For the fourth time, Klaipėda invited innovations aimed at the sustainability, efficiency and safety of port processes to the "Portathon" hackathon. During the 48-hour event, technology enthusiasts and professionals from various fields developed 16 technological solutions.
Talent for maritime Europe
Innovative ideas were developed at the Klaipėda Science and Technology Park and remotely in other Lithuanian and foreign cities by students of engineering, IT and other fields of study, mixed teams of young people and teachers and lecturers, and corporate specialists. The World Maritime University team participated in this hackathon from afar for the first time. This year, when the European university alliance EU-CONEXUS joined the Portathon, the Technical University of Civil Engineering Bucharest, which is part of it, sent its team to Klaipėda for live participation. "We have been a partner of Portathon since the beginning of this initiative. This hackathon is not only a valuable resource to get new ideas and solutions for the port - it is also a place to grow the talent needed by Klaipėda, the maritime economy and maritime Lithuania," stressed Algis Latakas, General Director of Klaipėda State Seaport.
More than 100 participants gathered
At the start of Portathon 2022 on September 30. more than 100 participants lined up, supported by mentors from Lithuania, Germany, Sweden, Romania and Poland - scientific and business organizations.
The hackathon will end in 48 hours on October 2. 16 teams reached the afternoon and presented their solutions to the evaluation committee. The team from Vilnius College of Technology and Design "VTDK maketistai-paketistai" and the team from Klaipėda Baltic High School "BalticG&TA", supported by tech enthusiasts from Kaunas, and Klaipėda College of Social Sciences, a joint Klaipėda University and Klaipėda State College, scored the most points and became the winners, the representative team "EcoKlaipPort" and a remotely connected team of technology enthusiasts led by Mantos Indrašiaus.
The winners of the "Portathon" shared a prize fund in the amount of EUR 4,000, the main donor of which was the Directorate of the Klaipėda State Seaport. This year, Klaipėdas economic development agency "Klaipėda ID" also created its own prize and brought its own challenge to the hackathon.
The conceptual and organizational core of the Portathon: Lithuanian Maritime Cluster, Klaipėda State Seaport Directorate, Klaipėda University and Klaipėda Science and Technology Park, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this year. Three international projects - Liquid Energy, Decade 2030 and DigiTechPort - contributed to the implementation this year.