Immersive technologies offer the potential to optimise the design, construction, operations and maintenance of assets across industrial sectors.

North East England is working to capitalise on these opportunities and develop a leading position in the global immersive technology market.

The region’s ambition is to combine existing support infrastructure for emerging technologies with its thriving manufacturing sector to create a unique collaborative cluster.

At the heart of this is the proposal for a new National Centre for Immersive Technology, called ‘Immex City.’ This would bring new capabilities to PROTO in Gateshead, the first digital production facility of its kind in Europe.

Urban Foresight was commissioned to develop an Outline Business Case for Immex City. This used HM Treasury’s five-case model to establish the strategic, economic, commercial, financial, and management cases for the new centre.

The process was informed by a series of co-creation workshops with our clients at Gateshead Council, the Digital Catapult North East and Tees Valley, and wider regional stakeholders.

Image credit: Laurens Derks