Nyhetsarkiv

On Monday, March 25, 2024, travel agency Vanilla Travel presented Travelizi - an artificial intelligence travel assistant that will help travelers improve travel planning, making it easier, more pleasant and faster around the world. Project was developed in joint partnership with Technological Competence Center for Arctic Logistics Operation at UiT The Arctic University of Norway.

During the presentation, the development experts engaged by Riga Technical University demonstrated the functionality of the newly developed virtual assistant during the artificial intelligence session, which is used when booking airline tickets and hotels and making various travel inquiries. During the demo, switching between different languages, performing various additional requests, demoing the user profile, and demoing the capabilities of registered users, as well as other functionality were performed.

What is the Travelizi project?

The goal of the Travelizi project is to provide travelers with a new kind of experience in the travel process, making it much more convenient or even fun, pleasant and faster. The assistant is fully approved and does not require installing any new applications as it works with Telegram, Slack and other popular communication apps. From a technical point of view, its operation is ensured by a combination of several artificial intelligence models, including the generative artificial intelligence solutions based on the new generation GPT large language mode.

Art intelligence faster than you can imagine…

Since the advent of Chat GPT and other large-scale neural networks, it is clear that artificial intelligence is rapidly changing our world and our daily lives. The advancement of technology is equivalent to when computers replaced typewriters. This was also started before knowing about Chat GPT, but the Vanilla Travel project team adapted to the new packages and used the new opportunities making the product even better.

The direction of future tourism – virtual travel assistants

Now travelers often spend hours searching for airline tickets, hotels and transportation solutions for their next trip. They also want personalized service at no extra cost. Travelizi aims to solve these problems by using artificial intelligence and offering a virtual travel assistant that meets the needs of today's travelers.

The project is implemented within the framework of the small-scale grant scheme of the Norwegian financial instrument "Development of green innovation information and communication technology products" with UiT The Arctic University of Norway. Support amount: EUR 95,053.12.

"Working together for a green, competitive and inclusive Europe".

Agreement number: NP-2022/9 with identification number: NAGS1-IES-2021/25

https://www.norwaygrants.org

Date: February 6th - 7th 

Venue: UiT Campus Narvik, Lodve Langes gate 2, room E1480 

Participants: Representatives from the following organizations attended the event: 

• UiT The Arctic University of Norway 
• Karelia UAS 
• WESTBIC 
• Udaras na Gaeltachta 
• SSNV 
• Nordnorsk Vitensenter 
• Vitensenter Nordland 
• Narvik Kommune 
• Visit Narvik 
• SALT 

Day 1: February 6th 

The first day of the GLOW 2.0 Project's learning journey and consortium meeting was marked by productive discussions and insightful presentations. The consortium meeting provided an opportunity for partners to delve into the intricacies of project progression, work package presentations, and activity planning. 

Throughout the morning session, each work package was examined, with partners providing valuable updates and insights into their respective areas of focus. Notably, discussions revolved around strategies to ensure seamless coordination and alignment across work packages, aiming to optimize project outcomes (See figure 1). 

Figure 1 Project members engaged in collaborative discussions during the consortium meeting at UiT Campus Narvik 

Following the consortium meeting, Marius Wang conducted a captivating demonstration of VR (Virtual Reality) technology testing at the UiT XR-lab. This session showcased the full version of the virtual planetarium showing the potential applications of VR technology within the context of our project, sparking enthusiasm among participants, and stimulating further exploration of innovative solutions. 
In Figure 2 below, participants engage in a demonstration of VR technology testing conducted by Marius Wang. 

Figure 2 Demonstration of VR technology 

The day concluded with a visit to the Narvik War Museum, offering participants a poignant reminder of the region's historical significance. The evening continued with a traditional dinner at Breidablikk, giving a local experience of Arctic Norway’s food and culture and providing a platform for informal discussions and networking opportunities. 

Day 2: February 7th 

The second day commenced with a seminar for stakeholders, featuring a diverse lineup of speakers who provided valuable insights into Northern Norway's tourism industry. Lars Sigurd Eide, CEO/Head of Economic Development, Narvik municipality, set the tone with a welcoming speech, emphasizing the importance of collaboration and innovation in driving sustainable tourism initiatives. 

Subsequent presentations covered a wide spectrum of topics, ranging from Presentations about light pollution and dark skies, tourism trends and challenges, ways to enhance business capacity in dark sky tourism, to technological innovations and their implications for the industry. Presentations included discussions on the impact of VR and planetarium experiences in science tourism, as well as insights into the feasibility of science tourism in Northern Norway. 

The presentations have prompted considerable interest and sparked fruitful discussions among stakeholders on technical knowledge, future work, networking, and potential collaboration for sustainable tourism development. Figure 3 below shows an image of team Glow2.0 presenting about “Embracing Dark Sky Tourism in Northern Periphery and Arctic regions”.  

