express magazine october 2010

OctOber 2010 | Issue 9

unI On a budget

The cheap and free ways to

get

the most out of lif

e at Brunel

Meet the n

ew

students’ unIOn

Introducing President Priya and the team

unlOck yOur pOtentIal

Staff: find out what th

e newly launched

Staff Development programme can offer you

Building Brunel

A look at the sto

ries and the history behind

the campus’s distin

ctive architecture

CreditsExpress is available to read on our website at: www.brunel.ac.uk/ news/express

We’d love to hear from you with ideas for news items, stories or features, as well as any feedback. Please email your ideas or comments to [email protected]

Editor Jo Dooher Tel: ext 65154 Email: [email protected]

Assistant Editor Emma Filtness

Photography Sally Trussler Neil Graveney

Print Brunel University Press

Brunel express | issue 9 |

p3-7

news roundup

p8-9

Meet the new uBS team!

p10-13

Building BrunelA look at the stories and the history behind Brunel’s distinctive architecture.

p14-15

unlocking staff potentialStaff: find out what the newly launched Staff Development programme can offer you.

p16-17

Brunel on a budgetThe cheapest ways to get the most out of life at Brunel.

p18-19

news

back cover

inferno Fireworks night

75

P10

P8

P18

P16

An innovative Brunel research project is set to develop creative new ways to encourage each of us to reduce our energy use outside the home.

The EMPOWER project, a collaboration between Brunel Design, the University of Warwick and the sustainable innovation organisation More Associates, aims to get to the root of how and why we use energy in workplaces, schools and hospitals through a series of interactive design workshops. The findings from these workshops will help the project team to develop products that make it easier for both individuals and businesses to change their behaviour and collectively reduce their energy use.

Benefits for businesses include financial savings and a reduction in CO2 emissions, as well as a more user-friendly work environment for building users. The resulting products will also be integrated into More Associate’s existing CarbonCulture tool, an initiative that helps government departments to save energy and carbon.

The two-year, £580K project is funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), the Technology Strategy Board and More Associates, with Brunel’s Professor David Harrison and PhD student Dan Lockton leading the Brunel arm of the research.

Dan explained the potential impact of the project outcomes: “The product will give people a new kind of interface showing how their actions affect energy use, helping people to understand how to act more sustainably in the workplace.” He added, “The product will be commercially available and especially suited to organisations with lots of staff and large energy bills – especially universities.”

research project to unearth how good design can cut our energy use

PCC launch graduate job vacancies iPhone app

The Placement and Careers Centre (PCC) has launched the University’s first mobile phone app, aimed at students looking for a graduate career.

The ‘Brunel PCC’ app is for any Brunel student or graduate

looking for graduate training schemes and current vacancies.

Feedback on the PCC’s Facebook page has already been really

positive: “OMG this app is amazing, thanks for being so up to

date and making our lives easier. Cheers.” “Great job, I really

like the idea of apps for mobiles made by uni.

I hope Brunel will introduce more apps like that.”

The app is currently only available to iPhone users, but

the Android and Blackberry versions will be available

by the end of October.

“It’s great to be able to make life easier for our students

and graduates”, said Jane Standley, Director of Careers and

Student Employability. “We’ve advertised more vacancies

than ever this year and would encourage students to take

the media hype about the recession with a very large pinch

of salt. You do have to work at making good applications,

but the PCC offers plenty of support including email advice

and telephone appointments. Make the most of it.”


The Students’ Union have also launched a mobile UBS app! See P9 for details.

Two medals for Perri in european Championships

Brunel Sport Sciences student Perri Shakes-Drayton took a huge step towards Olympic glory this summer when she bagged two medals at the European Athletics Championships in Barcelona.

The 21-year-old sports scholar smashed her

personal best in the final of the 400 metres

hurdles to claim a bronze medal. Her time of

54.18s ranked her 6th in the world in 2010

and makes her a real London 2012 medal

prospect. But the hurdles medal was not

her only success in the Catalan capital. Perri

also anchored the GB 4x400 metres relay

team to a bronze medal with a blistering leg

of 49.7s, the second fastest in the race.

