idw – Informationsdienst Wissenschaft
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
idw - Informationsdienst
Wissenschaft
The creation of Saarland's first public research institute will be celebrated for the 45th time in March 2017. Although established long ago, Fraunhofer IZFP has remained young and modern, which can be seen in a new strategic alignment that is shifting the institute's focus from traditional nondestructive testing services to leading-edge self-learning sensor and monitoring systems modeled on the concepts of Big Data and Industry 4.0 currently being promoted by the German government.
45 years ago, and after several years of preparation, the first public research institute was created in Saarland under the leadership of Prof. Paul Höller. The strategy was to focus the research activities on metals, since steel and iron, literally at home in Saarland, were the dominant materials and nuclear energy was the primary field of application. Nondestructive testing was identified as the key strategy behind the applied research activities.
New, intelligent self-learning sensor systems
With the appointment of Prof. Dr.-Ing. Randolf Hanke to Executive Director on October 1, 2013, an expert in the field of nondestructive testing with proven market know-how took over the reins of the institute. The expansion of the leadership team was tied to a change of course and a new strategic alignment.
“Fraunhofer IZFP has fundamentally changed over the past three years. As an internationally-renowned R & D center for nondestructive testing (NDT), one of our central goals was to shift the focus of our research activities from conventional NDT to the automated generation and intelligent analysis of increasingly complex, multi-dimensional data streams,” explains Prof. Hanke. Fraunhofer IZFP places special emphasis on those processes that involve the interaction of man/materials or machine/materials. These processes are characterized primarily by relying on a new, Fraunhofer IZFP-developed product life cycle that ranges from material creation, product creation and product utilization, to product recycling.
“Our scientists and engineers develop new, validated technology platforms for the digital world of tomorrow and for modern industrial quality assurance applications,” adds Prof. Hanke.
Close university ties
The scientific basis of the research activities at Fraunhofer IZFP is shaped by close cooperation with various schools at the University of Saarland and the University of Applied Sciences in Saarbrucken, particularly through the newly-created joint project AutomaTiQ*. In addition, together with the Fraunhofer Innovation Cluster Automotive Quality Saar AQS, which is located at Fraunhofer IZFP, and in line with our new philosophy, we provide market-ready, smart one-stop solutions designed for ensuring the quality of materials and components, especially in the automotive industry. The focus here is on the main automobile components, an area in which the materials and overall quality are a critical aspect, as well as on innovations that lead to the efficient use of the materials and smooth production flows.
“These and other measures will help us hone the profile of the institute to better anticipate the needs of the market. To do that, we are also expanding our technology and scientific know-how for cost-effectively processing and implementing customer orders in marketable and application-oriented solutions and products”, said Prof. Hanke in conclusion.
*Automated signal and image processing technology for innovative NDT sensor systems utilized in quality assurance applications for the flexible production systems of the future
Fraunhofer IZFP leadership team
Source: Fraunhofer IZFP/Tom Gundelwein
Criteria of this press release:
Journalists, all interested persons
interdisciplinary
transregional, national
Miscellaneous scientific news/publications, Organisational matters
English
You can combine search terms with and, or and/or not, e.g. Philo not logy.
You can use brackets to separate combinations from each other, e.g. (Philo not logy) or (Psycho and logy).
Coherent groups of words will be located as complete phrases if you put them into quotation marks, e.g. “Federal Republic of Germany”.
You can also use the advanced search without entering search terms. It will then follow the criteria you have selected (e.g. country or subject area).
If you have not selected any criteria in a given category, the entire category will be searched (e.g. all subject areas or all countries).
