The formal launch of the LANCS Initiative was held at The Institution of Engineering and Technology in London on Wednesday 20 May. Hosted by Lancaster University’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor Paul Wellings, the event was attended by 145 national and international academic guests and representatives of UK industry and government (including British Airways, Royal Bank of Scotland, Unilever, Brawn Formula One Racing Team, Transport for London, HM Revenue and Customs and the Home Office).

The LANCS Initiative is a collaboration between four of the UK’s leading universities in Operational Research (OR) – Lancaster, Nottingham, Cardiff and Southampton. The consortium brings together the complementary perspectives of mathematics, computer science and management science. The Initiative is led by Kevin Glazebrook, Distinguished Professor in Operational Research and member of the Scientific Committee of the KTN. The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and the four participating institutions are funding the £13 million Initiative for five years (2008 to 2013).

The central goal of the LANCS Initiative is the delivery of a significant expansion of the national research base in foundational OR. This will be achieved by an extensive programme of academic recruitment and training and through the establishment of networks of leading edge collaborative research centred on the OR groups at the four universities. The Knowledge Transfer Network for Industrial Mathematics is supporting an industrial outreach strategy, thereby ensuring that research outcomes are effectively communicated to users.