Common ground between science and industry


- What is the purpose of Graphene Connect? 


Interaction between the world of science and the world of industry has always been one of the main goals of the Graphene Flagship. Large companies, such as Nokia, have contributed to the Flagship initiative right from the start. Recently, we strengthened the engineering aspect of this collaboration with an open call to add new academic and industrial partners to the flagship consortium. While every major event of the Graphene Flagship has plenty of opportunities to make scientists and companies meet, Graphene Connect is a tool focused exactly on this goal.

- What makes Graphene Connect different than a usual conference?

It is an event made for companies and with companies. It is a sort of role reversal: usually scientists talk about their research and how it can be used by the industry, and companies listen. All the invited speakers in Graphene Connect are instead industry people that will talk to an audience made of academic and industrial researchers. We want to get feedback from them, understand what are their specific needs, what are the major technological challenges they face in their own sector.


- What is the main challenge of bringing science and industry together? 


Scientists and companies have very different languages. For example, a simple concept such as “large-scale production ” means grams for a scientist, and tons for a company. We want to bridge this communication gap, to make sure that the Flagship creates a common ground for collaboration.

- What is planned for the workshop? 


The morning session will present the main research actions and objectives of the Flagship consortium concerning the fabrication and use of composites for boosting innovation in various industrial sectors. That includes technology areas of lightweight materials, heat transport, as well as materials for energy applications, flexible electronics, and gas barriers. Building on the morning presentation, we will organise dedicated group discussions giving the participants a chance to talk about future projects possibilities.

Banner image: Peter Widing, Chalmers University of Technology, 2014