ECIT
At £40m, ECIT represents Northern Ireland’s largest ever research-based investment 
and is indicative of the close relationship NISP has with the Province’s two universities.
The 40,000 sq. ft. facility located close to The Innovation Centre, is a world class research centre housing Queen’s University’s internationally renowned expertise in electronics and computer science. ECIT aims to stimulate major opportunities for economic growth in Northern Ireland by pioneering innovation in key areas of advanced technology through a healthy mixture of blue skies, applied and strategic research. In addition, it provides ‘hot-housing’ facilities to encourage and support the growth of new spin-off and spin-in companies. Start-ups will be located close to the relevant research groups and, with the assistance of ECIT management, will have access to business and financial expertise from the University, Government agencies and other bodies.
ECIT houses seven research groups to build upon Queen’s expertise in many of the key enabling technologies that underpin new high-technology developments. These include broadband and broadband wireless networks, high frequency electronics, DSP System-on-Chip, speech and image processing, embedded software and reconfigurable systems.
The Institute is headed by Professor John McCanny, Professor of Microelectronics Engineering, a Fellow of the Royal Society and founder of two of Northern Ireland’s leading technology companies – APT, whose sound compression technology has been used in blockbusters such as 'Saving Private Ryan' and Amphion, a leading supplier of semi-conductor IP.