Speaking just before the start of term Perri

reflected on the summer and her future

prospects. “Going into Barcelona I wanted

to make the final so I was amazed with the

medal, but I’m not getting carried away,” she

said. “I’m going to continue what I’ve been

doing and put in the hard work over the

winter. I aim to make the final of the World

Championships [in Daegu, South Korea] next

year, but I’m not planning for London 2012

just yet – let’s get 2011 out of the way first!”

Archie, who graduated in 1996 with

a degree in Management Studies,

picked up the award for Outstanding

Supporting Actress in a Drama Series

this September and was elated to win.

“When I started in the business in

England, just getting a job was a

dream,” she said. “To receive an Emmy

now is just beyond my wildest dreams.

This is just amazing for my career –

thank you so much!”

This is not Archie’s first critically

acclaimed role. She first made a name

for herself in the British hit films East is

East and Bend it Like Beckham, before

picking up Hollywood roles in the

Oscar-winning The Constant Gardener

and starring alongside Angelina Jolie in

A Mighty Heart.

Graduate archie Panjabi wins us emmyBrunel graduate and actress Archie

Panjabi has won an emmy for her role

as private investigator Kalinda Sharma

in the hit uS drama, The Good Wife.


Brunel trio win 100m relay Commonwealth gold

Three Brunel graduates won gold medals at the Delhi Commonwealth Games in Delhi when they all competed as teammates in the 4x100m relay final.

Graduates Montell Douglas, Laura Turner

and Abi Oyepitan, along with fellow

sprinter Katherine Endacott, put in assured

performances in the women’s 100m relay

to finish with a time of 44.19s, over one

second ahead of silver medallists Ghana.

“This has been an amazing championships

and that lap of honour was great,” said

Oypeitan, who had also won a Commonwealth

silver medal in the 200m. “I really wanted to

come out and win this one so I’m so happy

for all of the girls. I was so nervous because

I haven’t done relay for about six years.

“These Games have been incredible and

going home with two medals is amazing.”

But the trio were not the only Brunel graduates

to win medals in the relays. Sport Sciences

graduate Nick Leavey anchored the second

leg of the 4x400m to claim a bronze medal,

finishing behind Australia and Kenya.

Pictured, from left to right:

Abi Oyepitan, Katherine Endacott,

Montell Douglas, Laura Turner


news in brief


NEw BrUNEl wEBSiTE GOES livE!

The new Brunel University

website is now live, following

months of planning,

consultation and build work.

The first phase of the launch

included the following sections:

• Externalhomepage

• Improvedundergraduateand

postgraduate course pages,

plus a new course finder

• ArevampedNews

and Events section

• CampusLifesection

• AboutBrunelsection

• SchoolpagesfortheSchool

of Information Systems,

Computing and Mathematics

You are encouraged to provide

feedback on the changes

via the online form on the

new site (link available on

the external homepage).

More content will go live on

the new website before the

end of the year, including

the Research, Business and

Brunel International sections,

as well as new pages for the

Placement and Careers Centre.

A larger article on further

developments with the new site,

as well as training opportunities,

will appear in the next issue

of Express (December 2010).

If you have any questions,

please contact the Web

Project Manager, Gareth Jones.

[email protected]

DESiGN iS BEST iN UK ACCOrDiNG TO ThE Sunday TimeS

Brunel University is ranked

number one for Design in the

UK in the recent 2011 Sunday

Times University Guide. One of

the largest and most successful

design departments in the

UK, this top ranking comes

after achieving an impressive

score of 85 per cent for overall

student satisfaction in the 2010

National Student Survey.

Design also made the top 10

of every other University Guide

ranking this year, reaching

third place in The Guardian,

fifth place in The Independent

and sixth in The Times.

