Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation IPAExceutive Director of Fraunhofer IPA
Scientific Director for Automation, Robotics, Clean and Dryroom Production Technology
Director of the Institute of Industrial Manufacturing and Management IFF, University of Stuttgart
Professor Dr.-Ing. Thomas Bauernhansl has held his current position as Director of the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation IPA in Stuttgart, Germany since September 2011. He also serves as Director of the Institute of Industrial Manufacturing and Management (IFF) at the University of Stuttgart. His scientific focus is on digital and biological transformation, production organization, factory planning, automation and robotics.
Bauernhansl studied mechanical engineering at RWTH Aachen University. After completing his PhD with honors, he embarked on his career with Freudenberg Sealing Technologies in 2003, advancing to become Director of the Technology Center at FST. His key areas of work included site planning, factory planning, outsourcing, technology management and lean production. Lastly, Bauernhansl was responsible for optimizing the “global footprint” of the production network throughout the regions of Europe, North America and South America, comprising over 50 production sites.
Bauernhansl serves on diverse advisory boards and management committees in industry, associations, research and government. He is a member of the WGP, the German Academic Society for Production Engineering, as well as being a member of the strategy committee of the German government’s “Platform Industrie 4.0” and Vice Chair of the Steering Committee Alliance Industrie 4.0 BW. He has written and edited numerous books on topics spanning adaptability in manufacturing, Industrie 4.0 and production management.
