Businesses in Newry, Mourne and Down District Council can avail of a range of initiatives to assist them imbed digital technologies in their business. Council is offering the opportunity to businesses to undertake a digital transformation; the programme is fully funded.
Cllr Karen McKevitt attending the launch on behalf of the Chair of Newry, Mourne and Down District Council, Cllr Cathy Mason welcomed the programme “The Digital Surge Programme offers businesses the opportunity to undertake digital transformation journey with a range of industry specialists offering workshops, masterclasses and bespoke mentoring resulting in a plan that businesses can implement. Businesses will also be signposted to more intensive supports in the ‘digital innovation ecosystem’.
The Programme is part funded by Invest Northern Ireland, the European Regional Development Fund under the Investment for Growth & Jobs Northern Ireland (2014-2020) Programme and the 11 Councils. Invest NI is investing £860,000 of support towards the Programme with councils contributing £216,000. The Programme is being delivered by a consortium on behalf of Council.
Consortium Project Lead, Gillian Colan-O’Leary, stated “We are really looking forward to helping small businesses embark on their digital transformation journey. Businesses which recognise the role advanced transformative technology can play will increase their growth potential. The Programme will provide the support businesses need to discover how to fundamentally change their operations to deliver value.”
Digital technology advancements can be difficult for businesses to harness in an ever-changing world with many new technologies coming online. Technological breakthroughs in areas from artificial intelligence to robotics can assist a range of sectors. The Programme is eligible to the following sectors: manufacturing, professional services, retail, tourism, hospitality, agriculture, construction and social enterprises.
The Digital Surge Programme will assist businesses to ‘demystify’ the various enabling digital technologies/tools and inspire ‘active ideation’ through workshops, mentoring, masterclasses and network cluster events for small and medium sized businesses.
The advanced digital technology areas being covered by this programme include:
- Smart technologies / smart environments and the Internet of Things (IoT)
- Process automation via robotics / cobotics
- Big-data and analytics
- Immersive technologies (AR/VR/MR/Haptics)
- Artificial intelligence and machine learning
- Distributed ledger systems / blockchain technologies
To find out how if your business can participate please visit: https://nmdbusiness.org/digital-surge-programme/