Quantum sensing technologies offer levels of measurement precision, accuracy, and stability that exceed those offered by classical (or non-quantum) approaches. An area where this performance enhancement shows great potential is in positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) systems. An important subcategory of PNT systems are ones based on inertial navigation systems. These calculate a relative position from a known starting point based on continuous measurements of acceleration, rotation, and time. Such systems are essential in environments where satellite navigation systems are either unavailable, such as when underground or underwater, or when they are actively denied. Precise positioning is a safety-critical component of the rail network, which currently relies on expensive trackside infrastructure and onboard equipment rather than satellites which can be unreliable in tunnels and rural areas. Future network upgrades will require new reliable and affordable PNT technologies beyond the capabilities of classical devices alone. Currently, the long-term positioning accuracy of such systems is severely limited by the performance of the classical acceleration sensors that they use, even in state-of-the-art incarnations. The performance of acceleration sensors based on atom interferometry with ultra-cold atoms offer at least an order of magnitude improvement on the long-term positioning accuracy of such classical inertial navigation systems. Despite this potential, quantum sensors cannot compete with the high frequency measurements of classical sensors. By combining quantum and classical acceleration sensors within a single unit to form a hybrid device, we can get the best of both worlds - high frequency measurements and long-term accuracy. There are currently no commercially available products that deliver the benefits of cold atom acceleration sensing. Harnessing the power of additive manufacturing (AM), commonly referred to as 3D printing, our project will enable the delivery of an economical hybrid sensor with components suitable for mass production. Using designs optimised for AM, complex structures not possible with conventional techniques can be engineered to reduce the size, weight, and costs of the devices without sacrificing performance, making them more commercially attractive to customers. Our project will make significant progress towards demonstration of commercial viability through performance evaluations of our hybrid acceleration sensor on a moving vehicle.

While single-use (SU) systems offer flexibility and reduce the reliance on solvents and steam, they generate approximately 30,000 tonnes of plastic waste annually---a figure expected to double by 2026\. This significant environmental impact underscores the necessity for innovative solutions that maintain the benefits of SU systems while substantially reducing their carbon footprint. Project Nexus brings together expertise in advanced manufacturing automation, digital design and optimisation, material innovation and bioprocessing to pioneer the additive manufacturing (AM) of bioreactors at scale, offering a greener and more efficient alternative to SU bioreactors with improved circularity and end-of-life pathways, all while retaining the flexibility of disposable systems. Nexus will pioneer the design and manufacture of new bioreactors using AM and bio-based, eco-friendly materials. The bioreactors will be tested for applications in pharmaceuticals R&D and point-of-care manufacture as primary applications. We will also explore avenues for reusing them in industrial biotechnology, e.g. to produce green chemicals. The Nexus team will integrate a rigorous analysis of the technical, economic and environmental impact of the bioreactors, their manufacture and end-of-life disposal to demonstrate the benefits of a transition to AM.

ORSAM seeks to address the critical national infrastructure challenge of delivering cost effective, resilient, distributed timing within the telecommunications core and mobile access networks that we all depend on to deliver the emergency service network, data centre access and interconnect, Industrial IoT, financial transactions and nearly all other forms of data access, video streaming and communications. Fundamentally the modern communications network is critically dependent on local, and network level timing and synchronisation. Additive Manufacturing (AM), more commonly known as "3D printing", is a key emerging technology that can provide a step-change in the quest to make optomechanical devices lighter, less sensitive to their external environment and easier/cheaper to manufacture. AM allows the rapid, cost-effective manufacture of geometrically complex parts, featuring performance-enhancing structures that would be near impossible or extremely expensive and laborious to produce via conventional methods. So far, the application of AM within opto-mechanics has been extremely limited. Developing design methods and exploiting AM techniques for applications in optomechanical devices will be key to the future of the telecommunications and quantum industries. The current state-of-the-art in AM optical reference cavities, developed by the University of Birmingham represents a convincing proof-of-principle of the applicability of AM within the TFS sector and the potential benefits it offers, showing that an optimised, vibration insensitive cavity suitable for manufacturing via AM can be designed, simulated and constructed from Invar. Project ORSAM aims to take this further and fully exploit the benefits of AM to produce resilient and lightweight optical references for use in critical infrastructure in remote locations outside of laboratory settings. Proving the efficacy of AM for optomechanical components will open a new market within the quantum sector and extend its application into other areas such as sensing, medical imaging and analytical equipment.

Quantum technologies (QT) have the potential to transform many aspects of our technology and society. To date, they provide the world's most accurate clocks for precision timing and navigation, as well as high-performance sensors for e.g. magnetic and gravitational fields, which are already finding applications in subterranean mapping and medical imaging. However, the complexity of these devices makes them bulky and unreliable; so far, this has heavily restricted their use in real-world applications. Additive Manufacturing (AM), more commonly known as "3D printing", is a key emerging technology that can provide a step-change in the quest to make quantum devices smaller, more power-efficient, and more reliable. AM allows the rapid, cost-effective manufacture of geometrically complex parts, featuring performance-enhancing structures that would be near impossible or extremely expensive and laborious to produce via conventional methods. So far, the application of AM within quantum technologies has been extremely limited. However, just as in many other technological areas, AM has the potential to offer substantial benefits for QT. Developing design methods and exploiting AM techniques for the QT sector will be key to the future of the industry. The current state-of-the-art in AM for QT, developed by Nottingham University and Added Scientific Ltd, represents a convincing proof-of-principle of the applicability of AM within the QT sector and the potential benefits it offers. QTEAM aims to take that further and fully exploit the benefits of AM to produce a best-in-class compact atomic gravimeter for space-based applications using industrial processes. This builds upon a design that is currently being developed by RAL space (STFC -- Laboratories). Proving the efficacy of AM components for QT will open a new market within the sector, as these techniques will be useful across a wide range of QT devices. UK-based project partners Metamorphic Additive Manufacturing Ltd and Torr Scientific Ltd, supported by the know-how and intellectual property resulting from this project, will be ideally placed to lead industry activity in this new and important area.