Quality assurance

Research & Knowledge Transfer provides central support for the management and growth of the University of Exeter’s research income, intellectual property, earned income and knowledge transfer activity, research policy and the Research Excellence Framework. We aim to operate at the highest level by working in partnership with academics and external organisations on projects which will have demonstrable impacts on the economy, policy, and culture. Our customers comprise of industrial partners and Government from the UK and overseas and within the University, Academic Schools and other divisions of University Professional Services. We categorise these into Customer Stakeholders and Stakeholders.

To ensure Research & Knowledge Transfer maintains its awareness for continuous improvement, the quality system, processes and procedures are regularly reviewed and subject to an annual ISO audit. The ISO is maintained by the International Standardisation Organisation and administered by accreditation. Some of the requirements of ISO 9001: 2008 include:

a set of procedures that cover all key processes in the business
monitoring processes to ensure they are effective; keeping adequate records
checking output for defects, with appropriate and corrective action where necessary
regularly reviewing individual processes and the quality system itself for effectiveness
and facilitating continual improvement

Customer service is an essential part of the quality process and to ensure this is fulfilled, all employees are aware of quality and its impact on customer service.

Quality Management Objectives

The requirements of Research & Knowledge Transfer quality systems are mandatory and all office personnel have a responsibility and obligation to adhere to them.

RKT aims to provide a professional project and programme management service to stakeholders and clients. To demonstrate this intention, the following Quality Objectives have been identified:

To develop research opportunities that support the Institutions key metrics of :

Research Outputs toward the Research Excellence Framework;
Research Income per FTE
Post-graduate Research Numbers
Knowledge Transfer

To develop and manage intellectual property and undertake commercialisation that further supports the University’s mission to increase its research capability.

To develop Knowledge Transfer opportunities focussed on the most recent, high quality research that underpins the University’s research reputation.

To improve the success and competitiveness of the industrial partners, who are our customer stakeholders, by ensuring the effective transfer of knowledge.

To provide company based training and development of graduates who are employed within KT Partnerships to enhance their business and technical abilities.

To develop professional recognition for effective and quality driven management from both internal and external stakeholders involved in the process of Knowledge.

Contact

For more general information on the ISO 9001:2008 accreditation, please visit the British Assessment Bureau website. For more information about how Research & Knowledge Transfer work with the ISO Accreditation.