AI helps industry

AI helps industry

The catchphrase of the 7th German-Austrian Technology Forum of the German Chamber of Commerce in cooperation with Fraunhofer Austria was “Transformation”. Leading industry representatives from Beckhoff Automation to Siemens, the Innio Group to AccuPower and Leag spoke on the podium. Around 150 guests followed the lectures with interest, and panel discussions invited active participation. The moderation was taken over by Wilfried Sihn, Senior Advisor at Fraunhofer Austria Research. “Digitalization and new technologies are the key to ensuring that society and the economy act responsibly.” Vito Cecere, German ambassador to Austria, also saw the widespread use of AI in industry as a huge opportunity for Europe. At the subsequent warm-up, Georg Krause, Managing Director of msg Plaut Austria and Patricia Neumann, CEO of Siemens Austria, invited people to address the topic of digital humanism and to use the opportunities for development and development.

AI was the topic of the opening keynote by Antonio Krüger, CEO and scientific director of the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence, DFKI. Under the title “European AI – Impulses for Transformation”, the scientist explained how the economy can benefit from it and discussed the recently passed EU AI Act. “It is necessary to regulate to make innovation possible.” However, regulations should not stifle innovation. The DFKI has been researching AI in a public-private partnership for over 30 years and is in close cooperation with industry. “You can only get good data from the real world,” explained Krüger. The DFKI develops demonstrators and is a partner from pre-development to prototypes. The transfer into actual product lines is often supervised. “The DFKI is committed to human-centered artificial intelligence,” informed Krüger. On average, 350 to 400 projects are running at DFKI, which corresponds to the great potential of AI in a wide variety of industries.

“In the end, the industry can be the big winner with AI if the foundations are laid correctly,” said Sabine Hesse, Managing Director of the Metal Technology Industry Association, during the subsequent panel discussion. Security is needed for this, she also spoke about the AI ​​Act. Beate El-Chichakli, Head of the Policy Affairs & Research Institutions Department at the BMK, referred to the streamlining of bureaucracy and relief for employees through artificial intelligence. AI can not only reduce human error, it can also make predictions and optimize processes. During a round of dialogue, Christian Knill, chairman of the Metal Technology Industry Association and CEO of the Knill Energy Group, emphasized that the industry must be respected as an ally and implementer on the climate issue, and not as an opponent, as is often the case.

Thomas Morscher, Head of Robotics Development at Beckhoff Automation, reported on the enormous potential of AI in the robotics sector. He presented the Atro modular system, with which robot structures can be put together individually and flexibly for different apps, as well as the TwinCAT automation suite, which transforms almost any PC-based system into a real-time control system with several PLC, NC, CNC and/or robotic runtime systems. Michael Freyny, head of the Digital Industries division at Siemens Austria, addressed two factors that need to be taken into account: collaboration and speed of adaptation. "AI creates new partnerships. You have to recognize which company, even if it is a competitor, has high competencies and use them." Change is also needed in the energy system. “Sticking to what already exists is not enough for sustainable security of supply,” says Andreas Kunz, CTO at Innio Jenbacher. For example, highly flexible, quick-starting and hydrogen-capable CHP power plants are needed to cover energy peaks and micro grids, because wind energy and PV alone cannot meet these requirements due to their volatility.

Moritz Minarik, CEO of AccuPower, named lithium iron phosphate and sodium ions as alternatives in the battery sector that meet the requirements, especially in fire protection, and reported on the Accommodation Extender charging medium. Batteries also addressed Thorsten Kramer, CEO of Lausitz Energie, with the structural change project GigawattFactory, which will create Germany's largest battery park. With the unmanned helicopter Camcopter S 100, which also uses sensors and cameras to carry out measurements and analyzes in the maritime sector, for example of the sea surface or ship exhaust gases, Uwe Hensel from Schiebel Electronic Devices demonstrated another use of AI. At the end of the 7th German-Austrian Technology Forum, moderator Antonio Krüger formulated his wish for AI. He is looking forward to personal educational assistants who, with personalized plans, will enable lifelong learning in a relatively efficient and low-threshold way and thus bring education to all regions of the world.