The Universidad de La Frontera starts to position a research line of importance for the whole world. Significant results in cancer treatment are expected because of this innovative idea. We are the first university in creating, designing and putting into operation an alternative device for radiation therapy treatment.

When Dr. Rodolfo Figueroa decided to use his knowledge in physics to apply it to the field of medicine, he never thought that this idea of creating a device for focused radiation therapy would interest a company like Elekta, the second largest radiation therapy devices manufacturing company in Europe.

As the result of a Fondef (Fund for the Promotion of Scientific and Technological Development) Project that started in 2015, Dr. Figueroa and other researchers in that field have revolutionized the medical field by presenting the design, creating and putting into operation a compact device that emits convergent X photons as they are used in external radiation therapy and favors the dose distribution compared to other techniques used at the present. The result is an improved effectiveness in radiation therapy and it generates an excellent profile regarding the profound doses since the dose can be concentrated more precisely without damaging healthy organs around the tumor.

CONTACT WITH THE BEST
In this context, the researchers came to Elekta, Europe’s leading company – the second largest in the world – in the manufacturing of medical radiation therapy equipment. “We made contact with the researcher Uwe Oelfke, one of the main scientists dedicated to this topic, and with his help we were able to visit The Institute of Cancer Research in London, in the UK, and also had the possibility to present our project to the Elekta executive managers”, Dr. Figueroa commented.

And this presentation has been one of the most important for them to promote their idea. They were able to show it to one of the most selective and demanding groups in the world. Among them, Kevin Brown, the Elekta VP of Research and Innovation and John Ellen, the Engineer and Director of Elekta in the UK.

“We showed our scientific productivity with 12 scientific publications and 3 associated patents. The accompaniment of the director of Innovation and Technology Transfer, Claudine Uribe, Dr. Mauro Valente and Dr. Oelfke who made this possible, were also key”, Figueroa said.

The current aim of the researchers is a partnership with Elekta and at the moment they are waiting for the final report on how the company is going to support this innovation. In case of a positive response, the impact for Latin America would be enormous: Chile would be the first country with an alliance of this nature, and the UFRO would position itself in a field of worldwide interest. “They saw that we are doing serious and impeccable work”, the researcher added.

THE NUMBERS OF THE EUROPEAN GIANT

Elekta is a manufacturer of cancer treatment equipment and software.

Their equipment is installed in more than 6000 hospitals all over the world and their specialty is radiation therapy, radiosurgery and brachytherapy.
They have more than 3600 employees all over the world.

They own about 39% of the radiation therapy market with sales in over 120 countries. About 1.5 million patients receive treatment with Elekta systems each year.

They are leading in Asia and Europe. The sales exceed 1,190 USD and the EBITDA is of 185 (2017/2016).

20% of the work force is dedicated to innovation. The investment in R&D reached 132MM USD.

11% of the net sales were designated to R&D and tendencies of growth because of the lack of equipment in low- and middle-income countries. Only 10% have access to radiation therapy. Most of the 13000 Elekta devices are installed in developed countries.

Out of the total of cancer patients in the world, only 25% are treated with radiation therapy, while the rate suggested in different studies is 50%.

The market in emerging countries is one of the priorities of Elekta and innovation is one of the pillars for the current and future growth. In this field, they have a number of collaboration agreements with cancer treatment centers.

This way, about 4500 homes and at least 50 companies will benefit from the platform for the development of Smart City solutions and around 800 people who will be trained in the Smart City thematic area.

Temuco will be the first Smart City in Chile and an example for other cities in this Region. Last week, the Multilateral Investment Fund (FOMIN) of the Inter-American Development Bank (BID) group, the Universidad de La Frontera, the Municipality of Temuco, the Product Development Corporation (CORFO) and the multinational firm Everis came together in order to initiate the project that seeks (through technology) to improve the quality of life in the city and that requires an amount of US$ 3.347.669.

At the signing of the agreement in Mendoza, Argentina, the mayor of Temuco, Miguel Becker, the Rector of the University, Sergio Bravo, and the dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Science, Dr. Rodrigo Navia, who will be in charge of leading the implementation of this important program, were present. The implementation period will take three years and is about deploying an open Smart City and pilot platform in the fields of transportation, recycling and environmental decontamination, among other key areas for the development of the capital city of the Araukania Region.

