Recently, the 2023 Maritime Silk Road Culture and Tourism Expo grandly opened at the Ningbo International Conference and Exhibition Center. As practitioners of Ningbo's historical and cultural preservation, the UNNC Digital Humanities Lab and the Photogrammetry and BIM Lab of UNNC were invited to participate in this expo.

In this exhibition, the UNNC Digital Humanities Lab utilised Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to correlate textual data, images, videos, animations, and 3D models with historical geographic information. The data was visualised in the form of a four-dimensional electronic map, bringing Ningbo's cityscape to life on paper and enabling citizens to gain a further understanding of Ningbo from diverse perspectives. Additionally, the Digital Humanities Lab displays cultural relics through photogrammetry modeling and laser scanning techniques, and established a digital museum platform using a 3D framework. One of the highlights of the exhibition was the first appearance of the digital model of the bronze axe with rowing pattern (a first-class precious cultural relic) in the Spring and Autumn Period and Warring States Period.

Furthermore, the Photogrammetry and BIM Lab of UNNC showcased their achievements in digitizing two ancient buildings, namely the Jiangbei Catholic Church and the Ninghai Ancient Theater, through technologies such as photogrammetry modeling, laser scanning, and digital restoration. Their contributions with the application of digital technologies to the preservation of ancient architecture showcased the intelligence of Ningbo.

The goal of this expo is to promote exchanges and mutual learning with cities along the Maritime Silk Road on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative, facilitate win-win cooperation in the domestic and international cultural and tourism industries, demonstrate the new achievements of Zhejiang's innovative culture and cultural innovation, and promote the integrated development of production, city, and culture in Ningbo Port. With this objective in mind, seven participating units, including Ningbo Marine Research Institute, Ningbo University of Technology, University of Nottingham Ningbo China, Zhejiang University Software College, Ningbo VisionRDI Optoelectronics Co., Ltd., and Baolue Technology (Zhejiang) Co., Ltd., showcased more than 60 exhibits, focusing on the integration of digital technology and cultural tourism industries, creating a creative exhibition space that combines technology, interest, and interactivity, and providing the audience with a peak and cutting-edge cultural and technological industry experience, fully demonstrating the infinite charm of "Culture + Technology." 

The UNNC Digital Humanities Lab is a large interdisciplinary research laboratory dedicated to the thematic research of Ningbo's history. It aims to deeply explore, document, preserve, and present the historical development of Ningbo city using digital humanities technologies, reconstruct historical Ningbo, and create a resource-rich, authoritative, and comprehensive public open platform. The research content covers local history and culture, climate, literature, religion, historical maps, historical photographs, urban morphology, water resources management, urban landscapes, and more. Dr Jing Xie, an associate professor in Architecture and Urban Design, Dr Yu-Ting Tang, an associate professor in Environmental Sciences, and Dr Tengwen Long, an assistant professor in Environmental Sciences, have made outstanding research achievements in this field.

Ningbo History Digital Humanities Project team has won two awards at 2022 China Digital Humanities Conference At the 2022 China Digital Humanities Conference, the “Soul Jar” digital project led by Chaoju Wang, a PhD candidate in Built Environment, won the Most Potential Award, and Ningbo History Digital Humanities Platform developed by Dr Jing Xie, Dr Yu-Ting Tang，Dr Tengwen Long, and the UNNC library received the Excellent Design Award.

The Photogrammetry and BIM Lab of UNNC has also made significant contributions to the digitisation and preservation of heritage. The laboratory is equipped with state-of-the-art laser scanners, professional thermal imaging cameras, professional graphic cameras, multiple sets of virtual reality equipment, high-performance graphic processing workstations, and related 3D graphic processing software. It is dedicated to the research of digital scanning modeling and intelligent management services for architecture and construction environments, serving cutting-edge research in the Department of Architecture and Built Environment, Civil Engineering, and Geographical Science. In recent years, the research team of the laboratory has obtained funding support from government projects and domestic and international awards for their research in the intelligentization of ancient building preservation, medical and elderly care architecture.