A large group of people wearing business attire stand in rows smiling at the camera. They are outside on grass, the weather is sunny with blue skies and behind them is a stately home. Members of the group include PhD students, academic staff and industry partners who are sponsoring students

CDT WIRe Annual One-Day Conference 2026

The CDT WIRe Annual One-Day Conference took place 12 July 2026. The event is a fantastic day for our PhD students to come together alongside industry partners, supervisors, and CDT WIRe alumni to celebrate their research and catch up with colleagues.

A man presents to a room full of people sat at round tables
Peter Jarvis opening the conference

The CDT WIRe Annual One-Day Conference began with an inspiring keynote presentation from Dr Sam Fox, Chief Strategic Planner at United Utilities, who led us through his career since completing his PhD at The University of Sheffield – demonstrating how completing a PhD opened up exciting career opportunities. Sam highlighted the need for impactful research across the water sector, outlining several key challenges faced by the sector that require innovative solutions.

 

With demand increasing but supply becoming less predictable in the face of climate change, how do we improve the resilience of our water sector long-term? ‘We need to collaborate, innovate and look at new sustainable solutions’.

 

We need to know the scale of demand we are working at, but with increasing uncertainty, challenges also increase – for example, how do we predict water use for the year 2100?

 

Sam’s advice for our students: ‘Start with the punchline to get people’s interest and then engage with the depth and value of your work’

A man stood in front of a projector screen presents to an audience that is not in frame.
Dr Sam Fox presenting
an audience of people sat at round tables
The conference audience

Throughout the day, students from Cohort IV presented full-length talks on their research over the last four years. 

a man presenting with a projector screen behind him
Ishara Perera presenting
a woman presenting to a conference audience
Blessing Mobolaji presenting

Students from cohorts V-VII presented posters of their research, which we were able to read and discuss during the breaks between talks.

 

As well as producing posters, students in Cohort V presented 3-minute poster pitches; we are always impressed with how our students clearly explain their research in such a small amount of time!

people stood near scientific posters. the people are deep in conversation
Delegates discuss posters
A woman stands smiling next to a scientific poster
Lubabah Hossain's poster
A woman stands smiling next to a scientific poster
Madeleine Tate's poster
a man stands in front of a projector screen presenting to a room of people who are sat around round tables
Mohammad Shekofteh's poster pitch

A massive congratulations to the winners of our conference prizes:

 

🎉 Best Poster: Tomas Hotzel Escardo ‘Advanced sensing and AI for risk detection in rail environments’

✨ Best Poster Pitch: Vladislav Dukhovskoy ‘City-Scale Strategies for Urban Drainage to Regulate Quantity and Quality of Flow’

🏆 Best Talk: Jen Hollands ‘Disrupting disruptions: Drinking water treatment resilience to chemical shortages’

🏅 We also awarded the prize for the highest achieving student from our induction semester - well done Joanna Karska!

two men stand smiling at the camera. between them is a roller banner promoting CDT WIRe
Tomas wins the prize for Best Poster
two men stand smiling at the camera. between them is a roller banner promoting CDT WIRe
Vlad wins the prize for Best Poster Pitch
A man and a woman stand smiling at the camera. between them is a roller banner promoting CDT WIRe
Jen wins the prize for Best Talk
A man and a woman stand shaking hands and smiling at the camera. between them is a roller banner promoting CDT WIRe
Joanna wins the prize for Highest Achieving Student from our induction semester

It was a brilliant day of talks and posters; we can’t wait to see what our students do next, both with their projects and beyond the PhD journey!

A large group of people wearing business attire stand in rows smiling at the camera. They are outside on grass, the weather is sunny with blue skies and behind them is a doorway to a red brick building. They are delegates from the CDT WIRe Annual One-Day Conference
All delegates of the CDT WIRe Annual One-Day Conference

This was Cohort IV’s final Annual One-Day Conference! Their talks highlighted how much progress they have made during their time with CDT WIRe, and they are now on the final stretch of their PhD journey - we wish them all good luck as they get ready to submit their theses!

