Elsewhere on Ulster
Discover the state of the art facilities that will transform industrial applications and processes.
CIDRA is dedicated to supporting Northern Ireland's manufacturing sector by offering a collaborative platform, cutting-edge facilities, and research aligned with industry needs, all with the goal of driving innovation, enhancing competitiveness and promoting economic growth.
CIDRA will feature an Industry Hub providing a collaborative workspace for industry partners on secondment, as well as shared spaces to foster interaction between industry and researchers. These facilities are designed to enable businesses to prototype and test new technologies in industrial digitalisation and robotics.
By providing a collaborative platform, advanced facilities, and industry-aligned research, CIDRA aims to empower the manufacturing sector with innovative solutions and driving competitiveness.
CIDRA will have:
CIDRA will offer an environment where companies can prototype and test new software or hardware concepts and explore the design space. This will allow companies to see a working model of integrated technologies, from design visualisations through virtual products to physical prototypes, enabling validation and feedback using AI, IIoT, and robotics.
The resources and equipment will be chosen for maximum flexibility in design and prototyping, informed by industrial needs. The specific concepts to be prototyped or developed at any point in time will be selected based on industrial interest.
Equipment within the facility will incorporate sensors, enabling the utilisation of tools to illustrate how data can lead to the extraction of intelligence. This will provide insights for better designs, enhanced productivity, smoother supply chains, and continuous improvement through the application of Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) principles.
A range of industrial robots, including Autonomous Guided Vehicles (AGVs) and cobots, will be available at CIDRA. This will offer opportunities for industry to understand and assess the advantages, opportunities, and limitations of these technologies within a manufacturing environment. Participants will have the opportunity to gain practical experience in understanding and evaluating the capabilities of these robotic systems for potential application within their own businesses as part of the prototyping and testing activities offered by CIDRA.
