Millions in funding for new research project under Paderborn leadership
With the help of digital technologies, universities and companies from East Westphalia-Lippe want to create a new approach to the development of sustainable products under the leadership of the Advanced Systems Engineering (ASE) group at Paderborn University's Heinz Nixdorf Institute. The findings will be applied directly at and with business partners in six lighthouse projects. The approaches and IT tools developed are intended to help increase the efficiency, sustainability and competitiveness of companies in an economy increasingly characterised by sustainability requirements. The "GoProZero" project ("Design of integrated product development systems as an enabler for zero emissions") was launched in January and is being funded by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Industry, Climate Protection and Energy of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia (MWIKE) as part of its commitment to the "it's OWL" cluster of excellence with around �3.9 million over three years and is being supervised by the project management organisation Jülich. "In times of tight public budgets, the funding of 'GoProZero' is a strong signal for sustainable innovation and a great vote of confidence in the OWL region," summarises Prof. Dr. René Fahr, Vice President for Knowledge and Technology Transfer at Paderborn University.
Circular economy as an opportunity for companies
"Climate protection needs technology, and this is happening in North Rhine-Westphalia. Through practical IT tools and digital solutions, the 'GoProZero' project strengthens competitiveness and shows how ecological responsibility and economic success go hand in hand," says Mona Neubaur, Minister for Economic Affairs, Industry, Climate Protection and Energy of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia. The core theme of the project is the circular economy. The principle aims to utilise materials and products as efficiently as possible and to maintain their value throughout their entire life cycle. Various mechanisms such as sharing models, leasing, recycling, reuse or valorisation are possible.
"There are many reasons for manufacturing companies to develop recyclable products: From regulatory requirements to ensuring the availability of rare materials to differentiating themselves from the competition. However, new technology-based approaches are needed to enable companies to transform their traditional business into a circular economy. Development management, processes and IT systems in particular need to be adapted for this," explains Dr Christian Koldewey, initiator of "GoProZero" and senior engineer in the ASE specialist group, which is based at the Institute of Computer Science at Paderborn University. Project manager Anja Rasor adds: "Ultimately, it always depends on the specific starting position in the company as to which circular economy approaches can be implemented appropriately. This determines how material cycles can be closed, slowed down or narrowed down in concrete terms."
Using existing data intelligently
In order to be able to take these individual needs into account, the project relies on the use of digital technologies, such as digital twins, to better consider the entire life cycle of a product right from the planning phase. The linking of data from development, production and utilisation also plays a central role: the aim is to make this information more easily accessible and thus enable well-founded decisions to be made to conserve resources. In addition, "GoProZero" uses artificial intelligence to help companies analyse complex data and develop sustainable products faster and more efficiently.
Specifically, the aim is to modernise electronic components of agricultural machinery, return secondary raw materials such as plastic and steel to the economic cycle or optimise maintenance intervals for machine components, for example. Roman Dumitrescu, Managing Director of "it's OWL", explains: "As a flagship project, GoProZero will make a significant contribution to the realisation of our 'Industry.Zero' vision, which aims to create sustainable value through intelligent technical systems. Recyclable and resource-efficient products are critical to success here."
Strong network of science and industry
Other research institutions involved in the project are Bielefeld University, Bielefeld University of Applied Sciences, OWL University of Applied Sciences, the Fraunhofer Institute for Mechatronic Design Technology, the Fraunhofer Institute of Optronics, System Technologies and Image Exploitation and the InnoZent OWL technology network. On the industry side, the companies involved are CLAAS, Denios, Harting, S&N Invent, WAGO, Weidmüller Interface, GEA and AI Marketplace.
This text was translated automatically.
