Four research grants, for a total value of about 100,000 euros, have been announced in recent days by the University of Trieste with the support of Wärtsilä Italia as part of the development activities of Opificio Digitale and Smact, the collaborative space inaugurated at the end of October inside the Wärtsilä plant in San Dorligo della Valle that aims to bring industry into dialogue with its supply chain and the scientific system to accelerate the digital transition.
The call is dedicated to engineering graduates and PhD students with specific skills in the fields of fluid machines, electronics, applied machine mechanics and industrial mechanical systems, very specific sectors at the basis of the transition to 4.0.
The winners of the research grants will work in the new spaces of Wärtsilä created with Smact and Opificio Digitale as part of the program to create a series of "Digital Twins", virtual twins of machines and processes of industrial use in order to implement algorithms for predictive maintenance, early detection of failures and performance improvement. In particular, the first phase of the project will be aimed at the study of internal combustion engines with low environmental impact for power generation in stationary plants and on board ships. Numerical modelling techniques and other codes dedicated to specific analyses will be used in order to obtain the maximum adherence between the Digital Twin and the corresponding real machines/processes.
"The research grants - commented the president of Wärtsilä Italia, Andrea Bochicchio - show how deep is the collaboration between the University of Trieste and Wärtsilä Italia. The new Opificio Digitale/Smact spaces in our factory become an important center of gravity for innovation. This is a consistent "win-win" operation, where the University not only fulfills its educational role, but closes the circle with the possibility for its graduates to interact with us as protagonists. Wärtsilä Italia develops its 4.0 supply chain, opening up to the territory and launching the co-creation project that is one of the pillars of its future development, and the young men and women who win the calls will have the opportunity to work in a unique context, where the industrial future is built. Initiatives like this show all the potential of our territory, and the ability to network in strategic sectors such as "smart specialization" and artificial intelligence, areas in which Trieste can and must excel."
Fundamental to this synergy between cutting-edge industry and the University is the idea of transforming the company into an applicative place of learning, not only an "extended enterprise" that connects the entire supply chain in a single ecosystem, but also "extended knowledge". The industry thus becomes an integral part of a practical and transversal training path, where the winners of the calls will be able to develop the focus of their research grant in an environment of deep and positive contamination with different sectors and experiences.
"One of the strategic pillars of the University of Trieste is to contribute to the development of the industrial ecosystem by offering the territory its specific skills - said the Rector of the University, Roberto Di Lenarda - with Wärtsilä we now want to bet on our young researchers. They will have the task of accelerating the transition of the local manufacturing sector towards "smart" logics, consolidating the positioning of our region in the national Industry 4.0 program. The social value of a university is largely measured in the fallout of innovation that it is able to transfer to the realities of the territory, triggering virtuous synergies. In this case, the synergy consistently combines the scientific world, business and deserving young people in a strong and prestigious context such as our collaboration with Wärtsilä".
Check out the announcements on the University of Trieste website at these links: