Queen’s University Belfast and Ulster University have both announced major investments in innovative digital technologies totalling £108 million. Queen’s Institute of Electronics, Communications & Information Technology (ECIT) has announced a £58 million Global Innovation Institute which is due to open by 2025 and Ulster will host the £50m Smart Manufacturing Data Hub.

Global Innovation Institute

The Global Innovation Institute is an expansion of Queen’s University’s Institute of Electronics, Communications and Information Technology (ECIT) and will house more than 550 experts at its Titanic Quarter site.

Announcing the expansion of the site during the Secure Connected Intelligence Summit 2022, ECIT Director Professor Marie O’Neill said:

The £58 million investment will see an expansion of our existing ECIT building and we will have more than 550 researchers based at the Institute. This will be a mix of researchers who are already based at ECIT, as well as new posts and others who will be co-locating from a wide range of companies and external partners.

This team of researchers will build on our core expertise across cyber security, advanced wireless technologies, data science/analytics. In a multi-disciplinary environment, our skilled workforce will include experts from many sectors who will be developing research in areas such as health data, agri-food and Fintech.

Smart Manufacturing Data Hub

Ulster University’s £50 million Smart Manufacturing Data Hub (SMDH) will support small and medium size manufacturers to capture and better utilise their data, helping them increase productivity, growth and sustainability. Businesses in sectors spanning from food and drink, aerospace and many more will be supported to develop, test and adopt the latest data-driven technologies. The hub will be supported by £20 million from the UK government backed Made Smarter Innovation Programme, along with £30 million of business co-investment.

Pro Vice Chancellor of Research at Ulster University and Matrix Panel member Professor Liam Maguire said:

Made Smarter provides the opportunity for innovative collaboration that will be transformative in driving industry competitiveness. At Ulster University, we have a strong track record of collaboration; using our research and technology to act as a catalyst for change, innovation and positive economic, social and environmental impact. Made Smarter is another important project in the broader realisation of the Derry and Strabane City Deal agenda, further enhancing the attractiveness of investment and driving economic growth.

The SMDH, which is being led from Ulster’s Magee campus, will first be accessible by small and medium size manufacturers in Northern Ireland in the coming months, before going live for companies across the rest of the UK. The programme will be supported across the rest of the UK by 12 delivery partners, including the University of Cambridge Institute for Manufacturing, Industry Wales and Scottish Engineering.

The funding comes as part of the £300 million Made Smarter Innovation Challenge, a collaboration between UK Government and industry designed to support the development and increased use of new and existing industrial digital technologies, including artificial intelligence and virtual reality.

City Deals

Both projects will benefit from funding from the Belfast Region and Derry and Strabane Region City Deals which will see an injection of capital funding from central and regional government and the creation of partnerships between the private and public sectors to deliver benefits for citizens and communities and drive economic growth.