Leading-Edge Cluster it's OWL launches new flagship projects

Nuremberg, 28 November 2018. In five flagship projects, companies and research institutes in the Leading-Edge Cluster it's OWL are opening up new technology fields for SMEs. Main topics include machine intelligence, digital platforms, digital twins and the working world of the future. The world market leaders in automation technology Beckhoff Automation, Harting, Lenze, Phoenix Contact, WAGO Kontakttechnik and Weidmüller are important drivers and initiators of the undertaking. At the SPS IPC Drives conference, they discussed potentials, approaches and effects in the new technology fields.

The technology network it's OWL – Intelligent Technical Systems OstWestfalenLippe – is considered across Germany as one of the largest Industry 4.0 initiatives and has won several awards. From 2012 to 2017, over 200 companies and research institutes in 47 projects developed solutions that small and medium-sized enterprises, in particular, can use to enhance the reliability, resource efficiency and user-friendliness of their machines and plants.

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Roman Dumitrescu, Managing Director of it's OWL Clustermanagement: "The manufacturing industry faces enormous challenges: requirements regarding the autonomy and networking of machines and plants are increasing rapidly. To remain competitive, companies need to increase intelligence in their products and production processes, and open up new customer access channels. Together with our companies and research institutes, we are developing new basic technologies, reusable solution models and software libraries that small and medium-sized companies in particular can use." As a first step, five flagship projects totalling 15 million euros will be implemented starting in December. Overall with the support of state, federal and EU governments, projects worth 200 million euros are to be launched by 2022. The 24 core it's OWL companies will invest 100 million euros in the undertaking.

The world market leaders in automation are important drivers in the process and stand for the Leading-Edge Cluster's innovative power. Since the start of it's OWL in 2012, the turnover of the six companies has risen by 42 percent to 6.03 billion euros, while the number of their employees has risen by 33 percent to 41,415. They are important drivers for technology development in all five flagship projects.

Machine intelligence for production

For example, in a flagship project together with Benteler, KEB, Hanning Elektrowerke, Miele, Weidmüller and five research institutes, Lenze is developing solutions for machine learning in production, which will be made available on a platform for other cluster companies.

Frank Maier, Board Member of Lenze SE, explains: "We have long been concerned with the question of how to integrate our extensive domain and application knowledge into a modular machine using software. New machine learning methods allow us to detect anomalies – which occur, for example, as a result of wear or damage – in the behaviour of machines and thus predict changes in the quality of produced goods or necessary maintenance at an early stage. This results in higher availability as well as reduced maintenance costs. We are already using artificial intelligence methods at Lenze and encoway today. This enables us to provide our customers with optimal product configuration support. You are guaranteed to quickly find the right product that best meets your individual requirements – even with 1,030 possible product variants. As part of the project, we will work with partners to develop hybrid learning techniques that combine the advantages of different machine, model or frequency-based processes and thus enable highly reliable and simple predictive machine maintenance in the future."

Beckhoff Automation has already succeeded in considerably increasing the intelligence of networked machines and plants in the completed it's OWL projects. Companies can, for example, use TwinCAT Analytics and TwinCAT IoT to increase their energy efficiency by 17 percent while reducing waste by 50 percent. "Machine learning processes are required to realize and control the increasingly complex production systems. PC-based control is an ideal basic technology for integrating machine learning processes. It also offers the performance and computing power required to support the increasing intelligence of the machines, for example the Beckhoff many-core technology in conjunction with the XFC technology (eXtreme Fast Control). In the Leading-Edge Cluster, we now want to define appropriate communication solutions for the growing volume of data to be transmitted. Handling the complexity and uncertainties in the development of production systems with machine intelligence also absolutely requires consistent engineering and accompanying simulations," explains Dr. Ursula Frank, Head of Cooperative Research and Development Project at Beckhoff Automation.

Preparing large volumes of data and developing new services

How to collect and exploit large volumes of data is the focus of the flagship project "Industrial Automation Platform for Big Data". Weidmüller, Lenze, KEB, Benteler and Kannegiesser are taking on this project together with four research institutes. They are jointly developing building blocks for IT platforms that can collect, process, transport and store data in a self-organizing manner.

"The flagship project is dedicated to developing the technical foundations for automation and production. These are the enablers for future software services and thus of central importance. In this project, we aim to create the basis for value based services in modular, versatile production facilities. Key requirements include ensuring IP and security, automating integration and access control, supporting relevant business models and integrating heterogeneous data sources. The plan is to implement the services using the concrete pilot production facilities of the involved project partners for validating the integration of data," explains Jörg Timmermann, Board spokesman, Weidmüller Group.

