North Brabant, a province usually known for its mega animal stalls, pigs, meadows and farms. But in the very near future it should gain a reputation for being the place where entrepreneurial scientists let loose their algorithms on the world's rapidly growing data mountains. In the heart of the region, within walking distance of Den Bosch central train station and housed in the Mariënburg convent, is the Jheronimus Academy of Data Science (JADS). Here, data scientists are being trained. The former Den Bosch convent is the focal point of the cooperation in the field of data science between TU/e, Tilburg University, the province of North Brabant and the municipality of 's-Hertogenbosch. A far-reaching cooperation that in the past would have seemed highly improbable.

Many years ago, the realization dawned in Eindhoven that they needed to do something with data, but they didn't have all the necessary expertise in house, says Aarts in a spacious meeting room in the convent building. “A dialogue with Tilburg was started. They 'clicked'; these universities complement each other.” The choice of Den Bosch as the location was an obvious one: the city had always wanted a university, had suitable premises, and is situated between the two university cities.

Financial risk

A project of this size can carry a financial risk, but it was not long before the financial side of things was secure. The municipality bought and renovated the former convent while the province used innovation funding to pay for pre-investments to get JADS up and running and keep it going. Counterbalancing this investment, which adds up to twenty million euros spread over a ten-year period, is the willingness of the two universities to each invest another twenty million in data science. To make this commitment, says Aarts, the universities won't even need to pull out their checkbooks: they are using their own people, who would be doing this work anyway.

In the summer of 2016 work got underway readying part of the monumental building for its future users, and in December of that year JADS was officially opened by Queen Maxima. In early April 2018, when we visit the former convent, the building has undergone subsequent renovation work. Aarts is here one half day a week, to see what is going on with his own eyes. Otherwise, the figures and news concerning the developments seem highly abstract. Which is a feeling shared by many back in Tilburg and Eindhoven. Especially since a concise budget did the rounds of the co-determination bodies, showing a shortfall of 4,75 million in 2018 in place of the planned 3.34 million euros.

Expenditure below the line does not mean the universities have to dig deep into their pockets immediately, but does mean the grant pot is emptying more quickly. Nonetheless, the university boards are not worried. Emile Aarts knows that there is more happening in Den Bosch that was foreseen, and so it is only logical that the funds are being spent more rapidly. Eindhoven's Board President Jan Mengelers shares this view. According to Mengelers, the people in Den Bosch are to be complimented on what they have achieved. He told the members of the Eindhoven University Council some time ago that, in his opinion, the original business plan was in need of an update. In the meantime, the co-determination bodies are left with some questions. In Tilburg this even led to a negative opinion of the budget being given. Eindhoven's University Council seems to find the situation less problematical, but will nevertheless be paying a visit to their colleagues in Tilburg for further discussions. So what are they actually doing over there in Den Bosch?

Moreover, the education itself must be innovative in terms of using new learning approaches, says Van den Born. “As a data science institute, you have to set a shining example. And it's easy to see that often students can no longer summon the motivation to watch a talking head.” Nevertheless, for the time being, talking heads are the hard reality, says senior policy officer for education Carlien Geelkerken. “First of all, we want to have implemented a good curriculum.” That too requires continuous attention. In the early days, for example, there was some overlap. “And we need sponsors, because what we are doing is expensive.” This matter is already being discussed.

The three data science centers at Eindhoven, Tilburg (DSC/t) and Den Bosch (DSC/b) also provide the basis for the research done at JADS. Efforts are complementary and there is some overlap. In both Tilburg and Eindhoven, for example, research is being done on new fundamental techniques such as machine learning, says professor Dick den Hertog, Academic Director of the Tilburg center. Den Hertog: “It is with regard to the applications that the various centers distinguish themselves. In Den Bosch it is all about interdisciplinary research with a focus on entrepreneurship, Eindhoven looks at the scope for application in technology, and in Tilburg the focus lies on the application of data in trade and industry.”

The first is a project by Sterk Huis and CentERdata: identifying problem families at a preventive stage, so effective help can be offered early on. The other project concerns the use of data for humanitarian innovation. The World Food Program run by the United Nations brings together food from all over the world in order to put a daily meal on the table during a famine, as is now happening in Yemen, offering maximum nutrition at the lowest possible distribution costs. “A gigantic puzzle,” says Den Hertog, “but one that is already being better pieced together with the help of data and algorithms provided by DSC/t. An estimated one million additional people have already been fed in Syria thanks to this input.”

