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Scottish Ten in Japan

Scottish relations with Japan strengthened by gift of cutting-edge 3D scanning data.

Relations between Scotland and Japan were bolstered yesterday with the presentation of cutting edge digital data to representatives of the Japanese Government and Mitsubishi, from a Scottish-based project to digitally document heritage sites around the world.

The Scottish Government’s Cabinet Secretary for Europe, Culture and External Affairs, Fiona Hyslop, was in Nagasaki to present the final data to Japanese partners from the Scottish Ten project, which aimed to document the Scottish-designed and built Giant Cantilever Crane in Nagasaki, Japan, as well as three other industrial heritage sites with strong Scottish links in the vicinity: Kosuge Dock, No 3 Dry Dock and Hashima Island.

The Nagasaki crane was built in 1909 and on the advice of Fraserburgh-born Thomas Blake Glover, who is regarded as a key figure in the industrialisation of Japan.

Speaking at the handover, Ms Hyslop said yesterday: “It’s a great honour to be here today to present this data to our Japanese counterparts. Our two countries have enjoyed strong social, cultural and heritage links with each other, particularly in Nagasaki, whose harbour is dominated by the iconic Giant Cantilever Crane, which was constructed by the Motherwell Bridge Company over 100 years ago, and remains in continual use to this day. The Nagasaki Crane is the sister to cranes on the River Clyde, including the ‘Titan’ Crane in Clydebank.”

“Last November the Scottish Ten team came over here to digitally document the Crane with laser precision, with the resulting data now becoming available. This data will be used to aid the conservation and management of the structure as well as acting as an invaluable educational and interpretational resource for the Crane’s owners, who can carry out detailed analysis of it without worrying about how to access certain areas, and avoid damaging this very old structure. Perhaps most importantly, it will be used to provide virtual access to the Crane, which is still operational, and therefore cannot be opened to the public.”

“This is another fine example of cutting-edge innovation by nations with incredible engineering pedigrees, and a project which further serves to bring our two countries closer together.”

At an event held at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, the site of the crane, Mr Hiroshi Yokota. Senior Vice President & Head of Nagasaki Shipyard and Machinery Works, Mr. Koichi Shiota of the Japanese Government’s Cabinet Secretariat and Mr. Shirou Ejima. Board Member of the National Congress of Industrial Heritage, received the data from Ms Hyslop.

The Crane was designed by the Glasgow Electric Crane and Hoist Company, which had previously bought the engineering company, Appleby. It was constructed by the Motherwell Bridge Company and sits in the heart of Nagasaki Harbour - the birthplace of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. Giant Cantilever Cranes were state-of-the-art structures designed to lift, with the utmost accuracy, the heaviest and most valuable components into the hulls of ships under construction, being re-fitted or undergoing repair.

The Scottish Ten is a collaboration between specialists at Historic Scotland, experts in 3D visualisation at The Glasgow School of Art’s Digital Design Studio, and not-for-profit digital heritage organisation CyArk. The project aims to digitally document Scotland’s five UNESCO World Heritage Sites and five international heritage sites to foster global collaboration and build lasting partnerships based on cultural connections. In addition to Nagasaki’s industrial heritage, international sites in the USA (Mount Rushmore National Memorial), India (Rani ki Vav stepwell), China (the Eastern Qing Tombs) and Australia (Sydney Opera House) have been documented through the project.

The Cabinet Secretary is in Japan to strengthen business and trade links with Scotland. At the moment, Scotland’s direct exports to Japan are worth £295 million. The Scottish Government’s priorities are to bolster further exports in the life sciences, food and drink, and renewable energy sources.

Notes To Editors

  1. Historic Scotland is an executive agency of the Scottish Government charged with safeguarding the nation’s historic environment. The agency is fully accountable to Scottish Ministers and through them to the Scottish Parliament. For more information visit www.historic-scotland.gov.uk
  2. Register for media release email alerts from www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/news. If you wish to unsubscribe at any time, please email hs.website@scotland.gsi.gov.uk For Scottish Ten news follow @scottishten on Twitter and for GSA media alerts, follow @gsofa.
  3. Historic Scotland around the web: www.twitter.com/welovehistory,www.facebook.com/visithistoricscotlandwww.youtube.com/historicscotlandtv,www.flickr.com/groups/makeyourownhistory
  4. The Glasgow School of Art (GSA) is internationally recognised as one of Europe's foremost higher education institutions for creative education and research in fine art, design and architecture. The Digital Design Studio (DDS) is a world leading research and postgraduate centre of the GSA specialising in 3D digital visualisation and interaction technologies,. It combines academic, research and commercial activities. The experts at the Digital Design Studio are currently creating the 3D scans for the widely admired Scottish Ten as a partner in the CDDV. Other areas of DDS research include ground-breaking medical visualization, Marine Visualization and Auralisation and sound.www.gsa.ac.uk/research/research-centres/digital-design-studio/
  5. CyArk is a non-profit entity whose mission is to digitally preserve cultural heritage sites through collecting, archiving and providing open access to data created by laser scanning, digital modelling, and other state-of-the-art technologies. For more information visit www.cyark.org
  6. Scotland welcomes the world in the Year of Homecoming 2014 providing a year-long programme of events alongside the Ryder Cup and Commonwealth Games. The Year of Homecoming Scotland will run until 31 December 2014 throughout the length and breadth of the country. Visitors from around the world are invited to join in a celebration of the nation’s food and drink, active pursuits, cultural heritage, nature and ancestral heritage. Homecoming Scotland 2014 is a Scottish Government initiative being led by EventScotland and VisitScotland, supported by numerous partners. To find out more visit www.homecomingscotland.com

 

Channel website: http://www.gov.scot/

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