Accelerating Digital Advantage: Supporting SMEs to thrive in a post-pandemic world through adoption of digital strategies.

格鲁吉亚的应用研究计划专注于帮助当地中小企业（SMEs）在COVID-19大流行期间和之后蓬勃发展。一个名为加速数字优势的新主题领域将建立在现有的竞争智能制造计划的基础上，以覆盖更广泛的行业，包括零售，食品和饮料，大麻，医疗保健，高科技，农业，医疗设备和制造业子行业。 格鲁吉亚及其区域合作伙伴共同开发了安大略中部研究和创新集群（RICCO），以协调该地区的经济发展和创新举措。在RICCO合作伙伴的支持下，业务发展，网络，教育和知识传播活动使格鲁吉亚能够与需要加速其数字战略的多个行业的当地中小企业建立联系，特别是应对COVID-19大流行。通过加速数字优势研究主题，格鲁吉亚将与当地企业合作，实施数字化工具，硬件和软件，为需要在世界舞台上竞争的当地公司提供商业或商业优势。采用大数据、人工智能（AI）、延展实境（XR）和其他先进数字创新战略的公司，将在COVID-19大流行期间和之后生存并蓬勃发展。在拟议的两年计划期间，加速数字优势将吸引多达20家中小企业，并开展至少14个应用研究项目，重点是开发，测试和/或采用与新产品，服务或流程相关的数字战略。19名学生和/或应届毕业生将通过工作综合学习获得有意义的研究经验，并导致至少5名学生被商业伙伴雇用。该项目将产生至少五个功能原型和六个工业流程，以进行概念验证测试。

Georgian's applied research program is focused on helping local small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) thrive during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. A new thematic area called Accelerating Digital Advantage will build upon the existing Competitive Smart Manufacturing program, to reach companies in a broader range of sectors including retail, food and beverage, cannabis, healthcare, high tech, agriculture, medical devices and manufacturing subsectors. Georgian and its regional partners have come together to develop the Research and Innovation Cluster of Central Ontario (RICCO) for a coordinated approach to the region's economic development and innovation initiatives. Business development, networking, education, and knowledge dissemination events, supported by RICCO partners, allows Georgian to connect with local SMEs across multiple sectors that have a need to accelerate their digital strategies, particularly in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Through the Accelerating Digital Advantage research theme, Georgian will work with local businesses to implement digital tools, hardware, and software to impart a commercial or business advantage to local companies who need to compete on the world stage. Companies that embrace strategies that enable big data, artificial intelligence (AI), extended reality (XR), and other advanced digital innovations are the ones that will survive and thrive during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. During the proposed two-year program, Accelerating Digital Advantage will engage up to 20 SMEs and conduct a minimum of 14 applied research projects, focused on development, testing, and/or adoption of digital strategies as related to new products, services, or processes. Nineteen students and/or recent graduates will gain meaningful research experiences through work-integrated learning and result in at least five students hired by business partners. The project will lead to at least five functional prototypes and six industry processes ready for proof-of-concept testing.