A major milestone in the Humber region’s clean energy journey has been reached as work was completed on the £12m Aura Innovation Centre.
The centre, at Hessle’s Bridgehead Business Park, will bring together experts from the University of Hull with ‘green’ companies across the region.
Working in collaboration, the innovation centre will provide a space for businesses to develop new renewable energy technologies, create a stronger supply chain, and spearhead the Humber’s low carbon ambitions.
Sarah Clark, programme manager, said: “As the global economy shifts towards a low-carbon future, the green energy transition opens up a myriad of challenges and opportunities for businesses of all shapes and sizes.
“More than 180 dynamic, high growth businesses have already engaged with the Aura Innovation Centre to find out how the University of Hull and Aura can help them accelerate their sustainable innovation projects.
“Four funded projects are currently live and are being delivered with colleagues across the University of Hull, with over 30 more in the pipeline before the centre has even opened.
“The AIC is another example of how Aura and the University are delivering on the UK Government’s Sector Deal in Offshore Wind.”
The £12m Aura Innovation Centre will provide a ‘front door’ for the University of Hull, giving businesses easy access to cutting-edge facilities, specialist funded support and a space to innovate and collaborate with academic and industry experts.
It hopes to boost job prospects in the renewables sector across the region, and drive economic growth.
The Humber is at the forefront of the UK’s ambitious plans to become net-zero for carbon emissions by 2050.
With the region hoping to reach this landmark by 2040 – a decade ahead of the country – the new Aura Innovation Centre will doubtless play a starring role in the future of the Humber.
Dawn Hall, business support manager at East Riding Council, said: “The AIC and The Supply Chain Network are both strong legacies of the Green Port Growth Programme and I am really pleased that my team will maintain the strong link to Aura to support regional businesses in the best way possible and continue to promote supply chain opportunities.”
Over £1.1 m of cutting-edge research facilities are now being installed into the centre, before officially opening in early 2020.
This includes a state-of-the-art printed circuit board suite, augmented reality and large green screen area, virtual reality capabilities, materials characterisation suite, high-tech 3D printers capable of printing recycled plastic, carbon fibre and metal as well as a mechanical workshop area.
Aura team members will move across to the offices during November, along with teams from the University’s Faculty of Science and Engineering to move in when the centre officially opens early next year.
The University of Hull applied for and won funding of £12m from the European Regional Development Fund, Regional Growth Fund’s Green Port Growth Programme alongside match funding from the University.
The Aura Innovation Centre is the latest state-of-the-art facility at Bridgehead Business Park, which is owned and developed by Hull-based Wykeland Group.
Dominic Gibbons, managing director of Wykeland Group, said: “The Aura Innovation Centre underlines further Bridgehead’s value to the region as the home to an ever-growing number of blue chip businesses and as a collaborative cluster of innovation and enterprise.
“Investments such as this are delivering on the long-term vision for Bridgehead as a business location of choice and a major driver of the region’s economic growth.”
