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Rabat — Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P) is taking a bold step toward accelerating Africa’s industrial future with the launch of the Smart Factory Academy, a permanent training and technology showcase center aimed at supporting the continent’s transition to Industry 4.0.
The initiative was unveiled on the sidelines of the NextGen Manufacturing Summit Africa, hosted on UM6P’s campus in Benguerir. Mohamed Laklalech, managing director of UM6P’s TECHNIX, spoke to Morocco World News (MWN) and explained that the academy represents an evolution from the one-time summit format to a sustained platform for industrial transformation.
“Actually, the idea behind this event started within TECHNIX,” Laklalech said in an interview with MWN. “We drafted our vision on how we can support the industrial transformation in Africa and how we can support companies in their transition to the future.”
From summit to sustained action
The NextGen Manufacturing Summit brought together exhibitors and experts from around the world to discuss the challenges and opportunities facing African industry. But Laklalech and his team recognized the limitations of an annual gathering.
“The problem of these events is that it’s a one-shot. Maybe we can have once a year, 2 days, or three days, and that’s it,” he explained. “This is why we brought the idea of having a Smart Factory Academy, which is something that will allow us to permanently train people to showcase technologies.”
The summit itself was carefully designed to address the most pressing questions facing African manufacturers. “We tried to design the topics that could be relevant for the African industrial transformation, especially what we call the Industry 4.0,” Laklalech said, adding that the university believes “the future within companies will rely on this transition.”
According to Laklalech, the focus is on helping businesses “embed new technologies, IoT, predictive maintenance data, artificial intelligence, etc” into their current operations.
A permanent technology display
Unlike a traditional training center, the Smart Factory Academy is envisioned as a living laboratory where the latest industrial technologies are on permanent display. Laklalech described it as more than just a showroom — it’s a space where companies can experience firsthand how cutting-edge technologies are reshaping manufacturing.
“The idea behind the Smart Factory is to have a kind of, I will not say showroom, but this is really to show permanently what new technologies are about,” he said. “It goes beyond speaking and debating in a one-in-a-year event.”
The academy is being developed in partnership with Deutsche Messe, the German trade fair company behind major industrial exhibitions like Hannover Messe. Laklalech noted that the partnership will bring valuable expertise to the project.
“In 2026, we are supposed to have the Smart Factory Academy in Casablanca together with our partners because Deutsche Messe will bring, as I said, also the expertise and the know-how that they have already with events like Hanover Messe,” he said. The goal is to “permanently have the latest technologies” available for demonstration.
Training for real industrial needs
The academy’s training programs are designed to address practical challenges faced by African manufacturers, with a particular focus on operational rather than purely managerial skills.
“We design training programs adapted for the real industrial needs so that we can address the real needs of companies, industrial needs not at a management level, but on an operational level,” Laklalech noted. “So not only for engineers, but also for field workers, for frontline managers, technicians, etc.”
The approach includes centers of excellence built around specific themes relevant to Africa’s industrial future. One key methodology is the “train the trainers” model, which Laklalech described as both effective and cost-efficient.
“In many situations, we can host trainers from different companies. We train them here on specific subjects, and then they go and train their employees,” Laklalech explained. “This is one of the methodologies that is even cost-optimized for the company itself.”
The academy will also facilitate “learning expeditions” — organized visits where professionals from different companies tour advanced manufacturing facilities together. “They can visit a smart factory or a company industrial facility that is very developed in new technologies,” he detailed. “And then they can exchange ideas and they can see on the ground what’s happening in other countries or in other companies.”
A pan-African vision
While the Smart Factory Academy will be based in Casablanca, its ambitions extend across the continent. Laklalech stressed that it will serve “Morocco, but also for Africa beyond Morocco,” positioning it as a regional hub for industrial innovation and skills development.
By combining permanent technology exhibitions, practical training programs, and collaborative learning opportunities, UM6P’s Smart Factory Academy aims to provide African manufacturers with the tools and knowledge needed to compete in an increasingly technology-driven global economy.
As the continent seeks to leverage its growing industrial base and young workforce, initiatives like the Smart Factory Academy could prove crucial in ensuring Africa doesn’t just participate in the Fourth Industrial Revolution — but helps shape it.
