Digitalization: Saxony-Anhalt gets competence center
Saxony-Anhalt receives a federally funded competence center to help SMEs with the digital transformation.
From Dominik Bath
Magdeburg/Berlin Saxony-Anhalt is getting a Mittelstand 4.0 Competence Center Magdeburg, according to the Volksstimme. The center will advise and support small and medium-sized companies in the state on issues relating to digital change. The center is expected to begin operations on 1 August, the Federal Ministry of Economics announced on Monday in response to a request from Volksstimme. "The approval process is largely complete," said a spokesperson. Saxony-Anhalt had applied for funding of 3.5 million euros over three years for the project.Economics Minister Armin Willingmann (SPD) was still cautious despite the positive signals from Berlin: "The federal government's decision to fund a 'Mittelstand 4.0' competence center in Saxony-Anhalt would be a great success for the applicants," said the minister. The establishment would give the economy in Saxony-Anhalt as a whole a further boost in the direction of digitalization. This would enable small and medium-sized companies in particular to meet this challenge even better, explained Willingmann. The competence center is to be located in the Experimental Factory in Magdeburg, but will have a state-wide impact. The designated head of the facility is Thomas Leich, Professor of Business Informatics at Harz University of Applied Sciences.
Germany-wide projects
Ten Mittelstand 4.0 competence centers have been established across Germany since the end of 2015. In addition to Magdeburg, a total of 13 more facilities of this kind are to be established throughout Germany this year. The Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs wants to use them to promote digital transformation in small companies.
Source: http://www.volksstimme.de/sachsen-anhalt/digitalisierung-sachsen-anhalt-bekommt-kompetenzzentrum