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UTILITY WEEK | 22ND - 28TH APRIL 2016 | 19 Operations & Assets However, despite the many areas of cross- over, it is perhaps the culture of the space and aerospace industry from which utilities have the most to learn. Oxford Flow techni- cal director Tom Povey used his research into turbines, jet engines and ramjets at Oxford university to help develop a new type of pressure regulator for both liquids and gases, and tells Utility Week "it's more to do with the mindset" than just technology transfer. He said that in the space and aerospace sectors, innovation is their "bread and but- ter", and that it is standard industry practice to come up with "wacky ideas" and to take innovation risks. This drives new engineer- ing solutions, some of which do not come to fruition for ten years or more. Aviation giants Airbus and Boeing share this long- term thinking, oen planning decades in advance for their new commercial jets and technologies. Povey says part of the different attitude to innovation between utilities and aerospace comes from the fact that there are "working products that satisfy most demands" for the energy and water companies. Space and aer- ospace companies meanwhile are constantly addressing new challenges. He acknowledges that utilities operate in a very different business environment to companies working in the space and aero- space sectors. Utilities face far more political pressure, for example when it comes to keep- ing down bills, and their freedom to invest is oen constrained by regulations. However, Povey insists that utilities could do better if they were slightly braver and embraced new technologies. Working closely with aerospace could open the door to these innovative technologies, with less develop- ment and cost risk being placed on them. £29bn The turnover of Britain's aero- space sector in 2014 according to industry body ADS. £11bn The equivalent figure for the space sector in the UK. 450 The number of patents and patent applications in the European Space Agency's portfolio. They cover a wide range of technologies from antennae and communication equipment to detectors and power supplies. €100bn The cost of designing, building and running the international space station over the nearly three decade long timeframe for the programme. 9.8% The UK space sector's spending on research and development as a percentage of its Gross Value Added (GVA) according to London Economics. 1.1% The percentage of GVA spent on research and development in the wider British economy. Take risks Wacky ideas tend to be avoided by utilities, in favour of ensuring safe and reliable supplies to customers. In aerospace, "wacky" ideas can lead to innovations which have significant improvements in the longer term. Long term thinking The aerospace industry is oen planning ten years down the line. The innovation ideas can take a decade or more to move from the draw- ing board, through the development process, and finally into commercial operation. "We are very used to coming up with innovative systems for improving engines; very used to filing patents; coming up with wacky ideas that ten years down the line translate into improved engine products. You just don't see that kind of innovation normally in the utilities world." Professor Tom Povey, technical director, Oxford Flow CASE STUDIES Oxford Flow Oxford Flow is a developer of engineering products based on indus- trial applications of gas or fluid flow. The company was spun out of Oxford University in 2015. The knowledge that technical director professor Tom Povey gained in the research and development of tur- bines, jet engines and ramjets has been harnessed to deliver a major innovation in pressure regulation/pressure reducing valve technology. Boeing: solar PV Aviation giant Boeing, via its fully-owned innovation subsidiary Spectrolab, has been working on improving the efficiency of solar photovoltaic panels. The work, which has been supported by the US Department of Energy and the US Air Force, has seen Boeing's engineers develop solar panels capable of converting more than 40 per cent of solar energy into electricity. This compares with the industry average of 12-18 per cent. The high-efficiency multijunction solar cells are used for airborne searchlights and concentrated photovoltaic and spacecraft power systems. To date, Spectrolab's solar cells have helped power more than 600 satellites and interplanetary missions since 1956, including the world's first all-electric–propulsion satellite, the Boeing 702SP. Airbus: fuel cells Airbus is advancing a wide range of technologies that have significant environmental benefits, including the use of fuel cells to power an airliner's cabin and systems. Such fuel cells produce electricity in a cleaner, more efficient way than combustion engines. In addition, water – one of only three by-products, along with heat and oxygen-depleted air – can be used for the aircraft's water and waste system, saving weight and therefore reducing fuel consumption and emissions. Airbus: wind generation The aviation manufacturer runs biennial innovation competition, Fly Your Ideas, organised in partnership with Unesco, which challenges students to innovate for the future of aviation. In 2011, Team Wings of Phoenix came up with a suggestion of a ground-based wind power generation system that exploits the wakes of aircraft generated during take-off and landing. ESA: loop heat pipes Loop heat pipes (LHPs) are described as "the most promising technology" using synergies between space and terrestrial applications. The ESA is currently funding the development and flight experiments of: high-performance LHPs; LHP-based deployable radiators; miniaturised LHPs; lowering and raising the LHP operating temperature range; and a flat LHP evaporator (instead of the classical cylindrical shape). Key numbers