard items in laboratory UHVsystems these were available as standard catalogueitems from a number of companies, including UKcompanies. Ion pumps designed and built in the UKwere available from Ferranti and AEI (as it was atthe time) and TSPs from Vacuum Generators andEdwards High Vacuum. Subsequently Ferranti andAEI withdrew completely from this market and allion pumps now available are manufactured outsidethe UK. Although the pumps themselves werestandard, control units had to be modified to meetthe requirements of the SRS, and this is discussedbelow.

Vacuum gaugesThe total pressure vacuum gauges used on the SRSwere standard commercially available items,although control units required modification. Somesubstitute materials had to be used in gauge headsfor radiation resistance, e.g. in feed-throughs andcables. Residual gas analysers were, however,developed specially to meet the requirements of theSRS. These are featured below.

Pump and gauge controllersThere were two considerations that requiredindustry to develop control units to meet thespecific requirements of the SRS. The first was thehigh radiation environment in the ring tunnel whenthe machine was operating. This meant that control

units had to be designed which could be separatedfrom the controlled item by up to 100 m of cable.Secondly, all electronic units had to be interfaced tothe computer control system that supervised andoperated the complex machine from a remotecontrol room. No such units were available from UKindustry at the time, and indeed there were nostandard control buses and interfaces such as arereadily available today. Companies had to beprepared to redesign their units to provide astandard SRS interface. Although this was aproprietary system, the experience gained bycompanies who implemented it meant that theyhad the necessary skill set available to incorporatestandard interfaces like IEE488 when they becameavailable, and in particular to meet the burgeoningdemand from the semiconductor industry for suchfacilities. UK companies like VG, Sension, ArunElectronics, AEI (by then Kratos) and Edwards HighVacuum thereby benefited.

Residual gas analysisThe SRS was one of the pioneers in the use ofresidual gas analysis for quality control in thevacuum field and in monitoring the “health” oflarge vacuum systems. For SRS use, severalchallenges presented themselves. In common withthe other vacuum gauges, control interfaces had tobe implemented and the problems of working in ahigh radiation environment overcome. There wasone other unique requirement however. The SRSvacuum team wanted to use residual gas analysis tomonitor what was happening inside vacuumsystems during bakeout. By this time, industry hadstandardised on small radio frequency quadrupole

187

Appendix 12

Industrial liaison for the procurement of vacuumequipment

mass filters for this class of instrument. In all cases,the Radio Frequency (RF) generator and thepreamplifier electrometer were housed in a unitbolted directly on to the gauge head. This had to beremoved for bakeout and was also susceptible todamaging radiation and RF and other interferencefrom the electron beam. Designs using separatedhead systems were developed by companies such asVG Quadrupoles, Hiden Analytical and SpectrumScientific. Apart from Hiden the expertise of thesecompanies in the field was recognised by Americancompanies who subsequently bought them out, butretain operations in the UK.

188

189

Appendix 13

Monochromators manufactured by Bird and Tole

Monochromator Destination

1. Grazing incidence spectrometer NINA parasitic beam-line

2. Vertical Wadsworth monochromator NINA parasitic beam-line

3. 2-metre Grazing Incidence monochromator NINA parasitic beam-line

subsequently ELSA (Bonn)

4. Horizontal Wadsworth monochromator NINA parasitic beam-line

5. Daresbury Miyake MkII NINA parasitic beam-line

Grazing Incidence monochromator Tantalus, Wisconsin

SRS

6. 1-metre Seya monochromator ELSA (Bonn)

SRS

7. 1-metre Seya monochromator ELSA (Bonn)

BESSY (Berlin)

8. Daresbury SEXAFS (Grating/crystal) monochromator SRS

9. Grazing Incidence monochromator NSLS, Brookhaven

10. Miniature Toroidal Grating monochromator NSLS, Brookhaven;

11. 6.5 metre Normal Incidence monochromator BESSY (Berlin);

12. Toroidal Grating 150 degree monochromator SRS

13. Toroidal Grating 155 degree monochromator SRS

14. 1⁄2 -metre Seya-Namioka monochromator SRS

15. Soft X-ray crystal spectrometer SRS

16. UHV Double Crystal monochromator BESSY

17. 2-metre Namioka monochromator BESSY

18. UHV Toroidal Grating monochromator BESSY

19. 2-metre Wadsworth Grating Drive BESSY

20. Spherical Grating monochromator SRS

21. Low Energy Toroidal Grating monochromator SRS

22. High Energy Toroidal Grating monochromator BESSY

23. Toroidal Grating monochromator BESSY

190

191

Appendix 14

Detectors systems developed over the life ofthe SRS

1

2

3

4

5

Development

In-house at DL.

