Kitmap: Supporting A Thriving Science, Innovation And Technology Sector

The Science, Innovation and Technology sector is working together to improve collaboration and access to infrastructure and expertise via a new online platform.

Kitmap is an online directory and database of scientific infrastructure and equipment owned by publicly funded institutes and is the first of its kind for Aotearoa New Zealand.

Kitmap was announced today by Minister for Science, Innovation and Technology, Judith Collins. The online platform is part of a wider project led by the Ministry for Business Innovation and Employment (MBIE) that seeks to optimise the use of Aotearoa New Zealand’s science and technology research infrastructure.

“We are excited to be part of the delivery and management of a tool that streamlines access to facilities that also helps to enhance collaboration and efficiency,” says Callaghan Innovation Chief Executive, Stefan Korn.

It includes advanced facilities such as clean rooms, Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) certified testing, pilot and manufacturing infrastructure, and specialised Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy capabilities that are now more accessible.

Kitmap currently catalogues 260 R&D items of infrastructure, specialised equipment, much of which are found nowhere else, or not easily accessible in this country.

It provides easy access to equipment and facilities owned by Crown Research Institutes (CRIs), the National eScience Infrastructure (NeSI) and Callaghan Innovation.

“Our colleagues at MBIE have done the heavy lifting gathering the relevant information for this tool. As an innovation agency and R&D provider, we are very happy to host and promote Kitmap to support improved collaboration, and optimised resource use across the public sector and beyond.

“We engaged with MBIE late last year to see what we could do to help. They welcomed our input and their shared requirements for an online tool. We assembled our own team to deliver a dynamic platform that provides instant access to a comprehensive directory of R&D infrastructure and equipment.

“As scientific fields, interdisciplinary research and private sector R&D areas continue to evolve rapidly, it's crucial that our public science and technology resources are deployed to the areas where they can deliver the greatest impact for New Zealand.

“And as the fourth industrial revolution gathers pace, Kitmap will offer valuable insights and access to a broad spectrum of research facilities and equipment, ensuring Kiwi innovators have the tools they need to successfully develop products and inventions.

“In the near future Kitmap will look to incorporate generative AI functionality to suggest potential methods and machinery required for rapid prototyping of new products or innovations,” says Stefan Korn.

Kitmap resource categories include:

• Laboratories: Conventional research rooms/buildings
• Field sites: Physical spaces for non-laboratory research activities
• Livestock facilities: Spaces for rearing or researching livestock, including animals, fish, and insects
• Vessels: Ships or boats equipped for sea research
• Digital collections: Online databases and digital archives
• Computing: Physical computing hardware or virtual networks
• Workshops: Spaces with CNC machinery, tools and equipment for rapid prototyping
• Sample collections: Physical specimen collections
• Monitoring: Networks of monitoring equipment
• Pilot plants: Facilities for pre-commercial production technology trials

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