In its almost 70 years since being established, Gorenje has made numerous breakthrough technological innovations in the field of domestic appliance development and received countless international and Slovenian awards and recognitions for excellence in design and innovations, and thus significantly contributed to global promotion of Slovenia and Velenje. Gorenje, which continuously supports development and innovation efforts on local as well as global level, proudly supports the Pattern City project, which will undoubtedly contribute to the promotion of know-how from Slovenia and Velenje.

At the opening of the Pattern City, Franjo Bobinac, President and CEO of Gorenje Group, and president of the Club of Entrepreneurs of the Savinja and Šalek Region, pointed out that for Gorenje, being a part of a very mature domestic appliances industry, which is marked by rapid technology development and rapid competition growth, differentiation on the market is key for success, and the “key element of differentiation is our know-how. We have vast amounts of know-how across Slovenian universities, industries and even elementary and secondary schools.”

Mr. Bobinac sees Pattern City as a platform for education, development and identification of young potentials, which will contribute to circulation of knowledge: “Pattern City is a big step forward. It is a foundation for becoming even better: if companies are successful, cities will be successful. However, in order to achieve this, we first need smart people.” 

-         to develop functional skills and creativity,

-         to inform about digital security,

-         to improve cultural and social understanding and critical evaluation.

The founding fathers of Pattern City, Erik Kapfer, technology enthusiast, designer of interactive smart technology and visuals, and Miha Cojhter, who obtained MA in virtual communications and new methods of learning, believe that learning and getting new knowledge and skills can be a fun, an interactive, and most of all an inter- and intradisciplinary process. Together with Rob Ewbank and his platform Liveblox they have developed and implemented interactive learning setups, a virtual reality demo, a digital lab and everything else that Pattern City has to offer.

Pattern City, an ecosystem for education, research and development of innovations, has: 

• Interactive learning setups with emphasis on cross-curricular integration, interactive learning
• Virtual Reality Street with VR experiences design training, VR simulations of work environments etc.
• Transmedia corner with Science TV with emphasis on storytelling using different media and promotion of digital literacy, creative expression, safe use of social media etc.
• Digital laboratory, dedicated to programming and coding, development of smart solutions and innovations, robotics, sensor technology, 3D printing etc.
• Interactive escape room, devoted to a new method of acquiring knowledge by using all senses, solving non-linear riddles, transitioning between the real and virtual worlds etc.

Supporters of the Pattern City are Franjo Bobinac, President and CEO of Gorenje Group, and president of the Club of Entrepreneurs of the Savinja and Šalek Region, Bojan Kontič, Mayor of the City of Velenje, and Brigita Kropušek Ranzinger, Director of Ljudska Univerza Velenje.

Pattern City ambassadors are Tanja Skaza, CEO at Skaza – smart plastic, doc. dr. Uroš Kuzman, mathematics professor at the Faculty of mathematics and physics, University of Ljubljana, and a stand-up comedian, and Janja Garnbret, climbing World Champion.