RWTH Presents SME 4.0 Competence Center
Support for Small to Medium Companies in the Fields of Digitalization and Industry 4.0
Terms such as digitalization, interconnectedness, and Industry 4.0 are the buzzwords of the day. But what do they really mean? Do they stand for concepts that open up opportunities for small and medium enterprises? While digitalization forms a basis for everyday applications such as cell phones, companies, in particular SMEs, are far from applying it on a significant scale.
The Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy is now establishing so-called SME 4.0 Competence Centers in order to support companies in implementing Industry 4.0 technologies. With a focus on small to medium enterprises, the competence centers provide support and assistance in developing digitalization and networking capabilities, so as to facilitate the digital networking of machines and systems, for example.
Kick-Off Event on July 8, 2016
The Competence Centers offer introductory presentations, individual advising sessions for companies, interactive workshops, and joint implementation and transfer projects. In the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, a strong network has been established, consisting of partners from Aachen, Dortmund, and the OWL region in East Westphalia.
On July 8, the Laboratory for Machine Tools and Production Engineering at RWTH Aachen, WZL, and the Institute for Industrial Management, FIR, will host a kick-off event to present the portfolio of the SME 4.0 Competence Center. All interested companies and network partners are invited to attend.
At the event, selected SMEs will present current challenges in implementing Industry 4.0 technologies. Furthermore, attendants have the opportunity to visit demonstrator facilities and experience hands-on Industry 4.0 solutions.
The Competence Center
The SME Competence Center in North Rhine-Westphalia pools expertise from the Rheinland, Ruhr and East Westphalia regions and supports small to medium companies in the digitalization and networking of products, production, and processes. Its free-of-charge services range from information sessions through to the joint implementation of concrete technologies and include:
- Information
- Demonstration
- Qualification
- Conceptualization and Implementation.
The Competence Center is part of the "Mittelstand 4.0 – Digital Production and Work Processes" initiative, which receives funding from the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, BWMi.
Source: Press and Public Relations