Port of Dover to get AI 'digital twin'
It's hoped the project will be able to help make it more efficient
The Port of Dover is to get an AI-generated 'digital twin', which bosses hope will help to plan infrastructure more effectively.
The project will see a 24-hour, 365-day all-weather simulator of the harbour's tidal flows being constructed.
The plan is to ensure the port will be able to remain operational during harsher weather conditions and welcome larger vessels and an even greater range of cruise and cargo ships.
Bosses say there are huge dividends to be gained for UK productivity – smoothing and enhancing the journey of £144bn worth of UK trade every year.
The Universities of Plymouth and Manchester have been awarded a ÂŁ333,585 grant by Innovate UK to create the digital twin.
The funding underpins a three-year Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP), that will harness the universities’ world-leading expertise in hydrodynamic modelling and cutting-edge research in AI and machine learning.
Doug Bannister, Chief Executive of the Port of Dover, said:
“We are delighted to learn of the award of this KTP and are thoroughly looking forward to working with the Universities of Manchester and Plymouth on this hugely exciting project, which will play a vital role in our journey to become the UK’s most seamless, sustainable, and tech-enabled port.
"The enhanced navigational analysis brought by the digital twin of Dover Harbour – Britain’s busiest Port – will extend our capability and operational hours and subsequently deliver a huge bonus of growth and productivity to the national economy.”
Dr Adan Lopez-Santander, Head of the Maritime Simulation Laboratory at the University of Plymouth, said:
“This an ambitious project and we are very excited about this collaboration with the University of Manchester and the Port of Dover.
"It presents a unique opportunity to bring together the knowledge of academia and industry, to combine our collective expertise and shape the port of the future. This experience will set a reference for the whole industry and has the genuine potential to bring benefits worldwide.”
The newly announced funding award for the KTP between the Port and these two world-leading universities forms part of a wider programme of digitalisation by the Port of Dover, including work on a similar land-side digital twin, using a digital transformation to support energy efficiency and decarbonisation, as well as using AI to optimise traffic flows and port operations.