A group of people stand smiling at the camera, they are outside in the sun, stood in front of a red brick building.
Cohort IV

After the conference, we walked into the centre of Sheffield to Gameshow Allstars to unwind with some games, puzzles, and healthy competition.

 

Students in Cohorts V-VII then travelled to Rotherham to take part in the annual WIRe Summer Challenge. This year's topic was robotics, and you can find out what we got up to here.

A person is stood with their back to the camera listening to an industry demonstration. Text on the back of the hoodie in the foreground reads 'Summer Challenge Sheffield 2026'

Robots – WIRe Summer Challenge 2026

After the CDT WIRe Annual One-Day Conference, We were in Rotherham for the 2026 WIRe Summer Challenge, talking all things robots and automation across the water sector.

 

The week kicked off with a visit to ICAIR UK in Sheffield, where our students were introduced to this year's topic and engaged with industry demonstrations from Cura Terrae, Synovate and Synthotech Limited, and nuron, highlighting some of the latest technologies being used for monitoring across the water sector.

 

Our students had the opportunity to quiz our industry colleagues about the innovative solutions they are developing to address challenges across the water sector. 

A man talking to an audience. The audience has their backs to the camera. The man is stood at an exhibition stand that is branded with 'Cura Terrae'
Cura Terrae's presentation
Fibre optic cables wrapped around a copper pipe
Nuron's demonstration - fibre optic cables to detect temperature changes along a pipe
Our student, Vlad (Cohort V), engaging with Synthotech's demonstration, feeding a hydrophone along a pipe
People stood making notes next to an industry demonstration
Students making notes around a demonstration

After the morning of demonstrations, our students were tasked to consider current challenges associated with the implementation of robotic inspection technologies within distributed water infrastructure.

A man presenting to a room of people sat around round table
Students presenting about robotic inspection challenges
A man presents to a room of people sat at round tables
James Shucksmith (WIRe Co-Director) leading the afternoon presentations

The following day, we returned to ICAIR to see innovative robotics research projects at various stages of development. We got up close and personal with some of the latest robots being designed to monitor underground pipe networks.

 

Thank you to Rob Worley (Pipebots Project) and Aris Karnezis (PIPEON Project) for sharing your designs and discussing the needs of the water industry with our students!

 

We also heard from CDT WIRe alumnus, Edward John, who talked us through his current research developing a new way of measuring acoustics to detect asset failures and leakage.

In the afternoon, our students then split into teams and started putting together their own funding pitches for innovative autonomous systems that address key challenges across the water sector.

A man in a blue boiler suit talks to a group of people stood around a computer. They are in an industrial laboratory.
Rob Worley discussing the applications of Pipebots
a man in a high visibility yellow vest presents to an unseen group of people. He has a PC with a PowerPoint presentation
Edward John discussing acoustics
A small robot with wheels and lights on the front of it is in an orange plastic pipe
A robot in a pipe
a group of people are looking down a concrete pipe to see a robot in the pipe. the picture is taken from behind the people
Students watching a robot move along a pipe

The day finished with the CDT WIRe Annual Rounders Game took place, giving the opportunity for people to expose their competitive side! Congratulations to the winning team for the landslide victory!

A group of people stood in a field smiling at the camera. One man lifts a trophy above his head
The winning rounders team

Kamal Birdi led a session on Responsible Research and Innovation on the morning of the third day, encouraging our students to consider the potential implications of their proposals, including any unintended consequences for society or the environment. They considered the various stakeholders and how their product or service may impact them, and how they would minimise any negative perceptions.

a man delivers a presentation
Kamal's workshop
a group of people sat at a round table having a conversation
Students discussing RR&I with Kamal
people work on laptops
Students working in their groups
a man stands next to a flipchart with a diagram of a robot in the shape of a whale
Rubin's group makes notes for their idea

After a week of hard work, we were treated to an evening at Magna Science Adventure Centre for the final night. We explored the Earth, Air, Water and Fire pavilions, while learning about the local steel-making industry.

