techforum01 - thyssenkrupp · the hololens smartglasses simplify the maintenance of elevators 30my...

THE THYSSENKRUPP TECHNOLOGY MAGAZINE 01.2017techforum

www.thyssenkrupp.com/techforum

The future of mobility is open. Four scenarios show how it could look

What lies ahead?

DATA SPACE FOR INDUSTRYThe Industrial Data Space lays the foundations for Industry 4.0

ENVIRONMENTAL POTENTIAL OF NEW MATERIALSLife-cycle assessments help in selecting new materials

FIT FOR THE TRANSITION TO RENEWABLESCross-energy management secures energy supplies and saves costs

Find out more on page 16 Find out why mixed reality helps technicians

on page 28

Read more about the importance of sustainability to the Group in the interview on page 46

We explain what this means for its life-cycle assessment on page 42

In 2035, twelve percent of vehicles will be driving around completely autonomously.

With a combination of cross-energy management and renewable energies, the yearly CO2 emissions of a cement works can be reduced by 3,000 metric tons.

By 2020, thyssenkrupp aims to improve its energy efficiency by

each year.

3.5 TWhSteel is almost 100 % recyclable.

With the use of the HoloLens smartglasses, maintenance work on elevators can be performed up to four times faster.

CO2

CO2

The electric-powered StreetScooter saves around three metric tons of CO2 per year.

1year

We report on the innovative delivery vehicle on page 20

We explain how energy-intensive cement production can be optimized on page 24

Portal

Dear readers,

Few areas of life are going to change as much as the mobility sector. The automobiles of the future will no longer be comparable to the vehicles of today. They will be powered by electricity, autonomously driven, completely networked with the worldwide cloud, and probably shared by many people. thyssenkrupp aims to play its part in shaping this

development. After all, our Group has been a successful partner for mobility for more than 160 years. That was when Alfred Krupp invented the seamless railroad wheel tire and revolutionized rail transportation.

What are the products and technologies that will be successful for thyssenkrupp in the future? Our materials and components for electric mobility or our production plants for batteries are surely among them – plus, of course, our steering systems as the key to autonomous driving.

However, autonomously driven electric automobiles are not the only thing that will radically change mobility. This is demonstrated by the Foresight process, through which we at thyssenkrupp are looking even further into the future. Here we are finding scenarios where there are seamless transitions between various transportation modes, from trains to automobiles to bicycles. There are big data applications that show people the way through these integrated transportation systems.

In the future, being on the move may mean more than wasting time; it may be time that can be used for communication, work, or play. As a result, attitudes associated with mobility will also change. Individual mobility in the future may be expressed in a different form from the use of a car in a person’s own possession.

Our aspiration is to foresee trends several decades ahead and to offer solutions for them at an early stage – solutions that are acceptable environmentally, socially, and economically, in accordance with our understanding of sustainability. This is why we are taking a systematic look into the future and preparing scenarios for possible developments.

In this issue of techforum, we present you with three of these scenarios for the mobility of the future. In addition, we cover current developments in the fields of alternative drive and control systems for automobiles. Other major areas that we examine are digitization, technologies for the transition to renewables, and raw-materials extraction.

I wish you an enjoyable read.

Kerstin Ney, Head of Human Resources, Management Board of Business Area Components Technology of thyssenkrupp AG C

over

illu

stra

tion:

Ski

zzom

at/M

arie

Em

mer

man

n; Il

lust

ratio

n Pa

ge 3

: Bia

nca

Cla

ssen

thyssenkrupp techforum 01.2017

FOREWORD

03

06 Short CutsCarbon2Chem Technical Center | Center for steering technology | Test tower for elevators | Bioplastic PLA

Cover story08 Journey to the future

Four scenarios describe mobility in 2030

16 The automobile becomes autonomousthyssenkrupp is working on a driverless vehicle

18 The sound of silence Electric engines are to be given a voice, to achieve more safety on the roads

20 Electric in the fast laneWith the StreetScooter, Germany’s Deutsche Post is switching to e-trans-porters – supported by thyssenkrupp

22 People in motionThe “People Mover” ensures short journeys at the BMW Research and Innovation Center

46Pioneers: Dr. Steffen Schwartz-Höfler and Thomas Fußhöller explain why thyssenkrupp is backing sustainability so strongly

30Alternative: Skip Way can replace many trucks in mines – this does not just save costs but also spares the environment

Projects 24 Flexibility is key

With cross-energy management, companies secure their energy supplies and save costs

28 Perfect overview for servicingThe HoloLens smartglasses simplify the maintenance of elevators

30 Ropes, not serpentine bends The Skip Way goods ropeway avoids dangerous transporta-tion by heavy trucks in mines

Panorama34 Digital foundations

In the Industrial Data Space, compa-nies can exchange data securely – to improve logistics, for example

38 Heavyweight for Industry 4.0 thyssenkrupp tests autonomous steel processing

42 On the environmental test standLife-cycle assessments show the environmental potential of new materials

46 “Customers expect sustainability”Commercial success, and environ-mental and social responsibility form a central triad for thyssenkrupp

48 Afingeronthepulseofinnovationthyssenkrupp is operating an innovation hub in Ennigerloh

50 Long-distance travel from your couch

Columnist Peter Glaser sees the world through the eyes of others

08My home is my castle When homes and workplaces are located close together, new transportation systems in buildings are needed

Phot

os: G

oetz

Sch

lese

r, D

aim

ler

AG

, thy

ssen

krup

p;Ill

ustr

atio

n: S

kizz

omat

/Mar

ie E

mm

erm

ann

16Revolution: Self-driving automobiles will change the experience of travel fundamentally

04 ThyssenKrupp techforum 01.2016 05thyssenkrupp techforum 01.2017

Contents

The elevator test tower in Rottweil started research operations at the end of 2016. The 246-meter-high tower

enables high-speed tests to be carried out at up to 64.8 kilometers per hour (18 meters per second) and paves the way for innovations in the elevator industry. One of these is MULTI. Three of the twelve shafts in the test tower are designated for the new, multi-cab elevator system, in which magnetic levitation technology is used for the

A new test and development center for steering technology is being built in Eschen, Liechtenstein. At this facility, measuring around 3,000 square meters, thyssenkrupp will soon bring together its expertise in the fields of development, vehicle bodies, and prototype construction. Completion is planned for the first half of 2019, with investment of around 15 million euros. The new test center will drive forward current development projects such as steer-by-wire, electromobility, and the refinement of assistance systems as the precursor to autonomous driving. In the field of basic research, experts will, for example, investigate new materials and test them for use in future products. Endurance tests lasting four to six weeks will be used to map the quality and durability of

these products over a vehicle’s entire service life. In addition, the acoustic performance of the steer-ing systems will be optimized further in the acoustics center.

A new landmark for Rottweil: Visitors may enter the tower from May 2017

Steering of the future

A research center and travel destination: the new test tower in Rottweil is a building of superlatives and started operations at the end of 2016

Construction of a new technical center has begun at the thyssen-krupp Steel Europe site in Duisburg. It will play a central

part in the Carbon2Chem development project. The aim is to use steel mill gases

The home of

the high-fliers

is open from steel production – including the carbon dioxide they contain – to manu-facture chemicals. A further 16 partners from basic and applied research and various sectors of industry are involved in the project. Carbon2Chem is being supported by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) with funding of over 60 million euros. The groundbreaking ceremony was held by Hannelore Kraft (Premier of the Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia), Thomas Rachel (member of the German parliament and Parliamentary State Secretary in the BMBF), Heinrich Hiesinger (CEO of thyssenkrupp AG), and Andreas Goss (CEO of thyssenkrupp Steel Europe AG). thyssenkrupp is investing 33.8 million euros in the building complex, which will have around 2,600 square meters of floor space. There is also around ten million euros in funding from the BMBF for the equipment and use of the technical

drive. The rope-free design means that several elevator cabs can run in one elevator shaft. The cabs can also move sideways and there is no limit on how high they can go vertically, which allows for unprecedented building architecture. After all, not only is the number of skyscrapers increasing, but their average height is also exceeding all past expectations. Whereas in 2000 the average height of the 100 tallest buildings in the world was 285 meters, by 2015 it had reached 357 meters.

Milestone for the climateThe groundbreaking ceremony for a new technical center sees the Carbon2Chem project gaining speed. CO2 is to become a raw material in the future

Find out more about Carbon2Chem at www.thyssenkrupp.com/de/carbon2chem

center. Completion is planned for spring 2018. Owing to its great importance for climate protection, the Carbon2Chem project has been included in KlimaExpo.NRW as part of the 21st Expert Conference on Future Energies held by the EnergyAgency.NRW. This makes it the 221st out of “1,000 steps to the future” that KlimaExpo.NRW is present-ing up to 2022. To pay tribute to this symbolically, Dr. Heinrich Dornbusch, Senior Managing Director of KlimaExpo.NRW, took the shoe prints of Dr. Reinhold Achatz (Chief Technology Officer at thyssenkrupp). “Sustainability is part of the business model for thyssenkrupp,” Achatz said. “Climate protection is one of our strategic goals. Only recently we were recognized by the non-profit organization CDP as one of the world’s leading companies in climate protection.”

Bioplastic PLA enters productionWith a view to reducing the use of crude oil in plastics production, thyssenkrupp has developed a manufacturing process for the bioplastic poly-lactide (PLA). The company is now building the first com-mercial plant on the basis of its patented PLAneo® technology in Changchun, China. The client is the COFCO Corporation, a leading supplier of agricultural products with a diverse range of foodstuffs and services.

Trends such as autono-mous driving play a major part in steering systems

Prominent supporters such as Heinrich Hiesinger and Hannelore Kraft (second and third from left) performed the groundbreaking

Following its completion, the new plant will produce around 10,000 metric tons of PLA per year. It is due to be commissioned in the first quarter of 2018. Polylactide (PLA) is an entirely biobased and compostable plastic that is suitable, among other things, for processing into packaging materials, films, and engineering plastics. The raw material is lactic acid, which is obtained from renewable sources such as sugar, starch, or cellulose.

Lactic acid, not oil: Renewable raw materials form the basis of PLA

Phot

os: t

hyss

enkr

upp

(4)

07thyssenkrupp techforum 01.201706 thyssenkrupp techforum 01.2016

Preview Short CutS

Text: Christian Buck Illustration: Skizzomat /Marie Emmermann

A journey to the future

Lian is in a hurry. Once more, she has a day full of appointments behind her and now needs to get away from downtown Shanghai to her friends in the new satellite town on the north-

ern outskirts of the megacity as quickly as possible. Obviously, she does not want to spend the 60-kilometer journey simply looking out the window. In Lian’s world, time is of the essence – and entertain-ment is a top priority. She has finished her work as a robot designer for today, so she is entitled to a little relaxation or, indeed, entertainment.

Her communicator is not just famil-iar with Lian’s appointments agenda, but it also knows that she is due to attend a movie premiere in about an hour. The device can detect its owner’s present needs as well, thanks to its highly devel-oped artificial intelligence and a variety of biometric sensors. At this precise moment, between work and the movie theater, Lian could really use some exercise. Therefore, the smartphone puts this suggestion to her: “What about a fitness compartment in the express train at 18:20?” Great idea, Lian thinks – and then reserves her place with a cheerful “Yes, please do that at once and note my decision for next time!”

