“As part of the projects, around 3.62 million euros will be invested in the expansion of research and development at FH JOANNEUM over the next few years. Federal funding totalling around 2.53 million euros will be provided,” says Martin Payer, Financial Managing Director at the university. Around one quarter of the overall Austrian funding from this COIN call will thus go to FH JOANNEUM – a record sum.
“The funded projects cover a wide range of specialist fields: from the highly topical issue of digitalisation for the regional economy to optimal health prevention and sustainable and innovative food supplies for the future – the wide-ranging spectrum shows just how diverse research and teaching at FH JOANNEUM really is,” says Karl Peter Pfeiffer, Managing Director of Scientific Affairs at FH JOANNEUM.
“The three projects will be supported by around 25 Austrian companies which have expressed their interest and commitment to these future-oriented research topics in so-called letters of intent,” says Roswitha Wiedenhofer, Head of the Research Organisation & Services division, emphasising the close collaboration with business and industry.
Proof of the excellent quality of research
“The fact that we have succeeded in securing for Styria a quarter of the funding distributed across Austria is further proof of the excellent quality of the research here in Styria,” says Regional Minister for Science, Barbara Eibinger-Miedl, clearly pleased with this outcome. “FH JOANNEUM is among the leaders for teaching and research in Austria and is yet again strengthening Styria’s position as a research location with this latest success.”
The projects at a glance
The project ‘Sustainable Proteins: integrated insect innovations across the food chain’ looks at insects as a source of food. The Institute of Applied Production Sciences is leading the project, building on existing expertise from past projects on this topic. The sustainable and efficient production of animal protein is being explored using the example of insects, in collaboration with three other FH JOANNEUM institutes, the University of Wageningen (Netherlands), the University of Graz and the company Hygienicum. 1.03 million euros will be invested in the project.
How can small and medium-sized companies (SMEs for short) benefit from the analysis of Big Data and use of artificial intelligence? The ‘Big Data Analytics & Artificial Intelligence Research Center’ explores this and other similar questions relating to IT expertise and infrastructure. The project aims to develop innovative solutions and offer relevant training sessions for companies. Under the direction of the Institute of Internet Technologies & Applications in Kapfenberg, three additional FH JOANNEUM institutes as well as TU Wien, Montanuniversität Leoben and Know-Center Graz take part in the 1.43 million euro project.
Six FH JOANNEUM institutes along with the Austrian Institute of Technology, the Medical University of Graz and JOANNEUM RESEARCH have joined forces in the research project ‘Smart Cognition and Behaviour Screening powered by AR’. A new screening tool for the early identification of neurocognitive disorders such as dementia will be developed under the direction of the Institute of Dietetics and Nutrition in Bad Gleichenberg. Both the patients affected and outpatient care are expected to benefit from this multimodal tool. Project investment: 1.17 million euros.
FH JOANNEUM experts use these and other research projects to find solutions to relevant challenges for industry, business and society. The latest funding from the COIN programme will enable a massive expansion of both infrastructure and expertise in the field of research and development at FH JOANNEUM.
