Unleashing potential: supercomputing for the future

AWE recently sponsored and exhibited at Computing Insight UK (CIUK), a prestigious conference for the UK’s academic and industry leaders to discuss and debate the field of high performance computing and associated technologies of interest to our mission.

Organised by the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) with which we collaborate, AWE subject matter experts presented our new and future Centres of Excellence (CoE), a scheme which aims to build a UK leading capability that will improve nuclear skills and expertise and develop our long-standing engagements with the UK’s academic community in multiple fields including HPC research.

AWE’s business lead for the CoE scheme, Dave Bond, said: “AWE’s presence at CIUK was invaluable. With the UK’s leading academics all under one roof, we were able to demonstrate our commitment to investing in future collaborations with key partners through PhDs and postdoctoral research projects. We have an exciting road ahead!”

Over the next five years, AWE will be establishing up to 10 centres to address key research areas. The Scientific Computing Centre of Excellence (ScCoE) and Quantum Centre for Nuclear Defence and Security (QCNDS) are two new CoEs joining AWE’s existing portfolio of academic partnerships.

AWE Principal Technical Authority for Scientific Computing, Andy Herdman, said: “Our vision is to establish a network of CoEs that not only tackle the most pressing computational challenges but also empower researchers and the nuclear industry with transformative tools, expertise and resources”.

AWE has adopted HPC since the 1950s, achieving phenomenal advancements in computational power to support our programme. As the HPC industry continues to evolve at pace, AWE remains committed to investing in cutting-edge supercomputing technology, innovation, and the next generation of experts for the benefit of national defence and security, the wider nuclear industry and UK STEM.