TechGrow project partners advance information audits and strategic collaborations in Czechia

On the 11th and 12th of March 2024, partners of the TechGrow project gathered at the premises of the Technical University of Liberec, in the Czech Republic, with the aim of progressing information audits conducted in each of the involved sectors: textile, furniture, and footwear, as well as to analyse the next steps of the project.

As the initial step of the project activities, partners have agreed upon the publication of various infographics showcasing surveillance factors and primary sources of information for each sector. Additionally, an explanatory methodological guide has also been published detailing the entire process developed to carry out the information audit.

During the meeting, partners participated in a workshop where they developed a questionnaire to be administered to various technology watch experts in the involved sectors, with the aim of validating the results and ensuring their quality.

Throughout the two-day meeting, partners also had the opportunity to share and discuss various technical aspects of the surveillance platforms that will need to be developed, as well as to establish work deadlines for the development of training materials.

In addition to the working meetings, partners had the opportunity to visit the facilities of the Institute of Nanomaterials, Advanced Technologies, and Innovation of Liberec, where they discovered the different lines of research being conducted at this institution, the solutions proposed, as well as understanding the functioning of this body, which provides a service based on applied research, fundamental for the innovative performance of the regional industry. They also had first-hand experience with the European Digital Innovation Hub Northern and Eastern Bohemia (EDIH NEB) project, whose main mission is to assist SMEs in various digitization tasks related to cybersecurity, nanotechnology, machine learning, 3D printing, or robotics, among others.

TechGrow, initiated in November 2023, is led by CETEM, Technology Centre of Furniture and Wood of the Region of Murcia, Spain; CLUTEX, Cluster technical textiles of Czechia; CTCP, Footwear Technology Centre of Portugal; and FEDIT, Spanish Federation of Technological Centres. The project is financially supported by the European Union under the Erasmus+ program.