Advances in equipment, materials and manufacturing techniques mean that sports that were seen as dangerous or ‘extreme’ until relatively recently are now becoming more main stream. This industry has significant opportunities for graduates with in depth knowledge of the science and manufacturing behind these sports. Traditional engineering topics such as materials, manufacturing, stress analysis and fluid flow are brought into the 21st century and applied to this exciting new industry. The main target group for this course would be full time students completing level 3 qualifications who are interested in this industry. UWTSD provides a unique BEng degree programme in the UK specialising in the Engineering, Development and Optimisation of equipment for the Extreme Sports Industry. Advances in equipment, materials and manufacturing techniques mean that sports that were seen as dangerous or ‘extreme’ until relatively recently are now becoming more main stream. This has resulted in huge increases in the number of people that participate in surfing, kitesurfing, skating and snowboarding for example. In the U.S., in excess of 22 million people participate in ‘extreme’ sports and ‘action sports’ now generate one-third of sporting goods sales amounting to more than $14 billion. The growth of this industry has been so dramatic that sport participants in the U.S. have increased by about 10% over the last decade, despite the fact that participants in dominant sports such as basketball have decreased

The extreme sports industry is a significant and growing employer. In 2005 sport-related employment was estimated to be 434,000, accounting for 1.8% of all employment in England and it grew by 19% over the previous 5 years (Sheffield Hallam University, 2007). This industry consists of retail, provision and marketing, however it also contains a sophisticated manufacturing element.­ (Rotherham, Egan, & Egan, 2005) Sport related manufacturing increased in England by 24%, over the 2005-2008 period, and in 2008, employed 11,500 people. (Sport industry research centre, August 2010) In 2005 the UK exported £7.6m-worth of watersports equipment (Manley, June 2007). The UK surf industry reported sales of £200 million pounds in 2007, with the manufacturing element of the surfing element in Cornwall alone estimated to be £62 million/year (The independent, 2004). As with other manufacturing in the UK, manufacturers can no longer compete with low-cost producers, hence the bias in exports is towards premium well engineered products (Manley, June 2007). The use of advanced materials such as composites continue to grow in the leisure industry and are now regularly used for the manufacture of surfboards, wakeboards and skateboards etc. Specific opportunities for growth have been identified in youth leisure goods such as snowboards by the department of trade and industry (Department of trade and industry, 2001). This has lead to significant growth of composite manufacturers that specialise in these areas. The proportion of composite manufacturers in Wales that focus on sport and leisure now exceeds both the aerospace and the automotive industries (Sienz, 2009). The UK had 430 producers of sports equipment in 2006. The majority of these producers are small with an average turnover of £544,000 and only 25 of the manufacturers achieving £5m or more in annual sales (Manley, June 2007) Of these producers, 260 had fewer than 5 employees, with many of these expected to be sole traders. As such, whilst some students on this course will find employment with relatively large manufactures, many of them will be expected to start their own business and will be given the skills to do so.