She has no need to worry about any of the rest. No sooner has Lian left the 200-story office building in the Pudong

Open future: Mobility may develop in very different directions. This illustration combines four Foresight scenarios

How might last-mile mobility look around the year 2030? Experts at thyssenkrupp have sought answers to this question as part of the Foresight process. This work has generated four scenarios, which could not be more different


Cover story MOBILITY OF THE FUTURE

In the fitness compartment, passengers are looked after by a virtual trainer, who can supervise and correct them all the time thanks to biometric sensors.

district than a driverless taxi is already there waiting for her, ready to take her to the very door of the express train in exactly seven minutes. As the automobile sets off, Lian hears the first bars of the song that she particularly enjoys just now from the loudspeakers. Out of her current favorites, her smartphone has selected the one with a length that perfectly matches the expected duration of her journey.

Upon arrival at the express train station, she gets out of the taxi without further ado. She does not have to pay for the journey; it is free as part of her musical entertainment program. Lian is guided by her smartphone to the exercise carriage, where she has reserved a private fitness compartment. If you do not feel like exer-cising at this time, you can also use the journey to watch movies, hold confer-ences, receive a massage from a physio robot, or enjoy an exquisite menu. The main thing is that the demanding clien-tele should not be bored; just as people are unaccustomed to routine in their work, they are equally unaccepting of idleness as they travel from A to B.

Showering on the express train In her fitness compartment, Lian has opted for a workout, led on a screen by a virtual trainer called Jun, who does not

simply reel off a pre-set program. Thanks to the numerous cameras and many bio-metric sensors in Lian’s sportswear, he can correct his client at any time and adapt the exercises to her level. Naturally, he also knows how much time she has, so that he can send her off to the compartment’s small shower in time for her arrival.

On the platform, a bicycle is already waiting for her: it was ordered by her vir-tual fitness trainer during the journey. In fact, Lian is already rather exhausted and would rather have taken a taxi – but then she is actually glad to cover the last few kilometers in the fresh air on this fine evening. It goes without saying that even Lian’s rental bicycle is equipped with many entertainment options. This means that, as she rides, she can watch the news on the display and dictate a short mes-sage to her friends. “I’ll be there on time! At which entrance are we meeting?”

The world of the young Chinese woman Lian is still just a vision of the future – today, we have neither driverless taxis nor express trains with fitness com-partments. However, Lian’s world certainly could become reality in a few decades. It is in line with the “Flexperience Mobility” sce-nario devised by thyssenkrupp experts as part of the Foresight process. They wanted to know how mobility might develop and

have outlined several alternative images of the future. thyssenkrupp is using the Foresight process to prepare for fundamen-tal changes in key areas at an early stage – and to play an active part in shaping the world of tomorrow and beyond.

Local train connectionsThis world could also look as it does in the “Passive Hubfficiency” scenario, in which Holger and Anette from Berlin live in the year 2030. These newlyweds live on the outskirts of a German capital whose population has now grown to six million, and they both commute daily to work in the center. While Holger is still drinking his coffee at home, Anette has long since left their apartment in a 40-story passive house, timber-frame, high-rise building and taken the express metro to the cen-tral Mitte district. The couple would like to be able to travel to work each morn-ing together, but recently it has become increasingly rare for them to get the same time slots on the trains.

While Holger finishes off his break-fast, Anette’s avatar suddenly appears on the intelligent wallpaper in the living room. “I’m at the station now,” her digital double announces. “It’s very busy here...” Almost around the clock and nearly every day, the platforms are full of commuters

No idling: On the express train, passengers can keep fit, do some work, or watch a movie. Mobility itself becomes incidental

trying to head toward the center. For more than five years now, they have been restricted to specific trains on local pub-lic transportation. To be able to carry the rapidly growing population efficiently, the Berlin public transportation company was obliged shortly after 2030 to switch to this system, which was revolutionary at the time. Since then, commuters have not been able simply to board a train when it suits them. Instead, the control center allocates them a specific connection for the outward and return journeys 24 hours in advance.

The change was controversial, but it had an immediate impact. Whereas pre-viously, trains were full at peak times and often half-empty otherwise, they are now well occupied all day. It is this system that created the capacity to enable the opera-tor to offer Berlin’s growing population

By now, that was only a dim memory for the inhabitants of the megacity. Personal digital assistants and new mobility service providers made every movement into an event. Each kilometer brought new experiences

2030

In this year, traffic in Shanghai still presented a daily struggle. Congestion and smog made every journey a great strain

2020

010 thyssenkrupp techforum 01.2017


The control center allocates commuters a specific connection for the outward and return journeys 24 hours in advance. Trains are well occupied all day.

a functioning local public transporta-tion service for the long term. This is why a referendum, in which voters in the cap-ital showed support for the change, was conducted under the slogan, “We are vot-ing for maximum efficiency in local public transportation!” For many couples, how-ever, it also means they have to organize their day according to the transportation capacity of the buses and trains. This also applies to Holger. “You have to set off for the station now,” his avatar on the wall-paper monitor reminds him. “Your train departs in 13 minutes.”

Holger cycles the few kilometers to the stop, a ride during which he no longer has to move past long lines of cars, as in the past. Following the dramatic growth in Berlin’s population, very few people still use cars – which, moreover, have long since ceased to be a status symbol. The main thing is to reach your destina-tion on time – this is how most people now

think. Holger’s aim for this evening is to meet up with Anette and some friends at quarter past eight to watch the first European walking on Mars, live on holo-gram television. “When will we get home this evening?” he asks his digital assis-tant. Immediately, he receives the answer reflected onto his data glasses: “Arrival Holger: 19:48; arrival Anette: 20:01.” The evening has been rescued.

These are two scenarios that could not be more different. One has a local public transportation system streamlined for maximum efficiency and dictating the rhythm of its users’ lives. The other involves mobility that functions so flexibly that it is scarcely noticed alongside peo-ple’s everyday experiences. Today, nobody knows which of these scenarios may become reality, or where in the world it will happen. What is certain is that these very different visions of the future are the result of detailed analysis of future trends

and possible factors influencing the mobil-ity market. It is not crucial to know now exactly what needs people will have then. It is much more important that thyssen-krupp should be prepared for a whole range of conceivable developments.

Paradise for individualists These include a third scenario, in which individualism is seen as the greatest good. “I go MEhattan,” therefore, is the name given to this possible future by the par-ticipants in the Foresight workshop. This egocentric society has only a few rules and

regulations, but a lot of deregulation and many innovations. Everybody does what they want, and status is central to people’s lives – even and especially in mobility. One such person is Steven, an IT expert and successful entrepreneur from Los Angeles. Even if he wanted to, there is no way he could get from his self-designed house in the hills around the megacity into the center by public transportation. In this metropolis of 58 million inhabitants, the trains, urban rail system, and buses do not form a coherent network. There may be something resembling a functioning

connection here and there, but most peo-ple are dependent on their own resources to get around.

This is no problem for Steven. On the contrary, he loves getting into his 500 hp electric sports car each morning and thus being able to show off his success in public. The automobile has all the technological gimmicks that manufacturers in 2032 can offer, but Steven very consciously switches many of these convenient aids off. He is particularly reluctant to use the navigation system, because, for Steven, making his way through the chaotic Los Angeles traf-fic has become a kind of sport. As he does almost every morning, he makes a short video call to his business partner Stanley. “Hi Stanley, are you ready to go?” “Of course, and today you have no chance,” comes the prompt reply. “Let’s go!” The pair have a standing wager between them: who will manage to reach the parking lot outside the company’s headquarters

The train calls: In the “Passive Hubfficiency” scenario, local public transportation dictates the rhythm of its passengers’ lives

In this year, the Berlin public transportation company switched to the revolutionary system after a referendum. This allowed the city to continue growing

2030



Steven loves getting into his 500 hp electric sports car and being able to show off his success in public.

on the 121st floor, for in a neighboring wing she also has her practice, where she treats her patients with tailored medication. Just now, she is finishing work for the day and wants to do a little shopping for the evening meal with her husband and children. She does not have to wait long for the eleva-tor to the grocery shop on the 75th floor: now that cabs no longer require ropes, the traditional elevator has turned into a kind of local transportation system within buildings. Depending on the current level of demand, a greater or smaller number of cabs can run in the shafts. In addition, they can now even move horizontally, creating a dense network of connections throughout Akari’s building complex.

After a few minutes, she has reached the store, which sells almost exclusively urban farming products. Most of the tomatoes and lettuces on display come

first today? In addition to all the horse-power, this drive demands good nerves, lots of experience, and plenty of intuition, because, depending on the constantly changing traffic situation, you need to take spontaneous shortcuts in order to make fast progress. Mastering this chaos gives Steve and Stanley a particular thrill. Simultaneously, they start their engines and set off.

What does a company need to do today to enable it to be successful in such a world? What technologies does it have to prioritize to ensure it has the right prod-ucts in its portfolio in the future? In the “I go MEhattan” future, those that can quickly bring new innovations to market and offer solutions for an increasingly chaotic infrastructure are likely to be at an advantage. The situation will require ideas with which the jumble of infrastructures and of propulsion and mobility concepts can be mastered.

Living and working in the same building complexBy contrast, the “Cocooned Community” scenario presents completely different challenges. Here, nobody would think of regarding mobility as an expression of individuality, let alone as an adventure. On the contrary, in this possible world of the future, people live in gigantic, multi-functional buildings that they rarely leave – “My home is my castle.” Here, life and work sit so close together that finding solutions for vertical and horizontal trans-portation between floors and the farthest reaches of the widely spread buildings is the main priority.

Akari, a 45-year-old immunothera-pist, has not left her building complex in central Tokyo for nearly a month. She does not just live here, in a spacious apartment

from the building’s many terraces, which deliver a rich harvest throughout the year thanks to state-of-the-art cultivation and irrigation technologies. Long journeys for foodstuffs are just as rare as meat on the plate, because people pay attention, by conviction, to living sustainably and avoiding unnecessary burdens on the environment. A moving walkway brings her the last few meters, all the way to the front door of her apartment. Before Akari and her husband start cooking, they sit out on the balcony with a glass of wine and let their gaze wander over Tokyo. “Can you imagine how our parents used to throw themselves every morning into the city traffic and spend several hours in their car or on the subway?” Akari asks her husband. He shakes his head and takes her in his arms. The couple will not leave their world for months to come.

Local transporta-tion system for buildings: Elevators move vertically and horizontally. The number of cabs is adjusted automatically to meet demand

Focus on the individual: The egocentric society has only a few rules and regulations


15thyssenkrupp techforum 01.2017

The automobile becomesautonomous

All over the world, megacities are growing and cities are rising ever higher. As a rule, more inhabitants also mean more traffic, more vehicles – and less space. Automated

assistance and control systems can help to ensure that, despite this, traffic does not come to a halt.

One example is traffic control centers that suggest new routes or prescribe a different speed limit in real time. Another is automated functions that help drivers to bypass bottlenecks safely and quickly. These all lead to less stop-and-go, prevent abrupt braking, and reduce fuel consump-tion, noise, and emissions.

András Csaba, Project Leader Automated Driving at thyssenkrupp Steering in Hungary, is working to turn such visions into reality. An electrical engineer, he has been working on intelli-gent vehicle control systems for decades. With his team in Budapest, he is currently

researching concepts for getting auto-mated driving functions onto the roads. “Our advanced development project team is at present developing a system that will use digital image processing and algo-rithms to enable automobiles to brake, accelerate, and be steered automatically by means of an integrated vehicle dynam-ics control program,” Csaba explains.

