Northern Ireland Maritime and Offshore joins the PIN network

Northern Ireland Maritime and Offshore joins the PIN network

Port Innovators Network (PIN), the global network of port innovation hubs co-founded by Opentop, keeps growing. The latest addition is NIMO (Northern Ireland Maritime and Offshore), the cluster representing the majority of Northern Ireland's ports and harbours, including Belfast Harbour, Foyle Port, Larne Port and Warrenpoint Port, as well as the NI Fishery and Harbour Authority, and which already has more than 65 members across industry, academia and public administration.

With this addition, PIN now reaches 11 members worldwide, cementing its role as an international meeting point for startups, entrepreneurs, companies, researchers, universities and investors across the port ecosystem.

Belfast Harbour, driving force behind the new member

Within NIMO, Belfast Harbour stands out as Northern Ireland's principal maritime gateway: it handles 70% of the region's maritime trade and 25% of all maritime trade across the island of Ireland. It is a publicly owned port (Trust Port) and one of the key drivers of the Northern Irish economy.

Mike Dawson, Director of People and Digital Transformation at Belfast Harbour, explains that the port has already invested in innovative solutions such as connectivity and real-time monitoring systems to improve situational awareness, automated environmental and fuel monitoring, and the digitalisation of documentation to reduce administrative burden. With its entry into PIN, Belfast Harbour hopes to expand its international connections and learn from the experience of other ports preparing for the challenges ahead.

First step: Valencia

NIMO's integration into the network will begin with its participation in PIN's plenary meeting in Valencia next October, focused on the network's growth strategy. NIMO will also take part in the port resilience event organised by Opentop and in the plenary session of PEIC (Port Entrepreneurship International Congress), held as part of the Valencia Digital Summit.

Strengths NIMO brings to the network

According to Kerry Muldoon, Chief Executive of NIMO, the cluster's members stand out in areas such as autonomous systems, offshore renewable energy, innovative port technologies and technology transfer from the aerospace sector into the maritime sector. For Muldoon, the greatest value of joining PIN lies in the mutual benefit it creates: Northern Ireland's innovative SMEs gain international visibility, while other PIN members gain direct access to the capabilities developed there. Through PIN's network of contacts, she notes, these connections happen quickly, opening doors that would otherwise take years to find.