Platform Industry 4.0 Austria and EIT Manufacturing CLC East team up to boost digitalisation in the Austrian manufacturing industry

Vienna, 9th December 2021. The European Institute of Technology (EIT) Manufacturing Co-Location Centre East and Platform Industry 4.0 Austria signed a cooperation agreement to jointly drive the digital innovation capabilities of the Austrian manufacturing industry in the future.

Robotics, artificial intelligence, additive manufacturing and more: new technologies do not stop in production. To promote and advance technological progress in the manufacturing industry, Platform Industry 4.0 Austria now cooperates with the Vienna-based Co-Location Centre (CLC) East of the renowned knowledge and innovation community EIT Manufacturing. EIT Manufacturing is supported by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), a body of the European Union. The EIT supports the development of dynamic pan-European partnerships between leading companies, research institutes and universities. Through the cooperation between EIT Manufacturing CLC East and Platform Industry 4.0 Austria, the domestic manufacturing industry will be strengthened by joint activities and initiatives far beyond the borders of Austria.

Europe-wide synergy effects for the Austrian manufacturing industry

“By signing the network partnership with EIT Manufacturing, we want to successfully accompany the transformation process in production and jointly expand the already existing cooperation network beyond the country’s borders for our members. To achieve this, we see mutual learning between the regions, more intensive networking and concrete cooperation projects as the key to success“, says Roland Sommer, Managing Director of Platform Industry 4.0 Austria, about the cooperation with EIT Manufacturing.

The Platform Industry 4.0 Austria brings together stakeholders from society, politics, business, and science, and thus does pioneering work to make the best possible use of new technological developments and innovations in digitalisation for manufacturing companies. The connection with EIT Manufacturing, in addition to building networks with neighbouring countries with the CEUP2020 and SHARE 4.0 projects, opens many valuable cooperation and innovation opportunities with European companies and institutions.

“By cooperating with Platform Industry 4.0 Austria, we are strengthening and enriching our comprehensive network with expertise on the digitalisation of the manufacturing industry and can provide even better support to the ecosystem in Austria as well as in the other countries of the CLC East region and additionally create joint synergy effects,” says Johannes Hunschofsky, Managing Director of EIT Manufacturing CLC East.

Joint activities are already being planned

The first activities of the two cooperation partners have already been initiated. For example, Platform Industry 4.0 Austria is supporting “MIT.IC.AT – Manufacturing. Innovation. Technology. InterConnect Austria”, a project of EIT Manufacturing CLC East. This pilot project is intended to increase the involvement of Austrian manufacturing companies, especially SMEs and start-ups, in the programmes and projects of EIT Manufacturing.

As part of the Interreg project “Testbed Exchange”, another joint initiative is planned in which Industry 4.0. pilot factories (testbeds) from the Czech Republic (South Bohemia and South Moravia) and Austria (Vienna, Lower Austria, Upper Austria) are to be networked. The aim is to enable cooperation, knowledge transfer and exchange of experiences based on best practices between the regions, and to push for better use of existing research and testing infrastructure in the region.

Next year, the two network partners will invite to the “Open Space Industrie 4.0”. In this format, experts will address the future of Industry 4.0 and discuss it with the participants. Joint activities with Platform Industry 4.0 Austria are also planned for the Manufacturing Days organised by EIT Manufacturing CLC East as part of ViennaUP 2022.