Industry-academia Partnership Program – Royal Academy of Engineering
Under its remit as a delivery partner of the Newton Fund, the Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng) partners with the Ministry of Research, Technology, and Higher Education of Indonesia (RISTEKDIKTI) to enhance engineering education, research, and innovation outcomes in Indonesian universities by strengthening bilateral industry–academia linkages. The program also aims to foster closer collaboration among engineering research and innovation stakeholders in both countries. Through this program, RAEng supports case studies of excellence in bilateral collaboration that generate long-term benefits, provide replicable models, and inform higher education, research, and innovation policies at both national and bilateral levels.
The collaborative research project focuses on material modelling and the development of ultralight metal structures for railway vehicle applications. The project aims to develop an integrated and robust multi-scale constitutive modelling framework to simulate the material behaviour of advanced ultralight metal alloys, such as high-strength steels and hexagonal close-packed (HCP) alloys, to identify and optimize their potential applications. The results and insights from the project are expected to advance the current design capabilities of ultralight railway vehicle structures.
Mechanical testing and characterization of high-strength steels are conducted to investigate strain-rate dependencies and to support the development of damage models for the alloys. The project also examines the effects of manufacturing processes on ultra-lightweight structures and their dynamic performance using a full-scale railway vehicle structure under representative operating conditions, considering alloy selection, manufacturability with a “right-the-first-time” approach, and cost constraints.
The research is conducted in collaboration with the Indonesian Railway Manufacturer (INKA), with support from the RISTEKDIKTI Innovation Incentive Program. The project aims to inform improved railway vehicle structural designs to reduce energy consumption while maintaining material strength, contributing to sustainable transportation. Capacity-building lectures and workshops are organized by the University of Oxford and ITB for researchers and engineers in the railway vehicle sector in Indonesia and the UK.
Partner University
Institut Teknologi Bandung contributes to the RAEng–IAPP collaboration through research, industrial engagement, and capacity building in railway engineering and advanced materials. ITB researchers conduct technical workshops and training on finite element analysis (FEA) and simulation for industry partners, supporting national railway projects such as the Jakarta–Bogor–Bekasi Light Rapid Transit (LRT) system. ITB also engages with industrial and governmental stakeholders to align research activities with national railway technology development priorities.
ITB leads research on lightweight railway vehicle structures, including the design and evaluation of LRT carbody and bogie structures. The research activities focus on static structural performance, crashworthiness design, stress analysis, and strength and deflection assessment using finite element modelling. ITB collaborates with national research agencies and industry partners to support the development of lightweight car body structures for LRT applications manufactured by PT INKA.
In materials research, ITB conducts constitutive modelling studies on anisotropic and strain-rate-dependent steels in collaboration with the University of Oxford. Experimental studies are performed to validate constitutive models based on Hill’s 1948 yield function with kinematic–isotropic hardening mechanisms, alongside numerical investigations and finite element implementation. Joint scientific publications with Oxford are produced as key research outputs of the project.
The University of Oxford contributes to the RAEng–IAPP collaboration through research leadership, technical guidance, and knowledge exchange in advanced materials and railway engineering. Oxford researchers engage with Indonesian industrial and governmental stakeholders through general lectures, technical discussions, and bilateral workshops to strengthen collaboration between academia and industry in both countries.
Oxford collaborates with ITB on advanced materials research, particularly in anisotropy and constitutive modelling of steels for railway applications. Research focuses on anisotropic material behavior using Hill’s 1948 yield function with kinematic–isotropic hardening mechanisms, supported by experimental validation. Oxford experts provide intensive technical guidance on model development, implementation, and validation, with joint scientific publications produced with ITB as key research outputs.
Knowledge transfer activities at the University of Oxford include workshops on advanced materials design methodologies, where materials are engineered and tailored rather than conventionally selected. These approaches support the development of lightweight and energy-efficient railway structures. As part of the broader collaboration, joint research publications have also been produced, including studies on interfacial rigidity and crack propagation in fibre-reinforced polymer composites.
Report Highlight
NCSTT-RAEng Progress Summary (NCSTT-RaEng Report.pdf)
NCSTT-RAEng Progress Report (IAPP report ITB-Oxford Sanrosa.pdf)
External Link
IAPP RAEng Official Website