Perhaps when you hear robots and machines you imagine a Terminator-caliber apocalypse, but in reality (at least for now) in modern industry, robots play a key role as they can work 24/7 with an impressive precision and consistent efficiency. They do not tire, perform their tasks with impeccable accuracy and reliability, thereby significantly reducing production costs and increasing productivity. Already in the early years of Industry 4.0, talk began about the so-called "dark factories" or those in which production is fully automated and does not require the presence of human labor. Futuristic or not, for enterprises, robots are impeccable "employees" who, with their constant contribution, support the development and increase the competitiveness of companies.

In Bulgaria, although the pace of implementation of robots and automation is slower, enterprises are beginning to recognize the benefits of these innovations and are increasingly integrating them into their production processes. In this article, we will look at how robotics is developing in our country and what are the prospects and challenges for business.

Robotization in Bulgaria: status and trends

On a global scale, the level of robotization in industry is measured by the number of industrial robots per 10,000 persons employed in production. According to data of The International Federation of Robotics (IFR), Bulgaria is among the countries in Europe with a lower level of industrial robotization. In 2022, Bulgaria has about 18 industrial robots per 10,000 employed persons, while the European average is 106 robots. However, these numbers are slowly increasing as businesses across the country begin to recognize the benefits of automation.

Industry 4.0 set in motion an unprecedented modernization and digitization of the global industry, including in Bulgaria. In some industries, such as the automotive industry and electronics manufacturing, the level of robotization is significantly higher. Companies like “Huskvarna Bulgaria" and "Bader Bulgaria', which are part of international corporations, and which RTIK is proud to call its members, are actively implementing robots in their production processes, from the production of components and assembly of products to the processing, cutting and stitching of leather goods. On the other side – creators of robotic solutions for business and RTIK members such as  SIVIKO, Bullitt Engineering J.S.C. and SL Industries Ltd, are just some of the names in the industry that contribute to the successful robotization and digitization of Bulgarian businesses in the region, in the country and abroad. In addition, national level organizations such as The Professional Association for Robotics, Automation and Innovation (PARAi), actively helps to popularize robotics in our country, uniting over 80 technological companies in Bulgaria, and is the first point of contact for its members for many opportunities such as pilot projects, product export, raising funding and launching joint activities.

Here is a short video of SIVIKO's successfully implemented projects for robotic palletizing of boxes with vacuum grip:

Benefits of robotization for Bulgarian business

With the introduction of robotization, Bulgarian companies undoubtedly have the opportunity to increase their competitiveness in international markets. Here are some of the main benefits:

• Robots work continuously and increase the volume of production, which gives companies a competitive advantage and can significantly increase their productivity.
  
• Robots perform tasks with high precision, reducing errors and ensuring better product quality.
  
• Despite the initial investment, robotization leads to long-term savings from lower labor costs and waste, and thus lower production costs.
  
• Robots reduce the risk of occupational accidents by taking over dangerous and risky tasks.
  
• Industrial robots can be easily reconfigured to perform different tasks, which is useful for rapidly changing market conditions.
  
• Robotization encourages the introduction of new technologies and the creation of innovative products and business models, pushing it to be more innovative in the long run.
  
• Robots compensate for the lack of skilled workers, allowing businesses to continue to grow without being tangibly dependent on labor market shocks such as labor shortages.
  
• Automated processes reduce energy costs and waste, supporting the environmental responsibility of business and improving its sustainability.

Despite the many advantages that robotization offers for business, its introduction in Bulgaria faces a number of difficulties. Some of these challenges are related to the high initial investment, the shortage of skilled labor, the delayed process of digitization, regulatory and legal challenges, as well as the lack of adequate infrastructure for innovation. According to a 2023 Eurostat study, only about 9% of manufacturing enterprises in Bulgaria use robots or other forms of automation, while in Germany and Italy this share exceeds 30%. Although the Bulgarian industry lags behind the leading countries in Europe, the prospects for the development of robotics are positive, with constant growth in investments in new technologies.