STUDENT wiNS firST BPMA DESiGN iNNOvATiON AwArD

First year Product Design

student Andrea Pisa has

won the British Promotional

Merchandise Association (BPMA)

Design Innovation Award for

her innovative solution for

safeguarding your personal

belongings from pickpockets.

Andrea designed an easy to use

lock for bags and backpacks that

requires two hands to open it,

thus deterring most opportunist

thieves. Andrea, who won £1,000

for her design, said: “Winning

the competition was definitely

an honour but most of all it was

encouraging to me in the early

stages of my design career”.

ChANGE Of ANGliCAN ChAPlAiN

At the end of July Brunel

said a fond farewell to our

Anglican Chaplain, the Revd

Charles Sargent, who had

worked here for the past six

years. Charles made a lasting

impression, with his gentle

and calm influence and his

passion for cookery. He enjoyed

offering hospitality to others

and especially encouraging

students and staff to learn to

cook. He has asked that his

very best wishes be passed on

to those to whom he did not

get a chance to say goodbye.

Charles is now living in Cornwall,

and is busy enjoying life. We

wish Charles well for the

future in all that he does.

Our new Anglican Chaplain,

Revd Patrick Morrow, will join

us in February 2011. At present

he divides his time between

his London parish and working

at King’s College London.


NOw yOU CAN GET MArriED AT BrUNEl!

The University is now licensed

to hold Civil Marriage and

Civil Partnership ceremonies

in the hospitality suites of

the Hamilton Centre. Meera

Dattani in Catering

and Hospitality

will handle

any wedding

enquiries.

meera.dattani@

brunel.ac.uk

PCC AwArDS firST BATCh Of PlACEMENT BUrSAriES – PlUS MOrE AvAilABlE!

The Placement and Careers

Centre (PCC) can now offer

bursaries to students looking

for unpaid work placements.

While many sandwich placement

students do receive a salary,

positions in professions like law,

finance, IT and new media are

often unpaid, making it difficult

for students to take advantage

of the invaluable skills and

experience that placements offer.

To combat this, the PCC have so

far helped 67 students whose

financial circumstances would

otherwise have restricted them

from taking their placement.

A further 20 bursaries of £1,000

will be available to students for

the coming 2010/11 academic

year. Students who wish to apply

for a bursary should submit a

400-word bid outlining why

they need the funding, what

they believe they will get from

the placement and how they

will be able to share their

learning with fellow students.

For more information on the

bursaries, contact Michelle Kavan,

Deputy Director (Placements):

[email protected]

fArEwEll TO Mr ShArMA AND ThE MACE CAMPUS ShOP TEAM

Mr Sharma, the manager

of the MACE campus store,

will be closing his shop for

the final time at the end of

October 2010. Mr Sharma and

his team have run the store

for the last 21 years and have

provided an essential service for

thousands of the University’s

staff and students. We wish

him all the best in the future.

The future for the shop

Once the shop is vacated the

University will investigate the

drainage that runs below the

shop, which partially collapsed

last summer. It is likely that

essential repair work will need

to be carried out and, if this

is the case, there could be

a three to four month

period beginning

in November

when Brunel will

not be able to

use the current

main campus

shop. In this

scenario, other campus

outlets will work hard to

cover the services currently

provided in the MACE store.

Further information about the

situation will be available in

the middle of November. Please

check IntraBrunel for details.

BrUNEl CONfErENCE SErviCES AwArDED MiA SilvEr ACCrEDiTATiON

Brunel Conference Services were

awarded Silver Accreditation

by the Meetings Industry

Association (MIA) for their

commitment to delivering a

high standard of service. “I am

so proud of the Conference

Team as without their dedication

and contribution we couldn’t

achieve this”, said William

Lindsay, Conference Operations

Manager. “Awards like this

really motivate the team and

encourage us to strive further”


A hello from Priya

hi, i’m Priya your Union President; it’s great to welcome students new and

returning to Brunel 2010. for those who don’t know me, i am a law graduate

and have been here for five years – two of those as an elected student officer.

As your President my role is to represent your views, wishes and aspirations to the University.

