The activities of Fez Smart Factory (FSF), the first innovation ecosystem oriented towards industry 4.0 in Morocco, were launched on Thursday at the campus of the Euromed University of Fez (UEMF), with the aim of promoting the emergence of an industry innovative and intelligent national.
This ecosystem, having mobilized an investment of 111.3 million dirhams (MDH) for its first phase, and whose implementation began in 2022, aims to support, for the development of smart factories of innovative products, carriers of projects, startups and manufacturers, and helps transform existing industrial units into 4.0 factories.
The project was set up by the consortium comprising the UEMF, project leader, the Fès-Meknes Regional Council, the section of the General Confederation of Moroccan Enterprises (CGEM) in Fez, the company Alten Delivery Center, in partnership with the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Digital Development Agency (ADD) and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).
The first phase of the FSF project benefited from the support of the Fund for Sustainable Industrial Zones (FONZID) established within the framework of the Compact II cooperation program, concluded between Morocco and the United States, represented by Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) .
Funded to the tune of 63.67 million dirhams by the MCA-Morocco Agency, 20 million dirhams by the Fez-Meknes Regional Council and the rest by the UEMF, the CGEM and the Alten company, the FSF serves two complementary objectives. This involves supporting existing manufacturers to improve their competitiveness and helping project leaders and startups to develop innovative industrial units of high value-added and competitive products, by implementing industry concepts. 4.0. This project also responds to the needs to improve the competitiveness of the Moroccan industrial fabric by strengthening the links between the University and the company and by promoting the development of Research and Development activities.
-Covering an area of 6.6 hectares, the FSF project includes a 9,000 m2 building which houses services for innovative businesses, namely a 4.0 incubator, a 4.0 startup accelerator, engineering services for industry 4.0, Research and Innovation services and a Business Center 4.0. It also houses a space dedicated to social services (restaurant, crèche, medical services, staff transport, one-stop shop, etc.). This environment should ultimately accommodate nearly 40 project leaders, 30 startups, 10 engineering companies, 5 R&D and R&T entities as well as around ten industrialists in the Business Center.
The second phase of FSF, which is currently being implemented, includes the first 4.0 pilot school factory in Morocco and the development of spaces for the establishment of 93 intelligent industrial demonstration units. This model factory will be built thanks to co-financing from the Investment for Employment Facility (IFE) of the German development bank KfW, the Ministry of Industry, ADD, UNIDO and the UEMF.
The Pilot School Factory 4.0 will provide more than a million hours of training in industry 4.0, relying for this purpose on the skills of the UEMF, its state-of-the-art platforms in terms of manufacturing technologies. 3D printing, artificial intelligence, sensors, precision mechanics and robotics.
