Research year 2012

The research orientation of the Faculty of Materials Science and Technology corresponds with its pedagogic profile and the long-term orientation of STU. As amended by Section 30, Paragraph 1, Sub-paragraph c of Act 131/2002 of the Coll. relating to Universities and as amended by other acts, the Faculty Scientific Board evaluates the faculty’s activity in the field of science and technology once a year.

Research Focus

The scientific and research activity of MTF STU research and pedagogical staff is carried out in the following forms:

• projects of basic research
• projects solved within international programmes
• projects of international collaboration
• projects of applied research and development
• projects of contractual research

The research content is focused on the following areas:

• materials research with a focus on the research, development and technological processing of the basic and new kinds of technical materials,
• research, development and optimisation of new technologies of industrial production oriented particularly on the technological processing of modern technical materials and ecologically clean processes and products, numerical simulation of technological processes
• process identification, automation and control, as well as information support for  technological, production and organisation systems,
• research and verification of managerial control principles and their organisation structures,
• quality control and certification of processes and products,
• safety and reliability of technological equipment and systems, while emphasising  the analysis methods and  systems synthesis,

The STU Faculty of Materials Science and Technology in Trnava was evaluated in four areas of research in the complex accreditation of activities. The research areas related to the faculty study programmes are:

Research area	Evaluation
Mechanical Engineering	A
Metallurgy and Materials	A
Information Sciences, Automation and Telecommunication	B
Engineering and Technology	B+

Research activities

In 2012, research projects under the VEGA, KEGA, APVV and other programmes were conducted at the faculty. The number of projects in 2012 from the particular agencies, grant schemes and contractual research are as follows:

	Number
VEGA projects (Basic research grant agency)	23
KEGA projects (Cultural and education agency)	7
APVV (Agency for support of research and development)	6
7th framework programme	1
Other foreign projects	2
Projects of contractual research	106

Foreign relations

STU MTF forms cooperation on the basis of good partnership relations which are typified by mutual cooperation, profit in the area of research activities, or experience in education.

The active cooperation of our constitution, reflected in agreements concluded with foreign partners, is proof of the necessity for searching new partnerships and cooperation.

Institutes which signed contracts of cooperation with the Faculty:

Agreements on cooperation with Foreign Partners

Foreign Partner	Country	City/Town
Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden	Germany	Rossendorf
Technical University of Brandenburg	Germany	Cottbus
Leibniz-Institute for Solid State and Materials Research Dresden	Germany	Dresden
Anhlat University of Applied Sciences	Germany	Koethen
Faculty of Machining, University in Ljubljana	Slovenia	Ljubljana
St. Petersburg State University of Engineering and Electrotechnics	Russia	Saint-Petersburg
Institute of Energy in Moscow	Russia	Moscow
Buehler GmbH	Germany	Düsseldorf
Ukrainian Academy of Engineering and Pedagogy	Ukraine	Charkov
Faculty of Applied Informatics and Robotechnology, UGATU UFA	Russia	Ufa
Faculty of Economics, Management and Finances UGATU  UFA	Russia	Ufa
National Institute of R & D for Materials Physics	Romania	Bucharest
Faculty of Physics, University of Bucharest	Romania	Bucharest
University of Science and Technology in Pohang	South Korea	Pohang
Faculty of Organisation and Informatics, University of Zagreb	Croatia	Zagreb
Bekaert	Belgium	Zwevegem
Faculty of Machine Building, Technical University of Cluj-Napoca	Romania	Cluj-Napoca
Institute of Technology	Poland	Radoma
ČVUT Prague	Czech Republic	Prague
University of Miskolc	Hungary	Miskolc
Institute for Systematic Coaching and Organisation Advisory	Germany	Berlin
Faculty of Economics and Management	Poland	Zielona Góra
Faculty for Management	Serbia	Novi Sad
Faculty of Information Technologies and Telecommunication of North-Caucasian State Technical University	Russia	Stavropol
Amirkabir University of Technology	Islamic Republic of Iran	Teheran
Kalashnikov Izhevsk State Technical University	Russia	Izhevsk
Hochschule Mannheim University of Applied Sciences	Germany	Mannheim
Vocational Higher Education School in Sulechów	Poland	Sulechów

Student Exchanges 

STU MTF students participate in exchange programs of short-term and also long-term scholarships. In 2012, the Faculty had 32 agreements in the Erasmus programme. The dominant Erasmus partners are the institutions in Poland (9 agreements), Germany (5 agreements), Czech Republic (3 agreements), and Croatia (3 agreements).

Business travels and foreign guests

Development of relations with international partners in the last three years is reflected in the number of foreign guests and business travels of the Faculty employees to foreign institutes. 

Membership of Slovak and international organisations

On an international level, the faculty cooperated with significant scientific and technical organisations in the last year. STU MTF is an institutional member of five professional international institutions. Employees of the faculty are active in different Slovak (139 individual memberships) and also international organisations (49 individual memberships) in different positions, from members to chairs, vice-chairs and members of boards.

