The addition of University of South Wales (USW) to the ASTUTE 2020 partnership operation strengthens the dynamic world-class academics and highly qualified project officers located in the participating Welsh HEIs. USW will support manufacturing companies in East Wales, creating actionable knowledge and guide decision-making in the manufacturing process.

The University of South Wales contributes to ASTUTE 2020 through its expertise in the South Wales Business School within the Faculty of Business and Society drawing on expertise from across the School in Manufacturing systems, Quality Management, Operations Management, Supply Chain and Logistics, Digital Marketing and Business strategy.

Research in the Business School is organised under an overarching cross-disciplinary business research centre. Research themes and projects are coordinated under four thematic areas, which are Supply Chain & Operations, Human Resource Management & Leadership, Marketing & Events and Entrepreneurship.

The School supports PhD and DBA students working on projects across these thematic areas.
USW will add complementary research proficiency within the expertise theme Manufacturing Systems Engineering, focusing on its strengths in Future manufacturing technologies.

Research projects and publications include the following topics:

Supply Chain and Operations

  • Quality Management in Industry 4.0
  • Sustainable supply chains
  • Retail Omni Channel Supply Chain (ROSC)
  • Strategic Procurement
  • Innovation in SMEs
  • Triple Helix Model for Innovation
  • Future applications of BlockChain

Human Resource Management and Leadership

  • Economic regeneration and workforce development
  • The impact of technology on the Future Workforce
  • Organisational culture
  • Corporate Social Responsibility

Entrepreneurship / Marketing and events

  • An analysis of High Growth Firms
  • Ethnic Entrepreneurship
  • Female Entrepreneurs
  • Entrepreneurial marketing
  • Sustainability in hospitality

USW Exchange is the hub for creating connections at the University of South Wales. As the University’s front door for business, USW Exchange provides access and signposting to the University’s expertise and talent across all our faculties and departments.