Keele University’s world-leading research in healthcare, natural sciences and technology will be taken to the next level thanks to a new high-performance computing facility.

The high performance computer cluster will be a versatile and data-secure resource which will be used to support a wide range of research activities, and combines traditional CPUs – found in most computers – with two different types of GPU cards to boost their power, all powered by green energy generated on campus.

The facility will also enable new research directions to be pursued across the University’s three faculties, and will have a strong societal impact not only by enabling pioneering healthcare research, but also through economic impact enabling companies to collaborate with Keele experts and gain a technological edge.

The project has been made possible thanks to a £330,000 grant from the Wolfson Foundation, and will be located in the Digital Society Institute being established inside Innovation Centre 7, the newest development on Keele’s Science and Innovation Park which is due to open later this year. IC7 is part-funded by the Getting Building Fund and European Regional Development Fund as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020.

Professor Raphael Hirschi, who led the funding bid for the facility said: “2022 will be an exciting year with the opening of the new Digital Society Institute and the arrival of the new computer cluster. This will be a game changer for data-intensive research across all three faculties at Keele. Its design is unique and versatile, combining traditional CPUs (found in most computers) with two different types of GPU cards. It is also great that it will be powered by green energy produced on campus as part of Keele's sustainability plans."

In line with the Digital Society Institute’s focus on data and digital technology, the new facility will support research around three core topics:

• “Big data” analytics of multi-source electronic healthcare records to inform and improve real world outcomes of patients with life-threatening and disabling conditions such as cardiovascular and musculoskeletal conditions, and develop personalized medicine approaches in healthcare delivery
• Applications of deep learning in next generation image enhancement pipelines in digital cameras and smart displays
• Large-scale hydrodynamic simulations