The majority of the research conducted in Position West is carried out with the purpose of making business out of good ideas as well as developing society. One of the innovation system’s primary roles is to speed up development and increase Sweden’s competitiveness in trade and industry. It’s more a matter of business models that trade and industry can immediately benefit from, than of developing new technologies. Research, trade and industry come together at the Innovatum Science Park, located in Trollhättan and are working for growth in the entire region. We strive to make our area known for its capacity to turn environmental initiatives into business through business-driven, environmental development.
A few examples of applied research projects in Position West:
- Biogas Brålanda; converts residual agricultural products into biogas,
- Wargön Innovation; new materials, energy, environment and innovation with the forest as major commodity, https://wargoninnovation.se/en.
- Sotenäs symbioscenter; innovations to make the most of the resources of the sea and the marine food industry.
- Offshore Väst; interaction and innovation within the maritime and marine field. One example is Testsite Skagerrack. www.offshorevast.com
In addition to the applied research, Position West researchers are excelling within these areas:
- Manufacturing technologies and automation. University West features a programme for greener industrial manufacturing and technologies that have endless application possibilities.
- Work-integrated learning within the manufacturing industry, the services sector, the public sector, schools and the care sector. The graduate research programme for work-integrated learning at University West is unique in its kind and the first one in the world.
- Research on how digitalization affects work life is conducted by University West and Chalmers. They cooperate with several companies within the IT sector and large employers in healthcare, integration, education and industrial digitalization.
- The Sven Lovén center constitutes a national and international resource for research in the field of marine sciences. The center includes amongst others the two research and training stations on Tjärnö (Strömstad) and Kristineberg (Lysekil).
- Research on components and subsystems for air and spacecraft engines is conducted by GKN Aerospace, together with a number of partners. Their focus is on reducing the engine’s weight to lower fuel consumption and emissions.
- Preem, in cooperation with the Chalmers technical university college, are working on energy optimization of refinery plants and development of new fuels and propellants.