The Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology (MoIAT) and UAE University (UAEU) have agreed to establish the country’s second Industry 4.0 Enablement Centre in UAEU’s District 4.0.
This centre, which is part of the Technology Transformation Programme in the UAE, will encourage the adoption and development of technology, sustainability best practices, and Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) applications throughout the manufacturing value chain.
The new facility will include an area for exhibiting state-of-the-art technology, a collaboration space, a testing and innovation lab to support the co-development and testing of technologies and procedures, and to foster the commercialisation and upscaling of new 4IR technologies.
At the World Government Summit held in Dubai, H.E. Omar Al Suwaidi, Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology, signed the MoU with Dr. Ghaleb Al Breiki, Acting Vice-Chancellor, UAEU, witnessed by H.E. Sarah Al Amiri, Minister of State for Public Education and Advanced Technology, and H.E Zaki Anwar Nusseibeh, Cultural Advisor to the President of the UAE and Chancellor of UAEU.
According to Al Amiri, the new centre will offer the industrial sector a platform for supporting R&D and piloting technologies, applications, and use-cases in collaboration with industry and technology partners, according to WAM. The centre will also promote more sustainable operating models for the manufacturing sector, increasing efficiency and reducing emissions to achieve the UAE’s Net Zero 2050 object.
Nusseibeh said, “We thank the MoIAT and Sarah Al Amiri for their confidence in UAEU. The university will continue its efforts to achieve the vision our country’s leadership, supporting the nation to keep pace with the 4IR and the development of artificial intelligence.
“We will also strengthen our scientific research as a core pillar of national development, as well as continue offering programmes that keep pace with the latest scientific technologies in an effort to prepare a generation of highly qualified, skilled graduates.”
In terms of capacity building, the enablement centre will build capabilities through targeted training programmes and apprenticeships, and will also educate industrial stakeholders on areas such as sustainability, smart digital factories, cognitive AI and robotics, fabrication and blockchain among other topics.
