Corporate responsibility report 2004 - Tata Steel

Communities
industry and education. The primary
purpose of this is to encourage
interest in, and enthusiasm for,
the study of materials science
and its application in engineering,
manufacturing and technology-based
industries. The activities in which
we are involved include developing
learning materials, providing
sponsorship and scholarships,
awarding prizes and grants, and
utilising the imagery and usage of
steel to explain key concepts and
learning points. Our support can vary
from helping young children with
literacy and numeracy, to explaining
forces and motion to college students.
In the UK, we sponsor teachers as
well as student prizes in material
science subject areas in association
with, among others, the Armourers
and Brasiers Livery Company, the
Institute of Physics and the University
of York’s Science Education and
Research Department. We have also
sponsored the regional finals of the
highly successful Formula 1, which
is a schools’ competition that provides
a computer aided design and
manufacturing challenge for 11 to 16
year old students to design, produce
and race their own Formula 1 racing car.
In addition to our involvement in
national industry/education initiatives,
we have extensive connections with
our local schools and communities.
In the UK, much of this work is done
via employees becoming accredited
Science Engineering Ambassadors
and through partnership arrangements
with local Education Business
Partnership Networks.
The successful Engineering Doctorate
scheme in Wales celebrated its tenth
anniversary in September 2004. The
scheme forms a unique partnership
between the University of Wales, the
Engineering and Physical Sciences
Research Council and Corus. With
this initiative we have given leading
graduates, who aspire to key positions
in industry, the opportunity to gain
experience in technical and engineering
disciplines at Corus while pursuing
doctorate research studies.
Case study
UK Steel Enterprise
Established in 1975, UK Steel
Enterprise, which is a subsidiary of
Corus, has invested over £50m (€75m)
in new and expanding businesses in
steel areas and over £20m (€30m)
in managed workspaces. We have
supported over 4,000 small businesses
and helped create 65,000 new jobs.
Our approach is designed also to
support the acquisition of funding
from other sources and the £50m UK
Steel Enterprise funding has leveraged
an additional £300m (€450m) of
investment from the public and
private sectors.
A good example is the Ebbw Vale
Innovation Centre in South Wales.
In the short term, the centre will lead
to the creation of 220 jobs, and in
the longer run will be a catalyst for
the growth of spin-off companies
with the accent on technology
and innovation.
The centre has been designed with the
regeneration plan for the area in mind,
and UK Steel Enterprise has worked
closely with Blaenau Gwent County
Borough and the Welsh Development
Agency throughout the project.
16 Corporate responsibility report