In-house at DL.

In-house at DL.

In-house at DL.

In-house at DL

on readout.

Collaboration

with Univ

Aberystwyth on

detector.

SR DetectorSystems

Multiwire linear

detector

Delay line

Quadrant

/Delay line area

detector

RAPID (v1 v2)

2D area

detector

RAPID WAXS/

SAXS 1 D linear

detector

REES multi-

element

electron

counting

detector

Notes

Innovation in electronics

design and in data

acquisition software went

to underpin the RAPID

detector systems and

HOTWAXS development.

Workhorse analogue

systems. Used extensively

on SRS.

Advanced digital systems.

Used on ESRF (France).

Advanced digital systems.

Use on SRS 6.2. Will be

moved to HATSAXS

beamline on Diamond.

Now in offline equipment

at Univ Aberystwyth.

Collaborativeinvolvement

None or not

known.

Commercially

exploitable.

Used by SPRING8

(Japan) and

Diamond (UK).

Potentially ALBA

(Spain).

Will be marketed

by Quantum

Detectors.

Some commercial

interests (including

NASA from US).

Science/Applications

Wide Angle X-ray

Scattering (WAXS) for

polymer industries.

Powder X-ray diffraction

(XRD) for various atomic

structural

characterisation.

Millisecond time resolved

Small Angle

X-ray Scattering (SAXS)

for polymers and

bio-molecules.

10^6 photon/s detection.

Sub-millisecond time

resolved SAXS for

polymers and bio-

molecules.

15x10^6 photon/s

detection.

Sub-millisecond time

resolved SAXS/WAXS for

polymers and

bio-molecules.

Electron spectroscopy for

chemical and micro-

electronic surface

characterisation.

192

6

7

8

9

10

Development

In-house at DL.

In-house at

RAL/DL.

In-house at

RAL/DL.

In-house at

RAL/DL.

In-house at DL.

SR DetectorSystems

Ion chambers

MAGIC

Magnetically

immune gas

counter

EYIELD:

Electron yield

detector

HOTWAXS High

overall

throughput

WAXS detector

XSPRESS: Xray

Signal

Processing

Electronics for

Solid State

detectors.

Collaborativeinvolvement

Copied globally.

Marketed by

Quantum

Detectors.

None, though

some interest

expressed by

synchrotrons in

China and Spain.

None or not

known.

Marketed by

Quantum

Detectors.

Transferred to

ESRF. Excellent

reports and data.

Marketed by

Quantum

Detectors.

Notes

Ultra linear design for

spectroscopic use on SRS

9.2/9.3/7.1 etc.

Collaboration with

researchers from Bristol,

York, Manchester on

magnetic samples,

polymers and test

samples.

In-situ chemistry inside

detection enclosure.

Prototype for sale to

Diamond. Microstrip gas

counter technology has

made this feasible. This is

again far in excess of

anything possible with

the latest CCD

technology.

Adaptive pulse processing

for SR.

Gave rise to XSPRESS2

used on Diamond.

Science/Applications

SR beam intensity

monitoring.

High stability required

for XAFS (X-ray

spectroscopy)

investigation for various

chemical

characterisation.

Used for X-ray magnetic

diffraction and also used

for non-magnetic, sub-

keV measurements.

Used for Auger Electron

XAFS. Structural studies

on chemical compounds.

Studies included

catalysis, electrolysis,

and in-situ reduction of

oxides.

Sub-msec time resolved

WAXS for polymer

industries and

bio-molecules.

500x10^6 photon/s

global detection rate.

High count rate X-ray

fluorescence on dilute

chemical and biological

compounds.

193

11

12

13

14

15

Development

Earlier versions:

Interaction with

Canberra. Later

versions:

Collaboration

with Ortec

(Perkin Elmer).

Collaboration

with Ortec

(Perkin Elmer).

In-house at DL.

In-house at RAL.

In-house at DL.

SR DetectorSystems

Multi-element

Ge detectors

(various

formats) (7 off)

CTRAIN Ge

detectors (3 off)

Ion chamber

readout

Multichannel

CD detector

XSTRIP

Collaborativeinvolvement

Earlier versions:

Marketed by

Canberra19. Later

versions: Marketed

by Ortec EG&G,

(now Perkin

Elmer)20.

Marketed by Ortec

EG&G (now Perkin

Elmer)20.

Marketed by

Quantum

Detectors.

None or not

known.

Marketed by

Quantum

Detectors.