Figure 3 Team GLOW2.0 seminar presentation 

The day concluded with a guided tour of Polar Park, providing participants with a firsthand experience of the Arctic wilderness and its unique biodiversity. Additionally, a visit to the UiT XR-lab offered participants insights into cutting-edge technologies, such as 3D environments and virtual reality, underscoring the potential for innovation in tourism development (See figure 4). 

Figure 4 UiT XR-lab Dark sky and space demonstration 

Conclusion: 

The GLOW 2.0 Project's learning journey and consortium meeting proved to be a valuable platform for knowledge exchange, collaboration, and stakeholder engagement. The event not only facilitated meaningful discussions and insights but also strengthened partnerships and laid the groundwork for future initiatives aimed at promoting sustainable tourism in the Northern Periphery and Arctic regions. 

As we reflect on the success of this event, we are happy to see how our collaborative effort is making a significant impact in advancing the objectives of the GLOW 2.0 Project. Moving forward, we remain committed to leveraging the insights gained from this event to drive innovation, foster collaboration, and achieve our shared goals. 

• Journal publication: Supply Chain Transformation for Pursuing Carbon-neutrality | Frontiers Research Topic (frontiersin.org). Abstract Submission: Deadline 30 September 2023; Manuscript Submission Deadline: 31 March 2024.
• SII2024, The 2024 16th IEEE/SICE International Symposium on System Integration, Ha Long, Vietnam 8-11th January, 2024. We organize the Special Session “Human-centric system integration for resilient and sustainable manufacturing”. Please see ‘Call for paper’. Deadline for full paper: 1. Aug. and Code of our special session is: j7y5n. Portal for paper submission: SII2024 (sice-si.org)

The event, aimed at facilitating networking opportunities among participants, is dedicated to Trinity Technical Solutions, Agile Manufacturing, and Standardisation and will take place on Wednesday 8^th February from 8.30 to 16.00 in Brussels at BluePoint Brussels.

The TRINITY project, funded under the Horizon Europe research and innovation programme, created a network of multidisciplinary and synergistic local digital innovation hubs (DIHs) composed of research centres, companies, and university groups that can contribute to the development of agile manufacturing in Europe.

In this regard, this event will provide a comprehensive overview of the project’s achievements, the standardisation opportunities for technological innovations as well as the current EU policy background relevant to the TRINITY project and in the general sphere of agile manufacturing and other emerging technologies.

The conference (which will include different panel discussions and a networking lunch) will bring together high-level policymakers, industrial actors, research institutions, and other relevant stakeholders to exchange views on the current most compelling issues related to advanced manufacturing. 

You can find the detailed agenda attached or by visiting our dedicated webpage.

Register HERE

We have successfully started the EEA Norway Grants-funded project Development of modern engineering educational program in the field green intelligent manufacturing. 

The project Nr BIN SGS02_2021_007 is led by the University of Zilina, Slovakia. The other partners are SPŠ Dubnica nad Váhom, Slovakia, and ArcLog/UiT Narvik. The total budget is 199 647,95 EUR.

Diana Santalova THORDARSON, the project coordinator from UiT, and Beibei SHU, participating in the project as a researcher, visited the opening conference, which was held in Zilina on 29.11.2022 – 01.12.2022.

Diana Santalova THORDARSON, project coordinator, ArcLog/UiT Narvik

In addition to the project leader Prof. Mario DRBUL, the project manager Vladimír BECHNÝ, and Prof. Daniela ŠPÁNIKOVÁ from SPŠ Dubnica nad Váhom, the following special guests admitted the event: rector of Zilina University Prof. ČELKO; vice-rector for international relations and marketing Prof. RISTVEJ; Prof. Andrei SOKOLÍK, who worked for many years as an ambassador in Norway, and representatives from the Research agency Mrs. KUBALÁKOVÁ and Mrs. KOMPIŠOVÁ.

Prof. Mario DRBUL, project leader               Vladimír BECHNÝ, project manager

The opening conference consisted of a presentation of the project objectives and the individual project activities involved, as well as an excursion for students, professors, researchers, and the public with the aim of pointing out the benefits of additive manufacturing and virtual reality for the production process. Our researchers Beibei SHU, Marius WANG, and Mathias SÆTERBØ presented their main scientific results in the field of Virtual Manufacturing and Additive Technology to the Slovakian students.

Beibei SHU is presenting his course in Virtual Manufacturing

We are very thankful for the opportunity to visit the traditional Slovakian village Čičmany, the Slovakian Betlehem in Rajecká Lesna, and Rajecké Teplice including SPA. Our Slovakian partners are welcome to Norway to attend the next event expected to be held in September 2023 in Narvik.

Working together for a green, competitive and inclusive Europe.

