The Regional Centre of Competence – Industry 4.0 is a hub of technological, pedagogical and andragogical excellence in the mechanical engineering sector for Zagreb County, the neighbouring counties and the wider region. Through its education and work-based learning programmes it encourages and supports innovation and the development and use of digital manufacturing technologies, contributing to faster economic and overall development of Zagreb County and the Republic of Croatia as a whole.
The vision of RCK – Industry 4.0 is to create a hub of technological, pedagogical and andragogical excellence in the mechanical engineering sector for Zagreb County, the neighbouring counties and the wider region which, through its education and work-based learning programmes, will encourage and support innovation and the development and use of digital manufacturing technologies, contributing to faster economic and overall development of Zagreb County and the Republic of Croatia as a whole.
The centre develops existing and new education programmes and content for secondary education and lifelong learning, using organisational forms and digital platforms for cooperation between all stakeholders in the education process, so that programmes and content are aligned as closely as possible with the needs of industry and the labour market, the standards of the Croatian Qualifications Framework (CROQF) and students with special needs.
Industry 4.0 and the digitalisation of business are a great opportunity for Croatian industry and society as a whole to quickly begin replacing existing Industry 2.0 and Industry 3.0 systems with the cyber-physical systems of Industry 4.0. Companies in Croatia must make the transition to Industry 4.0 in order to position themselves on the EU and global markets; otherwise society will fall behind, and companies and industrial sectors will decline, leading to poverty and isolation.