Notes

Worlds first 30 element

Ge detector.

First European use of 13

element Ge for XAFS

shaped use of these on

all SR sources.

World’s first performance

SR monolithic multi-

element Ge detectors

Ultra low noise

techniques.

Replicated on all SR

around the world.

Developed for flow cell

use.

Worlds fastest dispersive

XAFS detector. Used

extensively on ID24 at

ESRF.Developed using

novel high speed

technology to deliver

superb time resolution in

X-ray and associated one

dimensional

spectroscopic

applications.

Science/Applications

High count rate X-ray

fluorescence on dilute

chemical and biological

compounds: particularly

useful for archaeological

and heritage science.

High count rate X-ray

fluorescence on dilute

chemical and biological

compounds: particularly

useful for archaeological

and heritage science.

A compact, low cost,

high resolution and low

noise charge

measurement system

easily interfaced to the

majority of commercial

ion chambers.

Circular dichroism (CD)

on molecular structures.

Used for dispersive XAFS.

Structural studies on

chemical compounds

(chemical industries). This

detector system uncovers

phenomena previously

hidden within science,

equally capable of

providing unprecedented

throughput in industrial

process monitoring

applications.

194

16

17

18

19

20

Development

In-house at DL in

collaboration

with Lawrence

Berkeley

National

Laboratory,

California,

USA 20.

Developed under

UK research

funding, in-house

at DL..

In-house at DL.

In-house at DL.

In-house at DL.

SR DetectorSystems

XH (XSTRIP Ge)

DAIRS (IR array)

detection

system

Photodiode

array detector

Beamstop

intensity

monitoring for

NCD

ULTRA detector

system

Collaborativeinvolvement

Commercially

interesting

Marketed by

Quantum

Detectors.

Of interest to

Soleil.

Discussions

underway. Great

interest for ALICE

(ERLP) use.

Marketed by

Quantum

Detectors.

None or not

known.

None or not

known.

Marketed by

Quantum

Detectors.

Notes

XSTRIP for higher

energies.

Built for higher X-ray

energy uses on 9.3, ID24

(ESRF) and I20 (Diamond).

Built for use on BL11 at

SRS. Yielding frame rates

of typically 10KHz. Its

parallel readout array,

achieves more than two

orders of magnitude

performance increase.

Use of photo diodes.

Formed basis for many

systems around the

world.

The ULTRA system was

conceived to provide the

UK with a world leading

photon research facility.

Science/Applications

Used for dispersive XAFS

structural studies on

chemical compounds.

For infrared

microspectroscopy

allowing exploration into

cancer precursors in

human cells. Infrared

imaging in a variety of

scientific and industrial

applications.

Powder diffraction,

dispersive XAFS on

chemical compounds.

SR beam intensity

monitoring.

Allow the high

repetition, (10kHz) ultra

intense LASER pulses to

be exploited in the

analysis of dynamic

sample phenomena.

195

Appendix 15

Companies which provided quality engineeringsystems for the SRS

Technology

Vacuum chambers, bellows,accelerator components

Precision SR Instrumentationdesign and manufacture

OpticsMirrors and monochromator crystals

Nanometer positioningDigital piezo translator devices

Direct drive torque motors

Precision rotary tables

Rotary and linear encoding

Air BearingsUsed as part of precision instruments

monochromators, PX goniometry and

high speed choppers

Motion ControlFor precision positioning devices on

accelerators and beamlines

Company

VG scienta - http://www.thermovacgen.com/home.htmK J Lesker - http://www.lesker.com/newweb/index.cfmNTE Vacuum Technology - http://www.ntepoole.co.uk/CVT - http://www.cvt.ltd.uk/Palatine Precision - http://www.palatineprecision.co.uk/

Oxford Danfysik - http://www.oxford-danfysik.com/Instrument Design Technology - http://www.idtnet.co.uk/

Crystal Scientific - http://www.crystal-scientific.com/

Queensgate Instruments - http://www.nanopositioning.com/

ETEL - http://www.etel.ch/

Huber - http://www.xhuber.de/enFranke - http://www.franke-gmbh.de/en1/Newport Micrcontrole - http://www.newport.com

Heidenhain - http://www.heidenhain.co.uk/

Fluid Film Devices - http://www.fluidfilmdevices.co.uk/

Mclennan Servo Supplies Ltd. - http://www.mclennan.co.uk/Micromech Ltd - http://www.micromech.co.uk/

196

Technology

Synthetic Granite base structuresfor optical devices.Highly rigid, self-damping and providing

the most mechanically and thermally

stable optical platform for mirror and

monochromator systems.

