Technologies for increased efficiency in production

With FabOS, an open, distributed, real-time capable, and secure operating system is created for the entire factory. © University of Stuttgart IFF/Fraunhofer IPA, Photo: Rainer Bez, Heike Quosdorf

The DryClean-CAPE® dry-clean room tent not only creates a pure production environment but also one with very low humidity. © Fraunhofer IPA

"DesignChain" is the continuous digitalization and automation of technical order processing – from the order to the finished product. © Fraunhofer IPA/Photo: Rainer Bez

Whatever new technology is to be implemented in a company – the transformation will only be successful if it has been strategically planned and organizationally implemented beforehand. © Fraunhofer IPA/Photo: Rainer Bez

The Hannover Messe from April 17 to 21 focuses on technologies for a climate-neutral and connected industry. Because the digitalization of production increases efficiency in many areas and efficiency is the key to more sustainability, the Fraunhofer IPA showcases technologies that save energy and resources.

Climate change, energy shortages, disrupted supply chains, skilled labor shortages: Industry faces enormous challenges. Under the main theme "Industrial Transformation – Making the Difference," the Hannover Messe from April 17 to 21 will showcase technologies for a connected and climate-neutral industry. In Hall 16 at Stand A12, the Fraunhofer Society presents numerous technologies on over 900 square meters that contribute to sustainable value creation.

The Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology and Automation IPA is not only represented at the joint booth of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft with exhibits but also additionally at the Alliance Industry 4.0 stand in Hall 15, Stand A06, and at the stand of the research project "FabOS" in Hall 15, Stand H07. Here's an overview of what can be seen there:

Everything as a Service: Manufacturers become service providers

You don't have to buy machines to use them. They could just as well remain the property of the manufacturer, and the user pays a flat fee monthly for usage. Or billing could be based on the number of units produced. Companies would no longer need to invest huge sums in production equipment but could start manufacturing immediately. And machine builders would have a strong interest in keeping their machines operational for as long as possible.

Such innovative business models are based on continuous data exchange across company boundaries. This way, manufacturers become not only service providers, but all processes within a factory hall can be understood as individual services: Everything as a Service (XaaS). Experts from the Fraunhofer IPA, together with industry, are clarifying what conditions must be met for these data-based business models to be economically and technically feasible in the large-scale research project "X-Forge." At Hannover Messe, representatives of the consortium partners will present the four X-Forge projects in detail and showcase the current research and project results.

XaaS can be found at the booth of the Industry 4.0 Alliance: Hall 15, Stand A06.

Research Project "PAIRS": Early Detection of Crises and Increasing Resilience

If companies only react to a crisis after its impacts are already noticeable, it is too late. It would be better to initiate appropriate countermeasures before a urgently needed raw material is delivered too late or not at all. This is exactly what scientists from the Factory Planning and Production Management Department at Fraunhofer IPA aim to enable. In the research project "Privacy-Aware, Intelligent, and Resilient Crisis Management" (PAIRS), they are developing a platform for crisis management that identifies disruptions early in their development phase and provides data-based recommendations for action.

To do this, an artificial intelligence (AI) analyzes publicly accessible data: Which roads are currently congested? Which ports are blocked? Where are storms threatening? Where have earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, or other natural disasters occurred? How are the prices of certain raw materials developing on the stock exchange? On the other hand, the AI also accesses company key figures, such as the delivery reliability of a specific supplier. As soon as the AI concludes that disruptions in the supply chain are likely, algorithms can suggest appropriate countermeasures, such as switching suppliers or ordering a different, comparable raw material. This increases a company's resilience.

Based on individual modules already completed of the PAIRS platform, the research team provides insight into their work at Hannover Messe. The demonstrator can be seen at the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft joint booth: Hall 16, Stand A12.

DesignChain: Digitalization and Automation of Order Processing

The industry must produce personalized products cost-effectively and in ever shorter times. To remain competitive worldwide under these conditions, the so-called "DesignChain," i.e., continuous digitalization and automation of technical order processing—from order to finished product—is recommended.

A research team led by Timo Denner from the Factory Planning and Production Management Department at Fraunhofer IPA demonstrates how this works. Visitors can configure a custom product at their stand, which is then generated as a CAD model, simulated for manufacturing suitability, and subsequently produced on a 3D printer.

DesignChain is located at the joint booth of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft: Hall 16, Stand A12.

DryClean-CAPE®: The Mobile Dry Cleaning Room

In times of personalized products, decreasing batch sizes, increasing variety, and the need for faster process or production environments to achieve cleanliness and humidity-controlled conditions, stationary cleanrooms are often not the most efficient solution in terms of investment, operating costs, and deployment time. A research team led by Udo Gommel, head of the Clean and Microproduction Department at Fraunhofer IPA, has developed the CAPE® (Clean And Protective Environment), a mobile cleanroom system that achieves air purity classes ISO 1 to 9. Like a tent at a campsite, the CAPE® can be set up and put into operation in about half an hour.

In recent years, the scientists have expanded the CAPE® into a whole product family. The latest member is the DryClean-CAPE®, which not only creates a pure production environment but also maintains a very low air humidity, for example, a dew point of -50°C. This factor plays a crucial role in battery cell and automotive production, as well as in aerospace and space industries, for product quality.

The DryClean-CAPE® can be seen at the joint booth of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft: Hall 16, Stand A12.

FabOS: The Operating System for the Entire Factory

The IT landscape in production often consists of systems from various providers and is accordingly difficult to manage. A solution would be an operating system for production, which scientists from Fraunhofer IPA are currently developing with partners from 23 other research institutions, universities, and companies. It is called FabOS and will be a platform similar to operating systems for computers or smartphones, for machines, infrastructure, and AI services.

At Hannover Messe, the project partners will present eleven exhibits illustrating different aspects of the open, distributed, real-time capable, and secure operating system FabOS. For example, Felix Spenrath from the Robotics and Assistance Systems Department at Fraunhofer IPA will showcase a robot that autonomously recognizes sheet metal parts and picks them from a box. The AI methods used are trained via simulation and do not require manual expert configuration. Additionally, the exhibit features technology from the project partner Compile, which compares and identifies unsorted components fed into a new box with stored assembly plans. The system does not need to be trained for each new component. Finally, a robot picks up the parts and places them in the correct position.

FabOS has its own dedicated booth: Hall 15, Stand H07.

Technological Business Excellence: Well-Planned is Half Done

Whether it's a new business model, an operating system for production, or continuous digitalization and automation of technical order processing: whatever new technology is to be implemented in a company, the transformation will only be successful if it is strategically planned and organizationally implemented beforehand. The research team led by Oliver Schöllhammer from the Department of Corporate Strategy and Development at Fraunhofer IPA is happy to assist in finding the right strategy and the most effective organizational form.

At Hannover Messe, the team will inform about their projects in business model development and innovation: Hall 16, Stand A12.