At present, the thyssenkrupp engi-neers are accumulating the necessary know-how to develop and test new solu-tions. “We are concentrating primarily on capturing a vehicle’s surroundings with cameras and other sensors and are refin-ing our demo system,” Csaba notes. This is based on automobiles that have a wealth of sensors and cameras enabling them to per-ceive their surroundings. “We are currently developing algorithms that describe the surroundings and all the objects around a vehicle. These data will then be evaluated in an integrated vehicle dynamics control program to move the automobile in the desired direction,” Csaba says.

For vehicles to be able one day to drive autonomously, they will also need to be connected with each other and their surroundings: they will use radio technol-ogy to exchange information with other vehicles and the transportation infra-structure on traffic flow, the state of roads or traffic lights, or the current weather. This information, too, will have to be ana-lyzed to provide signals for the drive and control systems. The aim is to automate routine driving processes more and more and, later, to replace the driver with intel-ligent programs. “In 2035, we will already have twelve percent of vehicles driving around completely autonomously,” Csaba predicts. “Today, automobile manufac-turers are selling a particular experience: how does it feel to drive? In the future, the experience will be: what I can do during my journey, because I no longer have to do the driving myself. This is the future of the automobile industry.”

Arguably the most important prereq-uisite for this, however, is that humans should be willing to relinquish control over the vehicle. “That can be frighten-ing,” says Csaba, who himself once gave up control over a test vehicle at high speed. However, he also knows that intel-ligent assistance systems and automated functions have one crucial advantage: they make vehicles and road traffic safer. “The vast majority of accidents today are

Lane-keeping, parking, and freeway driving – there are more and more assistance systems to support drivers. Autonomous driving no longer seems so very far away

caused by humans,” the expert observes. A study by the German Association of the Automotive Industry shows that the num-ber of critical situations on a freeway falls by up to 82 percent when more than half the drivers have switched on the cruise control and collision warning functions. Therefore, the increasing automation of vehicles can indeed lead to a reduction in the number of road traffic-related deaths and injuries.

Office on wheels: When people give up control, they can make meaningful use of their traveling time

“In the future, the experience will be: what I can do during my journey, because I no longer have to do the driving myself.” András Csaba, Project Leader Automated Driving

All change: By 2035, twelve percent of vehicles should already be driving around completely autonomously – which will also influence their design

Text: Axel Novak

Phot

o: D

aim

ler

AG

; Illu

stra

tion:

Ski

zzom

at/M

arie

Em

mer

man

n



The sound of silence

“Vibrations in the body of the servo motor are transmitted to the steering column.”Andreas Waeber, project engineer at thyssenkrupp Steering

Powerful engines are loud – or are they? The electric motor disproves this simple formula – sometimes with drastic consequences. This is why the engineers at thyssenkrupp Steering are seeking to give electric drive systems a voice

Fine-tuning of sound: thyssenkrupp engineers test the software for active sound design in an anechoic chamber

Electricity is the gasoline of the future. More and more vehicles on Europe’s roads will in the future be powered by electric-ity and make their way to their destinations with support from

intelligent assistance systems. This will mean not only fewer pollutants in the air but also less noise – and that, in particu-lar, is a problem.

Electric motors have neither pis-tons nor exhaust flaps and do not stage thousands of controlled explosions every minute. Instead, they hum away quietly to themselves. This may seem an achieve-ment to noise-plagued city-dwellers, but it is prompting some concern among politicians, academics, and dedicated auto mobile fans. This is because engine noise is not all bad – it could actually make a return through the back door, in an artificially produced form.

“We are looking at designing vehi-cles so that the motors are easier to hear,” says Andreas Waeber of thyssenkrupp Steering in Eschen in the Principality of Liechtenstein. The 27-year-old from Switzerland is a project engineer looking into electric motors, which he wants to use as a source of vibrations. His aim is to use these to create driving noise that can be transmitted to the automobile’s interior and the outside world.

“This is not just about sounding more sporty,” Waeber says. “The main aim is to increase the safety of both the driver and other road users.” The reason is that elec-tric motors do not produce a typical noise, so even experienced drivers lose a sense of their speed. It is also about the safety of other road users. “Electric automobiles are very quiet and, in the future, will probably be barely audible,” Waeber says. Pedestrians and cyclists, in particular, could in future be unable to hear them at all.

For this reason, the European Union is requiring car manufacturers to fit an acoustic vehicle alerting system from 2019 to hybrid electric or all-electric vehicles. The aim is not only to make pedestrians and other road users aware of the vehicle’s presence but also to enable the driver to easily recognize actions such as braking and acceleration.

However, it requires a certain amount of technical effort to produce a driving noise that sounds authentic and can be clearly perceived as such. Many sound designers and suppliers to the automotive industry are using complex loudspeaker systems to pick up the sound of the motor and channel it into the pas-senger compartment or out onto the road. Not so thyssenkrupp: Waeber and his boss, Martin Meyer, are using technology that has long been available. They are

employing the servo motor on the steering column as an actuator and, through this, creating perceptible vibrations and noises.

“Electric motors automatically create noises because of electromagnetic forces,” Waeber explains. “In our process, we feed in additional electricity to deliberately produce vibrations in the body of the servo motor. Because of the design, these are then transmitted to the steering column.” Newly developed software then ensures that these vibrations are also picked up by the driver’s sense of touch, so that the driver detects the motor’s performance in the conventional way. The vibrations transmitted are also strong enough to make the vehicle audible on the road.

The thyssenkrupp engineers have successfully completed initial trials with electromechanical steering systems in col-laboration with experts from the Munich

University of Applied Sciences. However, there are still some hurdles to be overcome in the transition from prototype to mass production. These include legal obstacles, because a vehicle’s steering is a safety factor. The project will therefore have to obtain the relevant approvals.

The software can create all sorts of vibrations from the motor’s electromag-netic forces. Not only will it be possible to produce any sound imaginable, but driv-ers will one day be able to define their own acoustic soundtrack for their motoring – even the roar of a predator or the splash-ing of water. “But that is still a long way off,” Waeber says.

Text: Axel Novak

Sound experts: Dr. Martin Meyer (right) and his team are using existing technology

Phot

os: T

hom

as E

ugst

er/t

hyss

enkr

upp



Electric in the fast lane T

he whole world is talking about electric cars, but there are still very few of them on the roads. “However, the end of the combustion engine is going to come sooner than

experts predict,” Achim Kampker says. While the automotive industry is not getting into gear, the professor and chair at RWTH Aachen University has proven with his zero-emissions StreetScooter that eco-friendly e-mobility is affordable even in small quantities and does not require development times measured in years.

The StreetScooter, originally planned as a university research project, has become an electric utility vehicle that is now coming off the production line at the former Bombardier plant in Aachen. The Work model moves along quietly and, in covering an average of 11,000 kilometers

It is its practical qualities that distin-guish the StreetScooter. The cargo space measures more than four cubic meters and can take a load of 650 kilograms. Fully laden, the vehicle weighs 2,130 kilograms. By the end of a long day of deliveries, this can be half a metric ton less, which has an impact on damping and stability. The new shock absorbers developed by thyssenkrupp Bilstein have guaranteed comfort and safety in all situ-ations since the test phases.

“By cooperating closely, we have achieved an ingenious breakthrough,” Achim Kampker says. Almost unnoticed by rivals and the public, Deutsche Post is now building one e-automobile after another. It is expected that there will already be more

Quiet and emission-free electric drives are particularly well suited for downtown traffic. Germany’s Deutsche Post is leading the way here with the StreetScooter. This utility vehicle contains innovations from thyssenkrupp Steel and thyssenkrupp Bilstein

Pioneering: Deutsche Post plans to make more than 10,000 StreetScooters by the end of 2017

per year, saves three metric tons of CO2 in that time. It is quick and maneuverable, has a maximum speed of 80 kilometers per hour, and a range of 80 kilometers. A lot of these yellow-painted light trucks with green drive technology are now on the move throughout Germany, deliv-ering parcels and letters. In 2014, this startup became a subsidiary of Deutsche Post DHL Group, the world’s biggest logis-tics corporation.

The StreetScooter is regarded as pioneering. When Deutsche Post, the oper-ator of one of the largest vehicle fleets in Germany, was looking for a cost-effective and functional e-delivery vehicle, with an eye on climate protection, increasingly scarce resources, and the huge growth in online commerce, the StreetScooter was a perfect fit for its “Go Green” concept. Its great selling points are functionality, efficiency, and environmental sustaina-bility, as this vehicle has to cope with up to 300 stops and starts per day and needs an adequate loading capacity for letters and parcels.

“The StreetScooter is a showcase joint project and the best way of demonstrating that e-mobility makes inventions possible that were still unimaginable ten years ago,” Kampker stresses. After all, who would have thought that a logistics company, with a core focus on distributing letters and parcels, would become an automobile producer? However, a success story like this requires cooperation between different sectors and strategic development partners such as thyssenkrupp Steel and thyssen-krupp Bilstein, which made a decisive contribution to that success.

“In the design, we opted for economic lightweight construction and came up with a body structure made from high-strength and ultra-high-strength steels, as well as hot-formed steels for the A and B pillars,” explains Andreas Breidenbach of the Technology and Innovation Division at thyssenkrupp Steel. The challenges were great, because not only the occu-pants have to be protected in the event of a crash: the battery, installed in a floor developed specially by thyssenkrupp, must not be damaged, either.

than 10,000 vehicles by the end of 2017, and the plans are ambitious. In the medium term, Germany’s yellow-liveried giant aims to have its entire conventional fleet for parcel and letter delivery – currently numbering 70,000 vehicles – powered by electricity. Also, there is already an XL ver-sion with a loading capacity of eight cubic meters, and an XXL version with double that space is due to follow later.

Every day, inquiries come in from Germany and abroad. “The demand is huge,” Kampker says. This is because the vehicle is also attractive to local authori-ties, tradesmen, and all service providers who often have to drive short distances in urban areas. Soon, they may be able to do it with zero emissions.

“By cooperating closely with our partners, we have achieved an ingenious breakthrough.” Achim Kampker, Professor at RWTH Aachen University and CEO of StreetScooter GmbH

Charging up: At Deutsche Post, the future belongs to electric drives

Text: Dagmar Haas-Pilwat

Phot

os: S

tree

tSco

oter

Gm

bH (

2)



Zone 4 Zone 6

Zone 7

Zone 8

Zone 9 Zone 10Zone 12

Zone 13

Zone 24Zone 29

Zone 4 Zone 6

Zone 7

Zone 8

Zone 9 Zone 10Zone 12

Zone 13

Zone 24Zone 29Possible stops

How can we stay mobile in congested conurbations? thyssenkrupp Elevator Innovation and the car manufacturer BMW Group are developing an efficient transportation concept called “People Mover”: the aim is for every employee at the BMW Research and Innovation Center (FIZ) to be able to reach any point in the complex within five minutes

“People Mover” – for future mobility

Connection by ACCEL®

One building is in a rather remote location on the FIZ site. It is currently reached by a tunnel. Access is controlled by stoplights. However, to keep the building within the five-minute reachability zone, an accelerating walkway like ACCEL could connect the satellite even in heavy traffic.

Text: Axel Novak Infographic: Niko Wilkesmann

Getting out: Ideally, employees should have reached their destination after five minutes, at the latest. The vehicle now drives on to its next assignment.

