NCC | Composites and Engineering | National Composites Centre

About the NCC

The National Composites Centre (NCC) is an independent, open-access technology centre delivering world-class research and development of composites. As part of the UK’s Catapult Network, we offer our partners access to the latest technology, provide technical expertise and the business support they need to overcome barriers to innovation and accelerate their growth.

What we do

Aerospace

Defence & Space

Composites for Future Energy

Surface Transport

Supporting SMEs across sectors

Latest news

News

Space West Newsletter - March 2025

27 Mar 2025

Welcome to the March 2025 edition of our Space West Newsletter. With each newsletter, we aim to share the most recent discoveries, advancements, and stories from the world of Space in the South West.
Space West welcomes OHB Space’s decision to launch UK subsidiary

19 Mar 2025

Space West is delighted to welcome OHB Space’s decision to establish a new subsidiary in the UK. As one of Europe’s leading space technology groups this expansion is a major boost for the South West and strenghtens the UK’s growing space sector.
ASCEND consortium successfully complete cross-sector programme, transforming high-rate manufacturing

19 Mar 2025

NCC shares the successful completion of the ASCEND programme, positioning the UK industry at the forefront of advanced, sustainable technologies for next-generation aircraft and future mobility solutions.
New sustainability paper: Future strategies for decarbonisation of carbon fibre products

05 Mar 2025

A new paper from the NCC sustainability team has been published in the Journal of Cleaner Production. Funded by SusWIND, it interrogates future strategies to identify a clear roadmap for carbon fibre decarbonisation.
Key milestone reached for UK's new carbon fibre development lines

27 Feb 2025

NCC (National Composites Centre) has announced the completion of the design phase for the UK’s new carbon fibre development lines. Watch a new 3D animation to take a closer look.

Events

Colorado Springs, CO USA
Read more about Space Symposium 2025

Space Symposium 2025

07 - 10 Apr 2025

Rebecca Huffee, Space West Cluster Manager will be at the Space Symposium in Colorado Springs with the South West Space Partnership. They are on a mission to showcase the incredible potential of the South West of England as the ultimate launchpad for Space business.
Humanities Complex, the University of Bristol
Read more about Bristol Composites Institute PGR (Post Graduate Research) Symposium

Bristol Composites Institute PGR (Post Graduate Research) Symposium

08 Apr 2025

The annual Bristol Composites Institute PGR (Post Graduate Research) Symposium will take place on Tuesday 8 April. We’re especially pleased that Dr Konstantina Kanari, Advanced Research Engineer at NCC is delivering one of the keynote speeches.
University of Warwick
Read more about ICMAC 2025

ICMAC 2025

09 - 10 Apr 2025

Michael Petty, Advanced Research Engineer at NCC, will be presenting at ICMAC 2025. Hear how NCC innovations are advancing automated manufacturing applications for recycled carbon fibre.

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Training

Read more about Hydrogen Awareness Modules

Hydrogen Awareness Modules

The seven centres that make up the High Value Manufacturing Catapult (HVM Catapult) have come together to create 'Hydrogen awareness: make it; move it; use it’, a series of open access online modules for all manufacturing sectors.
Read more about Introduction to Design for Composites

Introduction to Design for Composites

This course will give you an understanding of the requirements that are important to consider in the composites world, along with a series of tools and techniques that will enable you to create robust concept designs for every new project you undertake.
Read more about Introduction to Composite Materials

Introduction to Composite Materials

In this foundation level course we'll introduce you to the terminology, the materials, their properties & the production processes used in the composites industry.