INDUSTRY-ACADEMY COLLABORATION: DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION OF A SYSTEM CONTROL AND MONITORING IN THE CLOTHING INDUSTRY

Abstract

According to the literature, a possible way to promote innovations in the industry is through collaboration with academia. Therefore, this work aims to analyze and highlight the results obtained from an industry-academy collaboration (or university-industry collaboration) between a jeans textile laundry and a Brazilian institution of education, science, and technology. This collaboration took place within the scope of a university extension project, which aimed to develop and deploy a production control and monitoring system to enhance the industry's delivery forecasting to its customers. To do so, we opted for a qualitative research approach with exploratory, descriptive, and explanatory purposes. Regarding the methods, we chose to develop a Case Study, with data collection and analysis methods involving the retrieval of bibliographic, documentary, and post-mortem data, reflecting on the procedures adopted during the product transfer/implementation in the industry. Thus, this research stands out for the following contributions: (i) description of the formalization process of the cooperation agreement; (ii) description of the software system development process using Agile Methodologies; (iii) presentation of the developed system; (iv) description of the system deployment activity and aspects of technology and knowledge transfer; and (v) discussion of the benefits obtained by each partner involved in the initiative. Based on the findings of this research, the industry-academy collaboration stands out as an important tool for strengthening the national industry, with numerous benefits for all parties involved. Finally, the research suggests as proposals for future work the need to further explore the understanding and the proposition of industry-academy collaboration models that address, especially, post-implementation activities of the developed technology.