I spend much of my time engaging with students and working with the University to

try and improve your student experience.

I am part of a team of four Student Officers who are annually elected in a cross-campus ballot. Our

primary role and aspiration is to ensure the Union is the voice of students in all aspects of University life, encompassing academic, social and welfare matters, and to ensure that every student is free to develop

within, and enjoy every aspect of, student life.

If at any point during your time here you feel as though we are not working towards

our aspiration, please contact us. After all, we are run by student for students!

Meet Priya


Meet the teamThE fUll-TiME OffiCErS

UBS President .......................... Priya Pallan

vice-President Academic representation ........................ Sam Middlewood

vice-President Community welfare ................ Avina Patel

vice-President Student Activities .................................. Joel Brasher Jones

ThE PArT-TiME ChAirS

Sports federation Chair .......... Lisa Eastlake

Societies Guild Chair ............... Shola Aminu

rAG Chair ................................. Stephan Archer

Media Chair ............................. Tom Scott

Campaigns Chair ..................... Martin Zaranyika

Equality and Diversity Chair ......................... Nicholas Olfare

Environmental Chair ............... Will Armstrong

Want to know more about our team? Visit www.brunelstudents.com/

yourunion

AND the UBS team

ThE MiNi MANifESTOThe Union has some big plans for the year ahead. here are just a few of them.

your wellbeing We’ll be organising multiple wellbeing campaigns including drug and alcohol awareness, sexual health and guidance, Fairtrade and healthy eating, as well as fitness and stress.

Tutoring We will be working with the University to try and enhance the personal tutoring system and improve assessment feedback.

Nurturing sport A joint Union and University Sports Strategy will outline Brunel’s key sporting objectives for the next five years.

Communicating with you We will be beginning a major research exercise to look at our communications and accessibility and your feedback will be essential. Watch this space….

whAT yOU CAN lOOK fOrwArD TOhighlight events for 2010/11 include:

Autumn Elections Get involved in the Union by becoming an elected representative. For more info check out www.brunelstudents.com/elections

fairtrade fortnight The fortnight raises awareness throughout the University about the benefits of developing a Brunel Fairtrade culture.

One world week One of the biggest events in our calendar, we work with the University to celebrate Brunel’s rich diversity of cultures.

fACE festivalThe Festival of Awareness and Creative Expression (FACE) is a week-long music festival in the centre of campus supported by the School of Arts and delivered by you to celebrate the end of the academic year. It’s not to be missed!

GET ThE UBS MOBilE PhONE APPOur phone app will help you keep up-to-date with what’s happening in your Union.

features:• AllthelatestnewsfortheUnion,University

and nationally, and what’s on in the local area

• InteractivecampusmapwithGPSlocation

• Directoryofstudentreps,sports clubs and societies

• SpecialElectioncoverage,includinginfoonthecandidates and how to vote, where and when

• LatestphotogalleriesandLeNurb

• AdvicefactsheetsandliveARCappointments booking

Get yours now for the Android, Blackberry and the iPhone. www.brunelstudents.com/app

From L-R: Sam, Avina, Priya and Joel

Brunel has had a string of famous names officially open its buildings, including TV presenter Melvyn Bragg, Princess Anne, actor Steven Berkoff and, most memorably, the Queen.

The campus was designed to promote interaction between students of all disciplines by grouping teaching and social facilities in communal buildings – a surprisingly unusual approach for a university.


Brunel opened up its campus this September for the exhibition Building Brunel, part of the larger Open Cities London festival. Express takes

a look at the stories and history behind our buildings and the architecture that makes our campus so distinctive.

Building Brunel:The ChAnging FACe oF The univerSiTy


BeFore And... ...AFTer

Although its roots go back to 1928, what we now call Brunel University was established in 1966. The plot of land earmarked for the new Uxbridge campus was a weed-ridden patch of scrubland that, before the building work began, the architect described as a ‘bloody awful site’.