Structural steelwork andprecision machining.Girders for supporting magnet and

vacuum chambers accelerators

Radiation protection X-rayhutches and Pb shielding

Light engineering, CNCmachining and fabrication.Including custom designed and build

experimental tables 1st used on the SRS

and now used on other SR facilities

CNC Precision machining, EDMwire eroding

Company

Granitek Precision Granite Castings - http://www.granitek.co.uk/

Priory Engineering - http://www.prioryengineering.co.uk/

Fabcast Engineering Ltd - www.fabcast.com

TSW Engineers Ltd (Formally Willaston Engineering Co)- http://www.tswengineers.co.uk/

LVW Senar Ltd - http://www.senar.co.uk/

An example of European investment at the SRS is illustrated in the case study below –

197

Appendix 16

European Investment in SRS

Dutch investment on Beamline 8

Nederlandse Organisatie voor ZuiverWetenschappelijk Ondersoek (NWO, formerlyZWO) the Dutch Organisation for Pure ScientificResearch, was early in recognising the usefulnessof the Daresbury SRS. ZWO researchers hadidentified the need for synchrotron experiments,but had no access to a synchrotron in theNetherlands, and the ESRF was not yet running.Their own plans for a synchrotron in theNetherlands had not come to fruition, so theresearchers looked to the UK for access to thedesired techniques.

From the early 1980s, the ZWO researchersworked with the station manager, to design,procure and build Beamline 8. They developed 8.1for EXAFS and 8.2 for SAXS while 8.3 (and itsadjunct 8.4) was used for test and development.The arrangement was that ZWO would fund theconstruction and staffing of these lines, though inpractice they were partly staffed by UK nationalsrather than Dutch researchers. At that time therewere just five beamlines in existence on the SRS,so a sixth one, funded by the Dutch, wassignificant.

The detailed design and construction of thebeamlines was overseen by TPD, the TechnicalUniversity of Delft. Line 8.1 was used byresearchers for X-ray spectroscopy investigatingmaterials as diverse as toothpaste andmeteorites, for example. An important researcharea was the field of catalysis, investigatingcatalyst properties under real operatingconditions. The ability to maintain a high vacuum

close to the sample meant that materialscontaining elements with softer absorption edgessuch as calcium-containing materials could bestudied. Other experiments were focused ondilute metallo-proteins such as transferrin. Mostof the research was academic, though a portionwas industrial.

Line 8.2 was initially designed for small anglescattering measurements of biological materialsbut in the late 1980s, researchers, including TonyRyan (now Sheffield) and Neville Greaves (nowAberystwyth) combined Small Angle X-rayScattering with wide angle X-ray diffraction toinvestigate the properties of polymers. This was afirst, but the capability to combine techniqueswas built into subsequent designs.

Those beamlines were retained by Daresburyafter the initial research finished, though theywere technically owned by ZWO and could betaken back at any time. The Dutch then becameinvolved in the ESRF through their partnershipwith the Belgian government in the DUBBEL CRG,and their activity moved to the ESRF. Beamlines 8lasted for more than 20 years, closing only in2007. The throughput on these lines was of theorder of 40 research groups per year.

The X-ray monochromator used on 8.1 wasdesigned in a collaboration between TPD, ZWOand Daresbury Laboratory. It was the firstprecision-engineered, UHV-compatible, ‘bentcrystal’ double crystal monochromator in theworld. The design was a predecessor of thesystem which became successful in commercial aswell as engineering terms: over ten years, about

198

17 monochromators were sold worldwide,each typically selling for £120K to £150K.

The longevity and intensity of this co-operative arrangement led to considerableeconomic benefit to the area and to the siteitself. Some of the benefits have beenestimated as follows:

• 20 – 25 man years residence atDaresbury, with benefits for localeconomy (600 nights per year for15 years).

• Funding of an electron microscopeand superconducting magnet inaddition to the beamline.

• Around 600 publications in scientificjournals; citation analysis suggeststhat at least 60 of these are veryheavily cited “super-publications” and200 are heavily cited.

• Industrial work on catalysts andpolymers was carried out, but itsbenefits are not recorded.

