Industry 4.0 Jul 26, 2017

ICT Industry & IoT Labs: Key Technologies for Business

Bavaria is more than breweries and car manufacturers - the Free State is at the forefront of Europe, especially in the field of information and communication technology. To drive forward digitalisation, many companies are investing in technological progress. Among the flourishing seeds of this are the numerous IoT labs that have been created in the Free State during the past few years.

Bavaria as a recognised ICT site

 

Because of the good networking with companies from all user industries, many ICT companies decide to settle in Bavaria. Expressed in figures, gathered in Munich, Ausgburg and the Medical Valley alone, there are around 40,000 ICT and media businesses with a total of approx. 300,000 employees. This also consists of a wide variety of companies, from startups to medium-sized companies to internationally operating groups.

 

Into the digital future with IoT labs

 

Particularly intensive work on new solutions is being carried out in the various IoT labs at the location. Several labs of this kind have now already been created in Bavaria. One of the best known examples is the global IoT headquarters of the global player IBM in the form of the Watson HQ in Munich’s Highlight Towers. Here, with the support of developers, designers and researchers, it is planned to work effectively on the new generation of networked solutions.

With the Microsoft IoT & Al Insider Lab, Munich possesses another option in the immediate vicinity. At the latter, the internet of things is also to be combined with artificial intelligence. The objective here, with a capable community and together with development experts, is to place new digital products from startups and already large companies on the market more quickly.The list of companies wanting to revolutionise the internet of things with their own labs can be continued almost ad infinitum:

 

  • Intel: Intel already set up its IoT Ignition Lab in Munich in 2014, making it one of the first companies to do so. In cooperation with the Europa-Team, solutions for the vertical sectors of energy, industry and smart buildings are created in the lab.
     
  • Huawei: Last year, the Chinese telecommunications concern opened its first European Open Lab in Munich. The aim is networked work with partners on solutions relating to the Internet of Things, the Cloud and Big Data.
     
  • Volkswagen: Volkswagen is also among Munich’s IoT pioneers and already opened the first data lab of an automobile group in Munich in 2014. The reason why the lab was not opened at the group headquarters in Wolfsburg: Munich is the ideal location for bringing together industry partners and startups from the automotive sector.
     
  • SAP: With innovations in the field of the internet of things, SAP also wants to help companies and authorities to benefit from new solutions. At the same time, SAP IoT is also to promote and develop the company’s partner and startup networks.

 

And not only classic IT companies have recognised the significance of the internet of things. For example, the consultancy company Accenture has also opened its IIoT Innovation Centre in Garching, its first in the world, with a focus on the Industrial Internet. The centre is to work out innovative solutions in the field of Industry 4.0. The Garching model is also acting as a template for further Accenture Labs in Shanghai and Detroit.

The IoT labs, together with the ICT industry, are thus a well thought out addition to the overall image of Bavaria as an important producing region for digital economy key technologies.