The core of the campus – the lecture centre, refectory, Howell building, etc – was mostly in place by the mid-1970s. It wasn’t until the early part of the 21st century that Brunel really revved up its building programme, beginning its ‘Masterplan’ – a 10-year, £250 million regeneration project that gave the campus, amongst other developments, the Indoor Athletics Centre, the Mary Seacole building and heaps of new accommodation.

The campus has come a long way since its 1960s beginnings. Don’t believe us? Then take a look at these ‘before and after’ shots.

The CAMPuS originS

The green open squares between the buildings were designed so staff and students could “appreciate more fully the visual achievements of our architects.”

The C

on

cou

rseA

erial view

The Q

uad

Op

en Sp

aces

The original campus was created by the architect Sir Richard Sheppard, who also designed parts of Leicester, Loughborough and Cambridge universities.

The Lecture Centre is reportedly built back to front. Those looming external stairwells that face the Quad were designed to cast striking shadows and patterns as the sun passed through the sky – an effect that’s somewhat lost as that would only work on the other end of the building.


lecture Centre

Probably the most divisive building on campus, time has done little to soften its impact on the senses. The Centre, a textbook example of the ‘Brutalist’ architecture movement, was made internationally famous when Stanley Kubrick chose it as the setting for scenes in his dystopian masterpiece, A Clockwork Orange.

Brutalism is a modernist architectural movement that characterised new buildings from the ‘50s to the ‘70s. The rather unflattering name for the style was not, however, derived from the brutal look of the architecture but from the term Béton Brut, meaning ‘raw concrete’. Concrete gave architects a new freedom to ‘sculpt’ their buildings into previously impossible shapes. Unfortunately, the public generally did not share the architects’ enthusiasm, branding much of their work bleak or downright unpleasant.

Yet a certain level of respect and admiration for the style is growing. The renovation of London’s National Film Theatre and Southbank Centre has transformed what were considered eyesores into statements of modernity. So, while brutalist buildings – including the ones on our own campus – may never be considered pretty, it might yet be possible for us to at least appreciate their honest ugliness.

WhAT iS BruTAliSM?

The indoor Athletics Centre (iAC)

The IAC marked a significant point in the University’s development as a sporting institution. Having world-class training facilities at the heart of the campus helped Brunel to be firmly recognised as a centre of excellence for sport – especially athletics – and placed Brunel on a par with Loughborough and Bath.


While the next decade of campus development won’t be quite as dramatic as the last, there will still be some significant changes. The new Eastern Gateway building – with its 400-seater auditorium, art gallery and café – is under construction and is due in 2012. Design work is also underway for the new ‘Meeting House’ which will be a multi-faith/community centre. If approved it could be in place by 2012/13.

The remaining focus for the next few years will be to update, renovate and repair our older buildings

– especially the Central Lecture Block (CLB) and the Hamilton building. Initial plans are also being developed for the Howell Centre and the Engineering Towers. Along with the CLB and the older parts of the Library, the Towers have been locally listed by the Local Authority because of their architectural interest. This may constrain our options either to renovate and extend the existing structures, or to demolish them and build new facilities from scratch. If either option gets the go-ahead and the necessary funding, work won’t start until towards the end of this decade.

The FuTure: WhAT hAPPenS nexT?

Brunel’S deFiniTive BuildingS

howell Centre

The Howell initially had an open-air quad in the centre and didn’t even have a ground floor – it was actually on stilts. The centre and ground floor were filled in during the ‘90s when the University needed to expand its teaching space.

Engineering Towers

‘The Towers’ aimed to unite all the University’s engineering disciplines through a series of interconnected workshops, labs and teaching rooms. The layout was considered a success, but their appearance was not universally loved – one disgruntled member of the public was so startled by the building plans that he wrote to complain to a national magazine: “The plan amazed and shocked me. [It] might come in handy for a new open prison or it might interest a tycoon in the battery-hen line.”

The Bannerman Centre / library

The Library building is a 50/50 split of old and new: the 1970s original build just wasn’t big enough to house what the rocketing student population needed, and so it was doubled in 2004. But the extension didn’t just have educational benefits – it’s hard to imagine how staff and students survived before Café Rococo opened.