The following facilities and businesses located ontothe Daresbury Laboratory site over the lifetime ofthe SRS –

Co-located facilitiesHPCx

HPCx205, the UK's national high-performancecomputing service until January 2010, was fundedthrough the UK High End Computing Programmeand was managed by a consortium led by theUniversity of Edinburgh, together with the STFC andIBM. HPCx was Europe’s largest academic computer,one of the world’s most advanced high performancecomputing centres and was located within theSTFC’s Computational Science and EngineeringDepartment. A terascale computer like HPCx wasimmensely powerful. The computing capacityprovided by the HPCx service was used to examinescientific problems in ways previously unavailable.HPCx was sited at the Daresbury Laboratory due tothe computational support that was centred at theDaresbury Laboratory and because of the machineroom facility which now houses the computer. Theexperience of running HPCx has allowed the STFC’sComputational Science and Engineering Departmentto be a key partner in the UK’s next generationnational supercomputing service, HECToR206.

The National Centre for Electron Spectroscopyand Surface Science

The Research Unit in Surfaces, Transforms andInterfaces (RUSTI) was set up at the DaresburyLaboratory in 1993 as a collaboration between ICIand the SERC. Restructuring at the Daresbury

Laboratory had meant that space, staff andequipment were utilised to set up the new facility –

The facility, now called the National Centre forElectron Spectroscopy and Surface Science208

(NCESS) utilises X-ray photoelectron spectroscopyand brings together industry and academia toaddress problems in materials science, surfacescience and engineering. Collaborative researchprogrammes with industry and the academiccommunity have been set up for targeted researchareas, ranging from studies of polymers andcomposites through to ceramics, semiconductors,metals and novel materials.

The UK SuperSTEM facility

A great part of scientific and engineering progressdepends on relating microscopic structure tomacroscopic behaviour. The SuperSTEM209 facility atthe Daresbury Laboratory is a unique nationalfacility allows UK scientists to do this on a hithertoimpossibly fine scale. The facility houses the thirdaberration-corrected Scanning Transmission ElectronMicroscope (STEM) in the world and the first inEurope. The project was funded by the EPSRC in2001 and the team consists of scientists from the

199

Appendix 17

Co-located facilities and businesses

205 www.hpcx.ac.uk/206 http://www.hector.ac.uk/207 www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/abstract/109744992/ABSTRACT208 www.dl.ac.uk/NCESS/209 www.superstem.com

“both space and people at Daresburyalongside the excellent Synchrotron RadiationFacility and support infrastructure includingmost importantly the computational modellingteams.207”

Universities of Liverpool, Leeds, Cambridge andGlasgow and the Daresbury Laboratory. The reasonsfor siting the facility at the Daresbury Laboratorywere two fold – the stability of the bedrock wasessential for the demands of the facility. In addition,there was a great synergy with SRS experimentaltechniques such as X-ray absorption spectroscopytechniques. Indeed the initial proposal for thefacility was entitled “A synchrotron in amicroscope” and several SRS staff developed thescientific and technology case in collaboration withthe HEI community.

Medium Energy Ion Scattering Facility

The Medium Energy Ion Scattering (MEIS) Facility isoperated at the Daresbury Laboratory by the STFCas a central user facility for the benefit of UK HEIresearchers and industry. Although at least twouniversities had submitted bids to EPSRC to host thefacility, the availability of relevant expertise andequipment at the Daresbury Laboratory was a majorreason for locating MEIS there. Indeed, kit from theclosed Nuclear Structure Facility at the DaresburyLaboratory was re-used in the building of thefacility.

Tenants at Daresbury LaboratoryIn addition to other scientific facilities co-locatingat the Daresbury Laboratory, several SMEs alsolocated onto the site –

Faraday Foresight NW

The first industrial tenants at the DaresburyLaboratory were Faraday Foresight NW who workedprincipally with regional organisations, industry andacademia. The company located to the DaresburyLaboratory due to involvement with severaltechnologies being developed at the SRS and theComputing Science and Engineering Group at thetime. Staff involved in Faraday Foresight NW werepioneers of the LIGA technique on the SRS (seechapter 11).

Nimtech

Nimtech210 was one of the early tenants on the site.The company was formed in the mid 1980s todisseminate technology from large companies, suchas Pilkington and BNFL, to smaller companies in theNorth West region. Nimtech has now evolved intoan economic development organisation, withassociated skills such as marketing and consultancy.Though no longer at Daresbury Laboratory, theorganisation found the site to be a mostadvantageous site for its launch and early years.

North West Business Leadership Team

The North West Business Leadership Team(NWBLT)211 took up residence on the Daresbury sitein August 2000. It was formed in 1989, as a groupof the most influential business leaders in the NorthWest. Their remit is to address key strategic issuesaffecting the well-being of the region and itspeople. Membership is by invitation of the Chairmanand is normally restricted to senior board membersof major public companies in the North West. Theirapproach is to act as a strategic, business-led think-tank focusing on a small number of key projects.

