NCUE is proactively intensifying its partnerships with local industries, with a specific emphasis on bolstering interdisciplinary collaboration among neighboring educational institutions, especially strategic alliances with regional universities and industry stakeholders. These collaborative efforts provide NCUE with valuable insights into industry needs, facilitate the adaptation of the school’s research focus, and offer practical hands-on experiences. Consequently, NCUE is well-equipped to strategize and implement cross-institutional, interdisciplinary, and startup-oriented collaborative projects. This approach substantially amplifies the capacity and impact of NCUE’s industry-academia partnership initiatives. The relevant implementation strategies are as follows:

1. Through active industry-academia collaboration, the Office of Research and Development has strengthened close connections with neighboring industries, generating outcomes directly benefiting local businesses and residents. In 2024, faculty members executed a total of 407 industry-academia collaboration projects totaling NTD$589,185,211, making a 25% increase compared to 2023. This not only demonstrates NCUE’S robust capacity in corporate collaboration and technological innovation but also injects innovative vitality into local industries, indirectly stabilizing and creating employment opportunities for local residents. Through collaboration with seven universities in central Taiwan (National Chung Hsing University, Hungkuang University, Tunghai University, National Chiayi University, National Yunlin University of Science and Technology, Taipei Medical University, National Taipei University of Technology, and National Chin-Yi University of Technology) in the “Central Taiwan Cross-University Integration for Research and Industrialization Platform Project.” From 2020 to 2024, the project has successfully guided 88 local companies, engaging 70 experts and 158 students to participate jointly, in collaborative efforts that led to the development of 28 new technology products. The Office also actively helps faculty and enterprises jointly apply for government-funded (local or central) projects. In 2024, these projects received NTD$2,800,000 in subsidies. Additionally, NCUE organized two talent-matching sessions and 13 talent training courses, substantially enhancing the professional skills of the local workforce and helping local enterprises upgrade and transform. These initiatives ensures that local residents benefit from industrial development. Furthermore, the Office of Research and Development continues to guide NCUE faculty members in establishing startup companies based on their research patents. Take Lin Chung-Chi, a Professor from the Department of Biology, as an example. He successively executed the project of “Taiwan Germination Program: Commercialization Model of Integrated Pest Management Technology for Ant Control” approved by the National Science and Technology Council in 2022 and “Startup Value Creation Program,” approved by the Ministry of Economic Affairs in 2023. These efforts led to his successful founding of the spin-off startup company “A. nT Environmental Technology Co., Ltd.,” which has developed environmentally friendly ant pest ants control technology.

Table 1. Achievements of National Science and Technology Council Projects, Non-National Science and Technology Council Projects, and Industry-Academia Projects executed by NCUE’s faculty members in 2024

2. To assist local communities in establishing financially sound and socially sustainable businesses, Innovation Incubation Center in NCUE actively promotes entrepreneurial and economic assistance initiatives in 2024. By integrating government resources, professional faculty expertise, and local industry needs, the center provides comprehensive support for both startups and traditional industries. Focusing on precision machinery, smart electric vehicles, and green energy as its core technological fields, the center aligns with national policies to create a diversified industrial platform and to develop industrial clusters. Through well-established incubation networks and lateral/vertical integration mechanisms, it helps enterprises reduce costs of  startup and operation, enhancing their international competitiveness and brand value. Additionally, by assisting enterprises in applying for government subsidy projects and matching them with venture capital resources, the center effectively strengthens enterprises’ capital and market expansion potential.

In 2024, multiple professional training courses were offered, including ISO 14064 Carbon Inventory, ISO 50001 Energy Management, ESG Planning, CBAM Carbon Content Calculation, AI Applications, and Green Packaging Design, with accumulated over 300 participants. (Figures 1-2). These courses helped 12 enterprises stay current with the latest regulatory trends and green transformation technologies. Simultaneously, the center provided specialized project-based guidance on short-term technology, low-carbon management, and energy-saving technology to 36 local enterprises (Figure 3), successfully assisting 12 of them in obtaining government funding. By further integrating resource and brand marketing strategies of resident companies (Figure 4), the center continues to establish a regional innovation and entrepreneurship platform, substantially strengthening economic foundation of the community and promoting sustainable industrial development.