Developing the technological know-how and products in an increasingly competitive international context, enhancing research and making of it a common factor for all corporate business structures. It is the goal of the Leonardo Labs, the technological incubators at the center of the road map for research and innovation, presented in Genoa at the Leonardo Innovation Award 2019.
The road map aims to strengthen the company’s technological research. This will be also achieved through a network of external experts following the open innovation approach, the acceleration of digitalized processes, and the development of technologies as drivers to effectively compete in international markets. The challenge is to respond to both short and long-term needs, designing products and services that will be able to guarantee Leonardo’s growth in line with the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN 2030 Agenda.
Over the next five years, it is anticipated that the laboratories will see the recruitment of young external international researchers, focused on well-defined activities and under the supervision of experts and internal researchers. It will be an opportunity to attract talents also from abroad.
An interdisciplinary community will be created for technological development and future. Among the main research areas are: Big Data, high performance computing and simulation, Artificial Intelligence and autonomous systems (unmanned), quantum technologies and cryptography, electric mobility, materials and structures.
Leonardo’s CEO, Alessandro Profumo, commented: “The road map ensures a long-term growth which will address the challenges of the third millennium in a sustainable way. The objective is twofold: satisfying the market demands which requires continuous innovation, and on the other hand it will anticipate innovation which, in turn, generates new demand. The Leonardo Labs will also allow a continuous flow of talents to ensure flexibility and renewal, both in terms of capability and professional skills. This is based on an international scale model and our evolution of technological trends”.
“The Leonardo Labs - states Roberto Cingolani, Leonardo’s Chief Technology and Innovation Officer - will be based on a corporate research structure and will be responsible for working on cutting-edge programs in the medium to long term, transversal to the business areas of the Company, able to develop the future technologies and to anticipate the market demands. The initiative is a key factor for Leonardo’s competitive growth”.
The Leonardo Labs will develop highly innovative technologies. These new structures will be built near Leonardo’s main industrial sites in Italy with the aim to facilitate the transfer of technology maximizing the benefits of the reference territories, whilst also consolidating collaboration with local institutions. The Genoa area, among the headquarters of the Leonardo Labs, will host in particular one of the most powerful existing computers which will significantly strengthen supercomputing capabilities of the Company and of the nation, in Big Data and in autonomous and intelligent systems.
Leonardo, among the top ten world players in Aerospace, Defense and Security, is Italy’s main high-technology industrial company. Organized into five business divisions (Helicopters; Aircraft; Aerostructures; Electronics; Cyber Security) Leonardo has a significant manufacturing presence in Italy, the United Kingdom, Poland and the USA, where it also operates through subsidiaries such as Leonardo DRS (electronics), and joint ventures and partnerships: Telespazio, Thales Alenia Space and Avio (space); ATR (regional aircraft); and Elettronica and MBDA (electronics and defense systems).
Listed on the Milan Stock Exchange (LDO), in 2018 Leonardo recorded consolidated revenues of €12.2 billion and invested €1.4 billion in Research and Development. The Group has been part of the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) since 2010 and became Industry leader of the Aerospace & Defense sector in 2019.