The network PROCSI – Promoting Cyber Security for Critical Infrastructures, funded by Nordplus Higher Education 2022 and led by UiT Narvik, conducted its second meeting in Tampere University, Hervannan Campus, Finland, from 8th to 11th of November 2022.

The event was co-located with the 32nd FRUCT conference, technically sponsored by IEEE.

The PROCSI network event consisted of several meetings and presentations of educational and research priorities of the network members. Yevgeni KOUCHERYAVY, Simona LOHAN, Jari NURMI and Sergey BALANDIN represented Tampere University, Nadezhda KUNICINA, Jelena CAIKO, Ingars STEIKS and Roberts GRANTS represented RTU, Latvia, and Diana Santalova THORDARSON and Rami NOUREDDINE represented UiT Narvik, Norway.

Our researcher Syed Abdur Rahman TAHIR and two of our master students, Ayah Mohamad Yazid Faisal MUSTAFA and Syed Muhammad Mustafa KAZMI, had an excellent opportunity to present their scientific papers to the scientific community and problem-solvers of today. Moreover, three more our master students attended the conference with posters – Oluwatomi ABIOYE, Emmanuel Yeboah MENSAH, and Caleb NYAMADI. The master students elaborated their papers and posters within the course INE-3602-1 22H Project (UiT master program Industrial Engineering 2022), and for them FRUCT32 was their first experience in live scientific presenting.

The next PROCSI event will be organized by Riga Technical University and is to be held in May 2023 in Latvia.

Almost all participants of our meeting: Nadezda KUNICINA, Jelena CAIKO, Caleb NYAMADI, Oluwatomi ABIOYE, Ayah Mohamad Yazid Faisal MUSTAFA, Diana Santalova THORDARSON, Emmanuel Yeboah MENSAH, Sergey BALANDIN, Syed Muhammad Mustafa KAZMI, Ingars STEIKS and Roberts GRANTS.

Syed Muhammad Mustafa KAZMI                    Syed Abdur Rahman TAHIR

Emmanuel Yeboah MENSAH                            Ayah Mohamad Yazid Faisal MUSTAFA 

Oluwatomi ABIOYE                                          Caleb NYAMADI

What you will learn in this article:

Artificial intelligence - models of the new generation

What is the Travelizi project?

Virtual travel consultant - the future of the tourism industry

In today's cluttered information environment, travelers are often forced to spend countless hours selecting airline tickets, hotels and transportation options for their next trip to ensure they have found the best possible option for them. In addition, expecting to receive a personalized service, even though they do not want to pay extra for such a service. Travelers prefer to use their usual applications for communication with the service provider, rather than installing new ones, so that the trip fits harmoniously into the existing rhythm of life. It is sometimes impossible to provide it in tourism following traditional approach.

Artificial intelligence - models of the new generation

Most industries are already successfully using artificial intelligence solutions both in customer service, improving efficiency, quality and accuracy, offering new services and providing completely new experiences. Unfortunately, tourism is far behind in this respect.

Today, artificial intelligence knows how to program independently, create images from a generally given description, find correlations, as well as replace a person in various situations. At the same time, various support robots have also developed, which, using NLP technology, can answer frequently asked questions and provide support to customers.

However, these virtual bots are in most cases very robust, with limited communication capabilities and manage very limited information. In order to create a product that meets the needs of today's travelers and uses the latest artificial intelligence technologies, we deeply researched this area, and as a result, we saw the frontier and possibilities that separated these outdated bot technologies from the new generation models.

What is the Travelizi project?

The goal of the Travelizi project is to provide travelers with a new level of positive experience in the process of choosing a trip, making it much more convenient, pleasant, or even fun and faster. In order to achieve this, Latvian tourism company Vanilla Travel together Riga Technical University

and UiT The Arctic University of Norway are working on the development of a smart travel assistant, which will be as close as possible to communication with an experienced and responsive agent, giving the opportunity to get information about travel options and to be inspired, as well as to book all the necessary services in the most convenient communication channel. In addition, the assistant will support the traveler in preparation for the trip, during the trip and even after the trip.

Virtual travel consultant - the future of the tourism industry

From a technical point of view, the virtual assistant will provide fast and convenient travel booking service with the help of unique algorithms, will communicate in languages spoken by almost half of the world's travelers, using the most popular communication applications. The assistant will know how to joke and be a good conversation partner on various topics, but at any moment will tell you everything you need about the travel destination, providing an unforgettable user experience. It will not only find, but also book the best flights, hotels and tours. Its operation will be ensured by a combination of several neurolinguistic and artificial intelligence models.

The Travelizi assistant will be fully automatic, accurate and fast, easy to use and will not require the installation of any new application. The assistant will remember what each of our travelers likes and create individual offers not only for him, but also for his family and friends.

