On April 15, a demo day of the Accelerator of the road industry, organized by the FAA "ROSDORNII", was held at the site of the Moscow Automobile and Road State Technical University (MADI). 26 best projects were selected from 160 submitted applications to participate in the final of the acceleration program. For eight weeks, the participating teams were trained and prepared a Roadmap for the implementation of their developments in the industry.
The jury consisting of representatives of the Ministry of Transport of Russia, the Federal Road Agency, the Federal State Agency for Transport, ROSDORNIA, large investment companies and industry organizations determined the winners in each of the areas that will receive maximum support during testing and implementation.
The winner of the session "Innovative materials of the road industry" was the project "Additive to bitumen. Synthetic asphaltite (CA)". A new synthetic additive increases the viscosity of road bitumen by 1.5-1.9 times. This increases the durability of asphalt concrete and, consequently, extends the service life of the pavement.
The project "Robotization of the road construction industry" became the best in the session "Innovative technologies of the road industry". It provides for the use of hydraulic robots during road construction and maintenance of road infrastructure.
In the session "Intelligent Transport systems", the project "Avtodiskaveri Software and Hardware complex" for the implementation of a system for automated creation of digital models of road objects using mobile complexes was recognized as the best. The capabilities of the product allow you to obtain panoramic images from the cameras of mobile complexes and use this data in the planning and construction of transport infrastructure.
The plenary session "Innovations, New challenges and Import substitution in the road industry" discussed prospects for accelerating the introduction of new technologies in road infrastructure and transport construction. Stanislav Naboko, Director General of the ROSDORNIA FAA, noted that the developments of the Accelerator participants will ensure maximum import independence of the Russian road industry in the current economic situation.
"Any innovative product needs a sales market. Due to the current economic situation, it is as open as possible for domestic developments. We must do everything to realize our potential in such conditions," Stanislav Naboko stressed.
He added that there is no clear mechanism for testing innovations in Russia and there is a shortage of test sites. Because of this, it is not easy for research teams to enter a pilot project.
The agreement on scientific and technical cooperation between the FAA "ROSDORNII" and GC "Avtodor" will allow to solve these problems. The document establishes the testing of Accelerator projects at Avtodor sites with the provision of resources and expert support for the rapid introduction of innovative technologies into the transport industry, as well as cooperation between organizations in the development of research and innovation activities, conducting joint research on the properties of road construction structures, products and materials.
Anton Kozlov, Deputy Director of the Department of State Policy in the Field of Road Management of the Ministry of Transport of Russia, said that an increase in the volume of road construction will also strengthen the innovation market.
"The appearance of new roads will expand the market for the introduction of innovative developments by Russian scientists. In recent years, the volume of road construction in Russia has increased, including as part of anti-crisis measures. This means that Russian contractors will also be interested in new developments," Anton Kozlov said.
The importance of the Accelerator of the road industry for the Russian economy was confirmed by experts at the federal level. In particular, the head of the Department of Scientific and Technical Research of the Federal Road Agency, Georgy Goncharov, noted that the road industry is the locomotive of the economy.
"Innovation is the fuel of this locomotive. I want to thank the organizers of today's Accelerator and its participants, who confirm this," he said.
Acting Rector of MADI Dmitry Efimenko also expressed support for the acceleration program.
"It's nice to host the Accelerator finals in the walls of MADI. Creating a safe road network is a federal task, and we are ready to contribute to its solution, support the Accelerator, which helps to achieve high results, choose the best developments for our industry," Dmitry Efimenko said.
Background information
The accelerator of the road industry of the FAA "ROSDORNII" is a platform for technological re-equipment of enterprises of the road industry and support of technological and scientific projects of young scientists and entrepreneurs.
The purpose of creating this platform is to search and fill the industry with breakthrough and innovative solutions and technologies that will make the roads high—quality and safe, meeting the requirements of modernity.
In order to accelerate technological progress at the enterprises of the road industry, the first Accelerator was launched in 2020 on the basis of the Industry-wide Competence Center of the FAA "ROSDORNIA".