5Depending on demand, it can take a few minutes for the vehicle to arrive – the average is 2 minutes 30 seconds.

4In the future, it could take employees no longer than five minutes to appear in person at any location at the FIZ. To do this, they proceed to one of 16 possible stops.

2

A total of 15,000 employees are working at the FIZ to develop technology for the future for the BMW Group. With the help of a special algorithm, thyssenkrupp simulates employees’ movements on the site. The algorithm is based on patterns of movement between the individual buildings.

1

Simulation results have shown that, initially, four i3 cars would be sufficient for transpor-tation. They flit across the site and make sure that employees get to where they want to go.

3The technical heart of the BMW Group

Travel matrixFrom: To:

thyssenkrupp calculates the use of vehicles on the basis of patterns of movement identified previously. They show how employees move on the FIZ site, as well as when and to where.

At the BMW Group Research and Innovation Center, FIZ for short, around 15,000 employees develop vehicles and technologies of the future for the BMW Group. The honeycomb-like layout of the FIZ allows for short journeys and better networking among employees. As the FIZ functions on an interdisciplinary basis, the BMW Group is able to shorten development times. The FIZ is now being enlarged and expanded. In the future, more than 30,000 employees are due to work in an area twice as large. The thyssenkrupp traffic concept will keep them mobile.



In the past, it was all very easy. Nobody had to think long about their power supplies, for these were guaranteed around the clock. When demand was high, additional power stations were started up, and when

consumption fell those power stations were taken offline. This was simple, because fossil energy sources were always sufficient and available on demand. With renewable energy sources such as sun or wind, things are different. Although they often flow in abundance, they are not always available as needed. What is more, in addition to a lack of predictability there is the fact that green electricity is generated not by a limited number of central power plants but by lots of local producers in many places.

This fluctuating, decentralized produc-tion has consequences for grid operators’ load management. It is becoming increas-ingly difficult for them to keep supply and demand in exact balance at the lowest possible cost. However, this is precisely what they have to continue to do in the future despite the transition to renew-ables, because otherwise the voltage quality will suffer and it will not be pos-sible to keep the standard frequency of

50 Hertz in the German power grid stable. With an oversupply of electricity, the fre-quency rises, and conversely, it falls when demand exceeds supply. In both cases, there is a danger of malfunctions in the power grid and even complete failure.

However, there is one way to handle these volatile renewable sources: to use electricity exactly when it is available in sufficient quantity and at low cost. For pri-vate households, the variable tariffs that this requires are only gradually coming onto the market, but in industry things have already changed. Large companies, in particular, cover most of their demand with energy quotas that they buy far in

advance at fixed prices. In cases of acute need, they obtain supplies on the electric-ity exchange, where they pay spot market prices that depend on the level of supply at the time.

In this way, companies can already respond flexibly to prices and use elec-tricity at times when it is much cheaper because the supply is high. They would benefit even more if they could adjust their energy consumption with maximum precision to meet the supply available from renewable sources at a given time. This is where cross-energy manage-ment (CEM) comes into play – the precise adjustment of flexible, energy-intensive

electrical processes to the current energy supply. The operators of large cold stores, for example, could shut down their facil-ities for a few hours without the goods defrosting. This would enable companies not only to secure the energy they need but also to achieve cost benefits.

Using differing industrial processes sensiblythyssenkrupp has been pursuing CEM for years, because the Group is not just a large consumer of energy itself through its steel business but also looks after customers in energy-intensive industries through its plant business. To this end the Group’s

Powerful crushers: Raw material is pre-ground and cement clinker fine-ground in the mills

TechCenter Control Technology (TCCT) has been commissioned to find suitable applications and to identify how differing industrial processes can be used sensibly for CEM. “Together with our colleagues from plant construction in the Industrial Solutions business area, we decided to take a cement plant as our first applica-tion,” says Henning Wagner of the TCCT, who was involved in this project from the very beginning. The production of cement is one of those energy-intensive processes that require a particularly large volume of electricity. As a result, electricity pro-curement costs are a key competitive factor for plant operators, and that is

“The two mills are electrically powered components that can be operated relati vely flexibly.” Henning Wagner, TechCenter Control Technology at thyssenkrupp

The transition to renewables is radically changing the supply of electricity in Germany. In the future, consumers will no longer determine when power is produced; they will instead have to respond to supply. Cross-energy management opens up an opportunity for industry to secure its own energy supplies and save costs

Text: Bärbel Brockmann

Flexibility is key


Projects CROSS-ENERGY MANAGEMENT

“We at thyssenkrupp want to make major industrial energy consumers fit for the transition to renewables.” Dr. Joachim Stumpfe, expert in innovation topics across the whole Group

why this was chosen as the first CEM application. Another reason is that, as a producer of cement plants, thyssenkrupp is very familiar with the processes there. Additional input was provided by two cement producers.

Operations are geared to the supply of green powerIn the first step of the cement production process, the raw material from the quarry is crushed and pre-ground by a mill. It then enters the heart of the plant, a rotary kiln, in which it is heated to form cement clinker. The clinker is then fine-ground by a second mill until the prescribed gran-ularity is achieved. “The two mills are electrically powered components that can be operated relatively flexibly,” Wagner says. “You could, for example, power up the first mill at the precise time when a lot of electricity is available at low cost from renewable sources. The raw meal would then be stored temporarily in a silo before entering the kiln.” By contrast, if power is in short supply at the time, the

clinker could be stored in the silo before the second milling process. That second milling process would be started only when enough power was again available. The kiln itself, which is powered by coal and other fossil fuels, is not part of this calculation.

To identify which method of operating the plant yields the best results, the TCCT commissioned the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg to simulate the processes. The researchers led by Prof. Reinhard German of the Chair for Computer Science 7 (Computer Networks and Communication

Systems) created simulation models for two cement plants with different capacity, a dif-ferent raw meal preparation process, and different total electric output. The research-ers also gave each plant a clinker silo, a redox flow battery with electric storage capacity to supply the whole operation of the plant for one hour, and a wind turbine. These units were intended to supplement the optimized plant control process.

The aim of the simulations was to show, for example, whether it makes sense to power up the mill when there is surplus power in the grid, even if the material has to be put in temporary storage afterward, or whether it is possible, in the event of a shortage of power, to switch a unit off and to use reserves instead. In this way, for the grid operator the cement plant would be a supplier of operating reserves, with which fluctuations in the grid are balanced out. The grid operator would reimburse the cement producer for this system service (secondary operating reserves).

The models were fed with different historical electricity price data from the

spot market and different availabilities of electricity generated by wind power. Then the researchers worked through a lot of possible scenarios. When could the cement plant use what quantity of wind power? What was the plant’s utilization level? When did it make sense to start up the mills? When was it better to store electricity, and under what circumstances could operating reserves be sold? And, finally, what impact did the various con-stellations have on the price per metric ton of cement?

Sale of operating reserves increases cost savingsThe simulations showed that, with pres-ent electricity prices, optimizing the operations of the plant alone yielded only a relatively small benefit. By contrast, the greatest cost savings were achieved when, in addition to that optimization, all the possibilities for selling operating reserves were exploited. When the researchers then included the battery and wind turbine, the costs fell further. However, this assumed

Much achieved: The cement industry has already become “greener.” Cross-energy management promises further improvements

especially favorable conditions, such as a high number of full-load hours for the wind turbine. The results of the simula-tion were summarized in an internal study for concrete values at two cement plants. They were also presented at a symposium on the basis of values and assumptions similar to those used in the study for thys-senkrupp. In the process, the researchers reached the conclusion that, in the best case, electricity costs could be reduced from 2.15 euros per metric ton of cement to 1.68 euros. CO2 emissions were cut from 34,000 to 31,000 metric tons per year.

“We at thyssenkrupp want to make major industrial energy consumers fit for the transition to renewables,” says Dr. Joachim Stumpfe from Corporate Function Technology, Innovation & Sustainability, which deals with inno-vation topics across the whole Group. “This can be done by flexible operations or with the help of large energy storage systems. For us, the Erlangen study forms an important foundation for research into these possibilities.”

of CO2 per metric ton of cement have

already been saved by the German cement industry since 2000.

93 kg of electricity were used by the German cement industry in 2014. This equates to around ten percent of energy consumption in cement production.

3.57 TWhof CO2 were created in 2014 on average through power and fuel consumption in producing one metric ton of cement.

170 kg

Source: German Cement Works Association

Phot

os: t

hyss

enkr

upp,

Get

ty Im

ages

PROJECTS CROSS-ENERGY MANAGEMENT


Perfect overview for servicing

When the service techni-cians of thyssenkrupp Elevator in the USA are faced with an especially challenging task during elevator maintenance,

they wear a high-performance computer on their noses. “HoloLens” is the name of these interactive smartglasses, and they give their wearers, directly in their field of vision, all the technical data they need to carry out their work. By contrast with so-called virtual reality glasses, which take away all sense of wearers’ surroundings, they can look through these as they would through slightly tinted sunglasses, seeing and hearing everything around them. For this reason, experts talk of “mixed reality.” As well as data, holograms can be blended in – for example, a 3D model of the very type of elevator that is about to be serviced. To make this possible, the smartglasses are fitted with six cameras. HoloLens uses these to scan the surroundings and thereby constantly determines its current position. Only in this way can the holograms stand still in the room while the technician walks around them.

HoloLens is often used for the first time even before the actual maintenance

work is done. To prepare for their job, a technician can examine the eleva-tor before leaving their base and decide exactly which specialized tools they need to take with them. Later, too, if a problem arises at the scene that they cannot solve alone, their intelligent companion will again come to the rescue: they can use the built-in Skype function to call an expert in the back office who knows more. Thanks to the integrated camera, this colleague can see exactly what the technician on-site has in front of them. Over the internet, they can draw circles or arrows directly in their colleague’s field of vision and thereby give them support and guidance.

The technician can also do something for their colleagues: they can use HoloLens to take digital notes on-site and thus make future jobs on a specific elevator easier. “Thanks to this intelligent device, we now need much less time for complex main-tenance tasks,” says Sascha Frömming, Head of Global Software Development at thyssenkrupp Elevator. “On-site assign-ments are completed more quickly: initial trials have shown that work can be carried out up to four times faster with the sup-port of HoloLens.” Therefore, the financial expense – one set of glasses costs 5,000 dollars – is soon recouped.

Numerous applicationsShortly before their HoloLens became mar-ket-ready, Microsoft established contact in early 2015 with selected industrial com-panies to talk to them about where and how the new device might be used. After a joint workshop in fall 2016, a firm deci-sion was taken to use HoloLens in future for intelligent maintenance. “Microsoft has developed a great device, and we, as an industrial partner, are benefiting from the added value that it offers,” says

Frömming. “In turn, we are very valuable to Microsoft as a partner, because we pro-vide them with applications for HoloLens that serve as a model.” Frömming can also envision applications for other business areas in the thyssenkrupp Group and in completely different sectors. For exam-ple, Microsoft has concluded comparable cooperation arrangements in the automo-tive industry.

The use of these smartglasses in the elevator service department of thys-senkrupp Elevator in the USA is the first concrete application that thyssenkrupp has defined in its development cooper-ation with Microsoft. A second use case is currently being prepared: support in

The HoloLens smartglasses support thyssenkrupp Elevator technicians in the main-tenance of elevators – and this is meant to be just the start

training courses. It will soon be possible to view all elevator systems as 3D models in HoloLens. Then, it will no longer be neces-sary to stand beside an actual elevator, and it will be possible to hold a training session all over the world.