A large black building. A group of people walk below it. Text reads 'MAGNA SCIENCE ADVENTURE CENTRE'
Magna Science Adventure Centre

On the last day, our students presented their proposals, which were be judged by our panel of experts from across industry and academia, against the key criteria:

 

  • Transformation potential
  • Scientific innovation
  • Responsible Research and Innovation
  • Feasibility
a group of people stand beside a projector screen, presenting to an unseen audience
D.A.A.N.C.E. From left to right: Joanna, Soumi, Dougie, Hannah, Leticia (Natasha is behind Dougie)

The first group presented a pitch for a Distributed Autonomous Agricultural Nature Based Catchment Enhancement (D.A.A.N.C.E.), featuring treatment wetlands, automated sluice gates, and smart swales.

Next up was B.A.L.E.E.N. (Bioinspired Autonomous Lentic Extraction of Eutrophying Nutrients), whale-inspired robots filtering nutrients and algae from reservoirs to prevent algal blooms 

a group of people stand beside a projector screen, presenting to an unseen audience
B.A.L.E.E.N. From left to right: Sam, Jacob, Rubin, Reuben, Tafara
a group of people stand beside a projector screen, presenting to an unseen audience
S.W.A.R.M. From left to right: Linda, Mohammad, Lydia, Boyang, Madeleine, Roman

The third group proposed S.W.A.R.M.: Sustainable Water Asset & Robotic Management, with hexapod robots monitoring the biodiversity of Sustainable Drainage Systems

Presenting their pitch next was Plan Bee, with bee-inspired drones monitoring fertiliser and pesticide distributions using aerosols and runoff measurements, with the robots detecting, investigating and providing evidence for environmental action

a group of people stand beside a projector screen, presenting to an unseen audience
Plan Bee. From left to right: Gareth, Sebastian, Joshua, Mercy, Emily
a group of people stand beside a projector screen, presenting to an audience
Turtlink. From left to right: Tomas, Başak, Jasper, Doreen, Nick, Vincent

The penultimate group proposed Turtlink, turtle-inspired robots delivering fibre optic cables through drinking water distribution network for proactive leak detection

Last, but not least, we heard from the team behind Smart SuDS, a proactive, holistic and automated maintenance solution for Sustainable Drainage Systems

a group of people stand beside a projector screen, presenting to an audience
Smart SuDS. From left to right: Vlad, Freya, Lubabah, Gabriella, Rachael, Cerith

All of our student teams had fantastic ideas - maybe one day we will see them in action!

 

Congratulations to the winning team: Turtlink! The winning proposal was chosen by our panel of expert judges, who were very impressed with the pitch made by our students. The team considered all aspects of the proposal, including how to power the robots, marketing, and the finances for operations. The winning team received a Sheffield steel teaspoon and a mug to make the perfect brew, proving that not everything needs to be automated. 

six people stand in a row smiling at the camera, they are each holding a mug and teaspoon
The winning team: Turtlink

We hope everyone enjoyed this year's Challenge Week! A big thank you to Lindsay Hopcroft, James Shucksmith and the rest of the team at The University of Sheffield for organising a brilliant week! Time for some well-earned rest and a good cup of tea ☕

A group of people stand smiling at the camera outside in the sun. some are holding rounders bats. one is holding a trophy and another is holding a box of chocolates

WIRe Summer Challenge 2025

Following the Annual WIRe CDT One-Day Conference, we went straight into the Summer Challenge with Cohorts IV, V and VI! This year’s Challenge theme was Water Reuse in the UK.

 

The PhD students were split into groups, and each team was tackling a real-life case study on this theme - they were expected to provide technical solutions, publicity campaigns and develop plans for potential research programmes.

