Develop the automation industry together with us

Sweden is perceived as a country that is at the leading edge of the transformation to digital industry. We are proud of our ingenuity, revolutionary innovations and excellence in research. We are enterprising, cooperative and often described as an egalitarian country with a well structured society. Swedish industrial companies enjoy a high level of credibility and a good working climate.

This is in many respects a fair picture and one to be proud of. But we cannot rest on our laurels. We must constantly work to maintain our position, and these days we know that competitiveness and equal opportunities go hand in hand. Without one, we cannot have the other.

At the beginning of April, Automation Region took part for the first time in the Hanover Exhibition where, together with the Swedish Exhibition & Congress Centre and 10 exhibiting companies, we hosted the Swedish automation pavilion. Sweden is recognized internationally as an industrial and innovation nation, and the automation pavilion constituted a rendezvous point for Swedish companies, organisations and authorities.

At the industrial research college Array, the Automation Region Research Academy, Mälardalen University meets industry requirements for research, development and skills supply. Working with companies and organizations, we have put together a package containing courses, projects and professional tutors from the college and industry. We have also built up an extensive network to support the development of our industry postgraduate students and participating organisations.

As a participating party in an EU-funded project, Automation Region contributes to innovation and automation in the agricultural sector. What began as a concrete technical challenge – the problem with soil compaction in agriculture – has been expanded and now also covers development of a general innovation model for green industries.

Pfizer is currently investing SEK 350 million with the aim of doubling the rate of manufacturing in the facility in Strängnäs. The background to our major investment in Mälardalen is that the demand for our products is increasing. In a broader perspective, this is a matter of us being able to show that we belong to a strong region with many prominent automation companies and access to the right expertise.

For the first time, Automation Region is participating in Hannover Messe, the world’s largest industrial fair. Together with the Swedish Congress and Exhibition Centre and ten exhibiting companies, we are building an automation pavilion – a shop-front for our Swedish expertise and tradition of collaboration and innovation.

The possibilities of data analysis, artificial intelligence and machine learning are almost endless. But grandiose visions are of no value unless they come to fruition. Always start with the need; see potential in the problems you tackle on a daily basis. If you ask a concrete question, you increase the chance of receiving a clear answer.

Automation Region is participating in a number of different projects which aim to stimulate innovation and growth. This spring we are looking at some of these projects in more detail, and the first up is Swesa – an investment which includes a digital incubator for growth companies in the energy sector.

DigiCORE is a long-awaited lab environment in which companies, public-sector organisations and academia can collaborate and test ideas in order to bolster the digital transformation together. On 6 December, the lab was inaugurated at RISE SICS in Västerås with over 100 curious onlookers.

To further improve our local ties and to find new collaborations, we became members of Automation Region in spring 2018. For us, Automation Region is an easily accessible, local arena where, by simple means, we can show who we are and what it is that we work with. We can form relationships with the other member companies and obtain knowledge and inspiration from seminars, Do-tanks and other activities.

When I visited companies a few years back and talked about the circular economy, many thought that it seemed abstract. This is no longer the case. Today, I am met with great curiosity and also an awareness that we must leave the throwaway culture behind us. At the same time, there is uncertainty surrounding circular economy in practice – how can it be implemented in my business?

Many industrial companies are grappling with the same issues: How can we utilise collected data in order to streamline our production? How do we maintain the machines in the best possible way? Using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to work proactively, is a step in the right direction.

With 5,000 exhibiting companies and 200,000 visitors, the Hanover Fair is the world’s largest industrial fair. When it is arranged next, on 1–5 April 2019, Sweden is the partner country, which is both an acknowledgment and a challenge, considering our predecessors – Mexico 2018, Poland 2017, USA 2016, India 2015 ... A Swedish pavilion encompassing 1,200 square metres is to be built in one of the most central exhibition halls. There, visitors will come face to face with Swedish industry and automation – from research and development to the finished product.

From one year to another, the number of virtual assistants (voice-controlled AI assistants) on the U.S. market increased by nearly 400 per cent (Mary Meeker, 2018). The adaption on the market is faster than that of any previous technology. It is moving so fast that Google has suddenly realised that they have fierce competition to their most central product – the search engine. Americans are no longer searching by text but are instead using voice commands.