On February 8, 2022, the grand opening of the Engineering Center for Industrial Robotics (CPR) took place on the basis of the Kuzbass State Technical University (KuzGTU). According to tradition, the honored guests of the opening "cut the ribbon". This ceremony, together with the rector of KuzGTU Alexei Yakovlev, was attended by the Governor of the Kemerovo region - Kuzbass Sergey Tsivilev, the general director of KUKARobotics (Russia and the CIS) Dmitry Kapishnikov, the managing director of ESAB Russia and the CIS Dmitry Kuraksa.
The new center is equipped with modern equipment. It was provided by ESAB, one of the leaders in the production of equipment and consumables for welding and cutting, and INSPAIR, an integrator of German KUKA robots.
Cooperation will continue in the future. So, on the opening day, a cooperation agreement was signed between ESAB and KuzGTU, which involves the joint creation of new sections of the educational process, the development and implementation of new curricula, as well as the joint implementation of research and engineering projects.
Training and working on new equipment will allow students and specialists in robotic welding to develop their professional skills.
It should be noted that this project to equip such laboratories is not the first one. Companies are interested in the professional development of future specialists and the industry as a whole. A similar laboratory has been operating since November 2021 at the Novosibirsk State Technical University (NSTU).
“We consider the opening of the CPR in Kemerovo on the basis of KuzGTU to be a serious step for the Russian industry as a whole. Now both students and future specialists and those who are already in the profession will have access to the most modern equipment. This will allow you to learn about all the possibilities of modern equipment and effectively integrate new knowledge into your work. Such alliances of higher education institutions and manufacturers of modern equipment are an opportunity to improve the level of training of young specialists, as well as an incentive for the development of Russian industry as a whole,” said Dmitry Kuraksa, Managing Director of ESAB Russia and the CIS.
The new center will provide ample opportunities for work and scientific research, as well as for the training of professional personnel. Its doors will be open to both robotic welding specialists and students who are just learning the basics of mechanical engineering and robotics.
Here it is planned to work in several areas: scientific support for the robotization of the existing machine-building production, automated design and programming of robotic technological complexes, training and advanced training of robotic welding specialists.
In addition to scientific activities, classes will be held at the center of industrial robotics for students of the “Mechanical Engineering” direction of KuzGTU. Now they have the opportunity to receive professional skills in their native university that were not available before. The students' schedule will include not only theory, but also practice in such disciplines as "Robotics", "Robotic systems" and others. The new center will become a base for them to develop practical skills.
“The opening of the center is an important step not only for our university, but for the entire region. Our university has a long history and a powerful educational potential. We are the only technical university in Kuzbass. Cooperation and support from companies that manufacture modern equipment is very valuable for us, together we perform a single task - training highly qualified specialists for all specialties of the industrial sector of the region and the country, ”said the rector of the Kuzbass State Technical University named after T.F. Gorbachev Alexey Yakovlev.
