Volkswagen has opened a new IT Development Centre in its Glaserne Manufaktur in Dresden. In the Software Development Centre Production (SDC Production), up to 80 newly hired IT specialists will be working on the Volkswagen Industrial Cloud. In the future, the Industrial Cloud will link all 122 Group-wide Volkswagen production facilities. The goal is to amalgamate all data, and in doing so consistently digitalize production and logistics.
One of the main focus points is the use of artificial intelligence, which suitably simulates human eyesight. The SDC developed the software for the visual quality checks of automated priming tasks for the door and side windows – this robot application comes from the Dresden-based start-up Wandelbots.
Martin Hofmann, Head of IT for the Volkswagen Group, stated: “With the new IT Development Centre in the Glaserne Manufaktur, our expert knowledge will continue to grow; skills in important areas of technology secure our future.”
The Industrial Cloud brings together data from all factories. For example, the material flow can be organized more efficiently and delivery bottlenecks and process disruptions can be detected at an early stage. It enables smart real-time control – simultaneously in Wolfsburg and Shanghai, Dresden and Uitenhage (South Africa)
The Industrial Cloud is being established together with Amazon Web Services (AWS). AWS is a leader in the field of the Internet of Things (IoT), machine learning and computer services. In the Industrial Cloud, these technologies are being developed specifically for the automotive production environment. With Siemens, Volkswagen has gained its first major integration partner. Siemens contributes know-how in automation, connectivity of machines and systems, and the industrial IoT world to the collaboration.