LEUVEN MINDGATE

Three mechatronics innovation platforms join forces


Three European innovation platforms in mechatronics, the Austrian Center for Competence in mechatronics (ACCM), the Finnish Metals and Engineering Competence Cluster (FIMECC), and the Flanders Mechatronics Technology Centre (FMTC), have signed a partnership agreement.

The goal of the partnership is to leverage the knowledge of the innovation platforms and its associated research institutes and universities in order to support the innovation of the member companies of the platforms. This will ultimately lead to opportunities to strengthen business, profit and employment.

To implement the agreement, the three partners will on a regular basis share their strategic research agendas and explore opportunities for project collaboration.

“By joining our forces, we create new mechatronics innovation opportunities that would not have been recognized within traditional national research settings”, says Dr. Marc Engels, general manager of FMTC.

“ACCM, FIMECC, and FMTC create critical mass in mechatronics research. The critical mass is expected to increase European innovation power”, says Mr. Gerald Schatz, managing director of ACCM.

“All three mechatronics platforms represent public-private partnership as a way to carry out industry-driven research. High industrial commitment improves the competitiveness of companies and increases the payback of the tax-payers public investment”, says Dr. Harri Kulmala, CEO of FIMECC.

“ACCM, FIMECC, and FMTC all promote flexible and lean research management. By working directly with the relevant innovation platforms we avoid heavy governance systems and can focus on the actual innovation projects”, summaries Dr. Engels.

Additional information and contacts:

Mr. Gerald Schatz, Managing director, ACCM, gerald.schatz@accm.co.at , +43 732 2468 6002
Dr, Harri Kulmala, CEO, FIMECC Ltd, harri.kulmala@fimecc.com, +358 40 840 6380
Dr. Marc Engels, General manager, FMTC, marc.engels@fmtc.be, +32 16 328 031

ACCM has established itself as a center of mechatronic peak performance with great international renown and reputation. In a dynamic network with approx. 100 national and international partners from science and economy, the gap between scientific research and its implementation in products is successfully bridged. This is achieved via the special ownership consortium of the ACCM, the Johannes Kepler University Linz (JKU), the Linz Center of Mechatronics GmbH (LCM) and voestalpine Stahl GmbH. www.accm.co.at

FIMECC Ltd. is the strategic centre for science, technology, and innovation in metal products and mechanical engineering industries in Finland. FIMECC’s annual research volume is ca. 50M€. 150 organisations and more than 1500 persons work in our programs. FIMECC leads its’ stakeholders to cross-disciplinary and cross-industry  nnovation through internationally open public-private research platform. www.fimecc.com

FMTC is the research center of the leading mechatronic companies in Flanders. FMTC aims at bridging the gap between academic know-how in mechatronics and its use in industrial applications. To achieve its mission, FMTC has a unique approach of joint research projects.
FMTC is supported by Agoria, Sirris, University of Leuven and the Flemish government. www.fmtc.be

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