Final Consortium Meeting, Brussels 2024
The AWARD project’s Final Consortium Meeting on June 12th, in Brussels, served as a prelude to the grand finale of this impactful initiative. The meeting brought together a total of 25 team members representing esteemed organizations such as Absiskey, Adasky, AIT, Applied Autonomy, AustriaTech, BIZUP, BRP-Rotax, CARA, Cerema, CertX AG, Continental, DFDS, Digitrans, ENIDE, FHO – University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria, Foresight, FRACS, IRU, ITS Norway, Kamag, LCM, SAS/TLD, Schenker, VTT, and Ottopia.
The day commenced at 9:15 AM with an impactful 1.5-hour Impact Evaluation Workshop led by Loha Hashimy from ENIDE. During this session, partners were divided into groups to work on evaluating the impact and identifying the stakeholders affected by the project’s outcomes.
Marine from CARA outlined the agenda for the subsequent day’s final conference, setting the stage for what was to be a comprehensive closure to the project’s activities.
The afternoon sessions were dedicated to concluding discussions on various Use Cases:
- WP10 Conclusion: Presented by Matthieu from EasyMile, Loha from ENIDE, and Clara Pawlak from Abgi, this session provided an overview of objectives, deliverables, and milestones achieved throughout the project.
- Use Case Hub-to-Hub: Hannes from Digitrans and Rebecca from AppliedAutonomy discussed the three-phase implementation, testing with teleoperation, and shared observations and results.
- Use Case Airport: Matthieu from EasyMile and Rebecca from AppliedAutonomy reviewed the setup involving sensors and the logistics system, sharing lessons learned from the operations.
- Use Case Port: Richard from DFDS and Rebecca discussed the EZTug’s demonstration plan, sensor setup, and key takeaways.
- Use Case Forklift: Patrik Zips from AIT and Rebecca highlighted the forklift’s implementation, sensor integration, and the results and lessons learned.
The session after the coffee break saw conclusions drawn from WP7 by Sami from VTT, focusing on stakeholder evaluation and environmental impacts, and from WP8 by Ted from IRU, which addressed the main achievements and the finalization activities. Loha from ENIDE wrapped up WP9 with insights into communication, dissemination, exploitation activities along with key performance indicators.
The meeting concluded at 16:50 PM with Clara Pawlak providing next steps and explaining the overall process, including financial reporting and other procedural details.
The day concluded with a Networking Dinner at 18:00 at COMET Louise, where AWARD partners and other invitees gathered. This dinner provided a wonderful opportunity for reflection and networking, setting the stage for engaging discussions about the upcoming final conference. This event allowed everyone present to connect, share insights, and prepare for the significant discussions slated for the next day.