At the RAICo Academic Showcase in Whitehaven, Cumbria, Tim Bestwick, Interim CEO of the UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA), spoke with Kirsty Hewitson, Director of RAICo, about how fusion‑driven technologies, skills, and innovation can support the wider nuclear sector.
In this interview, Tim reflects on the role of UKAEA within RAICo and the opportunities for technology transfer and socio‑economic impact.
UKAEA is a member of RAICo and a key collaborator. What role does the organisation play in the collaboration?
For UKAEA, being part of RAICo is an important way of demonstrating how technologies developed through our long-standing fusion research programme can be transferred into other areas.
In particular, we’ve developed robotics and remote handling technologies over many years to support fusion research. Working with the other RAICo partners allows us to apply those technologies in different contexts across the nuclear sector. That’s a great example of technology transfer – taking capabilities developed through one major research programme and using them to deliver value and impact elsewhere.
Ultimately, it’s about ensuring that the expertise and innovation developed through UKAEA’s research programmes can benefit a wider set of challenges and industries.
What are the connections between UKAEA’s fusion work and nuclear decommissioning?
I recently visited the Sellafield site for the first time, and it’s an extraordinary place. Even seeing it from a distance, you can appreciate the scale and intensity of activity there. It’s a huge site with some very significant technical challenges.
Addressing those challenges is a major national endeavour. It’s a long-term and expensive programme aimed at putting the site into a safe, sustainable state for the future.
If the remote handling technologies and robotics that we’ve developed within UKAEA for fusion applications can help address some of those challenges, that would be a fantastic outcome. These technologies were designed for extremely complex environments, and that means they can potentially be very useful in areas like nuclear decommissioning.
So there is a clear opportunity to take the expertise we’ve built through the fusion programme and apply it to support important work happening elsewhere in the nuclear sector.
RAICo also focuses on skills and socio-economic impact. How important is that alongside the technology?
Developing exciting technology is important, but by itself it doesn’t necessarily achieve very much. What really matters is translating that technology into real-world outcomes.
That means turning innovation into employment opportunities, economic activity and tangible benefits for communities. There are many different elements involved in getting that right, and one of those is developing the skilled people who can actually apply these technologies.
Here in Cumbria there’s a strong focus on skills development, particularly driven by the needs of the Sellafield site. It’s great that RAICo is contributing to that effort by helping to build those new skill sets.
By supporting skills development alongside technological innovation, initiatives like this can create lasting economic impact for the regions we work in.
Finally, what were your impressions of the RAICo Academic Showcase?
It’s been fascinating. Seeing so many robotics projects gathered in RAICo1 has been genuinely exciting. I hadn’t realised quite how many innovative robotics projects were happening under one roof.
Events like this really demonstrate the breadth of work underway and the level of creativity across the community. There’s clearly a huge amount of talent and innovation focused on developing robotics and remote handling technologies, and it’s impressive to see that showcased in one place.
A final word from RAICo
Dr Kirsty Hewitson, Director of RAICo, sums up what Tim Bestwick’s words mean for RAICo:
“Tim’s insights reflect the strength of our collaboration. Our aim is to bring together leading expertise, advanced research, and innovative thinking to accelerate progress in robotics and AI across the nuclear sector and beyond. UKAEA’s deep expertise in fusion‑driven remote handling technologies is an excellent example of the value our members bring, and a vital part of delivering the RAICo mission.
By combining our capabilities, we turn innovation into practical solutions, create high‑value jobs, and deliver meaningful socio-economic benefits to the regions we operate in.”