  • Group 1 was looking into alternative water sources for golf courses in Anglian Water region ⛳
  • Group 2 investigated direct reuse of wastewater for agriculture 🌱
  • Group 3 explored the possibility of direct reuse of wastewater for a new AI centre 💻
  • Group 4 considered how to recharge a reservoir with treated wastewater 💧
  • Group 5 proposed water sources for green hydrogen plants 🏞️

 

To help provide context to the topic of water re-use, on the first day of the Challenge, we had a series of talks by experts in the field:

  • Geoff Darch (Anglian Water) discussed supply-demand challenges and the potential for re-use, providing insight to Anglian Water's perspectives and goals looking forward to the future as one of the suppliers for the driest region in the UK
  • Mar Batista Seguí (Anglian Water) introduced the innovation process and challenges - what are the barriers to developing new systems and processes in the water sector?
  • Heather Smith (Cranfield University) looked at the UK's position on water recycling and re-use, emphasising the importance of communications and public engagement
  • Thomas Young (TEP - The Environment Partnership) then rounded off the morning with a discussion around international best practice of water recycling - what is already being done? There are a lot of creative methods to re-use water around the world!
Mar presenting - she is wearing a white shirt and red patterned trousers, standing to the left of a projector screen
Mar Batista Seguí
Geoff is stood with his back to the camera, facing an audience of people sat around round tables. he is wearing a blue shirt and dark trousers
Geoff Darch's introduction
Heather presenting; she is wearing a white shirt and a yellow skirt, stood to the left of a projector screen
Heather Smith presenting
Thomas Young presenting for the summer challenge. He is wearing a light shirt and dark trousers, stood to the left of a projector screen
Tom Young's presentation

The students were then hard at work figuring out how to tackle their own water re-use scenarios.

A group of students discuss their summer challenge scenario. Four students are sat around a table, one of them is speaking to the rest. they all have laptops
The students discussing their summer challenge scenario
A group of students discuss their summer challenge scenario. six students are sat around a table, one of them is speaking to the rest. they all have laptops
A group of students discusses the summer challenge

In the afternoon, Chris Jameson from Inside Edge Media Training delivered a workshop for our PhD students. Chris helped the students understand media strategy, including how to answer tricky questions, make good first impressions, and to channel their 'inner Oprah' in front of the camera. Throughout their PhD journeys, these communication skills will help the students share their research to a range of audiences.

Chris walking towards an audience of people sat around round tables. he is wearing a dark shirt and green trousers.
Chris Jameson's media training workshop
several people sat around tables are pictures laughing
Chris' workshop was an entertaining introduction to media training

The following morning, the groups of students each had the opportunity to meet with experts in the water sector to ask them questions around their scenarios to help them prepare their solutions.

 

After working hard all day, in the afternoon we had the chance to explore the local Nene Park and walk over the Ferry Meadows, which also happened to be a good opportunity to explore the local water infrastructure!

A group of 14 people stand in a row smiling at the camera. they are smiling in the sun. behind them is a lake with a narrow boat on it
Staff and students at Ferry Meadows

On the Thursday of Challenge Week, each group gave Town Hall style presentations. In the audience was a range of experts from industry and academia, as well as Chris Jameson from the media training. The audience asked a wide range of questions, putting the students on the spot, acting as a variety of stakeholders, including concerned members of the public, journalists, industry experts, and charity representatives.

two people sit behind a table with microphones in front of them, the person on the right is presenting to an audience that is off camera.
Students presenting in a Town Hall meeting
three people sit behind a table, presenting to an audience sat in rows in front of them.
The Town Hall audience

Chris Jameson provided feedback on their Town Hall presentations that afternoon – overall our students did really well at using their new media skills!

 

Thursday evening included the annual WIRe CDT rounders match – as always, it got a bit competitive; congratulations to the winning team!

