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Centre for Digital Built Britain completed its five-year mission and closed its doors at the end of September 2022

This website remains as a legacy of the achievements of our five-year foundational journey towards a digital built Britain
 

Welcome to the news section of the CDBB website. Here you will find the latest updates, reports, blogs and news from the centre.  If you would like to sign up to receive the CDBB newsletter please register here.

Read more at: Research Profile - Facilitating the digitisation of off-site manufacturing

Research Profile - Facilitating the digitisation of off-site manufacturing

5 October 2022

Off-site manufacturing (OSM) was introduced decades ago to improve productivity, consistency and quality. In production, OSM has seen success in the automotive and food and beverage sectors. In construction, OSM take-up has been far more limited. OSM includes everything in the manufacturing process, from planning to design...


Read more at: Research Profile - Application of satellite technology in infrastructure monitoring
Corner reflectors in the workshop, Krisztina for scale

Research Profile - Application of satellite technology in infrastructure monitoring

5 October 2022

Satellite Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) monitoring to investigate large earth movements and monitor city-scale deformation is well established. The use of InSAR to monitor single infrastructure assets has been less well understood. Yet improvements in the achievable resolution mean the range of possible...


Read more at: Research Profile - West Cambridge Digital Twin Facility

Research Profile - West Cambridge Digital Twin Facility

4 October 2022

Development at the University of Cambridge’s West Cambridge campus offered an opportunity to demonstrate and address challenges associated with the production of a National Digital Twin (NDT). An ecosystem of connected digital twins, the NDT exists to share infrastructure and built environment data securely and so support...


Read more at: Research Profile - Smart Hospital of the Future: Digital technologies, service innovation, and hospital design

Research Profile - Smart Hospital of the Future: Digital technologies, service innovation, and hospital design

4 October 2022

The century-old Moorfields Eye Hospital is relocating from its current home in London’s Old Street to a two-acre site at St Pancras Hospital, in the King’s Cross area. The move brings opportunity to use digital technologies (AI, analytics, digital twins) to innovate service provision to NHS patients and redesign hospitals...


Read more at: West Cambridge Digital Twin Research Facility project reveals that digital twin related technologies provide tangible benefits for the construction sector

West Cambridge Digital Twin Research Facility project reveals that digital twin related technologies provide tangible benefits for the construction sector

26 September 2022

The development of a digital twin for the facilities of the University of Cambridge on the West Cambridge campus provided a chance to address the challenges associated with the production of a National Digital Twin (NDT) along with how a digital-twin platform can be used to help local managers delivering various building...


Read more at: Research Profile - Precision Engineered Timber – Digital design and delivery of healthier schools

Research Profile - Precision Engineered Timber – Digital design and delivery of healthier schools

22 September 2022

Engineered timber offers a cost-effective solution to the UK’s building needs, improving construction productivity and performance. Combining digital design and off-site manufacturing, engineered-timber buildings can be efficiently and sustainably built, operated and maintained, and provide pleasant facilities for those...


Read more at: Research Profile - Staffordshire Bridges – long-term performance monitoring using fibre optic sensors

Research Profile - Staffordshire Bridges – long-term performance monitoring using fibre optic sensors

22 September 2022

A major rail upgrade programme to remove a bottleneck on the West Coast Main Line saw collaboration between Atkins, Laing O’Rourke, Volker Rail and Network Rail. The Stafford Area Improvement Programme included the construction of 10 new bridges designed by Atkins using Building Information Modelling (BIM) from the outset...


Read more at: Research Profile - Digital Twins: Driving business model innovation
Starting Line Image

Research Profile - Digital Twins: Driving business model innovation

22 September 2022

For many engineering and manufacturing firms, digital transformation remains elusive. They struggle to emulate the success of platform-based consumer businesses such as Uber, AirBnB and Facebook. While new technologies are undoubtedly delivering efficiency gains, complete digital revolution is yet to be achieved in the B2B...


Read more at: Research Profile - Understanding the social context to transforming construction through digital innovation

Research Profile - Understanding the social context to transforming construction through digital innovation

22 September 2022

Digital innovation brings opportunities to improve productivity and predictability in construction. Yet the sector has been slow to change. The problem is not purely technical; digital transformation is also a social, cultural, economic and political challenge. An effective solution needs to address the contributing...


Read more at: Research Profile - Digital Construction on a Shoestring

Research Profile - Digital Construction on a Shoestring

12 September 2022

Digitalisation can seem beyond the financial reach of many small- and medium-sized companies (SMEs). Barriers to engaging with digital tools and technologies include high entry and operating costs and complexity. A collaboration between academia and industry, Digital Construction on a Shoestring set out to co-deliver...