On 8 July, the Smart Mobility Event, organised by Kies Techniek, took place at the Maasboulevard in Venlo. Rian Dings and Frank Niessen were involved in the organisation. She talk about the day, the future of engineering and technology, but also expressed concern that many people still do not realise the rapid developments.
For Rian Dings, director of Techkicks, it made sense to organise this event in her own city. "In much of the Netherlands, people are not yet aware of the opportunities offered by rapid technological developments. We consider it our job to put tech in the spotlight, starting in Venlo."
Being active and successful
Dings and Niessen see that our society is facing both ageing and greening at ramp speed. The technological developments have a positive impact on all sectors: healthcare, education, logistics, manufacturing, agriculture, retail. Dings: "To stay active and successful on the labour market, you need to know what is happening technologically. The developments in artificial intelligence are moving fast. Who unaware of this, will be outside society in five years' time. Compare it to reading comprehension; if you have missed the basics, it is difficult to catch up and stay up. The is not about being practically or theoretically educated, but whether or not you keep up with tech developments. The affects everyone. That is why we want to showcase those wonderful developments. Let people experience how much fun the tech(nique) world is, what fantastic developments are going on. This are activities in public spaces, at schools or demonstrations and lectures at companies and organisations."
Those who attended the Smart Mobility Event could learn about developments in the field of smart mobility through various do-and-experience activities. Think autonomous vehicles, robots, hydrogen cars, data rollers and other smart applications to make mobility flow better. Frank Niessen, operations manager at ProfCore (specialist in personnel and production issues in process engineering and logistics), explained why the event was held. "We organise physical tech events to give everyone a chance to discover tech. The world is in the midst of a tech revolution and our aim is to inform people, but more importantly to enthuse them. Because it will affect everyone. The new generation quickly picks up on these developments, but parents and older people are far removed from them. She do, however, influence their children's study choices."
Future dichotomy
Technological developments have already invaded our lives in many ways: home automation, in the car, through chatbots, artificial intelligence and more. Rian Dings. "It for many people is not as beautiful an inspiring tech world as we see it. The is vague, difficult, too nerdy and a too far from my bed show. By many, artificial intelligence is seen as a digital skill and ChatGPT as a programme. While this is the beginning of a new technological change, similar to the advent of the internet, but at a much faster development speed. There is belief that tech is going to support us in solving difficult issues. At essentially, there is also a social problem because it is going to affect everyone. We see daily examples in the news. This could easily create a possible future divide in society, because the tech sector is developing very fast and there is a group that is unwilling or unable to keep up. Technology and the tech revolution is still too often left out of agendas. That is why our events to show that it is fun and engaging." Dings and Niessen consider it a piece of mission work. After last summer's Smart Mobility Event, another event will take place in December. Dan will focus on the theme 'light'. Once again, the Venlo city centre has been chosen as the location, although not everything is yet known about the concrete content. "In more events will follow in the future," Niessen said. "We want to bring people along and enthuse them. Both at their workplace and in everyday life."
Examples
Last summer's Smart Mobility Event was mainly about applications in the mobility industry. The Technological developments go much further. Think of robotics for the agricultural sector, robots as class assistants in education or care robots for the home. Especially with the increasing staff shortage, this development offers many opportunities. So technology, thanks to camera and detection systems, can see if a nursing home resident is sitting still for too long or even fell. Rian Dings: "This technology is linked to a robot that asks questions to the client and calls for help in the meantime. It is also possible to link other technology to help them age comfortably at home. The It is expected that in five years, healthcare will be able to use a walking robot. Thanks to the Internet of Things and artificial intelligence, it will function partly self-thinking. Using technology to make the world more beautiful and pleasant, that's cool."
New opportunities
The team behind Kies Techniek likes to connect with the business community. Supply Chain Valley, as a partnership between companies, knowledge institutions, government and the environment, is an excellent example, according to Dings and Niessen. "They show what they can do for the region," Niessen said. "It is about including employees in the development." Regarding any resistance this may evoke among people, Dings says: "Within now and five years, technology is going to impact all regular jobs. Many jobs will change forever. Robots with arms will pick apples, move boxes, work in catering and deliver parcels. Who chooses technology gets new opportunities. Key future decisions are in the hands of technology companies, not world leaders. The is a pioneering development that is too little visible. We want to show what is happening and are happy to engage in the conversation."
techkicks.co.uk - profcore.co.uk
