Dyson Foundation donates £12m for new engineering school

It is the largest donation in the history of the foundation which has previously given large sums to Cambridge of the Royal College of Arts

Sir James Dyson said in a statement that Dyson would not be diverted from what it called a "crucial consumer issue". (Dyson)

Imperial College have announced a £12m donation by Sir James Dyson for a new Dyson school for engineering that will open its doors later this year.

The new Dyson School of Design Engineering will be aimed at training the next generation of graduate engineers and technology leaders.

In an announcement on Monday, Dyson said: “We want to create engineers who are bold and commercially astute. They will use their skills, nurtured in the Dyson School, to develop future technology that will catalyse Britain’s economic growth.”

The school will be situated on Exhibition Road in South Kensington in a building purchased by the university from the Science Museum.

The acquisition was made possible by the biggest single donation in the James Dyson foundation’s history to date.

The school, the first new engineering department to be established at Imperial for two decades, will teach a four year MEng course in design engineering from October 2015.

Imperial College students show off prototypes to James Dyson (Dyson)

The curriculum, which was developed in partnership with Dyson engineers, includes modules in patent application and intellectual copyright and is designed to combine technical discipline with an understanding of the corporate nuances of the industry.

Industry standard equipment and studio space will enable 400 students to design, prototype and test new product ideas.

The foundation, established in 2002, has donated a total of £50m to engineering education and medical research, including £8m for a technology hub at the University of Cambridge and £5m to the Royal College of Arts, Dyson’s alma mater.

Chancellor George Osborne lent his support to the announcement, saying: “Backing Britain’s world leading science, research and innovation is a key part of our long term economic plan."

It is fantastic to hear about the new partnership between the Dyson Foundation and Imperial College to open the new Dyson School of Engineering that will play a key role in training the next generation of design engineers.”

Professor Alice Gast, president of Imperial College London said: “Design combines the best of technical expertise with creativity and the Dyson School of Design Engineering is uniquely placed to bring these together in its student experience and research.

The Science museum will undergo a redesign thanks to the injection of the funds

The reinvestment of the proceeds, approved by the chancellor, will allow the Science Museum to invest more than £20n in transforming about a third of the museum over the next five years, including several more permanent galleries.