Atmos Technologies

Atmos Technologies213 has developed uniqueradiation detectors robust enough for demandingapplications. For example, the detectors can beproduced in sizes large enough to be fixed to theoutsides of decommissioned nuclear reactors, givingwarning of leakage. Similarly they can be used tomonitor radioactive waste in storage or the spreadof contamination in the water. A spin-out fromSalford University in the 1990s, its detectors can beused in several applications, for example anti-

200

210 www.nimtech.org.uk211 www.nwblt.com212 Prof Colin Whitehouse, Director of Campus Strategy, STFC213 www.stfc.ac.uk/PMC/PRel/STFC/Atmos.aspx

“Atmos Technologies have been able to makethis important breakthrough in detectortechnology thanks to working closely withstaff at STFC Daresbury Laboratory.212”

terrorism, environmental monitoring, water testingand food testing. The detectors can also be appliedto medical and food irradiation as well as thepolymerisation of rubbers and plastics. Staff at theDaresbury Laboratory have worked with AtmosTechnologies to develop their capabilities.

The technology is currently in an advanced stage ofdevelopment and Atmos is working with partnerssuch as Liverpool Ventures, NESTA and theNorthwest Development Agency. AtmosTechnologies is now seeking partners to licence thetechnology to manufacture the radiation detectorsfor commercial exploitation.

CXR Ltd

The current breed of airport scanning machines givesecurity staff a flat, one-dimensional view of thecontents of a bag. Research carried out by CXR Ltduses multiple X-ray sources to provide morecomprehensive 3D images of suitcases and baggage.Although hospital-style CT scanners have beenadapted on a small-scale for baggage scanning, thesystem is too slow to be widely used in airports. Thetechnology developed by CXR Ltd is faster becauseit uses switched multiple X-ray sources.

CXR Ltd, currently located at the DaresburyLaboratory, is a research subsidiary of RapiscanSystems214, a manufacturer of airport securityscanners. CXR Ltd were initially attracted to theLaboratory due to their requirement for cleaning ofUltra High Vacuum components which was met bythe STFC’s SuperClean service (see chapter 10). TheSTFC and CXR Ltd have been able to expand theirrelationship - STFC staff from both the DaresburyLaboratory and the Rutherford Appleton Laboratoryhave been working with CXR Ltd on several aspectsof their X-ray based security products. Therelationship has proved fruitful with CXR scannersnow undergoing trials at Manchester Airport.

Institute of Physics

The North West Regional Officer for the Institute ofPhysics moved into the Cockcroft Institute215 in2007 and gave the following information on whythe IoP have set up an office in the Institute –

201

214 www.rapiscansystems.com/index.html215 www.cockcroft.ac.uk/

“This was due to its location near to the largecommunity of physicists at the DaresburyLaboratory, many of whom are activelyinvolved with the Institute through bothbranches and subject groups. There havealways been strong links between DaresburyLaboratory and the IoP’s Merseyside branch,with the Daresbury Laboratory hosting branchevents each year. The relationships with all themajor North West universities, especiallythrough the establishment of the CockcroftInstitute, make the Daresbury Laboratory afocal point for physics in the region.

The Daresbury Laboratory and wider Campus isalso a centre of interaction for two otherimportant communities in the North West, andthe links with these have been invaluable.Firstly, the work on public engagement is ofthe highest quality, and the public lecturesalways well attended. Through links on site,speakers from the Daresbury Laboratory havevolunteered to give talks to groups around theregion.

The second important area is knowledgetransfer – both through the physicalestablishment of the Incubator, and thenetworks based there, including the verypopular monthly breakfast meetings. This hasenabled the IoP Regional Officer to meet bothsmall businesses and other stakeholders in theregion, and a number of useful discussionshave resulted.”

202

Glossary

204

205

Glossary

Term Meaning

ALBA A synchrotron radiation facility in Cerdanyola del Vallès, near Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

ALICE Accelerators and Lasers in Combined Experiments, located in Daresbury, UK

ALS The Advanced Light Source (ALS) at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in Berkeley,California is a synchrotron light source

ANKA The synchrotron light source of the Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe, providing light fromhard X-rays to the far-infrared for research and technology (Germany)

ASTeC The Accelerator Science and Technology Centre (ASTeC) was created by CCLRC in 2001 asa Centre of Excellence for study of the production, acceleration and delivery of chargedparticle beams

ATC The UK Astronomy Technology Centre

ATP Adenosine triphosphate

BASROC The British Accelerator Science and Radiation Oncology Consortium

BBSRC Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) is a UK Research Counciland non-departmental public bodysupporting several scientific research institutes anduniversity research departments in the UK

