AMIA meeting: innovation for industrial development starts at CXI

The CXI Research Centre at the Technical University of Liberec hosted another exclusive meeting with AMIA members on Monday 23 October 2023. This event is a traditional gathering of representatives of major industrial and technology companies from the Liberec region. This year, too, there were long-standing partners and newcomers. We thank everyone for their active support and participation.

The priority of the CXI Research Centre at the University of Liberec is applied research and cooperation with industrial enterprises. "The companies themselves seek us out, but we also approach the companies ourselves and offer them our services and the results of our research. We have a wide range of services in three research areas: mechanical engineering, materials research focused on nanomaterials and IT and system solutions," says CXI's Director of Industry Relations Adam Blažek: "CXI's main partners within AMIA include companies such as Atrea, Preciosa, Bosch, Magna and Galvanoplast Fischer Bohemia.

The autumn meeting was attended by about twenty representatives of manufacturing and technology companies from the Liberec Region. They rated the AMIA meeting as beneficial because they learned about research or project cooperation with CXI and especially about specific research that they can use to address their manufacturing or technical innovations.

"We are open to new technologies and like to innovate. We have specific production problems, in our cataphoresis paint shop we often solve defects on parts during the production process and today there were topics that are directly related to possible solutions. Personally, I'm very interested in 3D printing and I've really learned a lot about this technology here. We will definitely consider research cooperation with CXI in the future," says Miroslav Němčík from KV FINAL.

The agenda of this year's meeting of the industry association AMIA also included research into waste glass recyclate and its further use or the reinforcement of nanofibres using natural substances. Both of these topics proved to be key for representatives of companies from the manufacturing industry.

"I was interested in glass recyclates because that's what we work with in terms of landfill and waste management. Then I was interested in surface treatments to eliminate abrasion. Because we transport the material in pipelines, we are looking at ways to eliminate failures. Nanomaterials that can separate water from oil are also very interesting. This is interesting for our purposes," says Miroslav Ležák, production director of Praktik System.

Regular face-to-face meetings between industrial partners and CXI are important in mutual cooperation. Most of the research with partner companies will take place at the Institute for Nanomaterials, Advanced Technologies and Innovation, but CXI brings together scientists, researchers and PhD students from other faculties (mechanical engineering, textile or mechatronics, informatics and interdisciplinary studies) of the Technical University of Liberec.

"AMIA members and our industry partners work with us because they can significantly influence the direction of our basic and applied research. We meet regularly to discuss current trends. We mutually enrich each other's expertise and we also invite our students to join us, so that they can get to know the industrial environment during their studies and start working for companies," says Adam Blažek.

One of the main benefits of AMIA membership for companies is the discounted price of all contract research conducted under the auspices of CXI TUL. Full members are entitled to a 15% discount, while associate members can enjoy a 10% discount on research. This benefit has become a strong motivating factor for many companies involved in this collaboration. If you are also interested in joining AMIA, here are the contacts: https://cxi.tul.cz/spoluprace-nabizime/spoluprace-s-prumyslem/oddeleni-pro-prumysl

In the time CXI has been in existence since 2010, more than 200 companies have participated in collaborative research. Since then, AMIA has become an active player in research and development, with regular members who support CXI and influence the direction of the institute's basic and applied research. We are confident that this association will continue to grow and deliver mutually beneficial outcomes for all stakeholders.