The uniqueness of the Travelizi project technology is also emphasized by the integration of most advanced artificial intelligence models in the world at the moment, which, together with the other features of the virtual consultant, will allow Vanilla Travel to create a new, innovative and unprecedented product in the field of tourism. The new product will be exportable to global markets and can provide revolutionary innovation in the industry.

Currently, we have already successfully completed the first round of development, which allowed us to connect the main components and make sure that such a solution is technically possible and will really work. We are currently developing the main functionality, and we also plan to hand it over for testing to users who previously expressed their desire to participate in the tests.

Norwegian grant funding

The project is co-financed by the Norwegian Financial Mechanism 2014-2021 within the framework of the small grant scheme "Development of green industry innovation and ICT products" of the program “Entrepreneurship Development, Innovation and Small and Medium-sized Enterprises” for the period 2007-2013.

The aim of the project is to develop travel booking system based on a unique artificial intelligence technology implemented in a multilingual automated virtual travel assistant, available on the most popular communication platforms and providing both full live communication and tourism services including a full booking process.

Agreement number: NP-2022/9 with identification number: NAGS1-IES-2021/25 in partnership with UiT The Arctic University of Norway. "Working together for a green, competitive and inclusive Europe".

https://www.norwaygrants.org 

Amount of grant: EUR 95 053.12

PROCSI- network supports and promotes students’ research work in manufacturing engineering and IT

A newly established network PROCSI – Promoting Cyber Security for Critical Infrastructures, funded by Nordplus Higher Education 2022 and led by UiT Narvik, will contribute to the education of a new generation of engineers in the Nordic and Baltic regions with high-level competence in digitalization through sharing expertise in cyber-physical systems, power engineering, and informational technology.

PROCSI consists of institutions having core competencies in educating professionals in the most rapidly developing areas: intelligent manufacturing and logistics, power engineering, and informational technology. The partners are

• ArcLog – Technological Competence Center for Arctic Logistics Operations, established at the Department of Industrial Engineering, UiT Narvik,
• Institute of Industrial Electronics and Electrical Engineering, and Department of Modelling and Simulation, Riga Technical University, Latvia,
• and Faculty of Information Technology and Communication Sciences, Tampere University, Finland.

All the students and academic staff interested in these topics are encouraged to attend our kick-off meeting conducted on the 23rd of August 2022 at Narvik Campus. The following guest lectures will be presented at 1 pm:

• Announcement of the 32nd FRUCT conference and cooperation opportunities by Sergey BALANDIN, PhD, Adjunct Professor, Faculty of Information Technology and Communication Sciences, Tampere University, Finland
• Control Fundamentals for Critical Infrastructures by Nadezhda KUNICINA, PhD, Professor, Institute of Industrial Electronics and Electrical Engineering, Riga Technical University, Latvia
• Crowdsourcing in industrial research: PreScouter case by Ekaterina BALANDINA, PhD, PreScouter Inc., Finland/USA.

All those interested in developing their academic careers are invited to participate in the 32nd FRUCT conference, which will be held in Tampere, Finland, on November 9-11, 2022. The conference consists of lectures and presentations given by leading researchers and IT-industry experts as well as student works and progress reports of FRUCT research teams. The conference papers are published in the regular issues of FRUCT Proceedings ISSN 2305-7254 following principles and categories defined in the Publication Ethics and Publication Malpractice Statement.

The conference submission deadline is September 16, 2022, and the authors will receive a notification of acceptance by October 7, 2022. Students can participate with both papers and posters, where they can present the results of their master thesis. Participation in the conference is free of charge for students.

3.nov undertegnet UiT v/ ArcLog og Equinor en treårig samarbeidsavtale for utbyggingen av Johan Castberg-prosjektet i Barentshavet.

Avtalen er et resultat av et spennende samarbeid som har utviklet seg det siste året. Dette er stor tillitserklæring som gir oss mulighet til å jobbe med konkrete prosjekter, det gjør oss veldig fremoverlent og gir oss nye muligheter til å ta del i det grønne skiftet og i sirkulær økonomi.

Innenfor avtalen har UiT studenter som arbeider med masteroppgaver rettet inn mot Equinor. I tillegg har UiT v/ IIT en stipendiat, Natalia Khan,  som tar sin næringsphd i Equinor. Avtalen har også ambisjoner om at det skal defineres og gjennomføres forskningsprosjekter som er relevante for begge parter.

https://www.fremover.no/skal-samarbeide-om-et-av-norges-storste-industriprosjekt/s/5-17-915614

Temamøte 13. og 14. okt. er gjennomført med 25 deltakere. Dette ble et vellykket temamøte med gode forelesere og engasjerte deltakere, som gav temamøtet svært gode tilbakemeldinger.

Neste temamøte er 10. november på UiT. Det blir sendt ut invitasjoner til møtet i løpet av de nærmeste dagene.

29.9.21 gjennomførte ArcLog en workshop med fokus på 3 D metall printing.