BESSY The Berliner Elektronenspeicherring-Gesellschaft für Synchrotronstrahlung m. b. H.(English: Berlin Electron Storage Ring Society for Synchrotron Radiation), abbreviatedBESSY, is a research establishment in the Adlershof district of Berlin

BNFL British Nuclear Fuels Limited (BNFL) is a private company owned by the UK Governmentthrough the Department for Business Innovation and Skills

BRIDION BRIDION is indicated for the reversal of neuromuscular blockade in children andadolescents

CAMAC Computer Automated Measurement And Control (CAMAC) is a standard bus for Dataacquisition and control used in nuclear and particle physics experiments and inindustry

206

Term Meaning

CAMD The Centre for Advanced Microstructures and Devices. CAMD is a high-tech synchrotronresearch centre located in Louisiana, USA

CCLRC The Council for the Central Laboratory of the Research Councils (CCLRC) was a UKgovernment body that carried out civil research in science and engineering

CCP's Collaborative Computational Projects

CERN The European Organization for Nuclear Research (French: Organisation Européenne pour la Recherche Nucléaire), known as CERN, is the world's largest particle physicslaboratory, situated in the northwest suburbs of Geneva on the Franco–Swiss border,established in 1954

CONFORM Construction of a Nonscaling FFag for Oncology, Research, and Medicine

CSED The Computational Science and Engineering Department is a department within theScience and Technology Facilities Council

DARTS The Daresbury Analytical Research and Technical Service

DBIS Department of Business Innovation and Skills. STFC’s parent Government Departmentfrom July 2009

DEFRA The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) is the governmentdepartment responsible for environmental protection, food production and standards,agriculture, fisheries and rural communities in the United Kingdom

DESY The DESY (Deutsches Elektronen Synchrotron,"German Electron Synchrotron") is the biggest German research center for particle physics, with sites in Hamburg andZeuthen

DIUS Department for Innovation Universities and Skills STFC’s parent Government Departmentup to July 2009

DNA Deoxyribonucleic acid

EI Economic Impact

ELETTRA ELETTRA Synchrotron Light Laboratory is a national synchrotron laboratory located inBasovizza on the outskirts of Trieste, Italy

EMMA The Electron Machine with Many Applications (EMMA) is a project at Daresbury Laboratoryin the UK

EPSRC The main UK government agency for funding research and training in engineering and thephysical sciences

207

Term Meaning

ESA European Space Agency

ESRF European Synchrotron Radiation Facility

EU European Union

EXAFS Extended X-Ray Absorption Fine Structure

FEL Free electron laser

FFAG Fixed-field alternating-gradient

FMDV The Foot and Mouth Disease Virus

GDP Gross Domestic Product

GeV Giga electron volt (109 eV)

GMR Giant magnetoresistance, (a quantum mechanical magnetoresistance effect)

HA Haemaglutinin, a protein

HEIs Higher Education Institutes

HSIC The Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, located in Oxfordshire

IDT Instrument Design Technology

ILL The Institut Laue-Langevin, or ILL, is an internationally-financed scientific facility, situatedin Grenoble, France

INTAS The International Association for the promotion of co-operation with scientists from theNew Independent States of the former Soviet Union (NIS)

ISIS A pulsed neutron and muon source situated at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory inOxfordshire

ITAC The STFC Innovations Technology Access Centre

JANET The Joint Academic NETwork is a private British government-funded computer networkdedicated to education and research

JASRI Japan Synchrotron Radiation Research Institute

JET JET, the Joint European Torus, is the largest human-made magnetic confinement plasmaphysics experiment currently in operation

JUAS The Joint Universities Accelerator Schools

208

Term Meaning

LIGA Based in Geneva, LIGA is a German acronym for Lithographie, Galvanoformung, Abformug (Lithography, Electroplating, and Molding) that describes a fabricationtechnology used to create high-aspect-ratio microstructures

MND Motor Neurone Disease

MRC Medical Research Council

MWPC Multi-wire proportional chambers

NERC Natural Environment Research Council

NINA National Institute Northern Accelerator

NWDA The Northwest Regional Development Agency

NS-FFAG Non Scaling FIxed Field Alternating Gradient

NSLS The National Synchrotron Light Source at Brookhaven National Laboratory inNew York, is a national user research facility

ONS The Office for National Statistics (ONS) is the executive office of the UK StatisticsAuthority, a non-ministerial department which reports directly to the Parliament of theUnited Kingdom

PAMELA The Particle Accelerator for MEdicaL Applications – proposed to be constructed at theChurchill Hospital in Oxford

