On Friday, the ICD welcomed three provincial executives from Northern Netherlands for an inspiring working visit to the SKILL building in Drachten. Friso Douwstra from the Province of Fryslân, Willemien Meeuwissen from the Province of Drenthe and Erik Jan Bennema of the Province of Groningen were introduced to the developments within the ICD and the joint ambitions for the Northern Netherlands high-tech manufacturing industry.
Ambitions for high-tech in the Northern Netherlands
During the visit, ICD board members gave Florian van der Hoeven and Rolf Moedt an insight into the developments of Innovatiecluster Drachten over the past period. The focus was mainly on looking ahead to the shared ambitions for the near future.
The ICD, together with partners in the region, wants to profile itself even more strongly nationwide. The further development and strengthening of the high-tech manufacturing industry in the Northern Netherlands is central to this. Cooperation between companies, knowledge institutions, and governments plays an important role here.
ICD projects have an impact throughout the entire region
Next, ICD program manager Joost Krebbekx more about the developments and projects within the cluster. Although the ICD has its origins and is based in Drachten, the collaboration now extends much further.
Various other companies from Friesland, Groningen, and Drenthe are also involved in different projects. They thereby benefit from the knowledge, networks, and projects developed from and in collaboration with the ICD.
The current leverage factor is 1:3. This gives the activities and projects of the ICD a broader impact on the high-tech ecosystem in the Northern Netherlands.
Factory of the future in practice
In addition to discussions about cooperation and ambitions, the provincial executives also got a glimpse into technological practice. During a tour, applications for the factory of the future took center stage.
In the Cobotlab, they saw how humans and robots can collaborate intelligently. Hansestudent Jannis Hötker provided a demonstration with an Autonomous Mobile Robot (AMR).
Also, the MAS NextGen- setup reviewed. This shows the possibilities that autonomous and flexibly configured production systems offer for the future manufacturing industry. Taco Hacquebord provide an explanation of the technology and applications of this setup.
Working together towards a future-proof high-tech industry
The visit led to valuable discussions about innovation, digitalization, and the further profiling of the high-tech manufacturing industry in the Northern Netherlands.
At the same time, the working visit provided the opportunity to showcase what is already happening in Drachten and the wider region. By connecting business, education, and government, new opportunities arise to share knowledge, accelerate innovations, and further strengthen Northern Netherlands' position as a high-tech region.
The visit by the three provincial executives thus underlined the joint importance of a strong and future-proof high-tech manufacturing industry in the Northern Netherlands.