Industrial Net Zero Innovation Centre
The Industrial Net Zero Innovation Centre (INZIC) was formed in March 2020 as a partnership between Digital Catapult and TWI who are combing their deep industry expertise and nationwide networks to the benefit of UK businesses. Its aim is to help organisations tackle industrial net zero challenges by exploiting advanced digital technologies and deep industrial domain expertise in areas such as digital twin and asset life extension, creating new market opportunities for UK tech start-ups and industrial businesses. Longer term, the research and development (R&D) activities of INZIC will contribute to increased efficiencies and reduced emissions in the UK’s industrial supply chain and advanced digital tech ecosystem.
Net zero is a requirement to balance any emissions by absorbing an equivalent amount from the atmosphere. To enable the global warming target in the Paris Agreement to be met, global carbon emissions should reach net zero around mid-century.
Objectives
- Develop advanced digital technologies to improve sustainability and efficiency, thereby reducing the carbon footprint of industrial processes and supply chain logistics through better optimisation of resources
- Create new applications targeting asset and energy intensive industries such as aerospace, utilities and energy
- Drive new regional research and technology capability for the acceleration of digitally enabled industrial net zero
- Reduce the UK’s CapEx by producing new business service models in maintenance, repair and overhaul to extend the life of industrial assets
- Undertake joint research programmes and secure a portfolio of research funding from external sponsors
Core areas
- Advanced digital technologies in asset maintenance, service and repair
- New applications for reducing carbon emissions in energy intensive industries
- Digital twin systems for real-time monitoring of in-service assets and provision of data to inform the identification of issues before they occur, help mitigate downtime and assist in future planning
- Digital transformation of traditional manufacturing processes and move to smart factories
- Development of artificial intelligence (AI), internet of things (IoT) and block chain technologies to support solving major industrial challenges