Zukunftswerkstatt 4.0, which translates to “Workshop for the Future 4.0,” and Siemens Advanta, Siemens’ Business Unit for digital transformation consulting and implementation, are jointly exploring innovative technologies that span the customer journey in the field of automotive sales and after-sales. The aim is to develop new approaches for digital products and services in all areas related to connected electric vehicles and autonomous driving – and thus help shape the future of mobility.
The digital transformation of the automotive industry is progressing at an increasingly fast pace. As a result, the sector is facing new challenges and pressure to innovate. The Institute for Automotive Research (Insitut für Automobilwirtschaft – IfA) and Siemens Advanta see the digital transformation as a great opportunity to actively shape the future. This collaboration will focus on the impact that new functionalities have on the entire vehicle ecosystem, especially during the utilization phase. The “Workshop for the Future 4.0” will serve as a testing ground for exploring digital products and services and for driving their ongoing development. In addition, attractive revenue-generation opportunities in the form of forward-looking business models, such as “mobility-as-a-service” or “transportation-as-a-service,” will be developed and evaluated.
“Digitalization and increasing connectivity are rapidly changing the requirements for products and services,” says Philipp Grosse Kleimann, Senior Partner and Head of the Automotive & New Mobility Group at Siemens Advanta Consulting. “Zukunftswerkstatt 4.0 offers a promising platform for understanding these effects in a practical way and for creating innovative approaches together with our clients.”
Prof. Dr. Stefan Reindl, Managing Director at Zukunftswerkstatt 4.0 and CEO of the Institute for Automotive Research, is excited to welcome Siemens Advanta as a partner: “Digitalizing the processes used in car showrooms, designing new services based on digital elements and, last but not least, creating new customer touchpoints are all key components of our Zukunftswerkstatt 4.0 concept. That’s why we’re looking forward to working with Philipp Grosse Kleimann’s team.”
Zukunftswerkstatt 4.0 was initiated for the automotive industry by the steering committee of the Transformation Council for the Automotive Industry in the German state of Baden-Württemberg under the chair of Dr. Nicole Hoffmeister-Kraut, the state’s Minister for Economic Affairs, Labor and Tourism. The IfA is responsible for the project. Zukunftswerkstatt 4.0, which is located in Esslingen near Stuttgart, serves as an “innovation showcase”. On 450 square meters of floor space, it provides a physical site that depicts the structures and processes of a car dealership in a practical way. More than 75 companies, including Mercedes-Benz, Bosch and Continental, as well as institutions from the field of politics, business, science and labor associations are already part of the partner network. Plans call for Zukunftswerkstatt 4.0 to open in the fall of 2021.
Siemens Advanta is a strategic business unit of Siemens, enabling companies to unlock the digital future by
offering end-to-end support on their unique digitalization journey. Siemens Advanta is a strategic advisor and a
trusted implementation partner in digital transformation and industrial IoT with a global network of more than 8,000 employees in 19 countries and 89 offices. Highly skilled and experienced experts offer services which range from consulting to design & prototyping to solution & implementation and operation – everything out of one hand.
Siemens AG (Berlin and Munich) is a technology company focused on industry, infrastructure, transport, and
healthcare. From more resource-efficient factories, resilient supply chains, and smarter buildings and grids, to
cleaner and more comfortable transportation as well as advanced healthcare, the company creates technology with purpose adding real value for customers. By combining the real and the digital worlds, Siemens empowers its customers to transform their industries and markets, to transform the everyday for billions of people. Siemens also owns a majority stake in the publicly listed company Siemens Healthineers, a globally leading medical technology provider shaping the future of healthcare. In addition, Siemens holds a minority stake in Siemens Energy, a global leader in the transmission and generation of electrical power. In fiscal 2020, which ended on September 30, 2020, the Siemens Group generated revenue of €55.3 billion and net income of €4.2 billion. As of September 30, 2020, the company had around 293,000 employees worldwide.
The Institute for Automotive Research (IfA) was founded in 1995 and is an academic institution at the
Nuertingen-Geislingen University (NGU/HfWU). The focus of the Institute is on applied and practical research within different areas of the automotive supply chain – from the automotive research and development across the production to automotive sales and distribution. Therefore, the IfA uses academic methods to answer relevant questions in the automotive and mobility business areas and is an important interface between theory and practice. Furthermore, the implementation of academic findings is supported. The Institute is specialized in automotive topics. The Institute has its core competence in the area of applied research. Training sessions for professionals as well as individual consulting for companies is done on a case by case base with cooperation partners. The researchers at the institute simultaneously obtain an automotive academic degree combined with experience in the automotive industry. The initiator of this institute is Prof. Dr. Willi Diez. Since April 2018, Prof. Dr. Stefan Reindl is the academic director and CEO of the institute. He gets support by Prof. Dr. Benedikt Maier as COO. Additional to his position at the IFA, Prof. Reindl is also managing the Automotive Bachelor and Master programs at the Nuertingen-Geislingen University.
