New technologies, such as HVDC-links, will play a major role in future transmission system operation. The application of HVDC systems or flexible AC transmission systems (FACTS), introduce new fast dynamics, which add controllability to the power system. Additionally, state of the art technology such as phasor measurement unit (PMU) based wide area monitoring systems (WAMS) enables new methods for the next generation of power system monitoring and control systems. To develop new functionalities for control centers a new development platform for dynamic simulation studies of control and operation functionalities for AC-HVDC systems is introduced. Therefore, a detailed understanding of every component of the distributed system is required. Hence, this paper discusses the components of the development platform comprising a real-time hardware in the loop (HIL) simulation system, the communication system and the control center itself. Furthermore, first new control center functionalities are also described in this paper.