A specialised seminar as part of the “Security and Defence” National Science Programme was organised on 16 September by the Center for National Security and Defense Research (CNSDR-BAS) and the Joint Innovation Centre of BAS. The main theme of the forum centred on opportunities for collaboration and cooperation in the fields of defence and high technology, and it attracted considerable interest amongst representatives of Bulgarian scientific organisations, universities, defence industry firms and innovative companies.
The seminar was opened by Mr. Kamen Iliev, Director of CNSDR-BAS, who highlighted the importance of the event for deepening cooperation between the institutes of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences and international high-tech companies with a view to the transfer of knowledge and technology in the fields of defence, national security and industry.
Dr. Marin Pandev, Director of the Joint Innovation Centre of BAS, welcomed the guests and emphasised the importance of international partnerships and technology transfer for enhancing the competitiveness of Bulgarian science, the defence industry and national security.
The special guest and speaker at the event was Mr. Joseph Marra, Director of Business Development at the Belgian engineering company GDTech. In his presentation, he outlined the company’s extensive experience – drawing on a team of nearly 250 specialists – in the design, modelling and implementation of products for the defence industry. Highlights of GDTech’s presentation included state-of-the-art software simulations of ballistic impacts and explosions, the development and optimisation of drones, optical and acoustic calculations, and the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into customised software solutions.
