Major investment boost for robotics at Salford

The Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) Industrial Strategy Zone is investing £3.5m into the Northern England Engineering and Robotics Innovation Centre (NERIC) at the University of Salford.

The funding will enable NERIC to help boost the region’s economy through greater use of technology to drive efficiencies in SMEs across the region.

NERIC is a purpose-built centre, part of the Crescent Innovation Zone in Salford, that supports academic and industrial collaboration in areas such as robotics, advanced manufacturing, functional materials, microtechnology, intelligent sensing, and autonomous systems.  Over a 4-year period, this funding will enable NERIC to support Greater Manchester based small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to improve their operations and reach their growth potential.

A special NERIC Connect event acted as an incubator for these activities. Held on September 30, the event brought SMEs and business leaders from across the city region to NERIC so that they could meet the staff, experience the state-of-the-art facilities and explore the benefits of working with the centre.

Nikki Ronan, Director of Operations at NERIC, said: “This is an exciting time – this new funding, secured until 2029, allows us to continue our work to support Greater Manchester businesses and extend our support for companies across a wide range of sectors to adopt advanced manufacturing techniques and processes.  It enhances our commercial and R&D offering across the North West and beyond.”

NERIC is also pleased to announce Professor Maziar Nezhad as Director.  Professor Nezhad takes on this role in addition to his position as Chair of Nanophotonics and Microsystems Engineering in the School of Science, Engineering and Environment (SEE) at the University of Salford.  NERIC, through its Research England funding, has co-funded with SEE a £400,000 investment in a new Microfabrication laboratory, which is scheduled to open in Autumn 2025.

Professor Mike Wood, Associate Dean for Research and Innovation (SEE) said “I am delighted to welcome Maziar to the academic team at NERIC.  It is a fantastic opportunity for us to turn Salford’s long history of engineering and robotics research into practical application and innovation through NERIC’s commercial links.  Maziar’s expertise in nanotechnology sits at the interface between advanced materials and advanced manufacturing, exemplifying the impactful applied research that is core to our work within GMCA and beyond.”

Previously known as the North of England Robotics Innovation Centre, NERIC rebranded in September 2025.

Professor Maziar Nezhad, Director of NERIC commented: “We are moving toward embracing a wider remit as NERIC grows and evolves, the change in our name reflects more accurately the work we currently undertake and plan to undertake in the future.  NERIC is entering an exciting stage in its evolution and I am looking forward to increasing my involvement with current work and shaping our research strategy.”

Full details about the £160m investment from GMCA in Advanced Materials and Manufacturing can be found here:  Investment Zone Prospectus.