Lufthansa Industry Solutions is joining the Labs Network Industrie 4.0

Norderstedt, April 20, 2017 – The digital transformation poses a challenge to small and medium-sized enterprises. Especially the low level of integration between research and practice is impeding the rapid scientific and economic progress that is needed. The Labs Network Industrie 4.0 (LNI 4.0), a network made up of testing centers, aims to help these two fields mesh better and facilitate the transition to Industry 4.0 for German companies. In the future, Lufthansa Industry Solutions is going to use its expertise to support this network’s important task.

Lufthansa Industry Solutions is joining the Labs Network Industrie 4.0, which provides support for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) on their way to digitization. Thus the IT specialist will be participating in a network of testing centers to advance Industry 4.0 in Germany. The LNI 4.0 is an alliance of companies, associations, politicians, and researchers. Among others, the membership includes such economic powerhouses as Siemens, SAP, and Deutsche Telekom, as well as the associations Bitkom, VDMA, and ZVEI. By means of the testing centers, LNI 4.0 will create infrastructure enabling SMEs to run simple, targeted tests and trials of new technologies, business models, and services related to Industry 4.0.

“In the future, companies that are interested will be able to work together with Lufthansa Industry Solutions in a network and together try out and refine Industry 4.0 scenarios, ideas, or technologies,” says Bernd Appel, Managing Director of Lufthansa Industry Solutions. “Thus we will be helping small and medium-sized enterprises to become winners in digitization. We are convinced that our consulting competence and technical expertise make us the right partner.”

The best qualifications thanks to Digital Lab

Lufthansa Industry Solutions’ Digital Lab is ideally equipped for this task. It serves as the first point of contact for questions spanning the entire range of digital transformation in companies, up to specific laboratory situations. The company’s individual competence centers of the Data Insight Lab, Internet of Things Lab, and Mobile Lab are all united under the aegis of the Digital Lab. “The Digital Lab is the place to experiment with the business models of the future,” says Bernd Appel. In this think tank for creative technology, the Lufthansa subsidiary bundles its digital expertise and helps companies test digital ecosystems. Companies can choose the right specialists, methods, and services from the individual competence centers to suit their project.

In this way, the IoT Lab helps companies with such issues as sensor solutions, prototype construction, and the processing and communication of IoT data. In the concept phase, the IT experts at the IoT Lab evaluate the initial approach to a solution and analyze its technical feasibility in a very short period of time. Then a minimal prototype is developed, the so-called Minimum Viable Product (MVP). The IoT Lab has the most modern equipment and expert know-how for this evaluation. And IT security is given top priority the entire time.

The interdisciplinary collaboration of software developers, IT experts, engineers, sales representatives, and customers gives rise to ideas, concepts, and prototypes for new digital products and online services.

Lufthansa Industry Solution is a partner of the BMBF

The German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) promotes the digitization of SMEs. Support is provided for specific projects in the areas of Industry 4.0 and the Internet of Things. These include trials of new digital products, adjustment to digitized processes, and the development of networked business models. Lufthansa Industry Solutions is already an official Industry 4.0 testbed and guides companies on their way to becoming digital enterprises within the framework of the BMBF’s assistance program “Industrie 4.0 Testumgebungen – Mobilisierung von KMU für Industrie 4.0” [Industry 4.0 Testbeds – Mobilization of SMEs for Industry 4.0].