HRH The Prince of Wales visits NCC – for a closer look at UK innovation
We were pleased to welcome His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales to NCC as part of the University of Bristol’s showcase of research and innovation across the region.
The visit focused on how academic research, advanced digital infrastructure and hands-on engineering expertise come together at NCC to solve real industrial problems - delivering cleaner, smarter, and more competitive technologies for the UK.
From research to application
At NCC, His Royal Highness was shown how we take scientific research and apply it directly to real-world engineering challenges.
We shared how our teams are working on the next generation of lightweight composite structures for cleaner aircraft, new manufacturing methods for future wind turbine blades, and technologies that will support industrial scale-up in key UK sectors.
Our role is to bridge the gap between what’s possible in theory and what’s viable in practice - so UK companies can move faster, reduce risk, and compete globally.
Hosting one of the UK’s most powerful supercomputers
The Prince also saw Isambard-AI, one of the UK’s most powerful supercomputers, which is hosted at NCC in partnership with the University of Bristol.
Isambard-AI is already supporting breakthrough research in climate modelling, drug development and health resilience - enabling work that couldn’t be done before.
What makes it unique is its direct connection to UK industry - companies can now access high-performance computing for product development, materials design and manufacturing optimisation, with expert support from our team.
Performance engineering at every scale
We were also proud to welcome Paralympic champion Emma Wiggs MBE during the visit.
Emma’s custom-built carbon fibre paracanoe seat - developed at NCC - was designed to optimise her stroke power and stability in the boat. It helped support her gold and silver medal performance at the Paris Paralympics.
For us, this is a good example of what applied engineering can do. Whether it’s a high-performance component for aerospace, wind, sport or defence - the principles are the same - understand the challenge, engineer the solution, and deliver what works.
Supporting UK competitiveness
The visit was a valuable opportunity to show how organisations like NCC can accelerate the UK’s innovation capability. By connecting academic research, industrial strategy, and engineering delivery under one roof, we help companies turn ideas into action.
From advanced materials and digital tools, to skills, standards and scale-up - NCC provides the infrastructure and expertise needed to get complex technologies into real industrial use, faster.
Thank you to everyone who supported the visit and to our engineers, researchers and partners whose work is helping build a stronger, more resilient UK economy.