Using digital twins to optimise the commissioning and operation of machines

The flagship project "Technical Infrastructure for Digital Twins" aims to facilitate the interoperable interaction and use of the digital models of a product or production system during its lifecycle, while taking industry-relevant standardisation activities into account. Special challenges include creating the digital twins as well as their accessibility for networks, platforms and the associated business models in the most automated manner possible. Project partners include Phoenix Contact, KEB, Lenze, Weidmüller and Bosch Rexroth, as well as the OWL University of Applied Sciences and Fraunhofer IOSB-INA.

In an already completed it's OWL project, Phoenix Contact tested a consistent design of digital twins and further developed them together with Eplan and Rittal under the umbrella of the "Smart Engineering and Production 4.0 (SEAP 4.0)" project. "We will develop a reference infrastructure in the new flagship project. This allows us to reduce the high costs associated with deploying new product versions or with functional changes in the life cycle of machinery and plants to maintain their availability. We expect to save more than 50 percent of operational costs as well as further savings in commissioning and service by using the digital twin of both the machines and plants as well as the products installed in them," explains Hans-Jürgen Koch, Executive Vice President Business Area Industry Management and Automation Phoenix Contact Electronics GmbH.

We also aim to use digital twins to generate an energy map of the factory as well as have them interact with the engineering and runtime systems via an in-house DC-based smart grid.

Platforms offer new channels of access to customers and markets

The flagship project "Digital Business" is focusing on how companies can develop new services and open up markets on the basis of the technological foundation. WAGO Kontakttechnik, Denios, GEA and Unity are working together with Fraunhofer IEM and the University of Paderborn to develop approaches to exploit the potential of digital platforms for small and medium-sized enterprises. In order to stay competitive and open channels of access to their customers, manufacturing companies must increasingly integrate their products with services. Digital platforms allow them to offer customers a comprehensive solution, from incoming orders and production to logistics.

"For us, one central aspect of the Business 4.0 environment are new platforms and ecosystems that are having an ever greater impact on the B2B sector. They succeed in bridging the gap between customers and product providers. That's why we at WAGO take a careful look at what kind of added value we can create for our customers through new services and market performance. We are already achieving this with our WAGO cloud, which adds the preparation and processing of data to our PFC controller's data collection. We are responding to changes in shopping behaviour with our new website, whose features, such as recommendations or product comparability, no longer differ from well-known portals from everyday life," explains Jürgen Schäfer, Member of the Management Board at WAGO Kontakttechnik. "With the project, we aim to leverage the expertise of universities to develop a platform strategy with the ecosystems that are relevant to us. In the long term, we want to generate digitally networked value chains with new services whose components can also inspire smaller companies on their path towards Business 4.0," added Schäfer.

Designing digital working environments – in consultation with the works council and the workforce

The social aspects of workplace design are gaining importance in the digitised factory. To design the workplaces of the future, companies must take into account the concrete applications when introducing new technologies, and actively involve their employees. In yet another it's OWL flagship project, companies, universities and IG Metall are developing and testing new solutions for digitising the working world. This involves learning platforms, cognitive assistance systems, participative technology design, agile leadership and personnel development.

"Digital transformation only succeeds when employees are placed at the centre of this technological change. Companies must in particular deal with the cultural, organisational, workplace and competence-related challenges, take their employees' concerns seriously and use professional management and effective leadership to make changes. This cannot be done overnight. In doing so, it is important to increase the productivity and effectiveness of employees, while preparing them for value adding activities and providing them with comprehensive training and further education, because the complexity of Industry 4.0 requires qualified people," explains Sonja Roth, Head of HR at Harting Technology Group.

The Leading-Edge Cluster it's OWL

In the it's OWL technology network, over 200 companies and research institutes jointly develop solutions for intelligent products and production processes. New technologies are made available to small and medium-sized businesses. Having won the Leading-Edge Cluster Competition conducted by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, it's OWL is one of the largest Industry 4.0 initiatives.

it's OWL makes an important contribution to ensuring growth and employment in OstWestfalenLippe. Around 7,500 new jobs have been created in the cluster companies. since the start of it's OWL (mid-2012). 34 companies have been founded in the flexible manufacturing sector. Seven research facilities and 23 new degree programmes have been created in the field of intelligent technical systems. www.its-owl.de

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