Thu, 09 April, 2020
TWI has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Digital Catapult to establish a new Industrial Net Zero Innovation Centre (INZIC) at our headquarters near Cambridge.
The new innovation centre will target energy and asset intensive industries, including aerospace, utilities and energy, to promote improved sustainability and efficiency to achieve a net zero carbon footprint.
This balance of emissions can be achieved through industrial processes, supply chain logistics and a better optimisation of resources in order to ensure industry has zero impact on the environment.
This aim is in line with the global warming target set out in the Paris Agreement, which calls for global carbon emissions to be net zero by the middle of the century.
INZIC will assist organisations through the exploitation of advanced digital technologies and industrial knowledge so that they can meet the challenge of meeting net zero. TWI’s expertise in areas such as digital twin and asset management will create new market opportunities for UK tech start-ups and industrial business alike.
TWI’s Chief Executive, Aamir Khalid noted, “We are delighted to be partnering with Digital Catapult on this new venture and look forward to collaborating on achieving the Centre’s ambitions. These include driving new regional research and technology capability for the acceleration of digitally enabled industrial net zero, and reducing the UK’s CapEx by creating new business service models in maintenance, repair and overhaul to extend the life of industrial assets.”
TWI’s Director of Innovation and Skills, Tat-Hean Gan, explained the benefits offered by the new Centre, explaining, “INZIC will be an exciting new development for TWI’s Industrial Member companies in manufacturing who are seeking to reduce their carbon footprint, because the new Innovation Centre will help facilitate the digital transformation of traditional manufacturing processes with the introduction of new technologies and a move to smart manufacturing and factories.”
Jeremy Silver, CEO, Digital Catapult, said, “Expanding Digital Catapult’s footprint around the UK is fundamental to our ambition to boost regional research and technology innovation capabilities, and to exploit the potential of start-ups around the country. By working with TWI in Cambridge, we’re combining deep industry expertise with both of our nationwide networks to help companies more rapidly achieve the ambition of industrial net zero. We want the benefits of increased efficiencies and reduced emissions to be felt throughout the UK’s industrial supply chain and advanced digital tech ecosystem.”
If you are an Industrial Member who would like to find out more about this initiative or collaborate with us, please contact Abbas Mohimi at: abbas.mohimi@twi.co.uk.
About Digital Catapult
Digital Catapult is the UK’s leading innovation centre for advanced digital technologies and has built a network of thousands of start-ups and scale-ups around the country that are using advanced digital technologies including immersive, artificial intelligence, 5G, IoT and blockchain to develop products and applications to solve major industrial challenges.
Left to right: Nick Wright, Head of Manufacturing Industries, Digital Catapult, Jeremy Silver, CEO, Digital Catapult, Aamir Khalid, Chief Executive, TWI, Geraldina Iraheta, Director of Business Development, Digital Catapult and Abbas Mohimi, Heading Public Funding, TWI.