Planners, manufacturing companies and service providers for the construction industry, but also communications and IT companies, benefit from this research project. With its global partners, DigitalTWIN encouraged a discussion about the boundary conditions in the different markets and an investigation into how, in the future, the building process in Germany and the structure of the German economy can be used to advantage and expanded in the fiercely contested global IT market.

The consortium was made up of leading service providers and industrial companies from the construction, IT, communication and automation sectors plus leading research establishments.

se commerce GmbH is the lead partner in this research project. This IT company, a member of the seele group, creates the hardware and software infrastructure for seele, the façade construction specialist with global activities, and carries out ongoing development for existing software solutions. seele’s specific requirements are quickly and skilfully integrated into the ERP system by the software development team. One priority is to combine different data processing applications to form one fully interlinked system landscape. This broad portfolio guarantees the fast and optimum implementation of IT requirements while complying with the valid regulations regarding data protection and data security. seele is interested in improving coordination within the building industry in order to achieve more reliable planning, costing and scheduling for customers’ specific projects.

“For example, the site crew in California is already connected to our engineers in Gersthofen via a VPN tunnel,” explains project manager Dr. Fabian Schmid. In his view, “supporting communication by using terminals such as VR/AR headsets and improving project management by using digital methods – in order to coordinate problems and find solutions jointly in real-time – would simplify daily workloads enormously”.

R&D work at the Fraunhofer Institute for Telecommunications, the Heinrich Hertz Institute (HHI), focuses on innovations for the digital society. Fraunhofer HHI is the world leader in research into mobile and optical communication networks and systems as well as the coding of video signals and data processing. Working together with international partners from research and industry, Fraunhofer HHI covers the entire digital infrastructure spectrum – from fundamental research right up to the development of prototypes and solutions. The institute helps to develop standards for information and communication technologies and creates new applications in its role as a partner to industry. One priority is optical wireless communication, which enables high-speed data connections for users with special requirements regarding safety and electromagnetic compatibility. The institute’s research also focuses on video coding and transmission. Fraunhofer HHI makes an important contribution to research in the areas of efficient compression methods, computer vision, machine learning and the integration of real and virtual worlds for immersive multimedia applications.

Telegärtner Karl Gärtner GmbH is a telecommunications company that was founded in 1945 and, since 1948, has been based in Stuttgart. The Telegärtner Group is a family-owned enterprise that has become a global specialist in the field of data communication and telecommunications, with special expertise in connection and interface technologies. The product range covers RF components for mobile communications applications, network solutions for structured building cabling and modular products for industrial and FO applications. Telegärtner is currently combining the content of data network technology and mobile communications to comply with the convergence required by communication networks; in future, services such as planning and commissioning will be added. Other priorities are solutions for establishing a flexible broadband network infrastructure in the short-term with the option of permanent usage. Telegärtner wishes to acquire a better detailed understanding of the user’s view of the complex relationships in large infrastructure projects and the latest strategies of global players for efficient ways of dealing with unavoidable disruptions to procedures. The Telegärtner Group has 650 employees worldwide and generates an annual turnover exceeding EUR 100 million.

Carl Zeiss 3D Automation GmbH (a subsidiary of Carl Zeiss Industrielle Messtechnik GmbH, part of Carl Zeiss AG) develops, produces and supplies accessories and automation solutions for industrial measuring and testing equipment. The products range from (micro)styli, stylus systems and sensor systems right up to air-conditioning monitoring and pallet systems with temperature sensors as well as manual or automatic jigs for clamping workpieces. In the course of activities concerning Industry 4.0, work is being carried out on digital measuring labs and equipping complete production buildings with sensor networks. That work led to the company being selected for an award in 2017 within the scope of a competition to find “100 locations for Industry 4.0 in Baden-Württemberg”. Zeiss 3DA intends to use the DigitalTWIN technologies investigated for the planning, equipping, operation and maintenance of digital measuring labs and to use the results to derive a solution for the metrology sector.

This company – known as PB40 for short – is a non-profit platform enterprise that unites the planning, building and operation value-creation chain within its corporate structure. The company’s aim is to digitalise the construction sector in Germany by way of diverse activities connected with network establishment, knowledge transfer, national and European standardisation and the creation of boundary conditions for the consistent use of digital methods to support the building industry, which is characterised by small and mid-size businesses. For this work, the company can call on the skills of its pool of experts. Other principal activities are all kinds of certification plus the provision of tools and resources for supporting and promoting digital working methods. PB40 was heavily involved in the development of the “Road Map for Digital Design & Construction” produced by the German Federal Ministry of Transport & Digital Infrastructure. The company provides advice and support for all the government’s current BIM pilot projects for buildings, roads, railways and waterways. Furthermore, PB40 is involved in numerous national and international projects covering the standardisation and implementation of model-based working methods.

Werner Sobek is known worldwide for its engineering, design and sustainability concepts. The group maintains offices in Stuttgart, Dubai, Frankfurt, Istanbul, London, Moscow and New York. The work of this group of companies is characterised by its high-quality design based on outstanding engineering and ingenious concepts to minimise the consumption of energy and materials. Founded in 1992, the company now has more than 300 employees and works with all kinds of structures and materials. The main priorities are buildings and structures, façade design and sustainability consulting. Werner Sobek Stuttgart was awarded a special prize as part of the BIM Award 2016.

• ISD
• Schindler
• Hochschule für Technik Stuttgart
• Diota GmbH
• seele GmbH
• Hochschule Albstadt-Sigmaringen
• Wilhelm Geiger GmbH & Co. KG
• Hochschule Augsburg