C4Di digital hub launches in Hull
THE £4m gold-clad Centre for Digital Innovation officially opened its doors yesterday, marking a milestone in the regeneration of Hull.
Hull-based developers the Wykeland Group were behind the development from its conception. They led the steering group involving KC, the University of Hull and Hull City Council and others in attempting to counter the digital brain drain by keeping and nurturing talent in Hull at the C4Di.
Wykeland has been based in Hull for 45 years, making the project to help regenerate the city very close to its heart.
Dominic Gibbons, managing director of Wykeland said that “the digital sector underpins every sector” which is why is was so important for them to spearhead the project, part of a wider £14m scheme dubbed @TheDock.
The company is also behind the development of Hull’s Fruit Markets into a creative hub, in collaboration with Beal Homes as well as a secretive development with Dry Docks.
Wykeland were the majority funders of the C4Di, with additional help from the European Regional Development.More than 90% of the offices in the first three floors have already been signed up.
Mr Gibbons said at the launch event: “The digital technology sector works in a different way. It’s collaborative. We took the time to see what the sector is about, what other cities were doing and what the sector needs to grow.
“We’re creating a community here. It’s a regenerative area and there is a lot of potential here. Digital underpins all of the other sectors, every business is digital, they just don’t know it yet.”
“The Hull business community is very close and we have a lot of family-owned businesses, that are all helping each other to grow.
“It resonates with me when people talk about the collaborative nature of digital,” he said, and the company seems to have taken the same tack with the development of the C4Di.
John Connelly, managing director of the C4Di said “It’s an amazing building, it feels like a different Hull… one that’s bursting with potential.
“The leadership of the C4Di team and Dominic Gibbons shows that the private sector has confidence in the technology sector.
“Everything up to now has been pre-season training. There has never before been an opportunity like this. It is time for us to take advantage of these opportunities.”
The C4Di has the fastest connectivity in the country according to the developers, as it features KC’s Lightstream broadband service , with download speeds from 250Mbps to 1Gbps and upload speeds of between 125Mbps and 500Mbps.
Claire Braithwaite, head of Tech North at Tech City UKwas the guest of honour and opened the C4Di, appropriately given the momentous day, with a light saber.
She spoke to TheBusinessDesk.com at the event where she was made an (unofficial) honorary citizen of Hull.”The digital economy exists in clusters like this one in Hull,” she said. “It’s the way the sector functions best, in areas of high density, where entrepreneurs can meet and talent can be found. The digital sector is evolving fast, and clusters like this are fundamental to the digital ecosystem.
She continued: “Globally important innovation happens in Hull, but the biggest challenge is the visibility of the digital industry. We have to make it known that there is a vibrant digital community here.”
Ms Braithwaite emphasised the importance of Hull playing to its strengths. She said: “The speed of growth is determined by success, and there different strengths and opportunities in each area.
“There are unique elements to Hull, the port, the large corporates that have made a home here, and our job as a community is to promote these strengths and specialisms.”
Ms Braithwaite said that the Silicon Valley narrative of “geeks and gadgets” was not what the technology sector was about. She said: “For me, digital is all about people. Buildings like this are key to bringing digital economies together.”
“The North is rising,” she finished, “Let’s be part of this.”
