INVESTORS IN MSK
Zdroj: ČSÚ (prosinec 2020), vlastní zpracování
to support thirteen strategic projects that are currently
in the approval process with the European Commission
and aim to complete set goals. Examples of these
projects are Černá kostka—Digital Center of Science
and Innovation, the Technological and Business
Academy and the LERCO project (Life & Environment
Research Center Ostrava).
Ostrava is the Moravian Silesian Region’s heart and
most regional research companies concentrate around
it. According to data from the Technological Profile
of the Czech Republic, there are 270 entities focused
on science and research within the Moravian Silesian
region, 151 of which are based in Ostrava. In 2019,
4,786 people were employed in this sector, an increase
of over a thousand since 2013. Around 5.5b Czech
crowns were invested in science and research, around
two-thirds of which were part of the private sector.
Seventy-nine patent applications have been made from
this region, making up around 11% of all the applications
from the Czech Republic, ranking the Moravian Silesian
Region in third place within the country.
Companies such as Hanon Systems Autopal, Continental
Automotive, or Varric Lighting Systems, which opened
their new business research and development center
in Nový Jičín this year, are amongst the largest
representatives of private regional science and research
entities. Another center, similar to the one Varric
opened this year, will be built at the Mošnov Industrial
Park within the next year where the company ABB is
developing their global development and production
robotics center, the only one of its kind in Europe.
In 2017, the Moravian Silesian Innovation Center
(MSIC) was founded in order to support the innovation
ecosystem within the region; its goal is to strengthen
bonds between the commercial, academic, scientific
and public spheres and initiate strategic projects
focused on improving the local environment for
business and innovation. MSIC also greatly benefits from
cooperation with VŠB-Ostrava Technical University and
the national supercomputer center IT4INNOVATIONS.
Other than the aforementioned companies, the region
also offers many other organisations, branch clusters and
programs to support business, such as the Innovation
Support Center, Center of Nanotechnologies, the ENET
center and 4Medical Innovations. We can witness
the earliest successes of these initiatives at national
competitions where regional start-ups are garnering
great achievements. In last year’s CzechInvest Startup
Challenge 2020, held by agency for business support
and investment CzechInvest, the top two highest
performing startups originated in our region. The
company 24 Vision, based in Ostrava, came in first
place that year for their tool for flawless automobile
manufacturing and quality checking. In close second
came the ecological startup based in Opava, Ullmanna,
for their development of a smart weeding device
capable of increasing the production of bio foodstuffs
while making use of robotics and artificial intelligence.
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Text a foto:
Marek Burian,
Faktografické listy Ostrava, ČSÚ,
Inovační firmy
v MSK, Varroc, ABB, CzI, 24 Vision,
freepik.com
POSITIV 4/2021 ǀ 41