A NEW multi-million pound high-tech research and innovation centre is to open at the University of Bradford.

The £7.4 million centre has been created by the university and the Digital Health Enterprise Zone (DHEZ), and will be used by academics, students, health professionals and businesses to support the research and development of digital health innovations to improve the lives of people living with long-term conditions.

The conditions which are going to be worked on include cancer, dementia, diabetes, emphysema and heart disease.

The building at the university’s city campus has undergone an extensive transformation to become a cutting-edge research facility.

It will become the university’s focal point for access to the newest technology, research and projects in digital health, and will offer four floors of research, learning, exhibition and business space.

There will also be public clinics for physiotherapy, eye examinations and reviews of patient medicine, using the latest industry standard technology.

One of the features of the new centre is a full-size two-bedroom Technology Smart House that links to a 50-seat lecture theatre.

The Smart House will be used to show how advancing technology can benefit people in their homes, and allow both undergraduate and postgraduate students to demonstrate their projects.

Professor Allan Kellehear, director of the centre, said it is designed to “inspire and nurture”.

He said: “By creating unique relationships between different groups of professionals we can design new and innovative projects that improve the way health and health care is delivered in the future.

“This new DHEZ Academic building is designed to inspire and nurture these innovations and I’m very excited and proud to be leading it.”

DHEZ Academic will also house dedicated research units for healthcare engineering, digital diagnostics and health promotion.

It will use the latest technologies in digital pathology, cloud computing, embedded electronics, mobile and wireless communication, and many more fields for its research.

The centre will be opened on Friday, September 29, by Matthew Swindells, national director for operations and information at NHS England, who will share the NHS perspective on the development.

The ceremony will be followed by the centre’s inaugural lecture by surgeon, innovator and entrepreneur Shafi Ahmed.

The DHEZ is a £13.5m partnership led by the University of Bradford alongside Bradford Council, with £3.8m of capital funding provided by the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

A total of £2.8m of the capital funding was used to build the DHEZ Academic Centre.

DHEZ Academic also has strong relationships with the Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership, local NHS Clinical Commissioning Groups and Trusts, and a growing number of partnerships with the Bradford Institute of Health Research.

A delegation from the Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership is this week attending a global medical technology conference in San Jose, California, where the Leeds City Region has been praised for its innovation.

Lord David Prior, speaking at the opening of the MedTech Conference, cited the Leeds City Region as being a great place in the UK for medical technology businesses to innovate and collaborate.

The MedTech Conference attracts more than 2,650 senior medical technology professionals from across the world annually.

Bradford Council chief executive Kersten England, who is lead chief executive for business innovation and growth at Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership, said: “It’s clear there are opportunities for our regional economy within this sector, which is expected to grow to be worth $529.8 billion globally by 2022.

“Therefore it is fantastic that the City Region is attending this global event and raising awareness of both our pedigree within the sector and showcase the world class work of our academic institutions such as the University of Bradford.”