Robotization represents a significant step forward in the transformation of the industrial sector in Bulgaria. With the increasing importance of automation, companies that integrate robots into their production processes have the opportunity to increase productivity, product quality and competitiveness in the global market. Despite the challenges faced by Bulgarian business, the advantages of robotization cannot be ignored, we already have evidence that this can also happen in an affordable way. Despite the fact that the pace of implementation is slower compared to other European countries, the Bulgarian industry is starting to orient itself towards automation, which is a promising sign for the future of the manufacturing sector in the country.

If topics such as digitization, robotics, Industry 4.0 are of interest to you, we invite you to learn more about our active initiatives in these areas such as the projects Digital Twin and BeDigital, where we work on creating quality educational content accessible to everyone. In the event that you wish to learn more about robotics and implementation in business as well as to meet representatives of successful integration of such projects, very soon you will have the opportunity to do so face to face at our planned events for the month of November 2024. Follow section "Events" on our website for more information.

In fact, in general terms, the industrial revolution refers to a radical change that first occurred in England in the 1780s. It introduces the power of production to the entire society, completely changing the structure of the economy by increasing and multiplying labor, goods and services. A large number of factories appeared, equipped with machinery, producing large quantities of products at low cost.

The first 3 industrial revolutions have transformed today's modern society. With each of these advances—the steam engine, the years of science and mass production, and the rise of digital technology—the world around us is fundamentally changed.

Source: https://toest.bg/zakusnyavashata-digitalna-transformatsiya-na-industriyata-u-nas/.

Now, all this is happening again for the fourth time with the difference that this time the revolution is driven by cloud services, social media, mobile technology, Internet of Things (IoT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI), as well as increasing computing power and data. The main idea behind Industry 4.0 is the creation of "smart factories" in which machines and devices are networked, communicate with each other and make autonomous decisions based on real-time data analysis. Here are some of the main advantages that clearly indicate the need for the fourth industrial revolution and the technologies associated with it:

• It is inherently a decentralized system
• It leads to innovation in the economy
• Creates new products
• Increases productivity
• Creates new business models
• It puts people at the center of production
• Puts customers at the center of all activities

How are things in Bulgaria?

On August 30, 2017, the Council of Ministers approved "Concept for digital transformation of Bulgarian industry (Industry 4.0)" with Protocol Decision No. 37, as a basis for developing a Strategy for Bulgaria's participation in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The purpose of the current Concept is to create prerequisites for modernization, automation and competitive positioning of the Bulgarian economy in the medium to long term (2017-2030). The vision outlined in the Concept is for Bulgaria to be recognized as a regional center of the digital economy by 2030 through the implementation of products, technologies, business models and processes from Industry 4.0.

What happens in reality

According to a Fortune Business Insights Market Research Report, Bulgaria is among the countries with the lowest Industry 4.0 market share in Europe, with this share expected to reach only 0.5% in 2029, while the EU average is 5 ,4%. A Statista report from April 2023 shows that Bulgaria has the lowest share of Industry 4.0 revenues in Europe, accounting for just 0.1% of GDP in 2019, compared to the EU average of 0. 7%. The catch-up and chaotic nature of the implementation of the Digital Transformation Concept, whose implementation status is unclear at the moment, stifles the progress of Bulgarian business in many directions.

Significant European studies such as Report on the Digital Decade 2023., point out that the level of digitalization of business in Bulgaria is well below the EU average and therefore remains far from the set goal of the Digital Decade. For example, the report shows that only 47% of SMEs have at least a basic level of digital intensity, compared to an EU average of 69% and a target of 90%. When it comes to digital skills, Bulgaria makes a moderate contribution to the goal of The digital decade in terms of digital skills. For example, only 31% of people have at least basic digital skills, which is below the EU average of 54% and at the same time the lowest in the EU. The gap with the EU average is also very high when it comes to the level of people with above basic digital skills too: just 8% compared to 26% at EU level. However, not everything looks so negative and in fact Bulgaria is not only in the role of a catch-up country. In the field of "Digital infrastructures", for example, our country performs very well in terms of VHCN (Very High Capacity Network) coverage, which reaches 86% and is above the EU average of 73%. Likewise, FTTP (Fiber To The Premises) coverage is 86% – well above the EU average of 56%.

