The cooperation with the German partners is another important step in the Jastrzębie-based company’s commitment to introduce innovations and state-of-the-art technologies in the JSW Group.
JSW, together with the signatories of the agreement, Lightweight Structures and Polymer Technology Department at Chemnitz University of Technology, Fraunhofer Institute STEX Research Center, Energy and Chemical Process Engineering Institute and the Chemical Conversion Process Business Unit at the Fraunhofer Institute are planning to develop modern, innovative technologies for commercial use in the Polish mining sector.
The major fields of the joint activities will include the works related to, among others, Smart Coal Mine 4.0 (e.g. exoskeletons for miners, autarchic vehicle systems with alternative drives, ID systems for the mining industry), advanced carbon materials based on coal tar, separation and production of hydrogen from mine sources and renewable sources for e-transport or power generation purposes. The partners also intend to work on development of a technology to increase the safety of miners’ work in extreme conditions (the so-called safety modules and human detection systems based on new camera systems and sensors for monitoring life functions) and application of lightweight structures in mining, e.g. new lightweight anchor systems made of plastics reinforced with optical fibers. The aforementioned areas will be undertaken by the partners under domestic, bilateral and international industrial projects and joint projects.
– The cooperation of the signatories will enable joint research and development projects aimed to implement modern technologies increasing coal and coke production efficiency in the company while reducing its negative impact on the natural environment – said Daniel Ozon, JSW S.A. President. – The project objectives are consistent with the JSW strategy for 2018-2030, which aims to build the Company’s position as a European market leader resistant to temporary fluctuations of the business cycle. We are one of the biggest Polish groups which operates thanks to coal extraction and processing, but we have to constantly develop, using global technological developments, to operate our resources in the most efficient way, with the least possible impact on the natural environment. I am convinced that the cooperation with renowned German partners will contribute to implementation of valuable innovative solutions which will have impact on the optimum growth of the Jastrzębie-based company.
In the next few months Jastrzębska Spółka Węglowa will present the detailed areas of the research which will be carried out in cooperation with the German institutions.
The Fraunhofer Institute cooperating with the Chemnitz University of Technology in Freiberg, and a number of other leading research and development centers globally, is the biggest R&D organization in Europe, active in numerous innovative industrial projects (e.g. Volkswagen, Hilti). It has 66 institutes and research units and employs 24 thousand employees. It allocates EUR 2 billion annually for research projects.