“RESEARCH IS BECOMING MORE SENSITIVE”

Artificial intelligence (AI) is fundamentally changing the collaboration between humans and machines. Where are the ethical boundaries in mechanical engineering? We asked an expert from the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft. Simone Kaiser is the Deputy Head of the Research Unit for Responsible Research and Innovation at the Institute for Organisational Development and Work Design.

"WE HAVE TO BE PREPARED TO LOSE PEOPLE"

In most companies, older managers are coming head to head with young digital natives. It is not always an easy situation. How can HR departments support managers during the digital transformation? We talked to Andreas Grieger, Head of HR at Weidmüller, a specialist in electrical connection technology based in Detmold, Germany.

DIGITAL LEADERSHIP: WHEN THE BOSS NEEDS TO LEARN NEW SKILLS

Digitalization is massively increasing not only the specialist demands, but also the human demands on managers. How well prepared are you?

"SYSTEMS CRY FOR HELP WHEN SOMETHING IS WRONG"

A little stone in an escalator, a ventilation system that has become very loud, a rattling ticket machine - a Deutsche Bahn start-up listens to technical systems and raises an alarm when the sounds they make indicate a malfunction.

THE ALGORITHM AGAINST ABRASION

The holy grail of mechanical engineering is merging design, mechanics and software to create predictive maintenance.

"THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A SET FORMULA FOR GOOD VEHICLE DESIGN"

Whether powered by electricity, hybrid engines or fuel cell technology, car engines are facing a period of transition. The impact this has on vehicle design and what it means when autonomous driving is added to the mix is explained by Adrian van Hooydonk, Head of BMW Group Design.

"PRODUCT DESIGN CANNOT BE LEFT TO THE MARKETING DEPARTMENT"

How has the importance of industrial and product design changed? How strong is nature's influence on product design? And: what role plays design in terms of communicating technological change? Klaus Klemp, Professor of Design Theory and History of Design at HfG Offenbach, gives answers.

AUTOMOBILE DESIGN EVOKES EMOTION

Design combines functionality and aesthetics, design is emotional, particularly when it comes to cars. Motorists who think a car is ugly are unlikely to buy it and drive it. So how will the changes to the drivetrain influence automobile design? VDMAimpulse asked design experts.

DRIVES ARE CHANGING

Hybridization and electrification are picking up speed. What this means for added value in the drivetrain is the subject of the VDMA study "Drives are Changing" ["Antrieb im Wandel"].

TRADE POLICY REACHES A CROSSROADS

Free trade is essential for the existence of mechanical engineering. Exports account for around 77 percent of the German sales of 224 billion euros (2017). 660,000 jobs depend directly on these exports. More than one third of exports already go to countries with high import barriers.

TRADE AFTER BREXIT: A MATTER OF CAKE AND CHERRIES

The European Union and the United Kingdom have to define their future trade relationship after Brexit in March 2019. Even basic problems remain unsolved. A Brexit without a free trade agreement is not inconceivable.

"MOSCOW IS READY TO USE PROTECTIONISM"

As the largest agricultural country in the world, Russia's demand for machinery is extremely high and the state wants to meet this demand primarily through the use of domestic technology. As a result, Russia's continuing protectionist policies are hitting the international agricultural machinery industry hard.