Garden of Kairos boosts manufacturing industry in East Netherlands

Companies in the manufacturing industry are massively missing the boat when it comes to digital transformation, which weakens their position in the economy. That is why a team of companies and knowledge institutions in the east of the Netherlands is joining forces - including Thales! In this brand-new community called Garden of Kairos, we work together on the necessary digital transformation. The emphasis is on the users of these techniques and their impact on organizations and society. The motto: Digital Focus, Human Touch. New participants are welcome to join. The community aims to have around 30 participating companies within 3 years.

In Greek mythology, Kairos was the youngest and most rebellious grandson of Chronos - the god of time. Kairos stands for seizing opportunities, going new ways and not being afraid of new ideas. The Garden of Kairos partnership takes its inspiration from this and wants to transform the manufacturing industry with the same approach.

Greatest challenge is greatest opportunity

“New digital techniques are changing our lives. We work from home but at the same time collaborate via the internet with colleagues all over the world. In the meantime, we can order a quick meal via that same internet. New digital technologies in fast rail shipping are also changing the way the manufacturing industry works. Design drawings automatically control production machines and robots, without human intervention. A machine builder can remotely observe how his machine is being used in Taiwan and give advice on trouble-shooting. You no longer go to a classroom for machine training, but you follow it via Virtual Reality wherever you are”, explain spokespersons Martin Arens and Peter van Bart. “This digital transformation is the biggest change for companies at the moment. At the same time, it is the greatest opportunity! New techniques make it possible to produce and sell new, innovative products and services worldwide.”

In practice, it often turns out to be quite complex for companies to make the digital transformation a success. Moreover, it requires a lot of time and the employees needed for this are scarce and already busy with their regular work. By working together, the participants in Garden of Kairos pool their expertise, capacity and resources. “This way, every participant can do more and we can learn faster thanks to each other's experiences. We will futureproof the SMEs.”

Join us

The current participants of Garden of Kairos are: Bouwatch - Demcon - CGI - Distribute - Eluxis - GPO Solutions - Hanze University of Applied Sciences Groningen - Mobina - East NL - Pino & Partners - PTC - ROC van Twente - Saxion University of Applied Sciences - Serious VR - Thales Nederland - University of Twente - Vanenburg Software - VMI Group. The partnership is open to all companies in the manufacturing industry and to their suppliers and partners.