Weidmüller strengthens collaboration with universities in East Westphalia-Lippe

Will continue to be expanded and strengthened in the future: the cooperation with the research landscape in Lemgo, including the CIIT (left) and the SmartFactoryOWL (right) (Copyright: Centrum Industrial IT (CIIT)).

For the development of innovative business and solution concepts in the field of automation and digitalization, Weidmüller is investing in a new location in the immediate vicinity of the university, the Fraunhofer IEM, and the Zukunftsmeile 1 in Paderborn (Copyright: University of Paderborn).

Detmold Electrical Engineering Company Expands Cooperation with OWL University and Fraunhofer IOSB-INA in Lemgo and Invests in a New Location in Direct Proximity to Paderborn University and the Paderborn Fraunhofer Institute IEM.

The Detmold-based electrical engineering company Weidmüller is strengthening its collaboration with universities and Fraunhofer in East Westphalia-Lippe. This aims to expand the development of innovative business and solution concepts in the fields of automation and digitization. The company is investing in its already longstanding cooperation on the Lemgo Innovation Campus, with the two institutes located there, Fraunhofer IOSB-INA and the Institute for Industrial Information Technology InIT of OWL University. Since its founding in 2010, Weidmüller has been involved in the Research and Development Center Centrum Industrial IT (CIIT), the world's first Science-to-Business Center in the field of industrial automation. Under one roof, over 350 experts from companies, startups, and science work and research across more than 11,000 square meters on technologies for the factory of the future. The Lemgo site has also been strengthened by the SmartFactoryOWL of Fraunhofer IOSB-INA and OWL University, where real production facilities are used to research the digital factory of the future.

"The Lemgo site is considered a center for research and development in the field of intelligent automation in OWL. A competence center for the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) has been established on the Lemgo Innovation Campus, which strengthens the entire OWL region and radiates far beyond. We want to further expand this know-how in collaboration, connect it with our development work in the divisions, and thus strengthen our innovation capacity in the long term," explains Jörg Timmermann, CEO of Weidmüller. The company will also actively contribute to the further expansion of the OWL Innovation Campus in Lemgo to deepen the successful collaboration.

At the same time, the family-owned company from Detmold is investing in a new location on the Paderborn Future Mile, in immediate proximity to the university and the Fraunhofer IEM, an innovative research landscape in the fields of software development, software quality, and IT security. This is an investor project jointly realized with Paderborn University and will offer more than 600 jobs in total. Construction is expected to begin by autumn 2018. Nearly 220 employees of Weidmüller will work on innovative digitization solutions at the 6,000-square-meter building once completed. Weidmüller is responsible for the overall project management of the construction. "In the fields of software development, programming, and machine learning, there is a very high level of expertise in this environment — knowledge that we want to utilize for our future products and solutions," emphasizes Michael Matthesius, Head of Division Automation Products & Solutions.

In addition to the electrical engineering specialist, the university Paderborn, Fraunhofer IEM, and startups with a strong research and digitization background will be tenants in the building. Great importance is placed on innovative spaces for research, development, and communication. "Collaborating with research institutions and companies in East Westphalia-Lippe will support us in the future to develop and implement innovative business and solution concepts in the field of digitization," says Matthesius.