Five Steps for Digital Collaboration in Industrial Clusters 2025

10Digital collaboration is fully embedded in the cluster’s culture, transforming it into a self-sustaining ecosystem of innovation, with initiatives – such as digital labs – supporting broad collaboration. Clusters continuously scale digital capabilities, building on lessons learned and foundational enablers, driving long-term impact, economic growth and sustainability. Recommendations –Establish institutionalized innovation hubs: Institutionalized innovation hubs and processes – like digital labs or the digital factory model – can accelerate cluster- wide digital transformation by fostering a safe space for testing ideas and experimenting new projects. –Invest in workforce transformation: Training programmes bridge skills gaps and prepare for future roles, ensuring long-term ecosystem resilience. Institutionalizing training and awareness programmes help ensure workforce readiness for ongoing industrial transitions. Effective change management is essential to drive adoption, align stakeholders, and foster a culture of continuous learning. –Strengthen ecosystem synergies: Collaboration with diverse stakeholders, including startups, SMEs and academia, drives innovation and builds robust local ecosystems. Strengthening partnerships across sectors sustains innovation and addresses dual transformation challenges effectively.Step 5: North Star CASE STUDY 5 Digital labs drive ecosystem-wide transformation ArcelorMittal has deployed a private 5G network at its Dunkirk site, to enable real-time data transmission and digital tracking for its steel recycling project. The initiative enhances efficiency, safety, and sustainability across processes. Through this project, ArcelorMittal serves as an industrial example demonstrating how digitalization and 5G can be used to improve production processes and develop circular economy approaches. Recognizing the value of these innovations, ArcelorMittal has established the digital lab, a space for sharing and developing innovative projects with other industries, startups, academia, and local authorities, strengthening collaborations within the local and regional ecosystem. This case study demonstrates how ArcelorMittal’s involvement in the Dunkirk territory and city goes beyond individual company gains. By promoting collaboration, investing in workforce development, and strengthening local partnerships, the initiative addresses short-term transformation needs while building long-term resilience in the ecosystem. By engaging communities and accelerating innovation locally, we have created a ‘totem’ for transformation—a local hub for innovation, training and collaboration. This integrated approach has been essential in driving significant change within the steel industry and beyond. David Glijer, Chief Digital Officer, ArcelorMittal France Dkarbonation Cluster and ArcelorMittal: Steel recycling with 5G Background and objectives Digital technologies Results ArcelorMittal has established a roadmap around industry transformation, fostering collaboration between industry players, universities, startups and local governments. The initiative aims to stimulate innovation, accelerate industrial transformation and build a sustainable local ecosystem through the creation of a Digital Lab, serving as a digital factory for strategy, collaboration and innovation, and a Digital Academy. –Advanced connectivity and 5G are used to ensure seamless data integration across industrial systems –Visualization and Collaboration Platforms are leveraged for knowledge sharing and decarbonization roadmaps developmentSince its launch in 2021, the Digital Lab fosters over 120 projects annually and has: –Established partnerships with universities and engineering schools, enhancing knowledge exchange –Created a “light industry campus” to share technology and foster talent synergies –Launched the Digital Academy, and created a training center “Défi4” which participates in an industry-wide training program on digitization and decarbonization