Deltagere var fra repr. fra Helgeland kunnskapspark, KUPA, ProBarens og Equinor. I tillegg deltok instituttleder Jan- Arne Pettersen, prof. Wei Deng Solvang og prosjektleder Bjørn Bremer på møtet.

På workshopen fikk vi en gjennomgang av status innenfor fagfeltet samt gode diskusjoner og refleksjoner for veien videre. ArcLog har startet planleggingen av et EVU-kurs innenfor 3 d metallprinting med nordnorske leverandørbedrifter og potensielle sluttbrukere som målgruppe. Første samling planlegges i januar 2022. Deltakerne støttet dette initiativet fullt ut og vil inviteres inn i planleggingen av innholdet i kurset.

Teknologinettverk Havbruk i Ofoten og Sør-Troms inviterer til temamøte 13.-14. oktober (lunsj til lunsj)

Møtested: UiT Norges arktiske universitet, Campus Narvik. Temamøtet gjennomføres i samarbeid med UiT/ArcLog.

Temamøtet er det første i en rekke av tre planlagte møter som skal gjennomføres høsten 2021. Møtene henger tematisk sammen, så vi anbefaler deltakelse på alle tre møtene for å sikre helheten. Invitasjon med program til de to påfølgende temamøtene (10. november og 8. desember) distribueres hver for seg.

Målgruppen for temamøtene er leverandørbedrifter og potensielle leverandørbedrifter til havbruksnæringen.

Vi ønsker gjennom temamøtene å mobilisere leverandørbedrifter i et teknologisk perspektiv ved å synliggjøre problemstillinger sett fra havbrukeres ståsted. Havbruksaktører vil selv presentere utfordringer som må løses og samtidig peke på muligheter for leverandørbedrifter til å ta en aktiv rolle.

Egenandel for deltakelse: kr. 1.000,- pr. deltaker for hvert av temamøtene.

Program for temamøte nr. 1 finner du HER

Klikk her for å melde deg på: Påmelding

Distribuer gjerne invitasjonen videre i ditt nettverk.

Transportutvikling AS v/daglig leder Stig Nerdal har i samarbeid med ArcLog sendt ny søknad til forskningsrådet for å jobbe med en Pilot-T søknad og søke etter partner.

Prosjekttittelen er: Effektiv elektrisk drift av hurtigbåter ved batteribytte. Prosjektet tar utgangspunkt i en nasjonal ambisjon om å etablere bærekraftige nullslippsløsninger for flere transportformer, herunder drift og hurtigbåter. Hurtigbåter har et høyt energibehov, og vanlige ruteopplegg har høye frekvenser og opererer over relativt lange strekninger. Dette fører til korte ladetider og begrensninger i forhold til miljøvennlig batteridrift. Det må utvikles flytende batteribytteterminaler og tilpasninger i fartøyene som sikrer raske, effektive og trygge batteribytter.

Hovedprosjektet tar sikte på å forberede hele batteribyttekonseptet. Slike løsninger finnes ikke i dag.

I prosjektet har ArcLog innledet et samarbeid med institutt for elektoteknologi v/ IVT-fakultetet.

Transportutvikling AS v/daglig leder Stig Nerdal har i samarbeid med ArcLog fått innvilget søknad fra forskningsrådet for å jobbe med en Pilot –T – søknad og søke etter partner.

Prosjektet tar sikte på å utvikle og teste en forretningsmodell med bred anvendelse, - konkretisert ved at en benytter empiri fra en multimodal logistikkløsning rundt Nord-Norges største bil/bane-terminal; Narvikterminalen. Løsningen skal med lav-/nullutslippsteknologi bidra til bærekraftige, smartere og sikrere transporter for næringslivet ved at bl.a. transport på vei flyttes over til sjø og bane. Prosjektet skal bidra til ny kunnskap og bruk av teknologi, bl.a. IKT, for å etablere en bærekraftig multimodal transportløsning innenfor et arktisk område mye utsatt for vær og vind. Prosjektarbeidet skal skje gjennom et samarbeid mellom flere offentlige og private kommersielle aktører. Potensialet for økt verdiskapning og økt effektivitet skjer gjennom både forbedrede transportløsninger samt muligheten for produksjon og leveranser energi, utstyr og service til logistikksystemet.

Arclog v/ prosjektleder Bremer skal lede arbeidet med gjennomføringen av forstudien : Samfunnsanalyse i Midtre Hålogaland – den grenseløse regionen.

Sparebanken 68 grader nord og IVT-fakultetet v/institutt for industriell teknologi har innledet et samarbeid for undersøke behovet for en slik samfunnsanalyse. Samarbeidet med Sparebank 68 grader nord ang. samfunnsanalysen, samsvarer godt med universitetets sin strategi « drivkraft i nord» der målet er å bidra med kunnskap og menneskelige ressurser for å skape økonomisk, kulturell og sosial vekst og utvikling i nord.

