UK consortium to further augmented reality in construction receives £1mn investment

A UK based Augmented Worker System (AWE) consortium has received £1million backing from a Governmental initiative, making virtual and augmented reality a reality in the construction industry.

Soluis Group, a leading digital developer, will work with a number of partner organisations, such as Carbon Dynamic and the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) to create an AWE consortium.

The AWE system will be designed to drive greater certainty, safety, efficiency and sustainability through five key areas – co-design, digital job guidance, progress monitoring, safety guidance and asset management.

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Christopher Freeman, Augmented Reality Technical Fellow at AMRC said: “We are delighted to be working with Soluis in this program. The AMRC sees activities such as AWE central to the digitalisation of construction and infrastructure. The integration of cutting-edge technologies into a data rich platform such as AWE will help push UK productivity forwards by enabling better communication and more effective decision making.”

The funding is just another example of the government’s focus on the construction sector, recognised as a key growth sector for the UK. UK Government has been investing in construction the its Digital Built Britain Programme (DBB).

The Augmented Worker System will provide the construction industry with augmented and virtual reality to improve the construction process at every stage, meeting the standards set by the DBB.

Digital Built Britain

Digital Built Britain, formed in 2011, is designed to create relationships outside the traditional construction sector to create a holistic outward looking, inclusive industry that is seen to demonstrably add significant value and be seen as a diverse and attractive employer.