Appledore Clean Maritime Innovation Centre communications commission

Tender description

Torridge District Council’s proposed Appledore Clean Maritime Innovation Centre at Middle Dock was awarded £15.6m of funding from the Levelling Up Fund, issued by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, in January 2023. The centre, which has received backing from a range of globally innovative partners as well as government agencies, such as the National Shipbuilding Office, will establish Torridge and wider northern Devon as a global-leading research and development destination for innovation in clean maritime technology and support industries. Expected to open in early 2026, the centre will feature cutting-edge research and industry partnerships from the Centre for Future Clean Mobility (CFCM, University of Exeter) and the University of Plymouth. Designs include flexibly-designed innovation workshops and offices to enable businesses to undertake sector-leading R&D in a collaborative, engaging atmosphere and interest has already been high. Torridge District Council (TDC) is now seeking to appoint a single experienced supplier to shape and deliver the emerging communications requirements for the project up to 31st March, 2025, which will include the Planning process and the award of the main construction contract, as well as work beginning on site. This commission will be funded through the Shared Prosperity Fund, intervention E21: “Funding for the development and support of appropriate innovation infrastructure at the local level”.