Sparebanken 68 grader nord har gjennom flere år vurdert aksen Narvik – Harstad –Vesterålen og Lofoten som et særdeles interessant og vekstkraftig område der potensialet med et forsterket samarbeid mellom regionen kan legge til rette for en offensiv og fremtidsrettet samfunnsanalyse og grunnlaget for en gjennomføring.

Det er nær geografisk kobling mellom Midtre Hålogaland og aksen Kiruna –Luleå i Sverige. Samfunnsanalysen bør derfor også fokusere på næringsutviklingen i dette området som kan ha en positiv innvirkning, utgjøre en mulighet for et sterkere og mer målrettet samarbeid.

Forstudien skal være ferdig 6. sept. Hovedmålet er å avklare behovet og interessen for en samfunnsanalyse hos sentrale samarbeidspartnere. Dersom nødvendig forankring er tilstede skal man i forstudien utarbeide rammer for et forprosjekt

Peter F. Hjort-seminaret er et initiativ for å styrke verdiskapingen i nord gjennom tettere samarbeid mellom UiT Norges arktiske universitet og arbeids- og næringslivet. Seminaret er en møteplass der næringsrettede problemstillinger drøftes, og har vært arrangert årlig siden 2015.

 

I 2021 gjennomføres Peter F. Hjort-seminaret digitalt over fire dager fra 22. til 25. mars, med sendinger fra Vadsø, Lofoten, Mo i Rana og Tromsø, ved hjelp av videokommunikasjonsverktøyet ZOOM. Sendingene starter med plenumsinnlegg om forskning og lokalt nærings- og samfunnsliv. Deretter deles deltakerne inn i forhåndsvalgte workshop-rom, for å diskutere mulig samarbeid med utgangspunkt i relevant forskning og utdanning. Seminaret avsluttes med at deltakerne samles i (det digitale) plenumsrommet, for oppsummering og avsluttende innlegg.

ArcLog har ansvaret for en av de 4 workshopene i Mo i Rana med fokus på 3 D-printing.

https://uit.no/pfhjort (med lenker til hvert arrangement)

Det er også laget fire Facebook-arrangement.

https://www.facebook.com/events/2892510657700843 (Vadsø)

https://www.facebook.com/events/1791208371055261 (Lofoten)

https://www.facebook.com/events/143632647585460 (Mo i Rana)

https://www.facebook.com/events/272111500977659 (Tromsø)

Narvik havn har i samarbeid med Smart Innovation Narvik og UiT v/ ArcLog fått støtte til et kvalifiseringsprosjekt fra Regionalt forskningsfond Nordland. Prosjektet vil bli gjennomført frem til sluttrapport skal innsendes i september 2021.

Mål og delmål

Hovedmålet med prosjektet er å bidra til Narvik Havns visjon om at Narvik skal være det ledende logistikk-knutepunktet på Nordkalotten, gjennom å tilrettelegge for et bedre kunnskapsgrunnlag som transportaktørene kan bruke ved planlegging og gjennomføring av transporter i regionen.

Målet med et forprosjekt vil være å avklare om det er hensiktsmessig å gå videre med et hovedprosjekt, gjennom å svare på spørsmålet om det finnes et behov i markedet.

Kvalifiseringsprosjekt

Kvalifiseringsprosjektet vil avklare om det er nok grunnlag til å gå videre med et hovedprosjekt. I et kvalifiseringsprosjekt vil man gjennom arbeidsmøter og intervjuer avdekke behov og tilgjengelige data, sammen med utvalgte transportaktører og potensielle dataleverandører. De forskningsutfordringer og utviklingsbehov som vil identifiseres i kvalifiseringsprosjektet vil typisk være knyttet til prosessering av data.

I prosjektet legges det opp til et tett samarbeid med ArcLog. En viktig del av kvalifiseringsprosjektet vil også være å samarbeide med noen utvalgte næringsaktører som kan ha nytte av den tjenesten man ønsker å utvikle. De vil kunne bidra med bransjespesifikk kompetanse og relevante brukerbehov. Det vil også være viktig å etablere samarbeid med de ulike aktører som allerede jobber med å samle inn relevante data for vei-, sjø- og banebaserte transporter for å se om de kan bidra med data inn i tjenesten. Et kvalifiseringsprosjekt vil også avdekke om det er hensiktsmessig å koble på andre kompetansemiljøer i et eventuelt hovedprosjekt.

Nærmere opplysninger om prosjektet kan du få ved å henvende deg til prosjektleder v/ArcLog Bjørn Bremer.

https://www.narvikhavn.no/

https://www.smartinnovationnorway.com/

Onsdag 18.11. i samarbeid med Equinor, Rana utvikling, Kunnskapsparken nord, Orinor og Probarents gjennomførte ArcLog ved Fakultet for ingeniørvitenskap og teknologi, UiT Norges arktiske universitet webinaret: 3D-printing – et nytt industrieventyr i nord?

