Project

Creating Multidisciplinary XR Competence for business processes in Central Finland

Project sponsors

Abbreviation
KEXRI2
Project type
Development project
Focus area
Other area
Implementation time
1.10.2023 - 31.3.2026
Project unit
School of Professional Teacher Education
Financing program
European Social Fund Plus (ESF+) 2021-2027
Primary home page
http://jamk.fi/kexri2
UN Sustainable development goals
Project description
The project 'Creating Multidisciplinary XR Competence for Business Processes in Central Finland' (XR-osaamisen monialainen hyödyntäminen keskisuomalaisessa työelämässä) aims to develop and enhance multidisciplinary XR (Extended Reality) competence in companies, educational institutions, and development companies in Central Finland, in order to enable effective and seamless utilization of new technologies. It builds on and expands  the XR knowledge ecosystem created in previous KEXRI project.
The goal is to create tools, models, and resources for continuous competence development and knowledge dissemination.XR technologies, such as Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR), offer new possibilities in areas such as marketing, training, onboarding, and product development.However, adopting and integrating emerging technologies into existing business operations can be challenging, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). It requires understanding not only of the technologies and their business potential, but also of use cases and support for low-threshold production models and competence development. Focusing solely on technology can also be alienating. Competence in utilizing and integrating XR technologies could help companies in Central Finland to develop their own business operations and, in some cases, it may be crucial for companies whose operations depend on ecosystems of larger companies. Advanced operating models and platforms used by large companies also require multidisciplinary competence, operating models, and resources from smaller companies, without which competence gaps may arise. Local business advisors and educational institutions also play a key role in developing XR utilization competence.

The project aims to achieve its goal of developing multidisciplinary XR competence through four sub-objectives and their work packages.
OBJECTIVE 1: KNOWLEDGEKnowledge and understanding of the application of XR technologies in companies and the factors affecting it will increase.
OBJECTIVE 2: EXPERIMENTATION AND EVALUATIONMethods, models, and tools are developed to help companies effectively utilize XR technologies.
OBJECTIVE 3: INSIGHTS. Future-oriented multidisciplinary knowledge is created at the interface of businesses and experts.
OBJECTIVE 4: IMPACT. The results of the project become interesting, accessible, and impactful tools for skill development and increased interest in XR technologies.

The project is based on the collaboration of educational institutions, development actors, and businesses, such as the Central Finnish XR competence ecosystem KEXRI (A77032) and XPand (S22538) projects. In addition, the project has the opportunity to utilize the experience and expertise of the Finnish Defense Forces.Multidisciplinary collaboration creates practices, knowledge, and networks in a way that promotes the development of XR expertise and utilization skills in the region. The novelty arises not only from the topic itself, but also from the multidisciplinary actor network and the utilization of their expertise and resources in a way that XR technologies can be utilized with a lower threshold in local businesses, and they are provided with tools, models, and support. 

The project is coordinated by JAMK University of Applied Sciences, and the partners are the University of Jyväskylä, POKE Vocational College, Gradia (Jyväskylä Educational Consortium), and Karstulanseutu Development Company Ltd. The Finnish Army and the Municipality of Äänekoski are associate partners.

Contact: project manager Ilona Laakkonen ([email protected])

Project results

The project has carried out benchmarking of XR solutions, providing a broad overview of how XR is being applied across different industries. The resulting summary serves as a foundation for pilot evaluation, learning materials, and stakeholder communication.

The project has piloted a model in which project actors work in close collaboration with SMEs, gathering information on companies' readiness to adopt XR technologies and creating low-threshold experiments. Jobshadowing has become the project's dynamic core activity. JAMK has collaborated with five of its own partner companies and five partners from other implementers. Company interest has exceeded expectations, and innovative experiments have emerged across multiple sectors.

This collaboration with companies has also laid the groundwork for larger pilots. JAMK has been involved in planning and implementing an experimental training and onboarding environment.

The project also organizes events where companies and multidisciplinary experts can discuss and generate ideas on the implementation and use of XR technologies in business and learning. Out of the four planned multidisciplinary Pähkimö events, three have already been held, with the fourth scheduled for November 2025:

Pähkimö 1: XR as part of business – Äänekoski, 13 May 2024

Pähkimö 2: Augmented reality and experiential technologies as business assets – Karstula, 11 Nov 2024

Pähkimö 3: Augmented reality and experiential technologies: future business and competence – Jyväskylä, 8 Apr 2025

The Pähkimö events have become forums for meeting, idea exchange, and knowledge dissemination. Feedback has been excellent.

Low-threshold communication is a central part of the project. The project has been active on social media, sharing updates on Pähkimö events and experiments. Results have been presented at the ITK 2025 conference and the Future Challenges for Learning seminar, and the project has also participated in the MatchXR event.

The project is compiling a comprehensive open learning material package on XR, to be published in autumn 2025. The material will bring together the project's experiments, insights, and tools, and it will serve as the foundation for launching staff training in educational institutions.

Updated 29 August 2025