SMC opens Industrial Application Center in Dresden: New space for connected development and industrial automation in Silicon Saxony

SMC offers innovative solutions for the automation industry and is now also represented in Dresden with an IAC. (Photo: SMC Deutschland GmbH)

Guests from industry, politics, and the regional economy at the ceremonial opening of the new Industrial Application Center of SMC in Dresden on January 29, 2026 Guests from industry, politics, and the regional economy at the ceremonial opening of the new Industrial Application Center on January 29, 2026. (Photo: SMC Deutschland GmbH)

Robert Angel, Managing Director of SMC Germany, and Stefan Voigt, Site Manager of the IAC in Dresden, emphasize the importance of modern automation and microelectronics technologies for the economic location of Saxony at the opening of the Industrial Application Center. (Photo: SMC Deutschland GmbH)

With the Industrial Application Center, SMC strengthens its innovation capacity and offers companies in Dresden a place where they can jointly develop efficient automation solutions for future-proof production processes.

Unlike traditional test centers, the IAC provides a practical environment where applications can be operated in real-time, motion and control sequences demonstrated, and typical scenarios from daily production can be simulated. This allows for the immediate experience of circuits, cylinders, electric axes, sensors, or vacuum components for automation processes in their interaction.

"Dresden is one of the most important microelectronics locations in Europe. We create a place here where end-users, machine builders, and SMC experts can work together on technical solutions," says Robert Angel, Managing Director of SMC Germany GmbH. "The IAC, as a central innovation hub, aims to accelerate coordination processes and strengthen knowledge transfer so that early decisions can be clearly directed towards forward-looking, implementation-oriented results."

The IAC is aimed at companies from various industries such as semiconductor manufacturing, automotive, mechanical engineering, and food processing. Workshops, training sessions, project discussions, and technical coordination take place here — always with the goal of precisely defining requirements together and developing applications tailored to needs.

With the IAC, SMC sends a clear signal for the Saxony location and creates a platform that closely links industry, research, and technological development. The Dresden IAC complements the existing center at SMC's headquarters in Egelsbach and strengthens the nationwide network of application-oriented development work for the automation industry. During the opening, the management of SMC Germany and the IAC Dresden team also presented a donation check to the association "Wegen uns e. V.," which is committed in Dresden to caring for and adopting children as well as supporting their families.

The IAC is managed by a core team, which is supported as needed by additional specialists from the region. The flexible structure allows for the precise inclusion of expertise required for customer projects depending on the task.

"Our goal is to create a space where industrial challenges are not only discussed but can be experienced directly through the interplay of application, engineering, and practice," explains Matthias Ronacher, Senior Vice President of Direct Sales. "This creates a joint development process that effectively combines technical depth, direct interaction, and real industrial conditions."

A virtual 360° tour of the IAC in Egelsbach is already available online here.