At the end of the previous week, 1,000 production engineering experts from the fields of science and industry were able to form an impression of our "Cluster Produktionstechnik" on the RWTH Aachen University campus.The official opening of this “research building" was a highlight of the Aachen Machine Tool Colloquium programme.
"The Cluster is expected to become one of the largest research laboratories in the area of production engineering and Industry 4.0 in Europe", said Cluster Director and Campus Initiator Professor Günther Schuh.
Over 150 companies are already members of this Cluster, and up to 800 experts from the fields of science and industry are working together on an interdisciplinary basis with industrial consortia.
The Cluster Produktionstechnik, with a gross footprint of around 30,000 sqm, is the largest building complex on the RWTH Aachen campus to date. The focus of the research is on digitally integrated production. The new electric city car, e.GO Life, also for example originated in this Cluster - a showroom is included in the new building.
There was also a premiere at the opening. The prototype of the electric small bus "e.GO Mover" was presented, which was developed in the Cluster Produktionstechnik within the space of one year and is also intended to be driven fully autonomously. The intelligent bus will be developed and produced going forward by the company e.GO Moove, a joint venture between ZF, one of the leading global automotive suppliers, and the electric vehicle start-up e.GO Mobile, which is based in the Cluster Produktionstechnik. This teamwork is a perfect illustration of how cooperation between science and industry functions on campus.
In response to the question of whether IMMOFINANZ plans to be involved in the further development of the campus area, CEO Oliver Schumy answered at the top-calibre opening talk: “We are extremely interested. Aachen as a research location, and in particular the Melaten Campus, have developed impressively in recent years. It is truly exceptional and also offers great potential to us."