Council committee to discuss plans for ‘transformative’ innovation hub next week

An artist's impression of the proposed civic hub.An artist's impression of the proposed civic hub.
An artist's impression of the proposed civic hub.
Councillors on Newry, Mourne and Down District Council will next week be asked to approve the business case for a new regional innovation hub to be located within the new Newry Civic Hub.

The innovation hub will be discussed at Monday night’s (January 20) meeting of Council’s Economy, Regeneration and Tourism Committee.

A report before councillors says that the Belfast Region City Deal (BRCD) backed hub “aims to be transformative, propelling the district to the forefront of the digital landscape and positioning it as a smart district ripe with opportunities for investment and foreign direct investment”.

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It adds that the hub “will be hosted within the new Newry Civic & Regional Hub, which is part of the BRCD supported Newry City Centre Regeneration programme, and will foster sustainable collaboration across industry, academia, and societal needs”.

The report states that the hub will support industry, academia and education to improve business and production processes or services using new and emerging digital technologies by: providing access to technical expertise and testing, as well as the possibility to 'test before investing’.

It will also provide innovation services, such as financing advice, training, and skills development that are central to successful digital transformation.

The hub will also be used to helpg companies tackle environmental issues, in particular the use of digital technologies for sustainability and circularity, and there will also be an educational element to the hub, as students at primary and post-primary levels will be able to to learn about the use cases of new technologies and the best practices.

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"The hub will be flexible, adaptable and equipped with advanced technologies to meet the needs of diverse industries and innovators and will act as a platform to deliver new capabilities in partnership and collaboration,” the report states.

In return the hub will “stimulate regional economic growth and create jobs” and “build on the collaboration through existing Council programmes e.g. DBEC and FFNI to establish a unified innovation hub that will encourage shared resources and talent pools across the border enhancing regional competitiveness”.

It is further hoped that the hub will “enhance the innovation capacity and competitiveness of the entire BRCD region” and “promote inclusive development by engaging diverse stakeholders” as well as driving advancements in key sectors such as agriculture, logistics, manufacturing, health, education, and technology.

The report adds that the hub will “contribute to achieving regional and global development goals” and “position itself as a gateway for companies seeking a platform to access UK and EU markets”.

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It continues: “The hub is proposed to stimulate an increase in private sector investment, the creation of jobs and encourage industry collaboration across the Belfast City Deal region. It will serve as a vehicle for transformation on a regional basis and therefore, play a key part in a more inclusive vision of the City Deal Proposition and enabling the Programme for Government's regional balance.”

In terms of progress to date on the project Newry, Mourne and Down District Council has conducted “extensive consultation and research through Catalyst, Kavanagh Kelly and Xpand which has identified a dear need for such a hub.

“Following this engagement, a concept note has now been developed and issued to the Belfast Region City Deal Digital Advisory Board for approval to commence the Outline Business Case (OBC)”.

In order to progress this project to the next stage, Council are required to complete an outline business case, to support the further development and consideration of the project, required for submission as part of the City Deal approval process in order to secure funding.

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It has been recommended that councillors approve the business case, and that members approve the procurement of consultancy support for the development of an Outline Business Case for a Regional Innovation Hub within Newry Civic and Regional Hub.

Members are also being asked to approve the appointment of consultancy support following Belfast Region City Deal, Digital Advisory Board approval.

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