Clusters4Defense — Challenges and perspectives of clusters cooperation in the Defense Sector
Conference, January 23, 2025
About the conference
Ukrainian clusters in machine building, design and industrial automation, electronics and IT have significant potential to help Defense sectors. Many of them are already involved and produce products or components for the needs of the Defense industry. Since autumn 2024, the Ukrainian Cluster Alliance has also actively promoted the Clusters4Defense initiative, designed to mobilize cooperation between European and Ukrainian clusters. The main task of the conference on January 23 is to reveal the potential of both categories.
The main topics of the conference
Automation and digitalization in the manufacturing of the Defense industry
Development of the defense industry's innovative ecosystems and prototyping centers.
Cooperation with European clusters: directions, opportunities, and prospects
Cluster potential: integrated chains and ecosystems, the interaction of participants
Participants from the Ukrainian Cluster Alliance
Program (*Time is CET)
08:30
Registration
9:00
Welcome remarks
Col. Andriy Lebedenko, Deputy Commander-in-Chief, Armed Forces of Ukraine
Anatolii Melnichenko, Rector of Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute
Volodymyr Havrylov, general-major of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, ex-deputy of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine
9:20
Proposals for collaboration from Euro-atlantic partners
Martin Joesaar, EU Defense Innovation Office in Ukraine
Claudio Palestini, Head of the NATO Science for Peace and Security (SPS) Programme
9:50
Block 1. Innovative ecosystem of Defense industry: cooperation and growth potential
Challenges of innovative developments — guidelines for 2025
Overview of cluster developments:
Case 1: How to setup SMEs collaboration in a cluster: development of UAV in UIC (Ivan Movchan, Ukrainian Industrial Cluster)
Case 2. 10-year experience of medical training in Ukraine and the influence of the community on changes in the guidelines from the TCCC (Tetyana Vorontsova, Rivne interregional medical cluster) / Experience of using advanced surgical units in modern warfare (Dmytro Samofalov, Major of Medical Service, Head of the Advanced Surgical Department of the Military Clinical Medical Centre)
Case 3. Overview of the segment "Photonics and laser technologies" (Kyrylo Gorokhovskyi, Photonics Cluster Ukraine)
Case 4. Cluster ecosystem of innovations in the dual use sector of Podillia (Yuriy Klymenko, Vinnytskyi cluster of AIM)
Case 5. Experience in the development and support of the innovative ecosystem of Lviv (Oleksa Wozniak, Lviv City Council)
11:00
Coffee break. Products Exposition from clusters of the Ukrainian Cluster Alliance
11:20
Block 2. International cooperation: the potential of cooperation with European clusters
The SPARC platform is a tool for cooperation between market participants (Andrea Barbagelata, ASD - European Association of Aerospace, Security and Defence Industries)
Program IDEaS (Innovation for Defence Excellence and Security) (Philippe Hébert, Director General R&D Innovation,
Defence Research and Development Canada)
Opportunities for cooperation in the defense industry with the Berlin Brandenburg region (Mike Richardson, OpTecBB Cluster, Germany)
Polish ecosystem of photonics and microelectronics - the cooperation offer (Maciej Nowakowski, Polish Photonics Platform)
Cooperation in the field of UAVs (Jaroslaw Bulanda, Silesian Aviation Cluster, Poland)
12:30
Lunch, networking
13:10
Block 3. Modernization of the defense industry: new technologies and production methods, Industry 5.0 in the defense industry
Intellectual property reform in the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine (Illya Kostin, Main Department of Military Justice of the Ministry of Defense)
Digitalization of defense industry: implementation experience at Ukroboronprom - what private companies should consider (Oleksii Shcherbatenko, IT-Enterprise)
The road map of the digital transition (Oleksandr Yurchak, Association of "Industrial Automation Enterprises of Ukraine")
Panel discussion "Priority areas of digitalization of the defense industry" (Ivan Movchan, Ukrainian Industrial Cluster, Roman Iavorski, IT-Enterpise; SkyFall (speaker TBC); Ukranian Armor, speaker TBC))
15:30
Event conclusion
Conference registration
Registration is required to participate in the event,
location and details of the event will be provided after confirmation of registration
location and details of the event will be provided after confirmation of registration