RESEARCH NEWS
Operating in volatile trade conditions
A new research project is being launched by Aston University in the UK to help policymakers better understand how businesses adjust to unforeseen challenges( such as tariffs or wars). Dr. Yujie Shi has secured a Smart Data Research UK( SDR UK) fellowship to enable the research to take place. The study will use high-frequency, firm-to-firm shipment data to track how UK exporters adapt their supply chains in response to global disruptions, such as trade shocks and logistical crises.
By revealing real-time patterns of supplier switching, rerouting and market exit, the project will help policymakers to identify emerging vulnerabilities and design targeted support for businesses operating in volatile trade conditions.
Dr. Shi says that some firms already adapt quickly and successfully, while others struggle or disappear from international markets. She adds that by identifying these patterns, the project can help the UK government move from reactive policy to preventative policy( targeting support at the firms and sectors that are genuinely
Dr. Yujie Shi.
vulnerable before a crisis escalates). The 18-month project is being supported by the UK Department for Business and Trade( DBT) and the British Chambers of Commerce( BCC).
Dr. Shi says that the biggest challenge facing business is not a single shock, but a new environment of continuous uncertainty of operation. She cites hidden trade costs as an existing source of uncertainty. Even without tariffs, regulatory differences after Brexit( e. g. certification, checks, rules of origin etc.) act like ongoing friction. This affects smaller exporters who cannot easily absorb fixed compliance costs. Dr. Shi added that firms dependent on a small number of suppliers or routes are also exposed to sudden disruptions whether from conflict, trade disputes or transport blockages.
Dr Shi said:“ For decades, firms optimised supply chains for efficiency: lowest cost, just-in-time production and concentration in a few global hubs. Today, geopolitics is reversing that logic. Tariffs, export controls, sanctions, regulatory divergence and shipping disruptions are becoming persistent features rather than rare events.
“ Businesses struggle less with known barriers than with unpredictable ones. When firms cannot anticipate policy or geopolitical change, they delay investment, reduce exporting and become more domestically focused. So, the challenge for UK PLC is shifting from efficiency to resilience: helping firms to diversify markets, maintain access to key inputs and adapt quickly to shocks— without making trade prohibitively expensive.” n
www. aston. ac. uk
New WZL“ Gemini Ultra” research project
The Department of Automation and Control at the Laboratory for Machine Tools and Production Engineering( WZL) at RWTH Aachen University( Germany) is launching the research project“ Gemini Ultra – Self-calibrating, cyber-secure real-time localisation system through the fusion of ultra-wideband, ultrasound and cooperative drone swarms” in collaboration with Epotronic GmbH.
The aim is to develop a new generation of industrial-grade localisation infrastructure that systematically combines precision, robustness, and security. Mobile autonomous robot systems are increasingly becoming the basis for flexible logistics and manufacturing processes in industrial production. At the same time, production environments are dynamic: equipment, material flows and temporary obstacles are constantly changing. For safe and efficient operation, robot systems therefore need reliable positional information at all times as well as an infrastructure whose measurement quality remains stable, even under real-world interference.
“ Gemini Ultra addresses this challenge with an airborne approach: autonomous flying robots explore the production environment at
L-R: Dr. Christoph Hütt; Felix Lauer; Tobias Wentzler; Dr. Christoph Susen and Heiko Johannsen.
regular intervals, reconstructing a metrically consistent 3D model of the environment and enabling automated calibration of shop floor sensors. This creates a continuously operable representation of dynamic production environments without having to interrupt ongoing processes for manual measurement or calibration measures,” said the university.
The project combines ultra-wideband( UWB) radio technology with ultrasound to form a hybrid wireless metrology unit and couples this with cooperative flight robotics and visual 3D mapping methods. Building on this, the system provides a real-time capable basis for navigation and trajectory tracking of mobile robot systems.
Another key focus is on cybersecurity: in industrial environments, manipulation of location data must be ruled out, as falsified distance and positional information can have a direct impact on safety and process stability. The project therefore involves the prototypical implementation of security mechanisms for UWB-based communication and their investigation in terms of latency, robustness and industrial applicability.
“ With Gemini Ultra, we are creating a key prerequisite for highly automated and flexible production processes: robust, self-calibrating and cyber-secure real-time localisation as a reliable basis for autonomously navigating robot fleets on the shop floor. In this way, we are helping companies to increase efficiency and resilience and remain competitive in the global marketplace. At the same time, the project strengthens the research focus on mobile autonomous robot systems in the Department of Automation and Control at WZL,” explained Heiko Johannsen, M. Sc., M. B. A., project lead at WZL.
Gemini Ultra is funded as part of the EFRE / JTF programme in North Rhine-Westphalia 2021 – 2027. n
www. wzl. rwth-aachen. de
ISMR April 2026 | ismr. net | 19