Browse workshops, book online or add your name to a workshop waiting list https://moss.brunel.ac.uk/SiteDirectory/staffdev/


unlocking your potentialAfter a year of trials, planning and consulting, the

Staff development team launched their all-new course

programme this September. Find out what Staff

development can now do for your career development.

NEw COUrSES Mot

ivat

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your

tea

m

Proj

ect

co-o

rdin

atio

n

Chan

ge

man

agem

ent

Del

egat

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Act

ive

lis

teni

ng

Browse workshops, book online or add your name to a workshop waiting list https://moss.brunel.ac.uk/SiteDirectory/staffdev/


Net

wor

king

sk

ills

Cultu

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awar

enes

s

Ado

be

Illus

trat

or

Pres

enta

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skill

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linic

Stre

ss

man

agem

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Inte

rvie

w

skill

s

wE ASKED.

yOU rESPONDED.

wE liSTENED.

With the help of staff across

campus we have been working

hard over the last year

transforming Staff Development

into a service that can meet

both your personal and your

professional development needs.

The new programme has tripled

the University’s training and

development opportunities and,

from early next year, you will also

have access to a suite of online

learning workshops – so you can

develop the skills you need in your

own time and at your own pace.

And, to help you identify what

training is right for you, training

opportunities are now grouped

into the following themes:

General Management

Line Management

People Management

Team Brunel

Well-being

Career Support and

Development

Leadership Development

Equality and Diversity

Health and Safety

Technology

Communication Skills

Data Management

Personal Effectiveness

whAT ElSE?

As well as designing the new

programme, we’ve been working

on several other projects, including:

• developing and implementing

ASPIRE: Brunel University’s

Leadership Development

Programme;

• reviewing and redesigning how

we manage the performance

and the development of

professional, administrative

and technical staff;

• updating the academic

appraisal form for lecturers

and senior lecturers;

• redesigning the staff

development website;

• Revamping the main staff

training room (JC126) to

ensure you have a comfortable

learning experience.

We will be assessing carefully

how well the new programme

meets your needs over the coming

year. Plus, we will be rolling

out the new Performance and

Development Review scheme

for the Resource and Operations

teams, and working on how we

support the induction of new and

returning staff, ensuring a smooth

transition into their role, their

immediate working environment

and the Brunel community.

ThANK yOU fOr hElPiNG US MAKE ThiS hAPPEN

Of course, we wouldn’t be able to

report so much activity if it hadn’t

been for the overwhelming support

and encouragement of staff from

across campus – so thanks for

helping us make this happen.


Managing your student budget can be tough, but limited finances

don’t mean you have to fill your spare time just with watching

daytime Tv. Stretch your loan further this year with these cheap and

free offers and really make the most out of your student years.

1. liBErATE yOUr iNNEr ArTiST Brunel’s

well-established Arts Centre runs all kinds

of art classes – from singing and stage

combat to jewellery making

and pottery throwing. Each

one is free for students,

save for a small annual

membership fee (£18)

and occasionally some

materials costs. Visit www.

brunel.ac.uk/artscentre

2. SwiM iN AN OlyMPiC POOl fOr UNDEr £1

With student concessions available, you can

take a dip at the local Hillingdon leisure

complex

for as little

as 70p

off-peak.

There’s

even a

Grade II

listed lido

(outdoor

pool) for the warmer months, a gym

and great range of fitness classes.

More info: www.bit.ly/UxbSwim.

3. TOP TiPS fOr lONDON ON ThE ChEAP

There are plenty of websites out there

dedicated to helping you make the most

of London on a budget. Check out www.

youngandpoor.co.uk and sign up for

their weekly newsletter covering the

best cheap and free things to see, do

and eat in the Capital. www.timeout.

com is also an invaluable source of

information, whatever you’re interested in.

