New innovation centre in the Netherlands brings together robotics, AI, and the manufacturing industry to accelerate the introduction of humanoid robots into the workplace.

Schiedam, 2 July 2026 - The Humanoid Application Centre (HAC) opened today at the Mechatronics Innovation Campus Schiedam (MICS), near Rotterdam: an innovation centre were businesses, technology partners, educational institutions, talented individuals, and public authorities can explore how humanoid robots can be deployed in real-world work situations. This is the first Dutch innovation centre for humanoid robotics, where organisations collaborate on the practical application of these robots in sectors including construction, horticulture, logistics, industry, healthcare, and facilities management. It marks an important step in the advancement of a technology that is widely regarded as the next major development in robotics and artificial intelligence.

During the opening, various humanoid robots (robots with a human-like form and range of movement) demonstrated their capabilities, ranging from performing tasks such as laying bricks, cleaning, and packing objects, to walking, dancing, and running. In doing so, the HAC is showcasing the current state of the technology: not as a replacement for people, but as a new form of support for tasks where businesses are experiencing bottlenecks.

From technology to application
The development of humanoid robots touches on social and economic issues, such as labour market shortages, productivity, safety and an ageing population. By conducting tests under realistic conditions, companies can better assess what works, what is safe, and where the business case lies. The HAC thus bridges the gap between international developments in robotics and their practical application by Dutch and European companies.

The focus is on sectors in which the need for automation is growing, such as in repetitive or physically demanding work and in tasks carried out in complex environments. In industry, this may involve inspection and logistics, whilst in healthcare and the service sector applications include support and physical assistance. Opportunities are also emerging in greenhouse horticulture, for example in the harvesting of bell peppers. As such, this development also contributes to the future of the food system.

Within the HAC, Dura Vermeer is exploring, as its first use case, how humanoid robotics can help support paving work on infrastructure projects. Jaap Hulshoff, Director of Technology & Innovation at Dura Vermeer and founding partner of the HAC: ‘The construction sector is facing major challenges in terms of labour productivity, safety, and the availability of skilled workers. That is why we do not want to wait until this technology is fully mature but rather learn now how robotisation can contribute in practice to a future-proof construction sector. Through the HAC, we are exploring how humanoid robotics can support skilled workers in physically demanding and repetitive tasks, so that they can focus on the work in which their knowledge and experience really make a difference.'

The HAC also offers demonstrations, training courses, and implementation programmes for organisations, and collaborates with educational institutions, enabling students - from vocational colleges to universities - to get started with this technology directly.

Global race om humanoid robotics
Technology companies around the world are investing billions of euros in the development of humanoid robots. This new generation of robots is designed to operate in environments originally designed for humans and can therefore, in time, be deployed for a wide range of physical tasks.
Although technological developments are advancing rapidly worldwide, Europe still largely lacks the infrastructure and expertise needed to put this technology into practice on a large scale. The HAC aims to play a pioneering role in this.

Evert Jaap Lugt, co-founder of the Humanoid Application Centre: ‘Humanoid robots are rapidly evolving from technological demonstrations into practical tools in the workplace. The challenge no longer lies solely in building robots, but primarily in successfully integrating them into existing business processes. The HAC helps organisations take that step.'

Collaboration, ecosystem, and MICS
From the outset, the Humanoid Application Centre has been supported by a broad consortium of partners from various sectors. Together, they are developing the first practical applications of humanoid robotics in the Netherlands. The founding partners include Dura Vermeer, VolkerWessels, Harvest House, GOM (Facilicom Group), and Eurocaps.

The HAC is based at the Mechatronics Innovation Campus Schiedam (MICS). This is a campus for the high-tech manufacturing industry, with a strong focus on mechatronics, which SDK Vastgoed is developing in collaboration with the municipality of Schiedam. Companies such as Metrohm, Alquion, FMI, and Boers & Co, educational institutions such as Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences and Mikrocentrum, and public authorities such as the municipality and the Rotterdam-The Hague Metropolitan Region are already part of this growing ecosystem.

Schiedam councillor Cemil Kahramano?lu (Education and SchieDistrict): ‘Here, businesses, the education sector, and government are working together on innovation and talent development. The municipality of Schiedam welcomes the arrival of the HAC on the campus.'

Niels Langenhuizen, director of SDK Vastgoed and MICS developer: ‘Together with MICS and the Humanoid Application Centre, we are building a powerful ecosystem in which companies and talented individuals can innovate together and put these innovations into practice directly. In this way, we are strengthening the innovative capacity of the Rotterdam-The Hague metropolitan region and developing the makers of tomorrow.'

About the Humanoid Application Centre
The Humanoid Application Centre (HAC) supports companies in exploring, testing, and implementing humanoid robots through demonstrations, pilot projects, training, and practical validation. The HAC aims to become the leading innovation centre for humanoid robotics in the Netherlands and to play a key role within the future European ecosystem for humanoid robots.