A UK Digital Twin Centre will open in Northern Ireland, backed by £37.6m in investments from Innovate UK and Belfast Region City Deal.

The centre, led by state-backed tech accelerator Digital Catapult, will develop use cases to demonstrate the potential for digital twin technology in areas such as maritime, aerospace and defence.

Digital twins are virtual representations of objects and systems that can be used to monitor, analyse and plan efficiently.

The new base will work with industry partners to encourage building digital twin technologies at lower costs. It will also provide a collaborative workspace for industry, academia and the public sector.

“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,” said UK Digital Twin Centre director at Digital Catapult, Deborah Colville.

The bulk of the funding came from government agency Innovate UK, with an additional £15m from Belfast Region City Deal, part of Belfast City Council.

The Belfast Region City Deal is backed by £350m of UK government funding.

“Our region is well positioned and ready to maximise the opportunities this investment will bring while also helping deliver on my economic priorities of creating good jobs, increasing productivity, and accelerating net zero ambitions,” said Northern Ireland’s Minister for the Economy Conor Murphy.

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