4. GET lOCAl PrivilEGES If you’re living on

campus or in the local Borough, don’t miss

out on the free Hillingdon First Privilege

card, which

gets you

10% off

your bills at

local haunts

Auberge,

Nonna

Rosa, Gino’s

and Giardino, as well as discounts

at fitness centres, opticians and

hairdressers. Sign up online:

http://hillingdonfirst.hillingdon.gov.uk/

10 ways to enjoy brunel on a budget


5. CATCh A frEE CONCErT ON CAMPUS A

small and unassuming recital room at the

top of the Lecture Centre just happens

to host some of the biggest names in

jazz and classical music, who come to

take part in Brunel’s lunchtime concert

series. Best of all, concerts are free and

anyone can come along. Check out the

calendar at www.brunel.ac.uk/artscentre

6. COUNTrySiDE ON OUr DOOrSTEP A little-

known local attraction for Brunel students

– yet definitely one of the prettiest – is the

picturesque Grand Union Canal and Little

Britain Lakes, about 10-15 minutes’ walk

from the edge of campus.

Take a leisurely stroll along

the waterways and stop at

one or two of the excellent

pubs or restaurants on

the way. Check out the

pedestrian route: www.

bit.ly/Uni2Lakes

7. DON’T lEAvE

hOME wiThOUT

yOUr NUS CArD

NUS Extra is

one of the best

student perks

around. For £11

a year you can

get discounts at places like the Odeon,

Amazon, McDonalds, Topshop and Pizza

Hut. If you haven’t got yours already,

pick one up from the Students’ Union.

8. UNiON MArKET DAy Eat healthily and

save ££s on your weekly shop at the

popular Unifruit market, every Tuesday

during term-time in the Students’ Union.

This year Unifruit will also be joined by

stalls for secondhand books, clothes,

jewellery, sweets and accessories.

9. rElAx iN ThE BiCENTENAry GArDENS

Escape the noise and distractions

of everyday uni life and head to

the Bicentenary wildlife reserve on

the southern edge of campus (near

Faraday Halls). A great spot for a

picnic without having to travel far.

10. lONDON iS

yOUr OySTEr

An Oyster Card

is an essential

piece of plastic

if you ever use

London transport

and don’t

want to pay through the nose for it. For

example, an Oyster card would save you

nearly £2.90 on the standard cost of paper

tickets for a journey from Uxbridge to

London (one bus fare and one tube fare).

Cards cost £3 deposit and can be bought

and topped up at stations, online or

even in the campus shop. Plus, get a

£5 Oyster student card if you need to

buy travelcards for 7 days or longer – it

will save you an extra 30% on all your

Oyster journeys. www.tfl.gov.uk

hire a car on campus from £3.95 an hour


Do you need a car for a trip to the shops, to pick up a friend, or to get across town? Students and staff can once again take advantage of the Hertz Connect Car Club – based right here on campus – and its fleet of pay-as-you-go vehicles. Now in its second year, the Club is incredibly simple to use and allows you to hire a car at any time of the day or night for as little as £3.95 an hour.

Becoming a member is straightforward – all you need to do is:

1. Sign up to the Car Club* (FREE for a limited time)

2. Book a car on the phone, web or your iPhone app for a minimum of one hour – minutes, days or weeks in advance

3. Pick up your car! (and return it when you’re done, of course)

At Brunel you can choose from a Fiat 500 (£3.95ph), Ford Focus Econetic (£5.95), Alfa Romeo MiTo (£6.95), or Mini Cooper D (£6.95)**. Once you’ve signed up and received your Connect Card you can start hiring the cars as little or as much as you want. All the cars can be found parked next to the campus Medical Centre.

Hire rates are fully inclusive and include insurance, tax, the London congestion charge and your first 30 miles of fuel.

* Members must be at least 19 years old.

** Drivers under 21 are charged an

additional hourly surcharge of £2

JOiN NOw fOr frEE!

For a limited time membership is FREE (normally £50 a year). Just quote the promotion code 1085 online or over the phone when signing up. It takes just a few minutes to enrol. What do you have to lose?

