teknIQ

teknIQ, expert competence in intelligent products, is a SEK 60 million investment by the Knowledge Foundation, more information about the organisation's motives and objectives are available from their website www.kks.se.

teknIQ is part of a substantial investment in a number of "expert competence programs" within strategically important areas for Sweden. The purpose being to raise competence levels in these fields within small to medium sized Swedish companies in key areas of industry.

During 1998, an inventory was conducted by a working group which showed that there were a number of cutting edge Swedish companies within the field of intelligent products/embedded systems and that additionally the academic world held expert competence even at international level. It was however also noted that a number of Swedish technology companies had yet to discover and utilise the new technology.

This resulted in a recommendation to start this program under the leadership of Mälardalen University and the industrial research institute Acreo in collaboration with the School of Engineering, Jönköping University, Halmstad University and Skeria Utveckling in Skellefteå. The decision to follow the working group's recommendation was taken in the Spring of 1999 and the agreement was signed and the program's Board had its inaugurating meeting in September 1999. For further information please contact the Program Director, Sven-Arne Paulsson, +46-(0)21 470 20 04, svenarne.paulsson@tekniq.se.