Scallop researchers use college facilities

A further education college on the Isle of Man has again come to the aid of a local project by making its materials testing machine available for research and development work

On this occasion, the Tinius Olsen H20KW machine is being used by students from Liverpool University's marine biological station on the island to test scallop shells for a study, partly funded by the island's Department of Agriculture Fisheries and Forestry.

"Liverpool University needed to establish the strength of the scallop shells to see how much they were affected by the dredging method of harvesting currently practised," explains materials science lecturer John Marchment.

"The marine biological station does not have its own test equipment, so they asked us to help out".

Using the H20KW machine with some specially-developed grips, the Liverpool students were able to conduct tests on scallops of various ages collected from different fishery areas and record the data for subsequent analysis.

"The machine is a nice, easy one to use," says Marchment.

"And the test results were invaluable in conducting the project".

The Tinius Olsen machine is regularly used by Marchment's own students at the college and is also used by other businesses in the area.

"Last time it was used by a firm of agricultural engineers for spring rake testing," says Marchment.

The practice seems to be an effective way to offset the costs of providing students with the latest equipment.

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