A group of people stand smiling at the camera outside in the sun. some are holding rounders bats. one is holding a trophy and another is holding a box of chocolates
The winning rounders team!

On the final day of the Challenge, each group presented their proposal for their water re-use strategy for their scenarios.

Each group did really well at proposing a method to reuse water to reduce potable water consumption for non-drinking purposes. The presentations also included the production of a video for social media, which were all very creative!

 

Congratulations to Group 1 who won the prize for the Best Summer Challenge Proposal! We were very impressed with their proposal on how to reduce the amount of potable water used for irrigation on golf courses - well done 

Group 2 presenting their summer challenge proposal. on the left of the screen a man wearing a grey shirt and green trousers talks to the audience off camera. two people stand behind him
Students presenting from Group 2. From left to right: Jasper Wressell (Cohort VI), Alan Smalley (Cohort III), Ana Amezaga-Kutija (Cohort IV)
Group 3 presenting their summer challenge proposal. in the centre of the field of view a man wearing a black shirt and grey trousers talks to the audience (off camera). two people stand behind him
Students presenting from Group 3. From left to right: Mohammad Shekofteh (Cohort V), Cerith Rhys-Morgan (Cohort V), Sreelakshmi Babu (Cohort III)
Group 4 presenting their summer challenge proposal. on the left of the field of view a woman wearing a white shirt, brown trousers, and a brown and leopard print headscarf talks to the audience (off camera). three people stand behind her
Students presenting from Group 4. From left to right: Linda Alobaidy (Cohort VI), Raman Suri (Cohort IV), Tomas Hotzel Escardo (Cohort V), Zachary Thomspon (Cohort IV)
A group of six people stand smiling at the camera in a row
The winning team - Group 1! From left to right: Vincent Smith (Cohort VI), Vladislav Dukhovskoy (Cohort V), Polly Grundy (Cohort III), Kaeli Brazier (Cohort IV), Blessing Mobolaji (Cohort IV), Peter Jarvis (WIRe CDT Director)

We hope everyone enjoyed the Summer Challenge this year, we are already looking forward to the next one. A big thank you to our colleagues with Anglian Water for supporting this week, and to Jackie Whelan for making the whole week happen!

A large group of people wearing business attire stand in rows smiling at the camera. They are outside on grass, the weather is sunny with blue skies and behind them is a stately home. Members of the group include PhD students, academic staff and industry partners who are sponsoring students

The Annual WIRe CDT Conference 2025

 

The Annual WIRe CDT One-Day Conference took place 30 June 2025, providing our PhD students with an opportunity to share their research both with each other and industry professionals.

a room full of people sat around round tables facing forward. The people are dressed smartly in business attire
The conference audience

The day began with a keynote talk by Dr Robin Price, Director of Quality and Environment at Anglian Water. Robin discussed his career with Anglian Water and the issues the sector is facing, before highlighting several key areas that rely on the delivery of academically rigorous research to drive the industry forward responsibly and sustainably, including:

 

  • Emerging contaminants
  • Circular economy – recovering resources from ‘waste’
  • Nature-based Solutions
  • Availability of water resources
  • Health of our water assets, such as reservoirs
  • Process emissions
  • Reputation of sector

 

As the students presented their research throughout the day, it was great to see that all these topics are covered across the broad range of WIRe PhD projects!

The conference audience
Robin Price delivering his keynote. He is wearing a dark jacket, white shirt and beige chinos. behind him is a projector screen and pull-up banners advertising the WIRe CDT
Dr Robin Price presenting

The students from Cohort III had the opportunity to present full-length talks highlighting the work they have done over the course of their PhD projects.

Samuel Yeboah Nyarko presenting. He is wearing a dark shirt and stood in front of a projector screen
Samuel Yeboah Nyarko (Cohort III) presenting
Eleyna presenting, wearing a black and white striped dress
Eleyna McGrady (Cohort III) presenting

In the breaks between talks, we had the opportunity to check out the posters produced by students in Cohorts IV and V.

