"The spine consists of a series of bony vertebrae that are separated by intervertebral discs. The disc consists of the outer annulus fibrosus and the inner nucleus pulposus. The structure of the spine enables the body to twist and bend to adopt a wide range of postures. For diseased or damaged discs a surgical operation can be used to insert a spinal implant, that will attempt to replace the natural tissue and restore pain-free motion. However, current designs of spinal implants have limitations and there is a need for more highly skilled engineers to work on the design of improved spinal implants. The purpose of this research proposal is to train a cohort of new researchers through a novel European Industrial Doctorate between the School of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Birmingham (UK) and S14 Implants (France) on Spinal Implant Design (SID). SID will provide high quality training to develop the next generation implants and provide research and entrepreneurial training to develop the future leaders in this vital field of bio-medical engineering. SID will recruit four Early Stage Researchers (ESR) who will be trained in Spinal Implant Design, through a series of Work Packages. Each ESR will have their own individual research project and they will be registered for a Doctorate through the University of Birmingham. The training will be delivered through the research projects and through a series of workshops, with many delivered by Associated Partners. The successful conclusion of SID will result in highly trained researchers with a range of research and entrepreneurial skills that will be the future leaders in the field."