JADS Association

According to Liesbeth Leijssen, in charge of knowledge valorization at JADS, ranged alongside these four partnerships are a variety of collaborative alliances of a more modest scale. Leijssen: “Without a doubt some hundred companies and institutions are involved. We make customized arrangements with them, for example where education is concerned or the deployment of PDEng trainees following the Data Science program (see panel). Some companies also have their offices on our premises. In the short term, we are keen to set up the JADS Association for all our partners. Within this framework, we will bring together all these companies and institutions, including the Flagship Partners, and this should give us more impact at the national and European level.”

PDEng program in Data Science very popular

Students on the two-year PDEng program in Data Science are matched to a company in their first year. Having received extra training in that first year, the student then spends a year completing an assignment for the company, in which the company also invests. Applications for a place on the program are going according to plan, says Program Director Stef van Eijndhoven. There are forty PDEng students at present and this number will rise to fifty. The students are regarded as employees and receive a salary, says Van Eijndhoven.

He continues: “The program is very multidisciplinary. As well as knowledge about data science, a proportional amount of attention is paid to non-technical skills, relating to, among other things, entrepreneurship and behavioral science. The integration of these skills with the technical aspects of data science is an important part of the learning vision underpinning the program.”

In the main, the program is being followed by international  students, but the proportion of Dutch students is expected to increase in future. The companies with which JADS is cooperating include some in traditional manufacturing, and Van Eijndhoven is keen to generate more projects in this sector. “We have projects running with companies like ASML, Philips Lighting, Philips Health, Enexis, Brabant Water, Omron, Dow, Saint-Gobain, Alfalaval, and LOCC. Rather than focusing on a particular production process, the assignments tend to concern the supply chain, maintenance, customer segmentation, and risk management.”

Also to be found at JADS are the Applied Labs. Themes they focus on are Crime, Health, Smart Cities, Agrofood, Mobility, and Smart Manufacturing. Here in these labs, the triple helix (industry, government, education institutions) cooperates in research, education, entrepreneurship, and the writing of applications for national and Europe funding.

For example, the National Police Force/Dutch Institute for Technology, Safety and Security (DITSS) foundation leases space at JADS to accommodate the Crime Lab. Leon Verver, employed by the National Police Force and director of DITSS, gives an example of the kind of work his institute does at JADS. Verver: “By cross-referencing certain databases, for example about financial flows and about individuals known to us in connection with drug-related offences, and who are registered at multiple addresses, we hope to gain an insight into where certain criminal activities, such as setting up a cannabis farm, are likely to occur in future. For us, it is a innovative new way of working, and our contacts with the researchers at JADS are very valuable.”

JADS has been operational barely two years and is already becoming an industrious epicenter of the science and data science of the future. Admittedly, a number of matters need to be ironed out. Difficulties can be created at times by the two universities having different education regulations, and different rules on employee matters, financing and intellectual property, acknowledges Managing Director Angelique Penners, although she also sees an upside.

Penners: “Despite the two universities being polar opposites, we learn so much time and time and again. And we sometimes have the good fortune of being able to choose the best of both worlds.” Having said that, it is high time we had some rules that apply specifically to the Den Bosch location, says Arjan van den Born. And JADS needs its own department. “That fact that everyone is seconded isn't working in our favor.” In Tilburg and Eindhoven people sometimes scratch their heads and think where are my colleagues? Oh yes, they are in Den Bosch again.

Emile Aarts also has a couple of wishes of his own. “Until now, JADS has been concerned mainly with regional developments and history. A step needs to be taken towards forming a global vision. What are we contributing, and how?” He would like to have this clarified by 2020, when the organization will have existed for five years and gained some maturity. And the transition must be made from an entrepreneurial mindset, which is necessary in the startup phase, to an approach involving more routine and quality assurance.

This routine is necessary, for example, in dealing with the outside world. JADS is attracting a great deal of attention, and that means telephone calls and emails. Aarts: “Pretty soon people will be saying there's no point calling JADS because they never pick up the phone.” It's something they are addressing, says Arjan van den Born. The year 2018 is one for reflection and looking ahead. The organization has grown from seven to a hundred and fifty people and a lot of progress is being made. He is keen to continue growing and to establish processes, but also wants to look closely at what has been achieved and determine its quality.

Which way forward? The first thing to do is increase student numbers. “There are companies who are keen to take five hundred interns a year from us," says Van der Born. "We don't have that many yet, and besides the students first have to graduate.” But once this has been achieved, the future looks bright. The first cohort of graduates will each have five placements to choose from.