The UK government is investing £37.6m in an industry-focussed digital twin centre that will initially focus on use cases in the maritime, aerospace and defence sectors. Situated in Belfast, with £15m coming from the Belfast Region City Deal, and other funding coming from arms length government-funded body Digital Catapult, the initiative aims to become a […]
The UK government is investing £37.6m in an industry-focussed digital twin centre that will initially focus on use cases in the maritime, aerospace and defence sectors.
Situated in Belfast, with £15m coming from the Belfast Region City Deal, and other funding coming from arms length government-funded body Digital Catapult, the initiative aims to become a centre of excellence for digital twin use and help transform how industries develop products.
The UK Digital Twin Centre – set to open later this year – has been endorsed by UK industry and launches with co-investment from three major partners: Thales UK, Spirit AeroSystems and Artemis Technologies.
In what Digital Catapult is calling ‘a step-change from traditional research and innovation centres’, these partners are set to deliver an initial six use cases to demonstrate the potential of digital twins in transforming the maritime, aerospace and defence sectors.
The aim is to accelerate the industry’s adoption of digital twins by removing some of the key barriers – with the centre offering up digital twin tech to reduce costs and working on developing skills in the workforce.
The centre will also run a series of programmes for all levels of industry – from SMEs to large enterprises – to drive innovation and realise new value.
Indro Mukerjee, CEO at Innovate UK – the government funded body which in term funds Digital Catapult – said: “This new Digital Catapult investment will accelerate industry adoption of digital twins, a key component of Cyber-Physical Infrastructure, delivering support for business innovation across the UK.”
Digital Catapult added that the centre will also provide a collaborative space for industry, academia and the public sector to foster cross-sector innovation.
What are digital twins? Find out more from our interview with the Digital Twin Consortium
Digital twins are virtual models of a physical object or system which can be informed by streamed data from a real-world version or environment. A digital twin can provide unique capabilities including rapid proto-typing and real-world control mechanisms, enabling businesses to make smarter decisions, achieve better outcomes, shortening time to market, reducing costs and lowering emissions.
Funds from the Belfast Region City Deal (a programme of investment that cuts across local councils, the Northern Ireland Executive and UK government) will help support core research and the building of skills and capability.
The centre will be headed by Deborah Colville, who has come from Belfast City Council’s City Innovation Office. The centre has committed to contributing 230 new jobs in the manufacturing sector across the UK, and to generate £61m for the local economy in Northern Ireland by 2033.
Colville said: “The Centre will give businesses across the UK access to the expertise, technology and resources necessary to accelerate the adoption of digital twins to reduce design and manufacturing costs, help meet net zero targets and drive competitive advantage globally.”
The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Chris Heaton-Harris added: “This is an ambitious project that will bring exciting opportunities for collaboration and accelerate the fantastic transformation Belfast’s digital sector is already witnessing.
“The UK government’s £350 million investment into the Belfast Region City Deal will be used to support this project and ensure that we continue to make good progress across the City and Growth Deal programme, bringing even more prosperity to Northern Ireland, and ensuring it is the best place in the world to invest.”
Businesses can find out more information on the centre at digicat.org.uk/UKDigitalTwinCentre