Partly due to the political uncertainty in the country in the last few years, the initiative for digitalization of the Bulgarian industry and the implementation of Industry 4.0 concepts and technologies in most cases is carried out on a private basis rather than a universal approach. However, there are also good examples of progress in different sectors, such as furniture production for example. We are proud that in our own membership ranks featuring innovators such as SIVIKO, Bader Bulgaria, Husqvarna Ruse EOOD, Bullitt Engineering J.S.C. and SL Industries Ltd, who not only implement, but also create innovative Industry 4.0 solutions and products.

The role of education

It is not surprising that education is key here as well, and the Ruse Chamber of Commerce and Industry is committed to the idea of a knowledge economy, and topics such as Industry 4.0 and Business Digitization are no stranger to it. In this regard, we are carrying out three significant initiatives with which we also make our contribution in these areas:

• Digital Twin
• BE-Digital
• DTAM

"Digital Twin - Digital twins for intelligent production" is a project that we launched at the beginning of this year within the framework of the Erasmus+ program. Virtualization of industrial systems will be the most commonly used way to design, test and maintain machines, according to the guidelines of Industry 4.0. This will lead to a new way of thinking that will replace the existing industrial workflow in a number of aspects. Taking this into consideration, the industry will need a new technician profile that will need to be able to integrate traditional skills in industrial automation with new competencies around virtualization and digital twin systems. In this way, a better qualified workforce will be provided, which in turn will improve and facilitate the work processes in the respective business. What else can you expect from the Digital Twin project? We invite you to learn here.

"BE-Digital - Alliance to promote innovation in business and education through digital supply chains" is an Erasmus+ project that focuses on the development of specialized courses in four thematic areas

1. Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs)
2. Internet of Things (IoT)
3. Data Analytics and Big Data (including Blockchain)
4. Augmented and Virtual Reality (AR/VR)
   
   The project aims to promote: the integration of disruptive digital supply chain technologies into higher education and VET curricula to address skills mismatches, and (ii) transformation of traditional supply chain business models to digital and sustainable ones . The expected results of the project include a freely accessible educational program with gamified elements (including in Bulgarian), which will provide quality training in the mentioned topics. We invite you to learn more about the Be-Digital project here.

Project "DTAM - Digital Transformation in Advanced Manufacturing Systems" ended at the beginning of 2024. year. Manufacturing SMEs increasingly need adequately trained technicians with digital competences, and the project supports the solution of this particular problem. The following freely available tools are available and we encourage you to use them:

1. Digital Transformation Competency Index: indicates the necessary and appropriate competences for vocational training. Available in English only.
2. The DTAM training course: aimed at understanding key foundational technologies in the main areas of Industry 4.0 such as Big Data, Machine Learning, Smart Sensors, Cyber Security and a special module on Transversal Skills.
3. Guide for Trainers. Available in English only.
4. A digital self-assessment tool: allows diagnostics of your soft and hard skills.
5. A learning platform: an interactive multilingual platform where you will find the entire DTAM training course.
   
   You can learn more about the DTAM project here.

The entry of Industry 4.0 into the working processes of businesses in Bulgaria, the way we work, the way we learn and generally perceive the meaning of this complex term is something we are still witnessing. This is because in our country the process is happening at a very slow pace, but there are also steps in the right direction. In order to strengthen this process, a centralized, coordinated and systematic policy is needed, supported both at the national level, but especially at the local level by the main stakeholders in the process, namely the representatives of education and business, as well as the local government. That is why RTIK continues its efforts in this area and will continue to provide the necessary impetus, spark and podium in ensuring a better and modern business climate. We invite you to follow the section regularly "Events", so you don't miss important events we plan to support business, as well as other interesting topics.

As an organization bringing together business, community and education, RTIK invests significant efforts and funds in the knowledge economy, contributing to the provision of quality opportunities for formal and informal education, exchange of experience and good practices, as well as lifelong learning.

