Press & Media

The Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology IPT in Aachen has expanded its machinery with a new system for the automated molding of high-precision optical glass components. As a result, the institute is now the only research institution in Europe able to offer research on efficient small-series production of small glass optics using a wafer-level approach. Large individual optics with a diameter of up to 150 millimeters can also be manufactured with the facility.

How can digital methods be used to redesign and optimize existing production processes? For many companies, it is unclear how they can use Industry 4.0 technologies to their advantage. The current study report by the "International Center for Networked, Adaptive Production ICNAP" offers insights into the implementation of digitalization technologies in industry. This free study report provides a comprehensive overview of practical research on topics such as data security, sustainability and digital twins and is now available to download.

The sales market for plastic products is growing. At the same time, however, the environmental impact of non-degradable plastics is increasing and requires new recycling strategies. At the Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology IPT in Aachen, researchers have developed a novel recycling process to recover the fiber composite material of used pressure tanks in a peeling process and reuse it for new lightweight products. The aim is to recycle fiber-reinforced plastics (FRP) without any significant loss of product quality. The Fraunhofer team has now succeeded in doing so in the "Tankcycling" research project: Over 90 percent of the mechanical strength properties are retained in the recycled material.

How does nature undergo evolutionary adaptations, and what can production technology learn from nature to develop more flexible processes? Researchers from seven Fraunhofer Institutes have analyzed various elements of flexibility and self-adaptation in the Fraunhofer flagship project "EVOLOPRO" and applied them to the manufacturing of complex components. The research team has thus laid the foundation for a new generation of production systems in the form of a "Biological Manufacturing System."