Alice Grano

Alice Grano BA MA BSc MSc serves as a Research Associate at the Institute for Industrial Engineering and Management at the University of Applied Sciences Wiener Neustadt. Her work bridges theoretical research with practical applications in industrial engineering, particularly focusing on innovation spaces and data-driven educational methodologies.

Her research expertise spans Industrial Engineering, Data Management, Action Research, Manufacturing Data Analytics, and Sustainable Co-Innovation. Grano's work emphasizes practical applications of theoretical frameworks, particularly in educational settings where digital transformation is reshaping traditional learning environments. She investigates how academic makerspaces and innovation labs can serve as catalysts for collaborative problem-solving and skill development in engineering education.

Grano's recent publications (2023-2024) demonstrate a consistent focus on academic makerspaces, data management for learning factories, and sustainable co-innovation in industrial engineering education. Her research shows how digital tools can enhance collaborative innovation processes while maintaining educational effectiveness. The work reveals patterns in community development within academic makerspaces and explores how scenario-based learning can prepare students for real-world manufacturing challenges, particularly for small and medium enterprises.

Grano actively participates in significant research projects including FAMOUS (2023-2026), which evaluates legislative and technical measures for urban freight traffic management using comprehensive calculation and simulation models. She also contributes to CO-INNO-LAB (2021-2023), a project investigating regional success factors for co-innovation in university-run innovation labs, with particular focus on small and medium-sized industrial enterprises in Austria.

Her work with academic makerspaces and innovation labs demonstrates how physical and digital spaces can be integrated to support collaborative innovation. Grano explores the transformation of traditional fabrication labs into cyber-physical innovation spaces that combine real and virtual elements, creating new opportunities for engineering education and industrial problem-solving.