In this regard, RTIK took another step towards this goal, signing a Memorandum of Cooperation with PGEE "Apostol Arnaudov" - Ruse, through which the two organizations strengthened their partnership and joined efforts for the successful implementation of the DTAM initiative. The purpose of the memorandum is to provide an initial framework for cooperation and to facilitate joint work between the parties, in areas of common interest, especially education in the field of digitization and smart manufacturing and related technologies. Similar memoranda were also concluded with Elias Canetti State University of Ruse, as well as Ruse University "Angel Kanchev".

The DTAM project focuses on creating a new curriculum that aims to provide quality training to mid-to-high level technicians in key core technologies for smart manufacturing. The training content is structured in 6 separate modules, namely:

The goal of a DTAM project is not only to provide specialized training, but also to support opportunities for cooperation between educational institutions, teachers, enterprises, workers and students. The educational toolkit also offers:

If you want to get free access to the training toolkit created by the DTAM project, or you are an institution in the field of education with which we share similar missions and wish to cooperate in areas of mutual interest, we invite you to join forces in the name of the development of the quality the education. Contact the project coordinator for Bulgaria, Mr. Airi Memishev, via the following email address: amemishev@rcci.bg or by phone: 082 825 875 to learn more.

The DTAM project is financed by the Erasmus+ program of the EU. You can know more about it by visiting its official website, as well as his social media at Facebook and Twitter.

About the Project

DTAM - Digital Transformation in Advanced Manufacturing

In the fourth issue of the newsletter, you will learn more about new policies in the field of environmental and landscape protection, such as the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030, digital tools to support the landscape, as well as other interesting topics related to the protection of landscape and NATURA 2000.

We take this opportunity to once again invite you to participate in the testing of the manual and the specialized platform GEOLAND, which will allow a large number of interested persons, including experts, students, teachers and even amateurs, to contribute to the preservation and improvement of the Bulgarian and European landscape. If you wish to become part of this initiative on your own, with your pupils or students, please contact us to give you completely free access to the platform, as well as guidance on how to work with it.

The results entered into the platform will be used to create a series of policy recommendations that will be submitted to the relevant regional, national and European authorities in order to address current and possible future problems related to the European landscape as a whole. By getting involved, you can contribute to this as well as give voice to otherwise neglected topics and issues in this regard.

We hope you will join in GEOLAND the initiative and together help to realize a more favorable future in the sphere of the protection of the Bulgarian landscape for everyone.

The truth is that mass companies have a huge hidden capacity that they can realize in increasing profits. To help you more successfully harness and exploit this capacity of yours, our partners at Improvinn invite you to the workshop "Innovative Business Stories: How to Find Innovative Business Solutions Using Lean, Theory of Constraints and TRIZ", which will be held on November 9 and 10 in Sofia.

The training is based on 6 real projects of Improvinn for improvements in different companies and a proprietary system through which symptoms in the company's work are collected, analyzed and finally a solution is created that eliminates all problems without creating new ones.

For this purpose, TRIZ (Theory for innovative task solving), Lean and Theory of Constraints have been used for nearly 9 years. In this training, Vladi Velikov from Improvinn will show you all the way from collecting symptoms (problems), getting stuck and "this can't be fixed" to looking for the causes, finding the root problems, creating an innovative solution, implementing the solution, implementation issues and reporting of results. Specific real case studies with a successful end will also be considered, such as:

1. Increase in finished goods for the production of Nike sports socks with 35% and BGN 0. investment.
2. Increasing the productivity of the "Ironing" workshop with the 25%. [Delta Textile].
3. Increasing the productivity of the "Packaging" workshop with 20%. [Delta Textile].
4. Increase customer service productivity with simple email requests.
5. How to do effective process synthesis and analysis in a mining company.
6. How the finished product is increased with 20% in cable production.

You will learn more about and how you can:

1. Process synthesis and analysis.
2. Collection of symptoms.
3. Establishing cause and effect relationships.
4. Finding the root problems.
5. Creating an innovative solution to eliminate all symptoms
6. without causing harm in other departments.
7. How to use systems thinking.

There will also be a practical exercise based on your examples.

The training will take place in the following order:

Day 1

1. Getting to know the methods used.
2. Sharing real business stories.
3. A practical task through which you will be able to apply what you have learned on the first day.

