WHERE TRANSFORMATION HAPPENS

The opening of a brand new space kick-starts Cornwall’s digital revolution.

Organisers say the launch of Digital Transformation’s new ‘Space’ in the brand new Fibre Hub adjacent to the Cornwall College campus at Pool will catalyse and supercharge the growing digital revolution within Cornish business.

Unlocking Potential – who have been supporting Cornish businesses and helping them prosper and grow for over 20 years – have finally celebrated the opening of the Digital Transformation Space in partnership with Headforwards and Software Cornwall.

The launch of this state-of-the art space marks a massive, game-changing leap forward for two kinds of business in particular, and all of Cornwall more broadly.

Many Cornish companies, whether in a planned way or as a reaction to events, are looking at how they can use digital tools to transform both what they do and how they do it. At the same time, Cornwall’s reputation as home to many field-leading digital pioneers means there are plenty of businesses perfectly placed to put their know-how and experience at the disposal of the group looking to make the digital leap forward.

Digital Transformation is how those two groups get together, and their new space in the FibreHub is where it happens. Dr Nathan Jeffery, Digital Transformation’s Programme Lead, said:

“The launch of our space is as crucial as it is exciting. We offer businesses a marketplace, where those looking to transform to a more digital mindset outline their needs to those who can help them. They, in turn, describe what they’d recommend and how they can help. Our ability to facilitate this is hugely boosted by having a physical space where people can meet, talk, exchange ideas, try out the tech, see demonstrations and learn. This launch is a massive step forward in helping Cornish businesses become more productive and competitive.”

Unlocking Potential’s Director, Allyson Glover welcomed everyone, not just to what was Unlocking Potential’s first physical event since Autumn 2019, but also to what she described as a “transformational space for Cornwall”.

Toby Parkins, Director and Co-Founder of Headforwards, whose brainchild the Fibre Hub building was, talked about his long-held ambition to bring businesses together under one roof. 

Keynote speaker Inma Martinez then had everyone gripping their seats and catching their breath as she whisked them all toward the horizon at warp speed.

Nano-satellites the size of a pack of cards; IoX (the Internet of Everything); the future of motoring in the era of the million-kilometre battery: energy as a subscription. As a leading digital-technologies entrepreneur and sought-after expert in transformative technologies, Inma captured the morning’s mood by making the ambitious sound plausible and future, somehow, feel positive and ours if not to control then certainly to explore and relish. Allyson Glover said:

“Inma was such a perfect speaker for an occasion in a building like this. She spoke so clearly about the possibility of change, and the need for it. Unlocking Potential’s whole history and purpose is about helping Cornish businesses to thrive, and digital has been at the forefront of our thinking for years, but the last 18 months have underlined its importance and crystallised our thinking. The opportunities for Cornish businesses are almost as mind-boggling as some of the innovations Inma told us about. So much has changed, is changing and will continue to change; this new space will be the physical focus for a digital transformation which will benefit the whole of Cornwall.”   

To find out more about the Digital Transformation programme and the FibreHub visit digital-cornwall.co.uk