To date, the feedback from service technicians in the USA ranges from total enthusiasm to cautious acceptance, depending on the individual’s general attitude to technology. Many still find the handling of HoloLens particularly unusual: it is guided by the body – for instance, by finger gestures or head and eye movements. “Ultimately, however, these glasses will win everybody over,” Frömming says.

Mixed reality: The smartglasses supply information but do not suppress real surroundings

“Thanks to this intelligent device, we now need much less time for complex maintenance tasks.” Sascha Frömming, Head of Global Software Development at thyssenkrupp Elevator

Virtual elevator: HoloLens should soon also display 3D models of elevator systems Ph

oto:

thys

senk

rupp

Text: Bärbel Brockmann

PROJECTS Hololens


The transportation of materials from mines and quarries is demanding and sometimes dangerous. Skip Way brings loads up to the rim of an open-pit mine not just safely, but also in an environment-friendly manner

Ropes, notserpentine bends

Text: François Baumgartner

A huge hole in the earth opens up, with slopes falling away steeply at an angle of up to 75 degrees. It is terraced, to prevent slippage of the steep slopes. At the bottom,

workers are busy amid excavators and other construction machinery – as tiny as figures on a model railroad. From the depths of the open-pit mine, a dirt road leads up to the top, snaking its way up the slope, often with serpentine bends. Driving up this road are columns of diesel- powered heavy trucks transporting hard rock, ore, or overburden at a snail’s pace up to the rim of the open-pit mine. One single dump truck can cost a princely sum of 2.5 million US dollars, with a dead-weight of up to 260 metric tons and a maximum payload of 400 metric tons.

Even in smaller mines and quarries, an all-terrain truck needs almost one hour to convey the material to the top, deliver it to the crusher or processing station, and then drive back down to the mine to collect another load. It is a demanding, sometimes dangerous task, because it involves driving along narrow, unpaved “haul roads,” which are muddy in bad weather. In addition, fully laden trucks encounter vehicles that have discharged their load coming toward them. It is no wonder that mine operators have long

An alternative to trucks: Two parallel goods ropeways transport a load of up to 70 metric tons to the top


PROJECTS Skip Way

High performance: The ropeways extend from an anchorage point at the foot of the open-pit mine to a mast at its rim

Phot

os: t

hyss

enkr

upp

wondered whether the mining of raw materials can be organized in a way that is less costly, time-consuming, and risky, and more environment-friendly.

This is why thyssenkrupp Industrial Solutions (tkIS) has developed the Tandem Skip Way as an alternative to traditional columns of trucks. It consists, fundamentally, of two parallel goods ropeways leading out of the mine along the slope and transporting a load of up to 70 metric tons. The ropes extend from an anchorage point embedded in concrete at the foot of the open-pit mine to a mast at the rim of the mine at the top. “At the bottom, shovel excavators load the trucks with lumps of mined material,” reports Dr. Wei Ye of tkIS. “They are tipped into the ropeway’s gondola-like skips and transported up to the mine rim at the top on a staggered basis.”

When the skips arrive at the top, a crusher or processing station waits to crush the material. One of the two skips discharges its load straight into the bin. The other tips the lumps into a truck, which transports them a few meters to the crusher and unloads them there for crushing: in this way, the mine operators can use two ropeways operating in parallel but need only one processing station. The crushed and, in some cases, screened raw materials are then loaded onto a conveyor and transported to an external loading station or processing plant or directly to

„We developed the Skip Way system to reduce the amount of truck traffic in mines or even, ideally, to replace it completely.”Dr. Franz Wolpers, Head of Materials Handling at thyssenkrupp Industrial Solutions

Head of Materials Handling at tkIS. “Skip Way is suitable for smaller, deep open-pit mines and quarries. In developing it, we were able to draw on our many years of experience in the production of ambitious cable-crane systems for the construction of particularly high dams.”

With Skip Way, mine operators can dispense with many of their expensive trucks. Apart from the costs of their acquisition, this also significantly reduces expenditure on drivers and fuel. The serpentine bends along the slopes can also become markedly more modest, for if fewer heavy trucks are on the move, single-lane roads are sufficient, rather than two-lane tracks, and these can also be steeper, thus reducing transportation times. If a mine operator handles material transportation completely by means of Skip Way, they will achieve the maximum saving, as in this case three people will be entirely sufficient to run the facility. Conventional transportation would require ten to twenty trucks.

Skip Way defies even heavy rain, fog, snow, and iceIn addition to reduced costs, Skip Way users benefit from the high flexibility of this system – for instance if they wish to transport not only raw materials but also overburden out of the mine. One Skip Way can carry the valuable material directly to the crusher while the other tips the

overburden at the top into a truck that is standing ready. There is also flexibility in the arrangement of the loading, unload-ing, and drive stations. “Their positions can be moved after commissioning, as it is just a matter of concreting new anchor-age points,” Ye explains. “One novelty is the possibility of using Skip Way even in earthquake-prone regions or mines with unstable slopes, as the rope support masts above and the anchorage points below are located off the steep slopes and are anchored flexibly in their ground foun-dations with pins.” Even the weather has no impact on this system: Skip Way is not dependent on roads and is therefore fully functional even in heavy rain, fog, snow, or ice.

Finally, the thyssenkrupp develop-ers have also thought about the future of open-pit mining. “Mines are becoming deeper and deeper,” Wolpers says. “That’s why Skip Way can be extended to greater depths, as required.” Environmental protection, too, is an important factor for operators, because this is likely in the future to be a major argument in the renewal of operating licenses. Skip Way can also score in this area: with the reduction or complete elimination of truck traffic in mines, engine noise, dust, and CO2 emissions will be reduced significantly.

With the patented Skip Way system, tkIS has developed an innovative solution for conveying uncrushed material, which

Processing: On arrival at the top, the materials are reduced in a crusher and transported away

has benefited from the company’s entire wealth of experience. “We are leaders in technology for cable cranes and have built around 150 of these, in all, over 100 years. This means we have the knowledge and the necessary experience in that field,” Ye says. Skip Way is still a technology of the future for many potential customers, he adds, because open-pit mines need to have a certain depth to be able to use the system.

One exception is gold-mining com-panies, some of which have already expressed an interest in the new technol-ogy. “Gold-mining companies have steep open-pit mines and conveying capacities of up to 2,000 metric tons of uncrushed material per hour – which is just right for our conveying system,” Wolpers stresses, adding that the quarrying industry is also showing interest. “We have received pre-liminary inquiries, especially from Russia, the USA, China, and southern and west-ern Africa,” he says. And when could Skip Way start operating? “Every project begins with an initial technical clarification,” Wolpers replies. “Then a budget offer is prepared, followed by a feasibility study and a fixed price offer.” After that, he adds, many customers still have to choose a suit-able financing solution. “Such facilities have a relatively long project and plan-ning phase,” Wolpers emphasizes. “After an order is received, implementation often lasts up to 20 months from then.”

can be carried up from the open-pit mine by Skip Way

70 metric tons

is the maximum angle of incline. If it is any greater, the Skip Conveyor comes into use

45 degrees

a customer’s factory. “These facilities and factories could be up to 20 kilometers away,” Dr. Ye says. “We have already built one of these conveyor systems for raw materials in Western Sahara.”

The Skip Way that loads the trucks at the mine rim at the top can also be used to carry overburden away from the mine. “We developed the Skip Way system to reduce the amount of extremely costly, risky, and environment-unfriendly truck traffic in mines or even, ideally, to replace it completely,” explains Dr. Franz Wolpers,

Skip Way – a profile150 cable cranes in 100 years: Skip Way encompasses all the experience that thyssenkrupp has accumulated in this field. The development was prompted by the high costs and CO

2 emissions

associated with the conventional transportation of materials away from mines by truck. For example, Skip Way manages with only three workers, whereas mines today need between ten and twenty trucks. In addition, the ropeway is not dependent on the weather: even heavy rain, fog, snow, or ice have no impact on the ropeway. The patented system from thyssenkrupp Industrial Solutions is suitable for especially deep open-pit mines. Gold-mining companies and firms in the quarrying industry are already showing an interest in Skip Way. In the future, many heavy trucks in mines will be replaced by this reliable, environment-friendly ropeway technology.


PROJECTS Skip Way


Panorama IndustrIal data space

Text: Constantin Gillies

Everybody wants Industry 4.0, but companies often cannot even exchange data securely. The new Industrial Data Space is intended to change this. thyssenkrupp is already using it to save its customers’ and suppliers’ trucks the annoyance of waiting

The transportation of steel requires precision logistics. Cranes, forklift trucks, and staff must all be ready for the arrival of a truck at the works, as there is often only

a 30-minute window for loading steel coils weighing tons before the next truck arrives. thyssenkrupp Steel Europe han-dles around 20,000 trucks per month in this way. Sometimes, however, an on-schedule landing is not possible – for example, because a truck is stuck in a jam and arrives late. This is irritating for everybody: the loading ramp remains unused, and the driver has to wait until other trucks have been processed.

However, such disruption could soon be a thing of the past, thanks to a new information system that thyssen-krupp has been trialing since February. Arriving trucks report their location every ten minutes – for example, using a spe-cial app that the driver downloads to his smartphone. Using the data, the works can instantly see where the shipment is and whether it is delayed. “In the past, we did not have this transparency, and problems that arose took a lot of manual effort to resolve. In the future, we will be able to assess exactly what a truck’s sta-tus is and when it will arrive,” Dr. Alireza Tavakoli, Industrial Data Space overall project leader at thyssenkrupp, says hap-pily. Delayed trucks are allocated a new loading time by an algorithm. The sys-tem is currently being tried out with three small freight-forwarding companies from the Siegerland region.

At first glance, this may sound very specific, but the project could have far-reaching implications, as what thys-senkrupp is testing here is a completely new way of exchanging data with other companies. To receive the trucks’ posi-tions and their projected arrival times, the Industrial Data Space is being used for the first time. This is a digital space in which companies can exchange digital informa-tion securely. It is the result of a research project initiated in October 2015 by the

Pioneering work for networked industry: Twelve Fraunhofer institutes and some 40 companies are collaborating on the Industrial Data Space project

Logistical challenge: A works often has only 30 minutes for loading

Digital foundations

Panorama IndustrIal data space


German Federal Ministry of Education and Research. Twelve Fraunhofer insti-tutes and around 40 firms, including thyssenkrupp, are collaborating on it. “A key element in Industry 4.0 is data exchange among industrial companies – and the Industrial Data Space is setting the standard here,” explains Dr. Reinhold Achatz, Head of Technology at thyssen-krupp and chairman of the association that is seeking to establish this common data space worldwide.

Visionary project: the end of insular solutionsOf course, companies are already digitally connected, but every firm exchanges data in its own way, with its own formats and according to its own rules. Communication may go smoothly between company A and company B, but it is still far from working well with company C. The Industrial Data Space is intended to put an end to these insular solutions. “This project is vision-ary,” says Sebastian Werner, IT project manager in the Logistic Solutions divi-sion. He and his colleagues created the interface with the data space. The initial results are very promising: the road haul-ers taking part have to build in less buffer time, and the loading team at the works waits less often for a truck in vain.

