A joint venture of
Since its foundation, inpro’s goal has been the development of production systems and technologies for the factory of the future. Thus, inpro operates as a joint ‘think tank’ for its partner companies, an approach unique in Germany to this date.”
„inpro gave the decisive impetus for the development of component-oriented simulation models for materials flow. inpro has laid the foundation for standards which are the basis for present simulation systems, and have undeniable relevance for the digital factory of the future.“
„Thanks to its work and achievements in the field of laser technology, inpro can proudly claim to have significantly advanced the global implementation of high-power laser systems in automobile production. Based on delivered innovations and the need to implement them, several project team members established their own company and successfully went to market, for example, Photon AG with 200 employees.“
„inpro addressed all thematically challenging tasks and developed well-founded solutions. In cooperation with external scientific experts, inpro efficiently supports the work of shareholder companies, especially in the early stages of development. For example, working with technical and executive promoters of shareholder companies, inpro identified the potential of innovative foil technology for exposed parts as an alternative to energy-intensive coating processes. By pooling the resources of these partners, inpro systematically developed the necessary procedures to achieve the pilot maturity stage. Results are recognised in the shareholder group, as well as in the scientific community.“
„inpro’s approach for activity-based costing in logistics, which allowed all members of a supply chain to be included for the first time, has led to large savings and was an important precursor of modern supply chain management systems.“
Topic of the Month
Modeling and virtual validation of cohesive hybrid connections
With a view to the large-scale suitability of hybrid materials with integral connections in primary components, the question of how to deal with the different linear expansions of the materials used when heat is introduced is still unresolved. To research this open question, inpro will start on April 1st, 2020 together with the partners Otto Fuchs KG, INVENT GmbH, DDP Specialty Products Germany GmbH & Co. KG and TÜV Süd Product Service GmbH as well as the Fraunhofer Institute for Structural Stability and System Reliability (LBF ) the BMBF-funded joint research project “Design and optimization of hybrid connections with special consideration of the different thermal expansions of the material partners – GOHybrid” (funding code: 03XP0275C, duration 2.5 years).
The overall goal of the joint research project is to reduce stresses in the integral hybrid connection made of metal and fiber composite plastic (FRP) by means of design, material selection and construction in such a way that a relevant lightweight construction potential can be tapped. As a result of this project, a significant increase in the marketability and the industrial application of hybrid materials in primary components is expected. In this context, the corrosive effects of other environmental influences on the material composite should also be considered. By using functionalized adhesives and the correct design of the connection, corrosion at the connection level should also be avoided.
As part of the joint research project “GOHybrid”, inpro is working on the sub-project “Modeling and virtual validation of cohesive hybrid connections”.