For many years, the construction sector has been plagued by a lack of connectedness, throughout the supply chain. While other sectors have leveraged new thinking and new technologies to drive positive change, the construction sector has fallen behind, growing productivity four times slower than the rest of the UK economy.
But it’s not just productivity that has suffered. Commerciality, sustainability and safety are all compromised with this lack of progress. The small geography, collaborative nature and concentration of innovative organisations in the North East of England has seen the region take its place at the vanguard of digital construction. Northumbria University continues to work with partners in industry and government to enhance and extend this reputation beyond digital, to have a positive impact on construction sector globally.
We formally launched a partnership with George Clarke’s MOBIE to drive innovation in designing homes for the future by embedding research and innovation into businesses through co-funded PhDs. We are working with businesses across the region to launch the International Centre for Connected Construction (IC3), which will build on the North East’s unique ecosystem that has enabled the organic growth of a cluster of expertise and innovation. And in addition, earlier this year, Northumbria and Newcastle universities were awarded £8 million to create the world’s first Hub for Biotechnology in the Built Environment.
