Smart Industry Centre
SUPPORTING THE FIELD OF SMART MANUFACTURING
ABOUT
SmartIC is a new Estonian Research Infrastructures Roadmap initiative supporting the field of smart manufacturing (Industry 4.0), merging distributed infrastructure for future research and development activities at Tallinn University of Technology, Estonian University of Life Sciences, and since 2018 also University of Tartu in mechanics, mechanical engineering, automation, mechatronics, material science and technology and information technology.
In terms of Estonian Research Infrastructures Roadmap a new R&D virtual unit Smart Industry Centre (SmartIC) is developed, that through co-operation and uniformly defined marketing of the services significantly enhances research in the field of smart production, cross-usage of infrastructures in Estonia (universities and partners) as well as internationally (R&D cooperation projects, applied research for international companies, such as aviation, automotive, ship-building, and other fields).
Establishing of Smartic was initiated by the current state of Estonian economy and industry – after stage of competing only by lower prices, and lower-skilled outsourcing work, is more and more necessary to create higher value chain by high-tech production. Estonia has no longer advantage of low-cost industrial country. To improve thesituation also universities should show clear direction, become more capable partner to the industry in R&D in development of new technologies and preparing top professionals for factories of the future.