PETRA PETRA III will be a new high-brilliance synchrotron radiation source on the DESY site inHamburg-Bahrenfeld, Germany

PPARC The Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council (or PPARC) was one of a number ofResearch Councils in the United Kingdom

PUSET Public understanding of science, engineering and technology

PX Protein Crystallography

RCs The United Kingdom’s Research Councils

RDAs Research and Development Agencies

RF Radio-frequency

RIKEN RIKEN is a large natural sciences research institute in Japan

SAXS Small Angle X-ray Scattering

209

Term Meaning

SEAs Science and Engineering Ambassadors Programme is a flagship programme run by the Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths Network

SERC The Science and Engineering Research Council (SERC) used to be the UK agency in chargeof publicly funded scientific and engineering research activities including astronomy,biotechnology and biological sciences, space research and particle physics

SESAME The international Centre for Synchrotron-light for Experimental Science and Applicationsin the Middle East

SIC Science and Innovation Campus

SMEs Small and medium enterprises

SOD Superoxide Dismutase

SPRU Science Policy Research Unit (University of Sussex)

SR Synchrotron Radiation

SRF Synchrotron Radiation Facility

SRS Synchrotron Radiation Source

STEM The science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields

STFC The Science and Technology Facilities Council

UHV Ultra high vacuum (UHV) is the vacuum regime characterised by pressures lower thanabout 107 pascal or 100 nanopascals (109 mbar, ~109 torr)

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is aspecialized agency of the United Nations

VUV eXtreme UltraViolet radiation

XAS X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy

XRD X-ray diffraction

210

Acknowledgements

212

This report has been compiled after considerableinput from many sources, both within the STFC andfrom external stakeholders including thesynchrotron radiation user community andindustrial partners.

Many STFC staff have been involved in this reportincluding numerous staff from the DaresburyLaboratory, particularly former SRS and associatedsupport staff whose knowledge of the facility wasinvaluable in writing this report.

A special acknowledgment goes to the followingpeople –

Dr Liz Towns Andrews (former Director ofInnovation, STFC),

Dr Pat Ridley (Former Associate Director SRS),

Professor Ian Munro (Former Director SRS),

Dr Sarah Galbraith (Galbraith Muir Consultancy),

Dr Frank Cave (Lancaster University),

Professor John Helliwell (Manchester University),

Dr Tracy Turner (STFC, Former Associate Director SRS),

Professor Neil Marks (Head of Post-graduateEducation, Cockcroft Institute),

Dr Graham Bushnell-Wye (Senior Manager, STFCPhoton Science Department),

Professor Mike Poole (Former Director ASTeC),

Tony Buckley (STFC Communications Department),

Stuart Eyres (Daresbury Laboratory Media Services,STFC),

Dr Elizabeth Shotton (Diamond Light Source Ltd),

Professor Richard Joyner (Former BP),

Professor Richard Oldman (Former ICI),

Dr Michael Begg (Tesla Engineering),

Dr David Wilcox (Former e2v),

Richard Davies (CVT Ltd),

Dr J.B.West (Former senior SRS scientist),

Professor Dave Stuart (University of Oxford),

Professor Tony Ryan (Sheffield University),

Professor Keith Meek (Cardiff University),

Professor Samar Hasnain (University of Liverpool),

Ian Tickle (Astex Therapeutics Ltd),

Paul Murray (IDT),

Jeffery Boardman (Atmos Technologies),

Professor Philip Withers (Manchester University),

Professor Russell Morris, (St Andrews University),

Dr Wim Bras (ESRF).

Contact details:

Claire DouganInnovation & Impact ManagerScience and Technology Facilities Council The UK Astronomy Technology Centre Royal Observatory Blackford Hill Edinburgh, EH9 3HJ

Tel: 0131 6688367

www.stfc.ac.uk

213

Acknowledgements

Published 2010 Produced by JRS Document Solutions

214

Science and Technology Facilities Council

Science and Technology Facilities Council, Polaris House, North Star Avenue, Swindon, SN2 1SZT: +44(0)1793 442000 F: +(0)1793 442002 E: publications@stfc.ac.uk

www.scitech.ac.uk

Head Office: Science and Technology Facilities Council, Polaris House, North Star Avenue, Swindon, SN2 1SZEstablishments at: Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Oxfordshire; Daresbury Laboratory, Cheshire;UK Astronomy Technology Centre, Edinburgh; Chilbolton Observatory, Hampshire; Issac Newton Group, La Palma; Joint Astronomy Centre, Hawaii.

Science & TechnologyFacilities Council