Smart management at the ramp is only the start, however. In the future, it is also planned to use information about a truck’s speed to predict its arrival time even more accurately. This calculation of the data could simply be performed by an outside service provider – provided that they, in turn, had access to the Industrial Data Space. In the longer term, it is also intended that customers such as steel dis-tributors and automobile manufacturers should have access to the trucks’ current transportation data, to enable them to pre-pare better for deliveries. “All parties will benefit, so this should actually be a natu-ral success,” says Ulrike Höffken, Head of Logistics at thyssenkrupp.

“ Specify precisely who is allowed to see which data”

techforum: Companies are already constantly exchanging data now. Why do we need the Industrial Data Space, too?Prof. Boris Otto: One problem is that companies often lose their data sovereignty as a result, and this is something they do not want. Let me give you an example. A few years ago, many companies opened up electronic marketplaces as a way of ordering their consumables. Suppliers were supposed to use them to post images of their products and data about them, and this did work, after a certain ini-tial period. However, then they were also expected to put customer-specific prices there, and it was at this stage that many of them hesitated, because they did not know who would be able to see this sen-sitive information subsequently. It is in such areas that the Industrial Data Space provides a remedy: users can specify who is allowed to see which data.techforum: The Industrial Data Space is open to all companies. How can you ensure that no competi-tors will use it, posing as customers? Otto: We have both a technical identity man-agement mechanism and an organizational authorization procedure. If you want to get into the data space with a type of software, you have to get it certified by the association beforehand. This is labo-rious, but it makes sense, because the exchange of valuable information is precisely what we want to promote. At present, a lot is still poured into “data lakes” in the hope that the lake’s owner will look after security – but this is often not the case.techforum: Why is this secure data space actually open only to companies? Otto: I hope there will also be something compa-rable for private individuals in the future, as the problem there is the same: everybody has to remem-ber 50 usernames and 50 passwords. Wouldn’t it be nice to have to enter personal data and a credit card number just once, and then to be able to deter-mine selectively who is allowed to see them? Before a journey, for example, you could give your rail oper-ator, airline, and hotel the right to see this data, but only for the duration of the trip. This scope for self-deter mination in relation to data is exactly what the Industrial Data Space is creating.

In the Industrial Data Space, users can define precisely what can happen to their information. In this interview, Professor Boris Otto explains why this data sovereignty is so important

“The Industrial Data Space will restore digital sovereignty.” Dr. Alireza Tavakoli, Industrial Data Space overall project leader at thyssenkrupp

Illus

trat

ion:

iSto

ck/A

F-st

udio

; Pho

tos:

thys

senk

rupp

(2)

; Fra

unho

fer

Inst

itute

However, more preparatory work is still required. The thyssenkrupp project team have been fighting on two fronts at once. First, they had to develop the so-called connector, meaning the interface creating the link with the Industrial Data Space. This space is based on the same principle as music file-sharing platforms on the internet: instead of there being a central computer, the data is stored on users’ computers.

The experts also had to keep in con-stant contact with the association that is tying down the technical details of the Industrial Data Space. A wide variety of companies are on board here, ranging from the insurer Allianz to the automotive suppliers Schaeffler and Bosch and the retail group Rewe. To push development forward, many industrial partners are cur-rently performing application tests. The pharmaceutical manufacturer Boehringer Ingelheim, for example, is examining

whether the platform can be used to share anonymized patient data with research establishments. Volkswagen and Audi want to use it to integrate their factories better both with each other and with suppliers.

The participants have one aim, above all – more security in data traffic, for this is currently still lacking. The fundamental problem is familiar even to private com-puter users: if you use the cloud to share data with others, you are taking risks. You do not know how securely your informa-tion is stored with Google, Dropbox and the like, how long it will be stored there, or what those companies will do with it. The aim is that firms will not have any of these uncertainties in the future. “The Industrial Data Space will restore digital sovereignty,” Tavakoli declares. In other words, each user will be able to specify who can see and open their data – and for how long. It will also be possible, in effect, to attach additional pro-visions to these information packages. For example, there could be a stipulation that “third parties wishing to have this data must pay two cents.” This would signifi-cantly simplify cooperation with outside digital service providers.

These functions are not required for the simple exchange of data on truck positions, but thyssenkrupp is already thinking beyond the pilot project. “Later, people will certainly also want to move sensitive information in the Industrial Data Space, such as customer or 3D design data,” Tava koli explains.

More transparency: It is planned to predict the arrival of trucks more precisely with information on their speed

Professor Boris Otto, head of the Industrial Data Space research project, Fraunhofer Institute for Material Flow and Logistics


Panorama Smart factory

Text: Monika Weiner

In Mannheim, thyssenkrupp is running the first autonomously operating and digitally controlled steel-processing machine. It is a major step on the way to the intelligent factory of the future

At first glance, there is nothing to indicate that the future of steel processing has begun in the Mannheim district of Rheinau. The thyssenkrupp Materials Processing Europe

plant is concealed in a building that differs little from the others in the vast port area. However, if you enter the plant premises and walk to the end of Hall 5, you can watch the first largely autonomous and digitally controlled cut-to-length line in Europe at work. M9 is the name of this colossus, 30 meters long and five meters wide, which is working completely independently behind a head-high grating.

At this moment, the 12-metric-ton sheet steel coil for the next order is float-ing toward the line on a crane. M9 already has its digital working instructions in its memory: the machine is to cut sheets for exhaust mufflers for an automotive sup-plier. Entirely automatically, the sensors check whether the width of the steel sheet

corresponds to the data in the order, and then the machine draws the end of the coil into the processing shaft. From there, the sheet is pushed forward; rolls straighten the material to remove stresses and une-venness; a knife cuts pieces off; every few seconds, finished sheets slide out of the exit slot and are piled onto pallets, tied with steel strapping, and labeled.

M9 can process 70 metric tons of flat steel in a day. This is not much by steel-processing standards, because this line can only cut steel sheets up to a max-imum length of two meters. “However, we are not at all interested in quantity. What matters is the automation and the level of precision for the intended application, at optimum cost,” explains Thomas Wölk, Head of Business Development at thyssen-krupp Materials Processing Europe. “And our customers are excited about the qual-ity. The cut edges are so precise that they can be welded easily. This saves time and costs in subsequent processing.” It is no

Heavyweightfor Industry 4.0 wonder that engineers already see M9 as

the model for future large lines.

Optimum coordination of processesThe automation of production with machines such as M9 is one of many steps on the way to Factory 4.0. In that factory, it is intended that data clouds and flows will bring humans and machines together, but, at the same time, all processes – from receipt of order to delivery – will take place with optimum coordination, to save time and resources. “Until now, however, this was nothing more than a dream, because in practice there is a lack of standards,

which means there are no plug-and-play solutions,” Wölk reports. It is precisely here that thyssenkrupp is making a start. Together with experts from various busi-ness units in the Group, Wölk is develop-ing specific solutions for the digital future as part of the Digital Transformation@Materials Services initiative led by Execu-tive Board member Hans-Josef Hoss.

Two years ago, for example, the pro-ject team began breaking the production process at Materials Processing Europe down into individual steps, from deliv-ery of raw materials to warehousing, processing, and production, all the way through to transportation of the finished item. This enabled the experts to exam-ine where errors could be avoided, work stages cut, and customer expectations better met. The result of the analysis was that investment in automated solutions

“Our customers are excited about the quality.”Thomas Wölk, Head of Business Development at thyssenkrupp Materials Processing Europe


Phot

os: t

hyss

enkr

upp

and digital technologies makes sense in various areas. One of these areas is pro-duction according to the M9 model.

“The second important step is paper-less production,” emphasizes Michael Panzer, who is responsible for imple-menting the pilot project at Materials Processing Europe. In factory halls, many steps, such as checking dimensional accuracy, are still carried out and recorded by hand. On top of this, there are print-outs from measuring devices. Evaluating all this paperwork costs valuable time. Therefore, specialists in the pilot pro-ject are examining how the data can be captured digitally and passed directly to quality assurance. The advantage here is that specific material characteristics can be compared immediately with the

requirements specified by the customer. The software and hardware needed for this are currently in the test phase.

Another important aspect is auto-mated packaging. “Sheet packages have to be tied with steel strapping by two people, with considerable manual effort,” Panzer explains. “This is an especially strenuous task with high risk of injury, because our colleagues have to bend down a long way and handle steel strap-ping with sharp edges.” The project team at the Krefeld plant have demonstrated that a machine can also perform this task: there, an autonomous robot now secures the stacks together with high- performance plastic strapping.

For other steps, too, such as labeling, transportation to the warehouse, and track-ing the position of goods, a lot of time can be saved through automation. However, new technologies will need to be for these

purposes, Panzer stresses. “The solutions that exist for warehousing and warehouse management, as used in the wholesale business, are not automatically

transferable,” he says. “The use of RFID chips that transmit data by radio signals is possible only on a limited scale, because of the shielding effect of steel.”

Changed jobs will require new skillsAt the Stuttgart and Krefeld sites, engi-neers are currently trialing a new concept for tracking batches digitally. Now, each pallet receives a barcode, which is used to oversee its subsequent movements in the warehouse and on its way to the customer. However, every movement of goods has to be captured by the forklift driver scan-ning the barcode: this is not always free of errors and costs time. The project team are therefore working on a solution that will enable all movements of materials to be captured without any manual work. “If we capture the position of all incoming and outgoing goods digitally, we will be able to direct our material-handling vehicles pre-cisely to the correct place. This will help to avoid empty runs and reduce the num-ber of forklifts. It will also be possible to

perform an inventory at any time,” Wölk says. “Batch identification and warehouse automation will therefore be worthwhile in many respects.”

As for jobs, they are changing. Lifting, dragging, bending, and handling sharp steel strapping are things that no one will have to do any more in the factory of the future. “Humans will still have work to do there. However, they will no longer be the machines’ operators, but their teachers, because even digitization will not change the fact that machines, fundamentally, function only in response to commands. “They need humans to enable them to do their work correctly,” Wölk stresses. “For this, we need highly trained employees. Activities that are dangerous and detri-mental to health will gradually disappear.”

First, however, the pilot develop-ments will have to prove themselves, and only then will other business units be able to adopt them. At the same time, it is nec-essary to develop an IT structure that pulls together all steps, from receipt of goods to batch tracking, production, and quality

management, right through to delivery. “IT is the backbone of the digital factory,” explains Axel Berger, Head of Digital Transformation for the Materials Services Business Area. “To make it work, we need interfaces that ensure, for example, that information from our customers’ IT sys-tems can flow directly into our planning and logistics processes.” As part of the digital transformation, Berger’s team is preparing fundamental IT solutions that will be transferable from the pilot projects to the Group’s future digitization plans.

Wölk is convinced that these plans will become increasingly important in the future. “To remain competitive, we have to simplify our processes and, at the same time, expand integration with our customers and suppliers,” he says. The prospects for doing this are fundamentally good, he believes. “Thanks to our large number of well-trained employees,” he notes, “we are able to benefit quickly and comprehensively from the opportunities that digitization and automation are presenting to us.”

