Former China South Locomotive & Rolling Stock Corp Ltd (now part of CRRC Corp) signs cooperation agreements on railway research and education with three universities in the UK. [Photo/China Daily]

Research and development collaborations between Chinese companies and British universities are burgeoning.

In previous decades, many foreign multinational companies were eager to set up R&D facilities in China to tap the huge market and enjoy benefits such as lower costs. Now Chinese companies are setting up their own R&D centers in Europe.

As Chinese companies shift away from producing cheap goods to value-added ones, they are ramping up their spending on R&D and upgrading their technologies and products.

Having long been seen as having world-class R&D and large reservoirs of talent, universities in the United Kingdom are popular choices for Chinese companies to work with.

Traditionally, Chinese investment in the UK was concentrated in property, but investment has risen in advanced engineering, energy and infrastructure and food technology, among other sectors.

In the advanced engineering sector, many Chinese companies stress R&D, and many of them have opened R&D centers in the UK.

Imperial College London is already working with Chinese partners to advance research and its applications in nanotechnology, bioengineering, computing, data science, advanced materials, offshore energy, environmental engineering and entrepreneurship. Its existing Chinese research partners include leading businesses Huawei Technologies Co Ltd and Aviation Industry Corp of China.

Last April, Shenzhen Nowforever Technology, which makes and power converters, signed an agreement to fund the creation of a technology center at the University of Nottingham that will develop a new generation of industrial drives. The company has pledged initial funding of around 1.2 million pounds ($1.86 million) over five years.

Going global and exporting is also an important reason for some Chinese companies to put the improvement of technology at the top of the agenda and cooperate with famous universities to obtain technology resources.

For example, China's largest maker of rolling stock, the former China South Locomotive & Rolling Stock Corp Ltd (now part of CRRC Corp), recently signed cooperation agreements on railway research and education with three universities in the UK. They agreed to jointly develop new technologies through cutting-edge research.

Launching R&D centers in British universities can also provide professional training programs and technical support for employees from Chinese companies. And in many cases such as Nowforever Technology, the new R&D centers provide the company's staff with specialized training.

From the universities' side, working with Chinese partners will lead to more R&D funding, create value from ideas on a global scale, create local jobs and propel economic growth. So the British universities like to showcase their expertise and strength and seek to work with Chinese companies.

For example, the University of Edinburgh showcased its research excellence on a tour of China in May. Experts in medicine, science and the humanities presented a series of public lectures and academic events in Shanghai, Hangzhou and Hong Kong. The university aims to be a partner of choice in China.

As more Chinese companies upgrade their technology and expand globally, collaboration with British universities will be strengthened.