Award of the Social Council of the Silesian University of Technology for prof. Marek Gzik
Professor Marek Gzik is the best employee of the Silesian University of Technology in the academic year 2021/22. The director of the European HealthTech Innovation Centre (EHTIC) received the award granted annually by the Social Council of the Silesian University of Technology during the ceremonial inauguration of the university's academic year. This is another award related to a state-of-the-art research centre operating within the Silesian University of Technology.
The Social Council of the Silesian University of Technology awarded a distinction to prof. Marek Gzik for his activities and efforts to create the European HealthTech Innovation Centre (EHTIC).
-“ For the idea that has materialized, and for the Centre which operates at the meeting point of science, sport, technology, health, especially medicine and rehabilitation. And because it works, it will bear fruit in no time at all” - explained Jan Sarna, Director General of the Foundation for the Development of Cardiac Surgery, on behalf of the Council.
- “The award for the best employee of the Silesian University of Technology, which was awarded to me by the Social Council of the Silesian University of Technology, is a great honour and distinction for me. I treat this award as a distinction for the entire biomedical engineering community. Without many people who have been supporting me for years, I would not be able to achieve my successes. These are not only people at the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, but from the beginning of my career I have experienced a lot of support from the City of Zabrze, in particular by the president, Małgorzata Mańki-Szulik. I am also grateful to the Philips company, with whom we managed to organize an absolutely unique project, which is the EHTIC. I am grateful to the Social Council for the award, and to the Silesian University of Technology for all that I could achieve. A number of my professional promotions is due to the cooperation with people, it is the Silesian University of Technology and the atmosphere that we create together.” - said prof. Marek Gzik.
The European HealthTech Innovation Centre (EHTIC) project itself was also awarded just a few days earlier. In the national competition: “Modernization of the Year and Construction of the 21st century”, EHTIC received the main prize in the category of Science and Education Facilities. The new building of the Silesian University of Technology was appreciated, among others, for the functionality of architecture and energy efficiency, as well as for the creation of modern laboratories and workshops enabling research in the field of medicine and biomedical engineering of the future.
Work on the EHTIC concept began in 2012. Thanks to the cooperation with the authors of the architectural design: dr hab. Eng. arch. Grzegorz Nawrot, prof. SUT; dr hab. Eng. arch. Tomasz Wagner, prof. SUT, as well as with Philips, a state-of-the-art facility adapted to the most technologically advanced research works was created.
- “Thanks to the concepts that were created then, we prepared the assumptions for the project of the Silesian Engineering Centre for Medicine and Sports Support, which was financed from EU funds, with the support of Philips. I would like to thank all the services of the Silesian University of Technology that supported this investment. I would like to thank the construction contractor - Mostostal company, as well as the City Council and the Mayor of Zabrze” - said prof. Gzik.
EHTIC cooperates with many medical, engineering and sports communities, carrying out numerous research programs. Among them there is a footballer research program, developed by scientists from the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering of the Silesian University of Technology. The captain of the Polish national football team, Robert Lewandowski, participated in one of the studies of this program. This study is carried out with the participation of, among others, osteopaths and physiotherapists, and focuses on the analysis of movement, muscle activity, balance studies and the speed of response to external stimuli.
The European HealthTech Innovation Centre is a modern research and development centre operating in Zabrze at the Silesian University of Technology. It conducts interdisciplinary research, service, information, training and promotional activities in the field of innovative technologies for health.
Highly specialized laboratories and EHTIC workshops are equipped with the state-of-the-art equipment and software available on the global market. These resources are used by experienced teams of scientists from the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering of the Silesian University of Technology to design, create and develop innovative technologies related to bioinformatics, bioelectronics, biomechatronics or biomaterials that will be implemented in medicine and sports.
Laboratories and workshops are also made available to enterprises, which contributes to the development of innovative research and production techniques and increases the competitiveness of the region's companies. Cooperation with EHTIC gives the opportunity to participate, among others, in Polish and European technology platforms, creating opportunities for the effective use of opportunities offered by international cooperation and competing with companies operating in the medical devices industry.
The scope of the implemented innovative research and development works is in line with the development of technologies related to smart specializations: medicine, information and communication technologies, and emerging industries. The main goal of the European HealthTech Innovation Centre (EHTIC) is to organize cooperation of entities operating in the field of health technologies, creating, developing and implementing innovative medical technologies in order to improve the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of diseases.
