The new £18 million cyberQuarter – a research and development centre into cyber security – at Abertay University will officially open today.
The cyberQuarter won £11.7m of UK and Scottish Government funding through the Tay Cities Region Deal.
The university also invested £6.5m on the project, which was given the go-ahead last June.
The cyberQuarter is expected to help create hundreds of jobs in the city.
Based over four floors within the university’s Annie Lamont Building, it will be a space for collaboration and experimentation between industry and academia.
The cyberQuarter also has a secure cloud-computing infrastructure that will be used for specialist online teaching and provision of R&D and knowledge exchange activities.
There’s also a range of open plan spaces for group working and private office accommodation, plus seminar rooms, an events space, an outdoor terrace and a cinema/lecture theatre.
Providing ‘fantastic opportunities’
Abertay University principal, professor Liz Bacon hails the opening as a “landmark moment” for Abertay.
Ms Bacon said: “This first-class hub will, crucially, help Scotland to retain the huge amount of graduate talent that comes out of Abertay and our partner institutions every year.
“It will also act as a secure, shared space where new solutions to global cyber challenges can be addressed for the common good.”
Dr Natalie Coull, head of division at Abertay cyberQuarter, added: “It’s going to provide fantastic opportunities for staff to work on research challenges with industry.
“Each industry has its own take on cyber security and its own challenges they’re looking to solve and the tools they’re trying to develop to try and address this.
“We’re really keen to get involved and help them.”
cyberQuarter opening a ‘significant step’
Its goal will be to find new solutions to local, national and international cyber security challenges.
It also aims to bring economic growth to the area.
The cyber security arm of NHS National Services Scotland has already announced it will be locating at Abertay cyberQuarter.
That will bring an initial 30 jobs to the city.
Further partnership announcements are due in the coming weeks.
Councillor Mark Flynn is city development convener for Dundee City Council and member of the Tay Cities Region Joint Committee.
He said: “Cyber security is a major growth industry.
“The sector has great potential to become one of the next big success stories for the area, building on our established reputation for excellence and innovation in tech.”
Abertay University is a UK leader in cyber security education.
Students from the university’s ethical hacking, computing and cyber security programmes will have first-hand access to the new cyberQuarter.
Construction was managed by Scape, with McLaughlin & Harvey acting as principal contractors.
The designs were created by Dundee-based Wellwood Leslie Architects.
Conversation