Martyn Poliakoff is research professor in chemistry at the University of Nottingham.

Japan, USA and Holland are ahead of the UK in exploiting the great research potential at the interface of chemistry and engineering. As engineers and chemists have different training backgrounds, they look at problems in different ways - a joint project can yield really innovative solutions.

Although you will find many people who agree that closer UK collaboration between the two disciplines is important, you will find rather fewer people actually working across the divide.
Here at Nottingham, we have been working since 2006 to improve the dialogue between the two sides. The DICE (Driving Innovation in Chemistry and Engineering) project has seen the appointment of five new academic staff working across the school of chemistry and school of chemical and environmental engineering. An important aspect is to bring leading overseas researchers to Nottingham so that we can share their experience to benefit UK research.

We have called our research vision 'Process Plant 2050'. This gives people the freedom to think how their work could contribute to the new generation of chemical processes in 40 years time, whether through new catalysts, new solvents or renewable feedstocks. Very pleasingly, Process Plant 2050 is inspiring a growing number of our colleagues to get involved in joint projects. We want researchers from both disciplines to see collaboration and partnership as the norm, and not as something unusual.

Last month we held a formal launch event to celebrate DICE's success so far. We now wish to foster the collaborative spirit around the UK. My lecture at the launch ended with a rousing invitation to everyone who is interested to join us in this initiative.