Stor interesse

172 deltakere fulgte webinaret, noe som vitner om stor interesse fra næringslivet. Det viser også lista over innledere på webinaret. Der var både de blå næringer, Forsvarets forskningsinstitutt, Universitetssykehuset Nord-Norge og Equinor representert.

Opptak av webinar kan finnes ved link her!

Utvikle fremtidens løsninger

Bakgrunn for webinaret er at Fakultet for ingeniørvitenskap og teknologi (IVT-fakultetet) huser ett av Europas fremste miljøer innen nettopp 3D-print – eller, additiv produksjon. Equinor sitt engasjement er knyttet til driftsstarten av Johan Castberg-feltet i Barentshavet, der målet er å ha kuttet inntil 25 prosent av det fysiske utstyrslageret til feltet. 3D-printet materiale skal overta, reservedeler skal produseres når behovet oppstår – og nå ønsker selskapet at leverandører i nord blir med på å utvikle fremtidens løsninger.

- For Equinor er det snakk om å gå fra «just in case» til «just in time» når det gjelder sammensetning av utstyrslager, sier Brede Lærum, leder for implementering av 3D-print teknologi i Equinor. Kortreiste reservedeler fra lokale leverandører av 3D-printet materiale skal delvis erstatte lange importlinjer og store fysiske lagre, er tanken. Det samme potensialet har andre næringsområder som forsvaret, helsevesenet og de blå næringene.

Økt additiv produksjon

De fire oppnevnte kompetansemiljøene i Nord-Norge skal sammen med UiT og Equinor viderefører det arbeidet som har startet etter webinaret og arbeidssgruppen har ambisjonen av å øke additiv produksjon satsning i nord. Første møte i arbeidsgruppen blir allerede 2.des.20. - Webinaret er en kickstart for å bygge kompetanse og se mulighetene for utviklingen av en leverandørindustri i nord på området, sier senterleder v/ArcLog Bjørn Bremer,

Presentasjoner fra webinaret:

Brede Lærum: 3D print - et nytt industrieventyr i nord?
Geir Arne Veglo: Fremtidens leverandører
Wei Deng Solvang/Jan Frostevarg: Fremtidens forsyningskjeder og Nordisk samarbeid
Kjartan Laugen: Ringvirkninger for Johan Castberg
Chrstian Duun Norberg: Digital lager
Bendik Sagsveen: Fremtiden for 3D print i Forsvaret
Alf-Gøran Knutsen: Muligheter for 3D print i de blå næringene
Eivind Nydal: 3D print for Helsevesenet
Gisle Rørvik: 3D print-blir materialet sterkt nok?
Målfrid Baik: Næringsutvikling i nord

Arclog gjennomførte en workshop den 3.11.20 på Nyvågar rorbuhotell med fokus på reiselivet post-corona. Sparebanken 68 grader nord var vår økonomiske bidragsyter til gjennomføringen.

Følgende deltok:

- Hotelldirektør Lisa Blom på Nyvågar rorbuhotell

-  Hotelldirektør Terje Theodorsen, Scandic Narvik

- Direktør Eystein Markussen, Stiftelsen Narviksenteret

- Prosjektleder Ann-Hege Lund, Futurum AS (Narvik kommunes utviklingsselskap)

- Professor Wei Deng Solvang, Institutt for industriell teknologi v/UiT

- Førsteamanuensis Berit Kristoffersen, Institutt for samfunnsvitenskap v/UiT

- Forsker Brigt Dale, Nordlandsforskning.

Forsker Karin Antonsen fra Nordlandsforskning var med på deler av workshopen. Daglig leder i xxLofoten Trygve Steen ble forhindret fra å delta.

I workshopen kom mange viktige innspill til utfordringer fremover både i det korte og lange bildet. ArcLog vil med utgangspunkt i alle bidragene, konkretisere mulige utviklingsprosjekter.

Nolamp 2021 - Nordic Laster Materials Processing Conference

On behalf of the Nordic laser community and Luleå University of Technology it is our great pleasure to announce the 18th conference on Nordic Laser Materials Processing.

This bi-annual conference will this time be held in Luleå in the northern part of Sweden

Enclosed the invitation flyer and on www.ltu.se/NOLAMP you find contact information, registration and updated details.

28. og 29. sept. arrangerte UiT, UNN, Helse Nord og Narvik kommune en digital nasjonal helsekonferanse med 250 deltakere. Temaene var samhandling, innovasjon og beredskap med svært dyktige foredragsholdere og høyaktuelle tema der Covid-19 pandemien satte sitt preg på mange av temaene.

