SUN Microsystems opens Center of Excellence for Engineering Design With University of Skopje



May 13, 2005 -- SUN Microsystems (Santa Clara, CA) and the Macedonian Ministry of Economy recently announced the opening of its Mechanical Engineering Systems (MES) Center of Excellence with the Saints Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje, Macedonia.
The first of its kind in Eastern Europe, the Center was launched with approximately USD 120,000 in hardware and software with special SUN Microsystems discount and financial support of e-BIZ, a USAID activity that has invested in plus six other ICT based businesses in Macedonia, in the past 12 months.

Equipped with SUN's Java software development tools, and operated by the Faculty for Mechanical Engineering, the Center will focus on the further development of and training in advanced 3D modeling for tool design, process simulation and visualization and development of integrated industrial systems.

"We are extremely excited about the creation of the Center for Excellence and the support we have received from SUN Microsystems." said Professor Atanas Kocov, Director of the Center and Professor at the Mechanical Engineering Faculty at Ss. Cyril and Methodius Unversity. "Not only will the Center provide an invaluable educational resource for our students, we intend it as a focal point for faculty research and for commercial consulting work with the automotive and manufacturing industries."

"By providing SUN hardware, development tools and SUN partner applications to the Center, we at SUN envision creating one of the most advanced state-of-the-art engineering facilities in Eastern Europe" said Philippe Trautmann, SUN Microsystems Educational and Research Director for the European region. "We recognized Ss. Cyril and Methodius as an excellent educational and research partner within the region, and are very excited about the opportunities this collaboration with the University will provide all involved. The support of the Macedonian government and US and European agencies was also extremely important and should be an important plus to all potential investors."

The Ss. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje was founded in 1949 consisting of three faculties, and today it represents a family of twenty-three faculties, ten institutes and other institutions. The present structure of the Ss. Cyril and Methodius University can be illustrated with the following figures: over 36,000 students from the Republic of Macedonia as well as over 700 foreign students are enrolled at all faculties; over 2,300 teaching and scientific staff and associates are engaged in the teaching, educational and scientific process at the faculties and over 300 at the institutes. In its up-to present development of the University, over 100,000 students acquired their Bachelor degree, over 5,000 candidates obtained their master's degrees while over 2,000 became doctors of science.

Macedonia is a European country focused on IT services and software. It features the most complete digital telecommunications network in Central and Eastern Europe and boasts more than 75 percent English fluency among IT professionals and technical graduates. Based on its historically excellent educational system, and relatively low labor costs, Macedonian companies are globally competitive in IT services.

The Macedonian National Entrepreneurship & Competitiveness Council, along with the Ministry of Economy, has established IT as a national priority and offers support including public-private "High Performance Assistance Teams", tax benefits and a Free Trade Zone. Located just north of Greece, Macedonia is a short, direct flight from most European capitals and is on the same time zone as continental Europe.





SUN Microsystems opens Center of Excellence for Engineering Design With University of Skopje