“The impact of the climate change and the high urban concentration present a series of challenges for the cities. At the Universidad de La Frontera we know the challenges of Temuco and our Region and we are convinced that it is possible to improve the people´s quality of life through innovation in technology, human resources and an associative model in which we all work with the same aim: to improve our city for current and future generations”, the Rector of the University, Sergio Bravo, said.

Once the pilot platform of the city is implemented, the platform will become property of the Inter-American Development Bank who will boost its transfer and implementation in other Latin-American and Caribbean medium-sized cities (77 cities of the Emerging and Sustainable Cities Program (ESC)). At the same time, this will permit local SMEs to expand the international application that will be developed for Temuco, and all cities the BID decides to implement the platform, what creates unexpected and unprecedented business opportunities for the local ecosystem.

This way, about 4500 homes and at least 50 companies will benefit from the platform for the development of Smart City solutions and around 800 people who will be trained in the Smart City thematic area.

WHY TEMUCO?

The city of Temuco has been selected because it is part of the region with the highest poverty rates in the country (23.6% compared to the national average of 11.4%) and the highest concentration of indigenous people (more than 30% of the population, vs. 8% at the national level). The community has a population of about 232 528 people, of which 94.8% is urban.

Apart from that, it has a well-developed ecosystem of innovation and entrepreneurship. The city counts with about 50 thousand higher education students and stands out with the existence of the Business Incubator of the Universidad de La Frontera which is catalogued by the Product Development Corporation (CORFO) among the incubators with the highest performance in the country. They also put an emphasis on the public and private investment project Hub Digital Temuco of Everis NTT Data, a branch of the hedge-fund DevLabs (USA), who provide financial support for the development of Startup technologies at the early stage.
Temuco also has a similar size to most of the medium-sized cities in Latin-America, what makes it ideal to test solutions that can be imitated all over the Region.

SMART CITY

The Smart City Temuco initiative includes four components:

Component I (first and second year): Development and Deployment of Open Smart City and Pilot Platform. Development of a Smart City software platform open for any developer and/or service provider. Deployment of four pilot applications in order to decrease urban incidents and which consider intelligent recycling, augmented reality locations, and a real-time contamination IoT network.

Component II (second and third year): Management of Innovation and Entrepreneurship. Promotion of innovation and entrepreneurship based on technologies on secondary and university education level and SME technologies as providers of new solutions that are developed on this platform. It considers an application development program for SMEs and a program to attract international entrepreneurs; challenges of local innovation and entrepreneurship competitions for secondary and university education.

Component III (second and third year): Training of Human Capital. Strengthen regional human capital oriented to software and ICT services development at the international level and with focus on technology transfer over the Platform. It considers the implementation of an advanced Smart City training, training courses for secondary education students, and an elective specialization class for UFRO students.

Component IV (third year): Expansion. This component includes the systematization of technical requirements and the replicable business model for other medium-sized Latin-American and Caribbean cities (between 100 thousand and 2 million inhabitants).

In his annual statement, the highest authority of our University, Sergio Bravo, led us through the work done in research, postgraduate affairs and innovation.

In a process that started more than a decade ago, the Universidad de La Frontera has been focusing its efforts on the transformation into a complex institution of prestige and with relevant indicators. Looking back on the last year, the highest authority of this institution led us through the work done in the fields of research, postgraduate affairs and innovation.

How does the UFRO position itself in the Rectors´ Council compared to other universities?
In November 2017, the Chilean University Quality Ranking positioned us as a University of Research and Doctoral Programs, a qualitative leap in our management that results from the efforts and talent we have put into our work to make this happen. At the same time, the international accreditation of two of our Doctoral Programs converts us into the only university with this distinction, what also leads to being recognized and privileged.

Which direction is the UFRO going to take from now on?
Our pillar is the undergraduate training and we constantly care about quality, outreach and community engagement, the work we do in science, the training of advanced human capital and the creation of useful and transferable knowledge. All this would not be possible without the efforts of great people who are working with us, and not only in the fields of research and postgraduate affairs, but also in the field of innovation we move forward with a regional view. We think about the people, because our knowledge has to be dedicated to the community and the solutions we find in our expertise that characterizes us need to have a positive impact on the region and the country.

