REVOLUTIONARY ADVANCES PROVIDED BY DIGITAL TWINS FOCUS OF EVENT AT DISCOVERY PARK

Sandwich, Kent, February 19 2020
Do you want to immerse yourself in a blood vessel, build the perfect factory before you put a spade in the ground or send a version of yourself to deliver a speech in a foreign language on the other side of the world? Or how about testing a car 300 million times before it hits the road, planning surgery or talking to remote patients via a hologram? These ground-breaking approaches are all being delivered via digital twin technology. They were some of the topics discussed recently at the sell-out conference, ‘Two’s Company – The What, Whys and Hows of Digital Twins in Industry Today and Tomorrow’, at Discovery Park, the thriving science park for ambitious and growing life sciences companies.

A digital twin is a dynamic, responsive and networked computerised version of a physical asset and/or process, which can be used in the development, design, test, maintenance and delivery of products and processes. As speakers from Pfizer UK, the Kent, Surrey and Sussex (KSS) AHSN, the University of Kent, Siemens, Innovate UK, Microsoft, Sopra Steria UK and HoloCare told the conference, digital twins are already having a significant impact across industries and services. The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport and the South East Local Enterprise Partnership discussed development of the digital skills needed to work and interact with digital twins, while NHS England covered the ethical implications of digital healthcare.

Over 300 people attended the conference, which was organised by Discovery Park, Pfizer UK, the KSS AHSN and the University of Kent. Exhibitors included BAE Systems, beautifulinformation, Deloitte LLP, Edge Digital, Imagination Factory, MindWave Ventures, Mindweaver-AI, Mysphera, Siemens and Virtalis.

‘It has been fascinating to learn about the better information on products and processes that digital twins provide – the kind of information that will be driving the businesses of many of our tenants in the future. Digital skills are an important complement to STEM education in the development of the workforce of the future, and we are pleased to see that there is support for their development. Thank you to all the presenters, exhibitors and delegates for their contributions to such an exciting event.’
– Mayer Schreiber, CEO of Discovery Park

‘Pfizer is proud to have partnered on this forward-thinking event demonstrating the exciting possibilities of digital twin technology and its impact across a broad spectrum of industry, academic and healthcare sectors. Technologies like this have the potential to revolutionise the pharmaceutical industry and we are excited to be implementing these as we develop new, predictive approaches to accelerate the development of breakthrough medicines.’
– Brian Henry, Vice President of Drug Product Design in Pfizer’s Medicinal Sciences group

‘We were delighted to be part of the ‘Two’s Company’ digital twin event which showcased ground-breaking products, services and ways of working. It highlighted the wonderful opportunity for growth in Kent and Medway created by the region’s rich innovation infrastructure. Going forward, we hope that a focus on digital twins and digital skills will enable the region to make the best use of data and digital tools to support research and economic growth, and transform the lives of people living and working here.’
– Melissa Ream, AI and Digital Lead, KSS AHSN

‘Ensuring that research and innovation from universities connects with industries is vital to improving the productivity of the UK economy. This event was a really exciting example of how digital technology can provide new collaborative opportunities and networks. Through the sharing of both technology and values from the University of Kent, we accelerate the creation of digital twins, toward a successful outcome for diverse industries and society.’
– Simon Barnes of Kent Innovation & Enterprise, University of Kent

For further information and media opportunities please email [email protected] or call Emma Palmer Foster on +44 (0)7880 787185.

Photographs of the conference are available on request.

Editor’s notes
About Discovery Park
www.discovery-park.co.uk

Discovery Park has grown to be a thriving part of the South East’s life science community over the past seven years as a multi-business science campus. The site offers high quality laboratory, office and manufacturing facilities, the space and support to expand, access to local finance, and a strong local scientific talent pool.The growing tenant community includes Pfizer, which built the site’s reputation as a centre for drug discovery and discovered some of the most famous drugs in the world here. Other tenants include Algaecytes, Canterbury Christ Church University, Centauri Therapeutics, Concept Life Sciences, Genea Biomedx, LGC, LifeCells, Mylan and Salvensis. Discovery Park is home to 160+ companies employing 3,500 employees in total. With easy connections to London, Europe and the world Discovery Park is a great place to build and grow your biotech, medtech or pharma business. Discover more via our website: – www.discovery-park.co.uk email: [email protected] or call: 01304 614060. You can also follow us on social media.

Twitter – @DiscoveryPark_

LinkedIn – Discovery Park – Sandwich, Kent