Large-scale On-site Manufacturing with Closed-loop 3D Printing and Autonomous Reconstruction

About the Project

Large-scale product manufacturing spans key sectors such as the aerospace industry, renewable energy systems, and infrastructure development, contributing approximately £100 billion to the UK’s GDP. While emerging 3D printing (3DP) technologies offer promising opportunities for product individualization and decentralized manufacturing, current systems are constrained by the requirement that the printer’s workspace must be larger than the product itself. As a result, large end-products are typically produced off-site in parts and later assembled on-site.

This project aims to advance 3DP technology by incorporating mobility and autonomy, thereby scaling up the effective workspace to match arbitrary product sizes and enabling direct on-site manufacturing. The successful candidate will explore innovative methods to realize large-scale on-site 3DP by addressing two key technical challenges: 1) How to achieve efficient and proactive reconstruction of the printing process, enabling real-time in-situ monitoring of large-volume material deposition and 2) How to adaptively compensate for size-induced defect magnification and error accumulation by closing the feedback loop of conventional 3DP systems. The candidate will test the developed technologies across multiple application scenarios, including large-scale on-site fabrication, product repair and maintenance tasks, etc.

Eligibility

Applicants should have or expect to achieve at least a UK 2.1 honours degree in Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, Computer Science or related disciplines. Experience in autonomous system, manufacturing/robotics and machine vision development will be an advantage.

Funding

This 3.5 year PhD is funded by the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and is available to UK students. The successful student will receive an annual tax free stipend set at the UKRI amount (£20,780 for 2025/26) and tuition fees will be paid. We expect the stipend to increase each year.

The start date is between October and December 2025.

At Manchester we offer a range of scholarships, studentships and awards at university, faculty and department level, to support both UK and overseas postgraduate researchers applying for competition and self-funded projects.

For more information, visit our funding page or search our funding database for specific scholarships, studentships and awards you may be eligible for.

Before you apply

We strongly recommend that you contact the supervisor for this project before you apply. Please include details of your current level of study, academic background and any relevant experience and include a paragraph about your motivation to study this PhD project.

How to apply

Apply online through our website: https://uom.link/pgr-apply-2425

When applying, you’ll need to specify the full name of this project, the name of your supervisor, if you already having funding or if you wish to be considered for available funding through the university, details of your previous study, and names and contact details of two referees.

Your application will not be processed without all of the required documents submitted at the time of application, and we cannot accept responsibility for late or missed deadlines. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

After you have applied you will be asked to upload the following supporting documents:

• Final Transcript and certificates of all awarded university level qualifications
• Interim Transcript of any university level qualifications in progress
• CV
• Supporting statement: A one or two page statement outlining your motivation to pursue postgraduate research and why you want to undertake postgraduate research at Manchester, any relevant research or work experience, the key findings of your previous research experience, and techniques and skills you’ve developed. (This is mandatory for all applicants and the application will be put on hold without it).
• Contact details for two referees (please make sure that the contact email you provide is an official university/work email address as we may need to verify the reference)
• English Language certificate (if applicable)

If you have any questions about making an application, please contact our admissions team by emailing FSE.doctoralacademy.admissions@manchester.ac.uk.