Shaping the future of offshore wind

Our mission: To identify opportunities to innovate and collaborate in offshore wind, to find solutions for the challenges we face from technical and operational to economic and societal, working as a facilitator and catalyst to provide ground-breaking solutions with our partners - for the region, the UK and globally.

How we work

Collaboration is the cornerstone of Aura’s work. To deliver our mission we engage with academia, industry, NGOs, and national and local government. Focusing on five foundations set out in the Industrial Strategy to identify and break down technical, operational and economic barriers across the supply chain to deliver a cleaner world, a healthier economy and a better future.

These are the areas:

Ideas

Business Environment

Place

Infrastructure

People

A POWERFUL CONSORTIUM WITH PURPOSE AND AIMS

We’re continuously identifying opportunities to innovate and collaborate in offshore wind and low-carbon energy across the UK. At Aura, we work together to turn innovative ideas into game-changing reality.

We’re working towards these aims:

Develop the first 'advanced' offshore wind cluster in the uk

Power a strong, talented and diverse future workforce

Retain the UK's leadership in the world for offshore wind and meet CO2 reduction targets

Deliver pioneering solutions and outstanding innovation

Advisory Board

Aura’s advisory board includes senior representatives from industry, local government and NGOs. Meeting three times a year, the Group’s main remit is to provide advice, guidance and challenge on the direction for the Steering Groups and the Aura team.

A GROWING BRAND FAMILY

Since our inception in 2015, Aura has evolved and grown from strength to strength, adding the Innovation Centre and the Centre for Doctoral Training to the Aura brand family.

Led by the University of Hull, we’re proud to have launched a number of ground-breaking initiatives to drive the continuous innovation of the renewable energy sector.

AURA

A powerful consortium driving collaboration, pioneering ideas and outstanding innovation of the offshore wind sector.

AIC

Accelerating carbon-reducing business ideas into viable solutions.

CDT

Designed to attract exceptional graduates to the offshore wind industry through funded PhD scholarships.

OWL

Our Offshore Wind Library is a cutting-edge online tool that streamlines access to expert offshore wind related research to create that crucial competitive edge.

Aura timeline

2015

2015

Aura established​

2016

2016

Siemens Gamesa Blade Factory opens

  • Briefing of Minister for Climate Change and Industry - Rt Hon Nick Hurd MP

2017

2017

£7.6m EPSRC funding bid win with partner universities

  • Signed deal with ORE Catapult for Operations Centre of Excellence
  • Green Port Growth funding of £2.5m awarded towards the construction and fit-out of the Aura Innovation Centre.

2018

2018

£4m ERDF funding award secured to build the Aura Innovation Centre (AIC)​

  • £5m ORE Supergen Hub funding in OSW​
  • Skills & Labour study published​

2019

2019

Aura identified as an exemplar in the Offshore Wind Industrial Strategy

  • EPSRC Aura Centre for Doctoral Training (CDT) funding rewarded​
  • First cohort of students for Aura CDT​
  • Aura leading Humber Advanced Cluster​
  • Aura Innovation Centre building complete​
  • Contract signed with Rhode Island to export expertise

2019

Partner with Siemens Gamesa

  • Aura partner with Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy to offer UK first offshore wind degree apprenticeships​

2020

2020

AIC opening and launch​

  • First SME innovation projects delivered through AIC