Assen is a dynamic city in many ways. Known for the annual motorbike races at the TT Circuit, and accounting for the arrival of more than 100,000 enthusiastic motor racing fans. The Cathedral of Speed puts Assen on the national and international map.
Assen, the capital of the province of Drenthe and Groningen, the largest city in the northern Netherlands, constitute the Groningen-Assen region. Quantifying: 450,000 residents and more than 230,000 jobs. It is justified to say that the region is the economic engine of Northern Netherlands.
Within the Groningen-Assen region, Assen distinguishes itself with a sharp innovative profile that contributes to the dynamics of the city in an entirely different way. Assen is a Living Lab that presents itself with facilities, knowledge and projects. The Lab mainly focuses on care, energy, safety, sound, mobility and sustainability. Governments, research institutions and companies found each other to carry out projects that lead to solutions to problems arising from the above topics.
TT circuit Assen
Assen is also home to the Institute of Engineering, part of the Hanzehogeschool Groningen. Students from the Netherlands and other European countries, as well as Asia and South America, are educated here. Advanced Sensor Applications is a technical Bachelor and Master of the Higher Vocational Education of the Hanzehogeschool Groningen, which specializes in sensor technique. The Higher Vocational Education is a breeding-ground for young technical talent. Graduates have already found employment with renowned companies such as ASML, Shell and Philips. During their internships they even helped companies manufacture products that needed patent application.
City of Assen
The city has cooperated with knowledge and education institutes, companies, regional- and local public authorities and civil society to tackle challenges and work together on a sustainable future. As an example, in E-ntelligence we use innovative sensor technology, combined with profound insights into human behaviour, to stimulate awareness and energy efficiency in households. In ENCITE we use the insights gained by ECN in stimulating energy efficiency and battle energy poverty to decrease use and costs of energy for low income countries. Together with four other European countries, we test which measures work best and help implementing best practices and share lessons learnt in and with other European countries.
Assen is a dynamic city in many ways. In areas such as healthcare, security, energy, mobility and social climate, this vibrant city is on an innovative journey into the future.