A new purpose-built centre designed to deliver specialist research in digital railway engineering has been opened at the University of Birmingham. The Centre of Excellence for Digital Systems showcases successful collaboration between academia and industry, as the university has partnered with the UK Rail Research and Innovation Network (UKRRIN) to commission the facility, with £16.4m in funding from Research England. The Centre sits within the Birmingham Centre for Railway Research and Education (BCRRE) and is set to unite existing academic and industry capabilities to innovate and support transformational change within the rail technology sector, globally.
The building represents the first phase of construction work for a £46.5m School of Engineering development at the University of Birmingham and has been completed this month (November 2020) by contractor Willmott Dixon.
Procured through the Constructing West Midlands framework, the 3,000m2 facility offers a variety of contemporary and flexible design and research spaces that act as an incubator for innovation, strengthening teaching and building research partnerships. Open offices, meeting rooms, seminar rooms and event spaces will enable industry partners to come and work directly with University experts and researchers.