UiT v/instituttleder Jan-Arne Pettersen ved institutt for industriell teknologi og ArcLog v/senterleder Bjørn Bremer var helt sentrale i planleggingen og gjennomføringen av konferansen sammen med kommuneoverlege Sverre Håkon Evju i Narvik kommune. Professor Wei Deng Solvang v/ArcLog holdt et spennende foredrag med temaet: Hva kan helsetjenesten lære av industriens logistikk- og produksjonsløsninger?

Noen av de andre foredragsholderne var fung. ass Helsedirektør HDIR Espen R. Nakstad, statssekretær Anne Grethe Erlandsen, administrerende direktør Helse Nord Cecile Daae, administrerende direktør UNN Anita Schumacher, forbundsleder Norsk Sykepleierforbund, NSF Lill Sverresdatter Larsen, professor UiT/UNN Mads Gilbert og president i Den Norske Legeforening Marit Hermansen.

Om ettermiddagen den 28.9 ble det gjennomført en helsefaglig og helsepolitisk debatt med blant andre helse- og omsorgsminister Bent Høie og Ingvild Kjerkol, helsepolitisk talsperson i AP.

Tilbakemeldingen fra konferansedeltaker har svært positive. Her er to av tilbakemeldingene:

Kjære dere, tusen takk for en flott konferanse og for alt arbeidet dere har lagt ned både i forkant og i selve presentasjonen. Det var også en fantastisk promotering av Narvik kommune

En flott digital konferanse med interessant faglig innhold og godt innsalg av UiT, UNN HF og Narvikregionen. Tusen takk til alle som bidro til at det ble en suksess og særlig til Sverre Håkon, Bjørn og Jan-Arne. 

Veldig praktisk at alt er tilgjengelig i ettertid. 

Rami Noureddine is a PhD candidate at the Department of Industrial Engineering at UiT - Narvik, and is researching on the topic “Digitalization for Sustainable Tourism Management in the Arctic Region”, starting from June 1^st. 2020.

Tourism that refers to international trade in service has become a major sector of the world economy. Over the past six decades, tourism has experienced continued growth and diversification to become one of the largest and fastest growing economic sectors in the world and a key driver for socioeconomic progress. For many developing countries, it is one of the main income sources and the number one export category, creating much needed employment and opportunities for development. Statistical data in Norway for the year 2018 shows that the total consumption of tourism was NOK 186 billion presenting almost 5.6% increase from the year 2017[1].

Contacts:

Rami Noureddine, sujan.maharjan@uit.no, 96 74 85 66
Wei Deng Solvang, wei.d.solvang@uit.no, 76 96 63 51
Åsa Ericson, asa.ericson@ltu.se, +46 (0) 920 492061

 

 

Sujan Maharjan is a PhD candidate at the Department of Industrial Engineering at UiT - Narvik, and is researching on the topic “Sustainable Epidemic Logistics Management”, starting from June 1^st. 2020.

Human history is full of epidemic outbreaks that occurred at a certain period of time and continue to serve as a major threat for mankind as it tends to come back in various forms. The outbreak of Covid-19, which is also a current issue, is the latest epidemic outbreak that has infected approximately 28 million people around the globe including a deaths toll of ca. 900 000 people[1] in a timeframe of ten months.

 

Even though all the countries have initiated their own control protocols to contain the spread of disease, its cumulative case continues to rise globally causing serious illness. Overwhelm health care facilities, Scarcity of the emergency resources, delayed and undiagnosed testing, unprecedented demand for medical supplies, exhausted stockpile centers, are only few of the logistics challenges to which unsuccessful countermeasures will have detrimental effect on the government’s intervention and containment policies. On the other hand, the lockdown policies have disrupted the whole supply chain networks affecting every business globally. This research targets to address these cascading of problems through the effective and efficient management of epidemic logistics.

Epidemic logistic management serves as structured-responsive management of logistics operations, which is carried out with the ultimate goal to facilitate in controlling epidemic outbreaks through balancing trade-offs between social, environmental and economic coherence. It includes logistics countermeasures that could be adopted during the initiation of an outbreak as well as prompt action-plans and operation strategies in response during the time of the real event.

The research aims to develop methodologies and tools for sustainable management of logistics operations that are related to epidemics. The initial part of the research will emphasize at least one of the four stages of epidemic logistics: Preparedness, Outbreak Investigation, Response, and Evaluation[2]. This will be carried out together with the study of epidemic dynamics, which will be later followed by a development of a decision-making support system for resilient epidemic logistics in response to epidemic outbreaks.

[1] WHO: World Health Organization (accessed on 16.09.2020) https://covid19.who.int/

[2] Epidemics control and logistics operations: A review https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpe.2012.05.023

Contacts:

Sujan Maharjan, sujan.maharjan@uit.no, 99 85 14 87
Wei Deng Solvang, wei.d.solvang@uit.no, 76 96 63 51
Hao Yu, hao.yu@uit.no, 76 96 63 28