 

As well as producing posters, students in Cohort IV presented 3-minute poster pitches, summarising the work they have done so far!

people in business attire stood chatting holding cups of coffee
Delegates catch up over coffee
People in business attire stand around boards with scientific posters
Poster session discussions
People in business attire stand around boards with scientific posters
Delegates have a chance to view posters
Blessing presenting - she is wearing a purple, orange and green shirt with green trousers. She is stood looking to the left of the image with a projector screen behind her
Blessing Mobolaji (Cohort IV) presenting her poster pitch

Congratulations to the winners of the conference prizes:

 

Best Talk: Mark Powders - Ammonia to energy: A key decarbonisation strategy for the water sector

 

Best Poster Pitch: Ana Amezaga-Kutija - Proactive Management of Dissolved Organic Carbon (DOC) in Drinking Water Catchments

 

Best Poster: Tomas Hotzel Escardo - Advanced sensing and AI for risk detection in rail environments

 

We also awarded the prize for the highest achieving student from our induction semester - well done Lydia Mahan!

Mark Powders (left) shakes hands with Peter Jarvis (right), both are smiling at the camera wearing business attire
Mark Powders (Cohort III) wins the prize for Best Talk
Ana Amezaga-Kutija (left) shakes hands with Peter Jarvis (right), both are smiling at the camera wearing business attire
Ana Amezaga-Kutija (Cohort IV) wins prize for Best Poster Pitch
Tomas Hotzel Escardo (left) shakes hands with Peter Jarvis (right), both are smiling at the camera wearing business attire
Tomas Hotzel Escardo (Cohort V) wins prize for Best Poster
Lydia Mahan (left) shakes hands with Peter Jarvis (right), both are smiling at the camera wearing business attire
Lydia Mahan (Cohort VI) wins prize for Highest Achieving Student from our induction semester

Overall, the day was a great opportunity to hear about the range of research our PhD students are doing - we can't wait to see what they do next! To see all of our students, and their project topics, click here.

A large group of people wearing business attire stand in rows smiling at the camera. They are outside on grass, the weather is sunny with blue skies and behind them is a stately home. Members of the group include PhD students, academic staff and industry partners who are sponsoring students
All delegates of the Annual WIRe CDT One-Day Conference

This was Cohort III’s final WIRe Annual One-Day Conference – their presentations highlighted a wide range of impactful and innovative research. We wish them good luck in the final stretch of their projects!

A group of people wearing business attire stand in a white bandstand smiling at the camera
Cohort III

After the conference, we took a coach to Angle Entertainment, where staff and students had the opportunity to try out axe throwing, escape rooms, and play board games; it was a chance to unwind with some healthy competition!

 

Students from Cohorts IV, V, and VI, stayed in Peterborough to take part in the annual WIRe Summer Challenge - find out more about what we got up this year here!

STREAM and WIRe Symposium at Newcastle University

Newcastle University held its bi-annual symposium recently. Researchers from the university, who are part of the STREAM and WIRe CDTs, provided updates on their project along with outcomes to their peers and academic supervisors. The symposium offered students an opportunity to form new collaborations and network with their peers as well as the academic supervisors. 

WIRe CDT runs from 2019 to 2027 with 60 students recruited across 5 cohorts.

Challenge Week 2021

Challenge week took place in 2021 from September 12th to 17th in Newcastle, alongside the STREAM IDC. It was hosted by Newcastle University. Cohorts I and II came together for the week’s activities. This was a great event as it was the first time our cohorts got to meet in person!

The One Day Conference took place on September 15th at the Grand Hotel Gosforth Park in Newcastle. Many congratulations to Ali Leonard (Cohort II) who won the Best Poster prize. Ali is hosted by Newcastle University and sponsored by United Utilities.

 

 

Ali and her winning poster

 

Wire and Stream students