Professor Fritz Klocke, who has supported the management of Fraunhofer IPA since July 2018, adds: "The close partnership with Stuttgart University’s Institute for Industrial Manufacturing and Factory Operation (IFF) and Institute for Energy Efficiency in Production (EEP) has contributed significantly to our own success. It goes without saying that we are much more successful working together than alone”. For Klocke, who worked at the Aachen university RWTH for a long time, Cyber Valley is also a great opportunity to bridge the gap between fundamental natural sciences and practical application sciences. In the future, this cooperation will be further intensified.
International network as an important pillar
Fraunhofer IPA employs 700 scientists. In addition to branch offices and project groups in Bayreuth, Mannheim and Reutlingen, Fraunhofer IPA also has branches of varying sizes and structures in Austria, Hungary and Japan, all of which are linked to universities.
Fraunhofer IPA’s most recent international presence is currently becoming established in Shanghai/Lingang, one of China’s leading science and technology regions. The Project Center for Smart Manufacturing, a cooperation with Shanghai Jiao Tong University, works together with industrial partners to implement research projects on digital transformation.
Strengthening Stuttgart as a business location
The institute wants to grow not only internationally, but also locally. "IPA 100 in the next two to three years is a realistic working goal for us. That means 100 million euros in sales per year – an increase of more than a third over today’s figures. In order to im- plement this, we need to adapt existing structures, develop new ones and, above all, involve and motivate our employees", says Professor Fritz Klocke