Slavic Universities. SPbPU and BRU strengthen technological sovereignty of the Union State
A delegation of Polytechnic University headed by SPbPU Rector Andrei Rudskoi continues its visit to Belarus. These days several events related to the joint activities of our universities are taking place at the site of SPbPU’s strategic partner Belarusian-Russian University (Mogilev).
Rector of BRU Mikhail Lustenkov welcomed the Russian colleagues: «Our cooperation with St. Petersburg Polytechnic University has long been really warm and productive — and I can say with confidence that we have no other university with such a multifaceted and strategically important partnership.»
The official meeting of Andrei Rudskoi, rector of SPbPU, Dmitry Arseniev, vice rector for international affairs, and Anatoly Popovich, director of the Institute of Machinery, Materials and Transport, with Mikhail Lustenkov, Rector of BRU, and key vice-rectors was devoted to the prospects of expanding cooperation in the main areas of partnership, including the creation of innovative joint educational programs, development of research infrastructure and training of professional staff for high-tech industries.
«We have found the right interaction and the basis of Slavic unity in the field of education. Here, in Belarus, unique laboratories have been created, students study together, and the distribution goes to the enterprises of both countries. This is a very correct and important symbiosis, reflecting the crucial role of ‘Slavic’ universities,» emphasized Andrei Rudskoi.
A landmark event was the signing of an agreement to launch a unique joint network bachelor’s degree program «Artificial Intelligence in Technical Systems». This four-year program, developed by the joint efforts of specialists from the Higher School of Cyber-Physical Systems and Control of SPbPU and the Department of Software Engineering of the BRU, is intended to become a flagship project in the training of the new generation of specialists. Already at the stage of development the program aroused considerable interest not only among Russian and Belarusian applicants, but also among students from China, which testifies to its international demand.
Getting acquainted with the university infrastructure allowed the SPbPU delegation to evaluate the achievements of the joint laboratory of intelligent robotics, established in 2022, where students and teachers of the two universities successfully implement projects in the field of digital twins of industrial objects and predictive analytics systems. Of particular interest were the practical developments in the field of remote monitoring of critical facilities using artificial intelligence technologies. During the visit to the Network Laboratory of Intelligent Robotics and Cyber-Physical Systems, the guests were shown the possibilities of remote connection and control of production lines and robots located in different physical locations.
No less productive was the visit to the Department of Technosphere Safety, where the program of practical training for SPbPU master’s degree students of the «Environmental Safety in Industry» specialization has been successfully implemented for the third year already. The unique methodology of studying the impact of radionuclides on the environment, developed by Belarusian colleagues, supplements the educational programs of St. Petersburg university with an important practical component. The practical training has been conducted since 2022 and during this time 15 students of Polytechnic University have completed it. And just this week, the next practical training program for 3 students of the Civil Engineering Institute is coming to an end at the experimental sites and laboratories of the Department of Technosphere Safety.
At the Department of Welding Equipment and Technologies the guests were shown the achievements in the field of additive and welding technologies. In this area, BRU is a unique platform in the Republic of Belarus. On the basis of the University, there is the only Certification and Testing Center in the Republic, which carries out certification of welding equipment and materials, testing of welded samples and structures, training, certification and attestation of welders, development and qualification of technological processes of welding.
Within the framework of activities on coordination of Slavic Universities, during this week SPbPU experts are holding a design and analytical session on preparation of the Development Program of the Belarusian-Russian University for 2026-2030. The focus of the session was the formation of a common understanding of the target model of the university, strategic development goals and ways to achieve them.
The results of the visit confirmed that cooperation between SPbPU and BRU has reached a qualitatively new level, combining fundamental academic traditions with advanced educational technologies. Joint projects in the field of artificial intelligence, cyber-physical systems and technosphere security not only strengthen the scientific and technological potential of the two countries, but also create a basis for the formation of a common educational space and increase the technological sovereignty of the Union State.