ENGINEER project aims to enhance the Department of Civil Engineering and Geomatics of the Cyprus University of Technology (CUT) research and innovation potentials through coordination and support actions provided by the Twinning call. Built upon its unique character, as the single University Department of the country where Civil and Geomatics Engineers come together, the Twinning project will fulfil and extend inter-departmental research activities in Cultural Heritage.

The Smart Specialisation Strategy of Cyprus (S3CY) was designed to pave the wave for future sustainable development of the country capitalizing on its unique characteristics and research ecosystem. S3CY’s final report puts Cultural Heritage at the heart of the country’s future development as a horizontal pillar, whereas other disciplines such as tourism – the main economic revenue stream of the country – and ICT potentially interrelate. The vision of the project is to fill research gaps, push, and extend knowledge into new and innovative fields dealing with the monitoring, digitization, visualization, and preservation of Cultural Heritage, assisting towards its protection, promotion, and safeguarding.

Towards this direction, the CUT has aligned forces with three leading European institutions, namely the Polytechnic University of Milan (POLIMI), the University of Aveiro (UAVEIRO) and the University College of London (UCL). The leading teams will work closely with the local team through targeted training and research activities, mobility actions, networking, and in situ pilot applications. At the same time, the leading institutions will advance research management and administrative skills, as well as they will promote industrial and knowledge transfer to the widening partner (CUT), with the ultimate scope to reform the Department of Civil Engineering and Geomatics Research and Innovation system, in the taggled fields. The participation of the Eratosthenes Centre of Excellence (ECoE) will multiply the potential impact of the project, creating strong links with partners of the quadruple helix of the Smart Specialization, and will support commercialization and marketed aspects.