SHANGHAI, March 27 (Xinhua) -- Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) said it inked a contract with the Fraunhofer Society for the Advancement of Applied Research on Tuesday to establish a world-class research center in Shanghai.
The soon-to-be Fraunhofer Project Center for Smart Manufacturing will be the first Fraunhofer Society research institute in China.
According to the agreement, the project center will focus on smart factory planning, cyber-physical systems and man-machine integrated manufacturing to provide solutions and services for enterprises.
Thomas Bauernhansl, director of the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation, said that both parties would work together to promote the digital transformation of the industrial value creation and cultivate talent.
"Together we will drive the fourth industrial revolution," he said.
An experience center for future smart manufacturing, the Future Workshop has been built in Lingang Area, a high-end manufacturing park in the southeast harbor of Shanghai.
With a state-of-the-art demo production line, the workshop shows scenarios in future factories and provides a man-machine interaction environment for visitors.
"Many established enterprises and start-ups in various industries ranging from aviation and aerospace to shipbuilding and equipment manufacturing came to visit, shared ideas and established cooperative relationships with the project center," said Lin Zhongqin, SJTU president.
It will not only create a smart manufacturing research and transformation base with a global effect, but also contribute to the construction of Shanghai as a science and innovation hub and upgrade China's manufacturing power, Lin added.
As one of the world's largest application-oriented research organizations, the Fraunhofer Society has provided fresh impetus for the manufacturing sector in Germany.
