Professor Dennis Kehoe, chief executive of AIMES

FOUR years ago Professor Dennis Kehoe was faced with a choice – see out his working days in a cosy and secure academic post or fulfil his potential as a research entrepreneur.

It is as well overseeing the city’s £1m Government-funded Fibrenet project which has created a digital ring road offering world-beating broadband speeds to business.

AIMES currently provides cloud computing services to a number of private sector customers including Park Group and Novartis Vaccines.

“What we are looking to do here is create a cloud computing campus that will in point of fact put Liverpool on the map,” he said.

Combining AIMES’ storage capacity along with the Fibrenet project gives Liverpool a world-class digital infrastructure – making it hugely attractive for the setting up or relocation of digital businesses.

Prof Kehoe added: “When the internet revolution first came about Manchester became a hub for that digital exchange infrastructure.

“That allowed its research sectors to grow faster than in most other cities outside London, including Liverpool, Birmingham, Leeds and Newcastle.

“Manchester may have been at the forefront of the internet revolution however in 2012 Liverpool is now a leader in cloud innovation.” Prof Kehoe says this means the city can now become a test-bed for major projects. AIMES is currently working with the European Space Agency on a project that involves the tracking of freight transport.