Brian McMath introduced our guest speaker Professor Jim Metson - Strategic Advisor Newmarket Campus at the University of Auckland.

 

Professor Metson was co-founder of the Research Centre for Surface and Materials Science and of the Light Metals Research Centre and was a founding member of New Zealand’s MacDiarmid Institute for Materials Science and Nanotechnology. He has also led the University’s engagement with university networks such as the Worldwide Universities Network (WUN) and the Association of Pacific Rim Universities (APRU).

 

He has worked extensively with international industry, particularly in aluminium reduction technology, gas dry-scrubbing, and alumina refining and is a recognised authority on industrial aluminas and environmental performance of smelters. This has led into an interest in global materials futures and decarbonisation pathways for major industries.

 

Professor Metson spoke to us about the Newmarket Innovation Precinct which occupies the area, formerly the Lion Breweries brewery. on Kyhber Pass which was purchased by the University of Auckland in 2013.

 

The site contains a number of refurbished and repurposed brewery buildings which accomodate a multitude of facilities, including industrial-scale equipment such as a wind tunnel, which allows design strength and performance testing for anything from architecture to drone flight, flumes to simulate the effects of turbulent water on infrastructure, advanced materials and additive manufacturing laboratories, a roading laboratory and Australasia’s largest seismic testing facility. An impressive nine-metre tall ‘strong wall’ allows structural integrity testing during earthquake simulations, mimicking the impact of earthquakes on buildings up to three storeys tall. Jim commented that there was an impressive pile of broken bits of building outside the testing faciltiy testament to the destructive urges of its staff.

 

The site is well located being close to other university campus’s, schools, the newmarket commercial centre, transport including motorways, bus routes, the railway system and wlking and cycling networks. All this enables the precinct to engage with the city, the wider Auckland region.

 

NIP also provides a service to help navigate the complicated logistics of research and development, such as accessing funding and IP generation and enabling access to physical infrastructure, including world-class research facilities and co-location office space.

The newmarket innovation precinct is valuable addition the cities innovative activities.

 

Jims presentation was very interesting especially the links between the precinct other elements of the University and the Newmarket community.