Day 2

1. Getting to know the methods used.
2. Sharing real business stories.
3. Describing the Algorithm for Business Improvements.

The training is for two days: November 9 and 10 in the city of Sofia. The price for one participant is BGN 500 excluding VAT.

For registration and additional information, you can contact Vladi Velikov from Improvinn on phone 0885833629 or email velikov@improvinn.com.

If you wish to see already successfully completed projects from Improvinn, you can do so via the following link: https://improvinn.com/Improvinn_Presentation.pdf.

With this thought in mind, the project partners from a total of 5 European countries managed to organize the first official project meeting despite the international restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. It took place in the homeland of the project coordinator - the city of Rethymno, on the island of Crete, Greece.

During the meeting, the first upcoming activities of the project were also discussed, namely the creation of an Educational Manual for Monitoring European Landscapes. It is aimed at students and teachers of higher education who have a specific interest in working in the field of environmental and landscape conservation. The innovative aspect of this first for the project product is related to the training of a significant number of higher education students in the use of both citizen science and geoinformatics methodologies in the implementation of the European Landscape Convention (ELC). This will be achieved through an innovative combination of educational methods, state-of-the-art technologies, digital tools and open resources.
 

We invite you to follow our channels for more information on the progress of the project, as well as follow the official Facebook page of the project here, to keep up with all the news. 

More information about the project can be found on our website here, as in the official website of the project here.

The Digital Transformation in Advanced Manufacturing Systems: An Integrated Training Program for EU Technicians to Implement and Manage Digital Tools in Smart Manufacturing or in short DTAM, is a three-year Skills Sector Alliances project targeting Vocational Education and Training (VET) of the EU Erasmus+ programme.

The DTAM project comes in response to the growing need for retraining and upskilling of technicians and students in the EU in order to improve their employability in an intensive, rapidly developing labor market such as advanced manufacturing systems. The project will address several other needs that have recently become even more apparent around the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath. These include (1) technical and digital skills mismatches in labor supply and demand, (2) requirements for sectoral industrial workers, (3) lack of recognized VET programs on the subject and hands-on training through access to advanced Internet-type laboratories of Things (IoT) and learning through work practice and last but not least (4) the need for updated training for low or under-skilled older workers at risk of being replaced by technological advances.

That is why the DTAM project will create a new curriculum dedicated to the quality training of mid- and high-level technicians in the field of key technologies related to digital transformation in advanced manufacturing systems. The curriculum will help grow a workforce of technicians capable of understanding, installing, configuring, monitoring, analyzing, transferring data and maintaining digital systems in advanced manufacturing environments. In this way, a step will be taken towards bridging a critical skills gap related to Industry 4.0 in the EU, while paying attention to the regional needs of each of the participating countries.

The project will achieve these goals through the following key activities:

• DTAM learning methodology and training program. In this activity, the partners will aim to create a framework for the necessary skills in the field of digital transformation, a methodology and a training program including a guide for trainers.
  
• Preparation of DTAM Study materials. In this key project activity, the learning materials will be developed together with a dedicated online learning platform and a digital and transversal skills self-assessment tool. Possible training topics are: digital skills, industrial security, transversal competences, cloud technologies, artificial intelligence, machine learning and big data.
  
• Creating a DTAM IoT hub. The idea behind this activity is based on the need to have a sustainable collaboration center for the various stakeholders, including students and teachers, entrepreneurs and professionals, developers of IoT products and services, buyers from private organizations or public administration as well as end users. Through the creation of the DTAM IoT collaboration hub, access to learning content and materials will be provided to all national and international stakeholders.
  
• Pilot testing. Prior to the official launch of the DTAM training course, pilot testing will be done to validate the training methodology, training framework and training content

The coordinator of the project is the Spanish training center POLITEKNIKA IKASTEGIA TXORIERRI S.COOP in partnership with 10 other organizations from 5 European countries, of which the Ruse Chamber of Commerce and Industry is a part.

We invite you to get involved in the DTAM project by subscribing to its official newsletter, through which you will be informed of all its activities. You can do this through the following link.

For more information about the project in Bulgarian, you can visit the official page of the chamber here.

