Andriy Lobach

Testimonial published in 2020. Roles and career details reflect the account at the time it was written.

I have always been drawn to the idea of teaching—or programming—something to carry out a task on its own. I first tried it in a school computer program, but it became practical only when a professional PLC began controlling real objects, devices and mechanisms according to my algorithm. That happened at ATEP. The department’s environment, especially its instructors, gave me a broader view of automation and programming.

The well-equipped laboratories were a clear advantage: they let us see how automation works in practice and understand what an automated process-control system does.

The knowledge and experience I gained helped me enter a promising, in-demand field, with skills relevant in Ukraine and abroad. The most interesting advances often happen where disciplines meet and lead to practical results. Automatic control and computer technologies are one such intersection.

After graduating and gaining practical experience, I founded a company with like-minded colleagues. We work in systems integration, automatic process control and innovative home automation.

In 2007, we were one of three companies worldwide to implement our idea of controlling a “smart home” from a computer interface based on the then-new Windows Vista Media Center, using an ordinary television remote and the TV screen. The software was called iMC. In 2008, it ran on the then-revolutionary Apple iPhone. By 2010, iMC ran as a Smart TV widget and needed only the television and its remote.

We demonstrated each of these innovations at SMART House exhibitions, where they attracted strong interest from end users, integrators and overseas “idea sniffers”. By the time of this account, other companies were developing ideas from the iMC product in their own products.