Marine Centre Wales (MCW)

Marine Centre Wales (MCW) was designed as national resource to support the blue economy, integrating research, innovation, commerce and policy in the marine sector. Located on the shore of the Menai Strait, as part of Bangor University's School of Ocean Sciences, MCW houses specialist facilities including conference and meeting rooms, offices, laboratories, aquaria and access to research vessels including the RV Prince Madog, and ~40 research staff and academics working in applied fields including fisheries, aquaculture, offshore renewable energy, coastal water quality and flood risk, marine data, climate change impacts and mitigation. The Centre supports cross-sector collaboration with a diverse range of external organisations though hot-desking, meetings, workshops and conferences. This innovative approach to co-working has stimulated over a wide range of collaborative research projects co-designed with external partners and stakeholders, and contributes to the wider impact of research undertaken by the School of Ocean Sciences.

Interaction and Collaboration

Marine Centre Wales provides a forum for the development of research and innovation projects that deliver cutting edge science and support economic development and inform environmental policy at a range of scales from local, national to international. It has been designed to facilitate interactions between researchers undertaking applied research, businesses requiring answers to specific and pressing research questions, policy makers working on evolving governance and legislation. The aim is to bring together different perspectives, fostering the development of a joined-up marine community to address cross-sectoral strategic objectives.

MCW is also the home of the Centre for Applied Marine Sciences (CAMS) which has the mission to link academic research to real-world applications. CAMS has ~30 staff dedicated to specific projects, and links with researchers in the School of Ocean Sciences, one of the largest academic marine science centres in Europe. Close relationships are core to our work with external partners, whether working on strategic programmes, co-designed collaborative research, contract research or consultancy.

Please contact us if you would like to know more, or are interested in working with Marine Centre Wales.