“We need interfaces that ensure that information from our customers’ CAD programs can flow directly into our produc-tion processes.”Axel Berger, Chief of Digital Transformation for Business Area Materials Services

1 Floating in: The sheet steel coil enters production by crane 2 Delivered: The steel is carried from the crane to the line via hubs3 and 4 Attached: A forklift transports the material to the decoiler in front of the machine5 and 6 Unwound: The steel strip is fed into the machine by the decoiler and unrolled7 Cut off: The knife cuts the steel strip into sheets – with the greatest precision

developed

21 43

65 7

For thyssenkrupp and its custom-ers, life-cycle assessments have long been an essential tool in product development. “To make a contribution to environmental protection, our engineers inves-

tigate – right at the development stage of new steel grades, surfaces, or composites – the potential that they have for improv-ing environmental performance,” says Anna Meincke, environmental engineer for life-cycle assessments (LCA) at thys-senkrupp Steel Europe in Duisburg.

Steel products are generally pro-duced from several input materials, and this makes their life-cycle assessments very complex. “To be able to assess envi-ronmental impact reliably, we record and consider all influencing factors – from the extraction and transportation of raw materials to energy consumption, byproducts and polluting substances in the production process to impacts in the utilization phase and at the end of the product’s life,” Meincke explains. This holistic view reveals that lightweight materials do not always have an envi-ronmental advantage. In some cases, their production entails such a high environmental impact that this cannot be canceled out by the weight advan-tage in the utilization phase. In other words, lighter is not necessarily better. Therefore, in its developments, thys-senkrupp focuses on ensuring that the production of innovative lightweight steels does not create an increase in envi-ronmental impact.

Text: Hans Schürmann

Complex life-cycle assessment: To judge the environmental impact of new steel products, thyssenkrupp captures all influencing factors

Lightweight steels put to the eco-testDevelopers can use new steel grades to make their products not just lighter but also significantly more environment-friendly. Life-cycle assessments demonstrate the environmental potential of new materials and help in selecting them


Panorama LIFE-CYCLE ASSESSMENT

42

“Our methodology is based on the stip-ulations of the World Steel Association and complies with the recognized inter-national standards ISO 14040 and 14044,” the thyssenkrupp life-cycle assessment expert says. “By varying a range of parameters, such as alloy com-position, production route, and coating, we are able to calculate the environmen-tal impact for any steel grade and provide our customers with reliable environ-mental data.” The Group’s steel division received the World Steel Association’s “Steelie Award” last fall for its consistent and holistic approach to the preparation of life-cycle assessments.

In addition to process emissions, input materials play a central role in life-cycle assessments. In steel produc-tion, these materials are coal, ore, alloy elements, scrap, water, electricity, or gas. “The volume of raw materials and energy

required is a key indicator of resource effi-ciency and is decisive for sustainable production,” Meincke says. For instance, as a result of the high weight reduction potential of modern steel grades, material use can be reduced so much versus older steel grades that negative environmental impact is reduced significantly as early as the production stage.

Dependent on applicationThe environmental impact in the utiliza-tion phase of a steel product, however, is heavily dependent on the application. Whereas the utilization emissions of steel in the construction sector are almost neg-ligible, in the automotive industry about 80 percent of the environmental impact is currently accounted for by driving. Recyclability has a great influence on the environmental performance of steel. The figure for this is almost 100 percent – hardly any other material is capable of being recycled on such a large scale with-out loss of quality. This means steel is not consumed, but reused again and again. This saves resources and avoids emissions.

Comparison of life-cycle assessments also gives thyssenkrupp important indica-tions of the impact of any variation in the production process and information for the best choice of materials. Whereas in the production of sheet steel, less than ten percent of the environmental impact can be influenced by varying the production routes, the use of different alloy elements gives a figure of up to 18 percent. In mod-ern steels, it is mainly additions such as aluminum, silicon, or manganese that are crucial for differences in environmental performance, the environmental engineer says.

In addition, the coating of sheet steel accounts for up to ten percent of the envi-ronmental impact of steel production. In an internal study, thyssenkrupp com-pared the electrolytic galvanizing process with hot-dip coating processes for alumi-num, zinc, and zinc-magnesium. “The thickness of the coatings was chosen so as to achieve comparable corrosion protec-tion,” Meincke explains. “In the process, it emerged that coating sheet steel with aluminum causes emissions more than twice as high as those resulting from galvanizing processes.” This is attributa-ble, among other things, to the fact that

“Our methodology is based on the stipu-lations of the World Steel Association and complies with recognized interna-tional standards.” Anna Meincke, environmental engineer at thyssenkrupp

This makes the Group a pioneer in life-cycle assessments in the steel indus-try. Years ago, thyssenkrupp Steel Europe started to develop a comprehensive life-cycle assessment model for its own steel production. Today, the company uses the “GaBi” life-cycle assessment software to map the complex networks of an integrated steel mill. The calculations are based on emissions data captured and conveyed to environmental author-ities in the course of regular reporting. “The data-collection procedures are laid down in law, so this means the data are based on tried-and-tested foundations,” Meincke says. Other emissions are taken into account, alongside CO2, such as sulfur dioxide, hydrocarbons, and heavy metals.

In addition, “input-related factors,” such as the amounts of energy, water, and raw materials required, are captured and integrated into the calculations.

a higher coating thickness is needed to achieve comparable corrosion protection. In addition, there are the environmental effects caused by the production of the aluminum. By comparison, although elec-trolytic galvanizing requires significantly higher use of energy, this is canceled out, overall, by the smaller volumes of zinc and lower direct process emissions.

The customers of thyssenkrupp Steel Europe in Duisburg include, for exam-ple, companies in the construction and automotive industries. The automobile manufacturers, in particular, maintain an intensive exchange of data with the company’s employees on life-cycle assess-ments. The main reason for this is that in the development of new models, car manufacturers want to try out innova-tive combinations of materials again and again and to take account of their impact on environmental performance at the ear-liest possible stage.

Focus on driving In life-cycle assessments for automobiles, the focus is mainly on reducing CO2 emis-sions during driving. With the life-cycle assessment for its steel products, thys-senkrupp is supporting its customers in choosing the materials that will have the most positive impact on their vehicles’ overall environmental performance. LCA analyses demonstrate that the optimum combination of materials can achieve sig-nificant potential for CO2 reductions. For example, car manufacturers can save up to 25 percent of a component’s weight with special steels that the company is developing for their industry. As a result, automobiles will use less fuel and also gen-erate significantly lower CO2 emissions.

In addition, greenhouse gas emis-sions can be reduced markedly by the use of new materials. For example, thyssen-krupp has developed the steel composite tribond, which brings together a variety of material properties that were previ-ously unattainable in one material. It can achieve a further weight reduction in the production of B-pillars and other structural components for vehicles by comparison with hot-formed steels. According to the LCA analyses, this leads to an additional reduction in CO2 emis-sions of 90 kilograms per vehicle over its whole life cycle.

Evaluation of all relevant environ-mental influencesSome pollutants have several negative effects

Greenhouse effect Gases like carbon dioxide and methane harm the climate

CO2

CH4

CONMVOC

CH4

NOX

SO2

NOX

NOX

SO2

Summer smog Gases like carbon mon-oxide and nitrogen oxides lead to smog

Overfertilization Nitrogen oxides contribute to overfertilization of soil

Acidification Nitrogen oxides and sulfur oxides lead to “acid rain”

Raw materials Factors here include the extraction and transportation of raw materials

Recycling A material that can be recycled – such as steel – is especially beneficial

Production In addition to energy consump-tion, byproducts and pollutants are examined here

Use Depending on the application, the same material can have a very different environmental impact

Observation over the whole life cycleLife-cycle assessments are a tool for evaluating the environmental impact of a product holistically

Phot

os: G

etty

Imag

es (

2), t

hyss

enkr

upp/

Rai

ner

Sch

roee

r


Panorama LIFE-CYCLE ASSESSMENT

Duo seen double: Thomas Fußhöller (top) and Steffen Schwartz- Höfler reflected in the foyer of the Berlin thyssenkrupp office

Commercial success, and environmental and social responsibility: this triad is central to thyssenkrupp. Independent studies credit the Group with great progress in sustainability Interview: Christian Buck Photos: Goetz Schleser

techforum: What is the importance of sustainability to thyssenkrupp?Thomas Fußhöller: Sustainability is an integral part of our Group strategy. If we want to enjoy commercial success in the long term, we have to assume environ-mental and social responsibility. This triad is what our stakeholders expect from us – not only policymakers and civil society, but also customers, investors, and employees. The sustainability strat-egy at thyssenkrupp is managed by the Sustainability Committee, which includes the Group Executive Board, the CEOs of

the business areas, and heads of corporate functions. Independent institutions con-firm that we have achieved great progress in recent years: the CDP climate rating of October 2016 includes us in the Global A List, which contains the best ten percent of all companies worldwide. There are 200 in all, only nine of them from Germany.techforum: How is it that such an energy- intensive company as thyssenkrupp is on that list?Fußhöller: The decisive factor in the rankings is how seriously a company takes climate protection. This is what the

non-profit organization has recognized in us. There is no contradiction in an energy- intensive company performing so well. On the contrary, CDP has honored us for our transparency and for our ambitious tar-gets and their implementation.techforum: How, specifically, do you approach such a complex topic as sustainability?Steffen Schwartz-Höfler: The starting point is always good knowledge of the requirements, precise data, and systematic analysis. For example, we take monthly measurements of the progress that all business units are making in energy effi-ciency. By 2020, we aim to improve this by 3.5 terawatt hours, which is equivalent to a saving of around 1.3 million metric tons of CO2. To date, we have already achieved 2.75 terawatt hours, which corresponds to one million metric tons of carbon dioxide. In all, thyssenkrupp has set itself seven “indirect financial targets” in the areas of environment/energy, people, purchasing, and innovation, with deadlines. For each target, there is consistent monitoring, similar to the procedure for the Group’s financial targets.Fußhöller: There is one more parallel with our financial targets. Since the 2015/16 fiscal year, the bonuses paid to our Group Executive Board members have also been based on the achievement of our sustain-ability targets. With effect from this year, this also applies to board members in our business areas.techforum: What levers do you have when it comes to energy efficiency and CO2?Schwartz-Höfler: We have various ways of exerting an influence, both in our own Group and along the value chain. In energy efficiency, we first examined our processes and implemented a lot of measures, from changing light bulbs to optimizing com-plex production processes. However, this is not enough. We also have to look at our products, because the most CO2 emis-sions, by far, arise during their utilization phase. Cement works are a good example of this, because they are often operated for

Short profiles

Thomas Fußhöllerheads the Sustainability, Environment & Energy Management Department at thyssenkrupp

Dr. Steffen Schwartz-Höfleris Senior Manager for Sustainability Strategy, Reporting & Ratings in Thomas Fußhöller’s department

Phot

os: G

oetz

Sch

lese

r

“Customers expect sustainability”

at least 30 years. As a supplier, we have the opportunity here to have an influence on new facilities and modifications. Today, it is already possible to reduce CO2 emis-sions from cement works by 40 percent if companies take advantage of our technol-ogies to switch to alternative fuels.Fußhöller: And this is only one of many examples. Key customer industries such as cement, transportation, chemicals, and steel are responsible for about one-third of CO2 emissions worldwide. We can be an important partner for solutions here. This is why, today, we are already looking far into the future and working on innovative projects such as Carbon2Chem, which aims to use steel mill gases for the chemical industry. This will enable CO2 emissions to be avoided in steel production.techforum: How important is sustainabil-ity to investors and customers today?Schwartz-Höfler: Sustainability is also gaining in importance among investors. Some focus specifically on this topic and make concrete inquiries via ratings agen-cies such as CDP. However, mainstream investors, too, are now using sustainabil-ity analysis as supplementary information or a precondition for an investment.Fußhöller: And naturally, our customers – in the automotive industry, for example – expect us to operate sustainably and to develop sustainable solutions with them. It is clear to us that no company can enjoy long-term success any more without sustainability. That is why this topic has now long been an integral part of our business.

