Challenges

Innovation cycles are shortening, markets are becoming more complex - the framework conditions of industry are changing. New solutions are needed so that the manufacturing industry can remain competitive in the global market. In the Cross Innovation Lab, the valve manufacturer GEA faced these challenges in cooperation with creative minds.

Specifically, the question was how the functions of a digital valve twin can be used to drive GEA's products, processes and organisational development in the direction of Industry 4.0.

Process

In the Cross Innovation Lab, companies come together in changing constellations over a period of six weeks to work together on product developments in a stimulating environment. Experts from the creative industries are specifically involved in the process.

Field research:
At the beginning, the challenges of the companies are penetrated in a new kind of depth in cooperation with creative people - and their fresh perspective from the outside.

Workshop phase:
In a total of four workshop/lab days, the companies develop new solutions together with selected creative professionals.

Feedback loops:
Between the labs, a concept review takes place with all participating companies to further improve the products through joint feedback and exchange.

In the iterative work process, companies develop new products or product adaptations with significantly reduced time.

In addition, new business models were conceived through the evaluation of data.

Results

Through cooperation with experts from the creative industries, a digital twin of a valve was developed within four workshops. Thanks in particular to the collaboration of a game designer, an augmented reality prototype was created in a very short time: with the help of a tablet, a real valve can be brought into focus. This lays the foundation for determining information about the current valve condition and any predictive maintenance requirements or for transmitting virtual maintenance instructions.