Membership of international professional organisations

• International Institute of Welding
• Association for Heat Treatment of Metals 
• International Society for Engineering Pedagogy
• European Platform of Women Scientists  
• European Network Education and Training in Occupational Safety and Health
• European Alliance for Innovation

Memberships of Slovak professional organisations

• Scientific Society for Metals 
• Slovak Natural Gas and Crude Oil Union
• Slovak Chamber of Commerce and Industry 
• Slovak Society for Quality
• Automobile Cluster
• Slovak Society of Ergonomics
• Slovak Society of Maintenance
• Slovak Association of Libraries
• Slovak Society for Cybernetics and Informatics, Slovak Academy of Sciences
• Association of Machining Industry of the Slovak Republic

Approved rights to provide habilitations and grant academic titles 

According to the Act No. 131/2002 of Coll. relating to universities and modification, and completion of some laws as amended, the Faculty of Materials Science and Technology, Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava is entitled to carry out habilitation process and academic promotion of professors in the following study fields:

5.2.7.              Mechanical Engineering and Materials             

5.2.14.            Automation                           

5.2.26.            Materials                                           

5.2.50.            Production Technologies                          

5.2.52.            Industrial Engineering                   

8.3.5.              Occupational Health and Safety

 

New Doctor honoris causa, Professors and Associate Professors in 2012

Doctor honoris causa  (Dr.h.c.) 

Prof. Dr. Ing. habil. Jürgen Eckert

Prof. Dr. Ing. Norge  Isaias Coello Machado

Visiting professors

Dr. rer. nat. Andreas Kolitsch – Materials  (01/10/2012)

Ing. Peter Fodrek, PhD. – Machine Technologies and Materials (01/10/2012)

Ing. Ľudovít Kupča, CSc. – Materials (01/01/2013)             

Associate Professors

Assoc. Prof. Ing. Štefan Václav, PhD. - Machine Technologies and Materials (13/06/2012)

Assoc. Prof. Ing. Sebastian Saniuk, PhD. – Industrial Engineering (13/06/2012)

Assoc. Prof. Ing. Krzysztof Witkowski, PhD. – Industrial Engineering (13/06/2012)

Assoc. Prof. Ing. Maximilián Strémy, PhD. – Automation (19/12/2012)

Activities in 2012:

02/2012 – Presentation of the STU MTF research profile in a special issue of Productivity and Innovation journal

02/2012 – Introduction of the TelePresence network of Slovak universities (including MTF)

03/2012 – Co-organisation of trainings with Thomson Reuters (Bratislava)

04/2012 – Opening of a joint research workplace with STU MTF and UMMS SAV oriented on the preparation of special kinds of metallic and ceramic materials

05/2012 – Workshop on progressive methods and technologies of preparation, processing and diagnostics of materials (Bratislava)

06/2012 - STU Rector, Prof. Ing. Robert Redhammer, PhD. awarded grants to young researchers of STU within the Program for the support of young researchers. The following grants were allotted to STU MTF:

Study of ozonisation of the process liquids utilisation and disposal	Ing. K. Gerulová, PhD.
Five Axis Ultrasonic Machining	Ing. M. Zvončan
Security of information assets as an integral part of a quality management system in compliance with the principles of CSR	Ing. J. Urdziková, PhD.
Generating the optimum trajectory of a robotic arm in an iCub robotic simulator by using GPU	Ing. P. Bezák, PhD.
Mechanical properties of hybrid adhesion-laser joints  of thin metal sheets	Ing. I. Michalec
Design implementation of a virtual model of electro-hydraulic drive.	Ing. M. Kopček, PhD.
Study of degradability of process liquids	Ing. J. Fiala, PhD.
Developing software for the calculation of the total effectiveness index of equipment regarding employees motivation	Ing. J. Drahňovský, PhD.
Welding the magnesium and other light metals alloys by  laser beam	Ing. T. Kramár
Monitoring the process of self-heating of unsaturated oils by means of SEDEX safety calorimeter.	Ing. I. Hrušovský

10/2012 – Co-organisation of an IEEE English for Engineering seminar “Drills and Skills” (Bratislava)

11/2012 – Participation in the exhibition within the Week of Science and Technology in Slovakia in 2012 (Bratislava)

12/2012 – Agreement on co-operation between the education institution of Gomel State University and STU MTF

12/2012 – Granting the title of Scientist of the Year 2012 to Prof. Ing. Jozef Janovec, DrSc. of STU MTF

12/2012 – His Magnificence, STU Rector, Robert Redhammer bestowed a high STU award, Professor of the Year 2012 to Professor Karol Velíšek of STU MTF, director of the Institute of Production Systems and Applied Mechanics for his year-long activity in the field of international co-operation and grant achievements.

Overview of conferences organised at STU MTF in 2012:

02/2012 -9th project meeting, exchange study visit and AUTOCLUSTERS project

03/2012 – Student Research Conference

04/2012 – 16th ESAB seminar on Welding and Weldability

04/2012- STU MTF in co-operation with the Slovak Society for Tribology and Tribotechnology and Competence Centre of Tribology, Mannheim organised an international  conference on the topic of “Production and defects of toothwheels and gears“.

05/2012 – Workshop “Progressive methods and technologies of preparation, processing and diagnostics of materials”

05/2012 – International Doctoral Seminar (IDS)

06/2012 –Seminar on Forging

07/2012 - APDTC seminar - Annual Meeting of Associated Phase Diagram and Thermodynamics Committee

09/2012 – Co-organiser of a scientific conference “Forming 2012”

10/2012 –CO-MAT-TECH 2012 international conference

10/2012 – Co-organisation of a scientific conference entitled “Power sources of regions – present and future”

11/2012 - Central European Conference on Logistics (CECOL 2012)

 

This part of Annual Report 2012 was verified by Prof. Ing. Peter Grgač, PhD.