Panorama IntervIew

47thyssenkrupp techforum 01.2017thyssenkrupp techforum 02.201646

Anybody who thinks the charms

of the Münsterland are confined

to nature, culture, and timber-

frame houses is in for a surprise

when they visit Ennigerloh. On the

outskirts of this town of 20,000

inhabitants stands an innovation hub without

parallel: the thyssenkrupp Industrial Solutions

(TIS) research and development center.

Top-class industrial research is conducted on

this site, which measures around 50,000 square

meters. Approximately 130 highly qualified

employees from various specialist fields work

simultaneously on more than 20 major research

projects. One of the best known is the POLTORR

multiple-hearth furnace, which can convert biomass

into biocoal in a very short time. The name refers

to the principle of “torrefaction,” which is similar

to the process used in roasting coffee. Here, wood

pieces, straw, or green waste are roasted at 220

to 320 degrees Celsius in the absence of air.

where customers in the cement industry can be supplied with both individual machines and entire production plants. Here, too, the research center in Ennigerloh has a central part to play in constantly optimizing processes and plants. A team is working on further improvements to the high-temperature burning process, grinding, process automation, and product quality.

Especially in grinding, there is a need for energy-efficient solutions, such as the high-pressure grinding roll, which uses less than half the electricity of a traditional ball mill. The world’s first roller mill, where the immense drive power is spread across several grinding rollers, was also developed here. In addition, the thyssenkrupp experts have improved the high-temperature burning process in the rotary kilns to such an extent that it now achieves efficiency levels of up to 80 percent.

At Ennigerloh, they are seeking to respond to ever-shorter innovation cycles and to avoid expensive investment mistakes. One example of this work is the redox flow battery, which is currently being refined by Dr. Helmut Gehrke and his team under industrial conditions. Redox flow batteries consist of electrolysis cells and two tanks, which are filled with a vanadium/sulfuric acid solution, the electrolyte. This electrolyte can store electric power as chemical energy

and subsequently release it. Unlike conventional batteries, this process can be repeated any number of times with no output

losses. One advantage of these batteries is their high efficiency level: up to 80 percent of the electricity fed in can be taken out again. In

addition, output and capacity can be adjusted to customer requirements independently of each other. This means they are usable almost anywhere.The battery is intended to contribute to solving

one of the most pressing problems of the switch to renewables: energy storage. Redox flow batteries could, in future, pick up surplus production from solar or wind power plants and store it for any length of time. When the sun is not shining or there is no wind blowing, the energy can be fed back into the grid. The research center at Ennigerloh has been in existence since 1968. There are hardly

any concerns about recruiting young talent – the activities are too varied and the challenges too exciting. “We have our finger on the pulse of innovation,” as Georg Locher puts it.

The thyssenkrupp Industrial Solutions research and development center in the Münsterland region is an innovation hub – a place where machines and processes are tested and new solutions for plant construction are devised

This process boosts the net calorific value considerably, and the product is also then easier to grind. Compared with fossil coal, biocoal has the advantage that it provides CO2-neutral energy. At present, thyssenkrupp is building a pilot plant in France. “The advantages of the POLTORR furnace are its compact design, its small base area, and the efficient use of primary energy in the conversion process,” Dr. Georg Locher explains.

Locher, the research center’s site manager, is simultaneously master of the biggest technical center in the whole Industrial Solutions business area, in which the POLTORR furnace was developed. Interest in this invention is huge, because industrial solutions for the use of biomass will be in increasingly high demand during the switch to renewables.

Locher is also an expert in cement production. Cement is a key area in TIS, from

Phot

os: t

hyss

enkr

upp

Text: Mirko Heinemann

thyssenkrupp techforum 01.201748 49

Panorama RESEARCH TEAMS

Analysis: This device

determines the

surface of powders,

such as ground

cement or ores

Characterization:

Experts determine

the reactivity of

calcined samples

in the laboratory

Electricity store: The redox flow battery in this building has a capacity of 54 kW and is now coming onto the market

Model: The researchers are developing new grinding concepts with small grinding rollers and tables

Microcosm: Cement particles are examined under the scanning electron microscope

A finger on the pulseof innovation

Much has changed radically as a result of the digital revolution. For one, more and more people now no longer drive to work by car and return home feeling finished. Instead, their work comes to them and goes back to the company

servers finished. Commuting has been replaced by computing. Welcome to 2030!

In travel, too, our understanding of mobility is itself in flux. Increasingly, it revolves around the mobility of data, and only in a secondary sense does it involve the mobility of things. Rather like in the realm of work, tourists today no longer have to go out into the world; now the world comes to them.

Camera glasses are one means of doing this – even though the designers of the first generation of devices underestimated the resistance from people who were filmed without permission. Subsequent models were introduced more skillfully. Authorization to activate the camera on the glasses could now no longer be given by the wearer but only by a majority of the people in their field of vision. A variety of attractive bonus systems were brought in to provide sufficient incentives to take part. Following a period of adjustment, new ways of behaving around networked camera glasses emerged from 2025 – along with new business models.

As the view through mobile micro-cameras can also be shared with others, a biotope of rental-view models soon developed. This started with passive escorted travel from the customer’s couch at home. To do this, you looked on an online map for one of the innumerable people all over the world who had activated their glasses for “rental viewing,” booked your desired time slot and were then able to see the most remote parts of the world through a stranger’s eyes. A variety of evaluation processes and reality ratings agencies were in place to ensure that what you were seeing was not an old recording but real-time reality. There were also various ways in which this simple form of television could be upgraded. Services such as “Closer View” provided premium versions that allowed you to ask questions or give instructions to the wearer, as if they were a private tour guide.

This form of global exploration, known as tele-walking, enjoys great popularity today. It has radically transformed both travel and use of the media: the word “television” now has a completely different meaning from that of just a few years ago. Nowadays, hardly anybody still watches action movies. Instead, they get tips about when and where the next police raid in a major city is going to happen and then rent access to the glasses of a police officer or a gang member – or both.

However, camera glasses have also changed the action of going out into the real world. For a long time now, the gaming industry has been offering so-called “first-person walkers” as a refinement of the “first-person shooter.” With these, you move through your real surroundings, but those surroundings have had a huge number of additional elements – buildings, people, and machines – calculated in real time, blended in, and superimposed. This makes a small German town like Castrop-Rauxel feel almost like Shanghai.

This trend began with the first real ad blockers. Wearers of computer glasses could run them as an app and use them to replace the advertising hoardings along the roadside with images of their choice. However, criminals soon tried to exploit these first-person walkers. They used navigation trojans to lure the gullible into dark alleyways where the virtual upgrade of Castrop-Rauxel quickly started to feel like a very real no-go area.

Such experiences had a huge negative impact on the image of real mobility. It was no wonder, therefore, that more and more people preferred to see the dangerous reality through other people’s eyes. Nowadays, nearly everybody belongs to one of the many rental-view cliques that have taken the place of the antiquated tour groups. Teens even have their own name for them: mouse cliques.

Seeing the world through the eyes of others: in the future, this will be done from home

Long-distance travel from your couch

Peter Glaser is an author and journalist. He writes for publications including the Neue Zürcher Zeitung and Technology Review. He won the Ingeborg Bachmann Prize in 2002.

Illus

trat

ion:

Bia

nca

Cla

ssen

; Cov

er p

hoto

: Cla

udia

Kem

pf

COLUMN

50

Published by: thyssenkrupp AG, Corporate Function Communications, ThyssenKrupp Allee 1, 45143 Essen, GermanyResponsible Editor: Bernd Overmaat (legally responsible for content), [email protected]

Copyright: © thyssenkrupp AG 2017Reprints only with the publisher’s permission. thyssenkrupp techforum is distributed using an address file stored through an automated data processing system. Information about thyssenkrupp can also be found on the internet at www.thyssenkrupp.com A digital version of thyssenkrupp techforum can be found at www.thyssenkrupp.com/techforum

Publishing House: Axel Springer SE Corporate SolutionsProject Manager: Katrin MeyerEditor-in-Chief: Christian BuckArt Direction: Christian Hruschka, Stefan Semrau, Uwe Holländer (twotype design)Copy-editing: Matthias SommerPicture Editing: Bianca ClassenPrinted by: WDS Pertermann GmbH, DresdenProduction: Olaf HopfLitho: Imagepool Berlin ISSN: 1612-2763

Reinventing the automobileEconomic growth and prosperity are not possible at present without automobiles, according to Dudenhöffer, the “Pope of the automo-bile.” New customers in emerging economies will also create significant growth in the global market in the future. However, vehicles will change and, in future, be part of a networked mobility. They will also have to receive electric drives and “automo-tive intelligence” to facilitate autonomous driving. Not all vehicle manufacturers will be able to meet the challenge of this transformation.

Wer kriegt die Kurve?Ferdinand Dudenhöffercampus€24.95

Mobility in 30 yearsFictional travel reports from the 2040s show how we may be moving around in the future – for example, as Zeppelin tourists in modern airships. On other routes, passengers are carried by ekranoplans – aircraft that hover just a few meters above the ground. On the Earth itself, people move about in zero-emission e-cars with fuel-cell drives, or else they travel as cyber-tourists in a virtual space.

Schubumkehr – Die Zukunft der MobilitätStephan RammlerFischer Verlag€12.99

Nothing will stay as it wasThis is the idea with which the authors begin their book. The young generation, they say, support the sharing economy, and the automotive industry will have to bring the automobile to the digital, not the digital to the automobile. However, they believe, even local public transport is not a success story, because it does not have a strong enough presence in digital markets. They think it is crucial to rely consistently on IT, so as to increase comfort and reduce transaction costs. “In the age of digitization, the value created by mobility will be different. The services sector will be the main winner,” they say.

Die digitale MobilitätsrevolutionWeert Canzler, Andreas Knieoekom verlag€12.95

Imprint

Breakthrough for car-sharingHow will our mobility behavior change in the future, when ever-increasing numbers of autonomous vehicles are driving on our roads and can even pick us up anywhere, on demand? This study by the ifmo Institute for Mobility Research examines the impact of driverless automobiles on mobility in Germany, China, and the USA. One of its findings is that autonomous vehicles have the potential to enable car-sharing finally to make a breakthrough. For example, Germans could be making around ten percent of all their journeys with the help of “autonomous car-sharing” by 2035.

Autonomous Drivingifmo Institute for Mobility Researchhttp://tinyurl.com/ techforum21


Portfolio

51

“Mobility is a basic need for more and more people, and a large proportion of our products are being used in this field. Today, every one of us has different ideas of how individual transportation, for example, will develop in the future. Through Foresight, we are organizing these diverse visions of the future and developing them into scenarios in which we can find pioneering solutions for our customers.”

He is looking far into the future for thyssenkrupp: since 2015, the physicist Dr. Andreas Meschede has been our Innovation Manager, coordinating the Group-wide Foresight process, through which international experts are devising possible scenarios for the future – so far, on the central topics of urban mobility, work in production, water management, and buildings and infrastructure. In this way, the Group is already preparing for possible developments in 2030 and beyond. Page 8

techforum01 - thyssenkrupp · the hololens smartglasses simplify the maintenance of elevators 30my...

Documents