The Institute of Automation and System Engineering (IASE) represents one of the organizational units at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology (FEEIT). It is responsible for the curriculum as well as for the scientific and applicable research in the spheres of system engineering, automation, robotics and artificial intelligence (AI), referring to both technical and non-technical systems. Also, the Institute covers current scientific issues dealing with the fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0).
The following professors and associates are part of the IASE team: prof. Mile Stankovski, PhD, Head, prof. Elizabeta Lazarevska, Ph.D, associate prof. Vesna Ojleska Latkoska Ph.D, associate prof. Gorjan Nadzinski, Ph.D, assistant Dushko Stavrov, M.Sc, demonstrator Stefan Zlatinov M.Sc, and demonstrator Filip Doncevski, M.Sc.
The Institute has been established in 1964 and the first subject taught was automation and regulation. The IASE in its current form was officially founded when the Department for Electronics and Automation was established, as part of the Faculty for Technical Science (1970). In addition, in 1971/1972 two separate Departments were created: the Department for Electronics and the Department for Technical Cybernetics, with the latter covering the areas of automation and computer technology. This Department continued developing and fostering the areas of control systems and automation, as well as computer science and information technology. With new statutes of the University, the Department for Technical Cybernetics was first reorganized into a Bureau for Automation in 1982, and then into the current Institute of Automation and System Engineering in 1995.
Throughout the years, besides the above-mentioned staff, the following professors and collaborators have taken part in the teaching process: professor and founder of the Institute Pane Vidincev, Ph.D. (in memoriam), prof. Georgi Dimirovski Ph. D., professor Tatjana Kolemishevska – Gugulovska Ph.D., professor Biljana Percinkova, Ph.D., assistant professor Oliver Iliev, PhD., assistant Bojan Sokolov, M.Sc., (in memoriam), and Executive Office Manager Tihomir Mukaetov, M.Sc.
Other professors and associates who have been included in the teaching process in the past 10 years have been: prof. Stojche Deskovski Ph.D., as a part-time professor in the undergraduate and postgraduate studies at IASE/FEEIT, associate prof. Goran Stojanovski, Ph.D., associate prof. Igor Trajkovski Ph.D., assistant Zivko Icev, M.Sc., assistant Biljana Mileva Boshkoska, Ph.D., assistant Matej Dobrevski, M.Sc., demonstrators Goran Vladev, M.Sc., Ivan Gocev, M.Sc., and Stole Jovanovski.
In the course of the first cycle of studies (undergraduate), the Institute mainly covers the study programme Computer System Engineering, Automation and Robotics (CSEAR), teaching knowledge and skills in different areas, such as control system analysis and synthesis, robotics, artificial intelligence (AI), system modeling and identification, information technology (IT), intelligent control systems, SCADA systems and industrial automation, etc.
In the second cycle of studies (postgraduate), IASE mainly covers the study programme Automation, Robotics, and System Engineering, as well as subjects in other study programmes at the Faculty. It should be emphasized that the IASE is also actively involved in the preparation and the introduction of the study programmes for Micro and Nanotechnology and for Energy Efficiency, Environment, and Sustainable Development in the second cycle of studies at FEEIT.
In terms of the third cycle of studies (doctoral), this Institute covers a number of subjects at the study programmes for Electrical Engineering and Information Technology, and for Metrology at FEEIT.
In the past decades IASE has been heavily involved in internal publishing activity at the Faculty by issuing a number of student textbooks, assignment instructions, internal e-materials, as well as books. Only in the past ten years, members of the Institute have published the following study material: 5 textbooks, 6 workbooks, 5 internal student textbooks, 9 assignment instructions, and 11 manuals for laboratory training.
One of the main roles of IASE is the conducting and support of scientific and research activities in the areas of system engineering, automation, robotics, and artificial and computational intelligence, to name a few. Numerous scientific and research projects have been realized at IASE, some of which are: projects financed by the Ministry for Education and Science, bilateral projects in co-operation with Slovenia, China, Switzerland, Bulgaria, and other countries. Some of the research projects realized in the past 10 years include the following: “Boosting EU-Western Balkan Countries Research Collaboration in the Monitoring and Control Area – BALCON”, financed by the FP7; “Skills Development for Young Researchers and Educational Personal in Nano and Microelectronics Curricula: Implementation of Methods for Bilateral Knowledge Transfer Between Universities and SMEs – SCOPES”, (2011–2014); “Microelectronics Cloud Alliance – MECA”, financed by the European Union within the framework of the Erasmus+ Program (2016-2018), and “Nearly-zero Energy Building Retrofit – MEnS: Meeting of Energy Professional Skills”, financed by the European Union and the H2020 Program.
Since the Institute’s foundation, its members have published research papers in many domestic and foreign conferences and scientific journals. In the past 10 years, more than 80 papers have been published at international conferences, 25 in international scientific journals, and 7 as parts of monographs.
It should also be noted that some of the members of IАCSE have been co-founders of the Association for Electronics, Telecommunications, Automation, and Information Technology (ETAI) of the Republic of North Macedonia. This Association is the organizer of the most renowned domestic conference in electrical engineering, which became international in 2011. Throughout the years, the IASE members have been actively involved in many editorial and organization boards at both domestic and international conferences, such as ЕTAI, YU-ETAN, EPE-PEMC, DECOM, COSY, IEEE-EUROCON, IEEE-SMC, IEEE ICCA, etc.
Today the Institute is a respectable entity in our community and has established good cooperation and connections with industry and economy, as can be seen by several significant application projects realized by IASE, some of which financed by international funds like USAID, IPA, and others.
Some of these projects in the past 10 years have been: „Development of Computer Control Kits for Vocational Schools” (2009-2010), financed by USAID in co-operation with “Ss. Cyril and Methodius University”; “A Real-time Monitoring, Leakage Detection and Reduction System in Water Distribution Networks – Smart Water Save”, financed by the IPA CBC Program (2018-2020); consulting services for the design of SCADA system for the hydro system “Zletovica” as part of the project implemented by the Japanese company Pacific Consultancy International (PCI); design of SCADA system for the management and monitoring of the water supply system in Probistip; revision of the electrical engineering design projects for the railway lines Bitola – Kremenica, Kumanovo – Beljakovce, Beljakovce – Kriva Palanka, Kichevo – border with Albania, Kriva Palanka – border with Bulgaria, revision of the electrical engineering design projects for the Main Rоute Gas Supply System in the Republic of North Macedonia, and many other projects and cooperation examples with different domestic and international companies and organizations.
