INOVATO connects companies, innovators, academia, public administration, and the non-profit sector, supporting digital and green transformation through collaboration and knowledge sharing. Our approach now also includes Expert Groups – thematically focused teams of top experts ready to address companies’ innovation challenges from strategy to implementation.
By combining the know-how of member companies and experts, we help companies grow and innovate effectively and comprehensively. Instead of isolated consultants, you get a team that collaborates and promptly responds to current market needs.
What are INOVATO Expert Groups?
Expert Groups serve as a single point of contact for companies seeking expert solutions. Under the INOVATO umbrella, they combine capacities from various companies to cover the entire innovation ecosystem. This gives businesses access to a wide range of knowledge and practical experience without having to approach each expert individually.
This initiative is a natural continuation of INOVATO’s mission. Expert Groups enable cluster members to join forces in addressing specific challenges – whether it’s implementing new technologies, developing employees’ digital skills, or navigating regulations. The group provides practical on-site support, where it is needed.
Why Now?
Slovak industry is undergoing fundamental changes – Industry 4.0, artificial intelligence, and robotization bring new opportunities as well as challenges. Companies are addressing the shortage of skilled workers and digital skills, the integration of technologies into older systems, cybersecurity, and return on investment. According to the Association of Personnel Agencies of Slovakia, almost 70% of employers have difficulty filling skilled positions. In addition, new European regulations are emerging, and pressure for sustainability is growing.
INOVATO Expert Groups respond to these challenges. Within the cluster, we have dozens of experienced experts – from IT and automation, through mechanical engineering and energy, to law and finance. When a company comes with a problem or an idea, we assemble a “tailor-made” team that comprehensively covers all aspects of the solution. For cluster members, it’s an opportunity to create new projects; for companies, it’s a chance to get comprehensive advice from a team that would be difficult to assemble individually.
First Expert Groups and Their Focus
We are introducing first the Expert Group for Industrial Automation, which is your partner on the path to Industry 4.0. Robotic arms alongside operators, production lines connected to the cloud, and artificial intelligence algorithms overseeing quality – this is what a modern factory looks like.
For many Slovak companies, however, the path to such a vision is full of questions: How to find and train people with the necessary skills? How to connect new digital systems with older machines? How to ensure cybersecurity for production and justify automation investments to management? The Expert Group was created precisely to help companies overcome these obstacles and fully utilize the potential of modern technologies.
We soon plan to extend the concept to other priorities – such as artificial intelligence in business, green technologies, or other strategic areas. We will always create a team that brings together the most competent people from our cluster, so that companies can draw on INOVATO’s collective expertise and receive practical support in process digitalization, product development, expansion into new markets, or increasing efficiency and sustainability.
At INOFEST 2025, you will learn more about our new Expert Group concept. The Expert Group for Industrial Automation will have its own stand, where you can discuss specific opportunities for your company. Whether you are interested in robot selection, innovation financing, or AI trends for industry, our experts will be happy to advise you and share their experience.
Solutions for Factories of the Future
Our Expert Group for Industrial Automation brings together specialists from robotics, informatics, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, and data analytics, offering a holistic package of services – from the first steps of digital transformation to fully intelligent production. Businesses thus receive advice, training, and practical implementation of solutions directly in production.
We Focus Primarily on these Areas:
Upskilling and Digital Culture
We help address the talent shortage through employee upskilling and reskilling programs. We organize technical training (robotics, automation, AI, data analysis, cybersecurity) with practical workshops and best practice demonstrations.
We provide tailored digital coaching and mentoring and support the development of a digital corporate culture – we teach management teams to lead digital transformation and HR departments to redefine job roles in an automated environment. For specific sectors, such as nuclear energy, we also provide specialized training, for example, safety culture training.
Technology Integration and Production Digitalization
We advise on how to connect new technologies with older systems to ensure everything runs smoothly. We assess IT and OT systems, propose a gradual digital transformation, and assist with hardware and software selection – robots, IoT sensors, AI platforms, PLC systems – and oversee their implementation with an emphasis on interoperability.
We also design automated workplaces – robotic stations, conveyors, collaborative or mobile robots, machine vision, and digital twins with the possibility of simulating production processes. We also ensure data management and standardization so that you can get the most out of your production data.
Cybersecurity and Data Protection
We conduct security audits, penetration tests, and ethical hacking, advise on Zero Trust architecture, data protection in IoT and the cloud and ensure compliance with GDPR, ISO 27001, NIS2, AI Act, and industry standards. We also provide ethical consulting for AI and human-robot collaboration in the workplace.
Economic Analyses and Innovation Financing
We prepare cost-benefit analyses, ROI models, and advise on grants, subsidies, or alternative models of financing, such as Robotics-as-a-Service or AI-as-a-Service. We also support the creation of partnerships between the private and public sectors for innovation projects.
Navigating Regulations and Standards
We help navigate regulations concerning automation, robotics, and AI – from EU rules to industry standards. We conduct impact assessments (DPIA, security assessments) and set up processes to comply with legislation. At the same time, we emphasize responsible automation and human-in-the-loop approaches.
Other Innovation Services
We offer consulting in AI and data analytics, IIoT, green automation and sustainability, logistics automation, and predictive maintenance. We help reduce the ecological footprint of production and optimize the supply chain.
TEXT: Matej Novotný, Natália Stašíková
PHOTO: INOVATO