At the same time, another task is to think about how to strengthen the postgraduate area. The training of advanced human capital is one of our highest distinctions and our offer underlines that.

What is going to happen next? How can we stay in this scenery?
We cannot stop. Chile is a very competitive country, especially at the level of higher education and it is time to think about which direction we want to take, which will be our strategic plan in order to keep growing and open new spaces for development.

Is there anything the Institution has to consider?
The just mentioned goes hand in hand with inter- and multidisciplinarity, two work modes that are currently fundamental. From this point of view, the opportunities for alliances, new ideas and the creation of innovative knowledge permit the improvement and solution of problems in a transversal manner.

The topic outreach and community engagement is something that will distinguish the universities in the short term. We have to be actively engaged with the community, approach the citizens, listen to their demands and provide solutions. It is about innovation at the service of people and the UFRO is totally aligned with the national and international tendencies.

What distinguishes us in the national scene of science?
Without a doubt: it is research and the D&R&I. This is what distinguishes us and we have to concentrate on the spaces where we can keep growing. And therefore, we cannot be an island, the key to success is that the researchers, postgraduate students and academic staff work together and that together we can maintain and envision the future from what we are today: a regional University of excellence and recognized prestige.

Today, 450 WoS publications of 2017, 119 ongoing and 40 approved Fondecyt projects, as well as 49 innovation projects we will start in 2018, convert us into the best University in our Region and one of the 10 best universities in Chile.

The exchange students who join our undergraduate Programs are from Germany, Belgium, Bolivia, Colombia, Spain, France, Mexico and Peru.

Following a clear line of internationalization, the International Affairs Office and the Student Mobility Unit of the Universidad de La Frontera welcomed 38 national and international students who join our undergraduate Programs this year.

The vice Rector, Dr. Ruben Leal, the vice rector of Undergraduate Affairs, MSc. Ana Moraga Pumarino, and the deans and directors of Outreach of each faculty participated in the welcome ceremony for the new students who will stay during this academic semester at the UFRO.

“At this University you will find a University Community which is happy to help, receive and incorporate you. Our academic staff and employees are willing to orient you and make your stay as successful as possible, and it would be the most successful if, after your experience, you convert into ambassadors of our Institution,” the vice Rector, Dr. Ruben Leal, said.
In order to make the integration process easier, the UFRO International Affairs Office created a Sponsor Program with a network of young collaborative students of the different undergraduate programs who voluntarily help the new students with guidance.

The director of the Student Mobility Office, Antonia Espinoza, said that this institutional effort has brought a total of 430 students to our University since 2010 and that it has been possible thanks to the different International Cooperation Agreements that facilitate the academic student exchange.

“This first semester we have 38 students who just came to the UFRO and one student who came here last year. That makes a total of 39 foreign students and for us, the International Affairs Office, it is very important to start this internationalization process at home, since it permits our students to share experiences with them in class, to expand their horizons and to motivate them to live these experiences themselves.”

	Patricia Santos, National Autonomous University of Mexico “I wanted to come to the Universidad de La Frontera and to Chile, especially because of the beautiful nature and the climate, and to this Institution because I will have the possibility to get to know other people, cultures and other kind of knowledge. Apart from that, I will be able to apply what I learned at my university and in my public accounting classes.”
	Julien Pinchon, Polytechnical Institute Unisalle, France “I wanted to come to Latin America and then I thought about Chile, because I speak a little bit of Spanish and my university has a Cooperation Agreement with the Faculty of Agricultural and Forestry Science. This is why I am going to take different classes in Agronomy and I have high expectations about what I can achieve and apply in this period of studies.”
	Samuel Jiménez, CES University, Colombia “I had two possibilities to choose from: the USA or Chile. And I ended up applying to the UFRO Dentistry Program, mainly expecting to be able to get to know a wide range of practices and the other students and to have a good relationship with the patients; and to this country, because of the culture and the green areas, since I am interested in my professional training, but also in my personal development, so which would be a better option than going to the south, where I can find more nature and get connected with it.”