$30m Internet of Everything innovation centre in WA

Cisco, in association with foundation partners Curtin University and Woodside Energy, has established The Cisco Internet of Everything Innovation Centre (CIIC) — an industry and research collaboration centre.

With over 80 researchers and links to advanced facilities and a global industry network, the centre will bring together start-ups, industry experts, developers and researchers in an open environment to create groundbreaking and innovative solutions that foster growth, provide jobs and help build sustainable economies.

Cisco and the foundation partners Curtin University and Woodside Energy have committed approximately $30 million to establish and develop the Perth Centre and help position Western Australia as a global collaborator in research and innovation.

Cisco defines the Internet of Everything (IoE) as “bringing together people, process, data and things to make networked connections more relevant and valuable than ever before, turning information into actions that create new capabilities, richer experiences and unprecedented economic opportunity for businesses, individuals and countries”.

The CIIC’s mission, therefore, is to create a state-of-the-art connected community in Western Australia focused on leveraging cloud, analytics, cybersecurity and IoE network platforms. It will interconnect with the second node in Sydney, to enable work to be undertaken on both west and east coasts.

The centre provides collaboration and co-working space, a demonstration area and an experimental lab facility, and is open to students, researchers, industry operators and technology service providers. It facilitates and showcases state-of-the-art research and technology demonstration projects and delivers targeted research solutions to industry problems.

Irving Tan, senior vice president of Cisco Asia Pacific & Japan, said that globally, IoE is already positively disrupting industries, providing the catalyst for investment to open the centre in Western Australia.

“Already through our initial Western Australian IoE Centre partners we are seeing exciting innovations including work around the energy ‘Plant of the Future’ with Woodside and ongoing progress led by Curtin University around the Square Kilometre Array, which will be the largest, most capable radio telescope ever constructed. The new IoE Centre will be complete later this year, and Cisco experts, industry partners and ecosystem start-ups will work together to develop next-generation technology solutions, complete proof of concepts and do rapid prototyping,” Tan said.