The Swiss machine tool producers took the chance to present their products again in Russia, which was highly appreciated by their Russian partners. In the Swiss pavilion the visitors could see the newest innovations and sustainable solutions for the industry. The Swiss machine tool manufacturers, builders of measuring equipment and producers of precision tools are prime partners for know-how transfer and reliable enablers of the modernization process of the Russian industry.

The Swiss delegation and their partners were invited for a reception at the Embassy, where they took the chance to chat in an informal atmosphere. Furthermore, the Ambassador of Switzerland in Russia, Krystyna Marty Lang, visited the trade fair and discussed with the Swiss exhibitors.

The relaunch of industry growth after the pandemic crisis is an important goal which we can achieve only together. We are confident that the trade fair was the starting point for our common goal.

On May 27, a Symposium on the cooperation of academia and business was held in the framework of the biggest manufacturing technology exhibition “Metalloobrabotka” (Metalworking). It allowed Russian and international companies, as well as research organizations to demonstrate their latest manufacturing technologies in metal processing. 

The Symposium became a place for researchers and representatives of the Swiss and Russian industry, universities and government to interact with each other. It was intentionally designed to establish and strengthen ties between business and scientific community. The discussions were organized in a roundtable format which greatly facilitated a free exchange of opinions and a sharing of best practices, aimed at finding solutions to interdisciplinary problems.

The Symposium was opened by Ambassador of Switzerland Krystyna Marty Lang who, speaking about the Swiss experience, emphasized that the best results were achieved when science worked together with the private sector, while also receiving support from the government. This type of cooperation could be interesting for Russia. Switzerland’s strong research needed strong partners, she added. Echoing the Ambassador, Mr. Christoph Blättler, Secretary General of “SWISSMEM”, as well as Mr. Sergey Ivanov and Mr. Georgiy Samodurov, his Russian counterparts from the Union of Machine Builders of Russia and the Association “Stankoinstrument” pointed out an increased need for a better interaction between research and business.

Acting Rector of “Stankin” Aleksey Kapitanov highlighted the high-quality research results of a long-term fruitful cooperation between the ETHZ and his university.

Mr. Andrey Melnikov, Head of Scientific Affairs, Embassy of Switzerland, told the participants about the Education, Research and Innovation landscape of Switzerland and opportunities for bilateral S&T cooperation.

As a result of the Symposium, the Institute of Machine Tools and Manufacturing (IWF) of the ETHZ, Prof. Konrad Wegener signed MOUs with the Russian Technology University “Stankin” and the National University of Science and Technology “MISiS”, thus opening a new stage of cooperation with Russia.