You can also follow all the developments of the project on the official website of the project www.dtamproject.eu as well as on Facebook or Twitter. 

In case of additional interest in the project or questions related to it, you can contact Airi Memishev (amemishev@rcci.bg) or Irena Ivanova (ivanova@rcci.bg).

Project RESTART – one of our projects with the most up-to-date topics, has officially ended and it's time to tell you about the achieved results. 

CONTEXT

The evolution of European industries is supported by digital solutions and is depicted in the so-called "Industry 4.0". A study conducted by the European Social Fund to monitor the professional needs of the industry reveals a mismatch between the demand and the supply of skilled labor. Businesses require workers specialized in digital skills tailored to the industrial sector. There is a need to introduce Vocational Education and Training (VET) programs that can combine specialist sector expertise with e-leadership and ICT skill sets.

Industry is working closely with schools, universities and other higher education institutions to create innovative programs to equip people with the key skills needed for digital transformation. However, VET has yet to develop a link with the industrial sector.

PRIMARY OBJECTIVE

RESTART 4.0 aimed to involve the industrial sector in the transformation of VET systems to meet the need for digital skills aligned with technological developments in industries.

SPECIFIC PURPOSES

• Industry 4.0 Skills Shortage Study;
• Promoting workforce-focused VET initiatives on digital skills through blended partnerships;
• Designing a training course to update and retrain workers from the industrial sector, with a focus on the acquisition of digital skills;
• Promoting training initiatives for entrepreneurs to make them understand the potential of ICT in traditional industries;
• Providing e-leadership skills to workers and managers that will lead to better employment and career opportunities;
• Promoting the recognition of ICT skills in the traditional industrial sector through the use of ECVET principles;

WHAT WE MANAGED TO ACHIEVE

• We reached directly and indirectly over 9,000 people;
• We have trained over 260 people, including managers and employees from traditional industrial sectors, workers and students;
• We met with over 250 stakeholders through face-to-face events to promote the project;
• We have created a training program with 55 hours of content and available in 5 languages;
• We studied how it is perceived and to what extent Industry 4.0 has entered the European level;
• We organized round tables on the subject of Industry 4.0, in which more than 120 business representatives participated;
• We wrote a report on training needs in the field of Industry 4.0;
• We have created a set of digital skills for training in the field of Industry 4.0;
• We have created a package of ECVET documents and a didactic model necessary for the adoption of training at the European level;
• We invested 36 hours in working and training trainers for each of the project countries; 

MAIN ACTIVITIES:

After the launch of the project in 2017, the partners worked on the established schedule of events and focused their efforts on it to build a truly quality training program. Here is the list of activities that were carried out:

O1: DIGITAL LEARNING KITS FOR INDUSTRY 4.0

O1-A1 Conduct a training needs analysis

O1-A2 Digital Entrepreneur Round Tables

O1-A3 Developing a set of skills for Industry 4.0

O1-A4 Development of a package of ECVET documents and didactic model

O1-A5 Spread of O1

O2: CURRICULUM / FRAMEWORK FOR VET in Industry 4.0

O2-A1 Preparation of training materials for the toolkit

O2-A2 Selection of participants

O2-A3 Learning Toolkit Test

O2-A4 Test monitoring and evaluation 

O2-A5 Distribution of O2

C1 – SHORT TERM JOINT STAFF TRAINING EVENT (Malta, September 2018)

E1-E5 - PROMOTING EVENTS IN ITALY, MALTA, GREECE, SPAIN AND SCOTLAND.

Despite all the work done, however, the partners are convinced that the key to helping workers just entering the realm of Industry 4.0 is creating a suitable environment for preliminary training. In achieving this goal, we invite you to take a look at the training course we have created and improve your knowledge and skills in the field of Industry 4.0 and digitalization. 

Bulgarian language training is available completely free of charge after standard email registration in RTIK's training platform here.

To learn more about the project or to see the training in other languages (English, Spanish, Italian, Maltese) we invite you to visit the official website of the project here.