Visit www.connectbyhertz.com or call 08708 45 45 45

Brunel nominated for The ‘entrepreneurial university of the year’ Award

Brunel has been shortlisted for the prestigious Times Higher education (THe) ‘Entrepreneurial University of the year’ Award 2010. The nomination is a testament to how successfully the University has integrated enterprise and entrepreneurship into its teaching, research and business activities over the last few years.

Brunel has had major success with its in-house companies, such as RCCS (Residential, Catering and Conference Services), which now has an annual turnover of £20 million, and its strategic business partnerships, including deals with Jaguar-Land-Rover (£9 million) and TWI (£2 million). Staff can also take advantage of generous cash awards for staff enterprise.

However, student development is at the heart of Brunel’s entrepreneurial culture. This year an entrepreneur-in-residence and a network of graduate entrepreneurs were appointed to mentor our students. Students can also take advantage of the annual Brunel ‘Dragon’s Den’ competition, the regular, high-profile networking events, or the expertise of the University’s commercialisation experts to help develop their ideas. They can even join the Brunel Entrepreneurs student society, the largest and one of the most dynamic societies on campus.

The ThE awards ceremony will take place in london on 25 November.

CErN, the European Organisation for Nuclear research, visited the University for its annual CErN School of Computing, this August. This is the fi rst time CErN has chosen a UK university as a base for its world-renowned summer school for nearly 20 years.

“We are very proud to have been chosen to collaborate in the organisation of this summer school”, said Dr Liliana Teodorescu, a particle physicist in the School of Engineering and Design and chair of the summer school’s local organising committee. “Co-organising the school was a great opportunity to enhance Brunel’s international profi le by strengthening our relationship with CERN and through the messages carried forward by the 51 international participants”.

Special guest speaker at the opening of the school was CERN’s Director of Research and Scientifi c Computing, Dr Sergio Bertolucci (pictured below). Since Dr Bertolucci took the helm at CERN in 2008, he has presided over the successful start-up of the world’s biggest particle accelerator, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), in Geneva. Using the LHC, researchers hope to recreate the conditions of the Universe moments after the Big Bang.

“The LHC is probably the biggest and most complex scientifi c enterprise ever undertaken by humanity,” Dr Bertolucci explained. “It could open up a new era of discoveries. Supersymmetry, if it exists, is probably the fi rst thing we’ll discover – maybe even this year. We might also discover extra dimensions and open up black or even white holes. If we achieve this it would fundamentally change our perception of the world.”

Brunel has had extensive involvement with the LHC for over a decade. A team of School of Engineering and Design researchers collaborated on the design, prototyping and construction of the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS), one of the LHC’s particle physics detectors that, amongst other things, is searching for the elusive Higgs Boson particle. With the CMS now yielding exciting results, the Brunel team of researchers will continue to play an important role in

analysing and understanding the new discoveries.

want to know more about the lhC? visit CErN’s useful guide www.bit.ly/CErN_lhC

Cern Summer School visits Brunel


Brunel launches £9M liMe research Centre

The University offi cially opened the £9 million liquid Metals Engineering (liME) innovative Manufacturing Centre on 25 September. This is Brunel’s second EPSrC-sponsored innovative Manufacturing Centre (the other is MATCh, led by Professor Terry young) and will be led by Engineering and Design Professor Zhongyun fan.

The Centre will bolster the UK’s fl agging metals industry by developing advanced technologies for reuse, remanufacture and recycling of secondary metals.

Professor Fan explained: “We aim to develop manufacturing technologies that cut carbon emissions by millions of tonnes, reduce energy use by trillions of kilowatt-hours and save millions of tonnes of natural resources over the coming years

– without jeopardising effi cient production of high quality metallic materials.”

Pro-Vice-Chancellor Professor Geoff Rodgers added: “The launch of LiME positions Brunel as an internationally leading contributor to research in manufacturing, a sector vitally important to the UK economy.”

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Cemetery pitChes, kingston lane

express magazine october 2010

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