As a leading branch organization in the region, we from the team of the Ruse Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the INOBRIDGE Business Innovation Center are aware of our responsibility to support businesses, the community and our fellow citizens in these stifling developments surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, we are opening two training courses that we believe will benefit a large number of interested persons. The materials were developed under projects of the Erasmus+ program of the EU in international partnership with leading organizations in the field of business and education in Europe. 

Course 1 – DiTEM: Digital Transformation of European SMEs.

DiTEM project started in 2016. and was successfully completed in September 2019. In the three years of the project, Manchester Metropolitan University, BIC INNOBRIDGE and 5 other international organizations from 5 European countries developed a training toolkit that aims to support SME company managers, current and future entrepreneurs, as well as students studying in similar specialties by increasing their competitiveness and helping them on their way to digitization. Training materials are housed in a specially created online training platform and are divided into the following 6 modules:

• E-leadership
• Cyber security
• Big Data
• Cloud services
• Mobile solutions
• Digital Marketing and Social Media

To gain access to the platform, simple registration is required by following the steps described in The registration guide and initial guidelines and use and The study guide. You can learn more about the project and what the training modules themselves include by visiting the official website project website or download the brochure in Bulgarian from here. See what Miroslav Ludmilov - a participant in the pilot training of the DiTEM course - said in the following video.

Course 2 - RESTART 4.0: Digital training tools to promote Industry 4.0 in the EU.

The RESTART 4.0 project was launched in 2017. and ended in January 2020. In addition to the Ruse Chamber of Commerce and Industry, 7 other organizations from 6 European countries participate in it. The main goal of the RESTART 4.0 project is to qualify new professionals capable of supporting the digital transformation of European companies using the advantages offered by Industry 4.0 technology. The training itself is designed to improve and expand the supply of high-quality training opportunities tailored to the needs of individuals with little experience or low qualifications. Training materials are housed in a specially created online training platform and are divided into the following 8 modules:

• Introduction to Industry 4.0
• Computer Aided Design, Reverse Engineering, Digital Program Management
• Cloud services
• Digital factories
• E-commerce
• E-leadership
• Big data
• Industrial security

To gain access to the platform again, a basic registration is required by following the steps described in The study guide. You can learn more about the project and what the training modules themselves include by visiting the official website project website or download the brochure in Bulgarian from here.

We believe and invest efforts in imparting knowledge! We also believe in sharing them, and we hope that the knowledge embedded in these two training courses will help both in your professional and personal development.

For any questions related to the training courses, please contact Airi Memishev-expert programs and projects, by email at amemishev@rcci.bg. 

With best wishes,

The team of RTIK and BIC INNOBRIDGE

These days, it's all about data. Whether we are talking about new technologies, the information age or Industry 4.0, the collection and use of data is what connects them.

Robotics, additive manufacturing, augmented reality. To develop each of these innovative concepts we need data as a key element to create this new ecosystem. This is why data means analysis.

In the industrial world, data leads the way. They are the ones who keep the "machine" alive. This is how innovation can be fostered. The way new features can be added to existing systems to make them even better. Think about it: social media is an industry, search engines are also an industry, which is part of the industries of the future. So how are they maintained?

Of course, collecting data and using that data to make improvements, create new features, and add innovative ways to make the user experience easier.

When we mention data, we are only talking about the kind of data that can be used. In other words, the actual data that can provide users with the kinds of information that can be used to achieve positive, or in some cases, negative outcomes.

Aiming to achieve several goals, data-related activities are spread throughout the chain and the life cycle of each product affected by it. And the connection doesn't stop there. It's not just about data and Industry 4.0. There are aspects that go beyond Industry 4.0 in terms of technology, data and the multitude of applications that add value in smart manufacturing.

With animation systems that exceed our imagination, combined with Industry 4.0 practices and the use of data, we are already talking about faster and more sustainable production processes that focus on creating smart devices to facilitate every aspect of life of the person.

These efforts are bringing improvements in many areas. Whether we are talking about our daily life, the global market or market research. Both in theory and in practice, Industry 4.0 is everywhere and especially in the things we use every day, like the smartphone, for example. They are improving and will continue to do so over the years, thanks to Industry 4.0 and industrial data analytics.

Source: RESTART 4.0