Deutsche Telekom’s new facility in Dortmund will be open for companies willing to collaborate in the development of IoT prototypes
German telecomd group Deutsche Telekom and the Fraunhofer-Institute for Material Flow and Logistics IML, based in Dortmund, announced the foundation of the Telekom Open IoT Labs.
At the new facility, up to six scientists from Fraunhofer IML, and three IoT experts from Deutsche Telekom, will work together to develop and test internet of things (IoT) solutions and get them market ready. The goal of the new IoT lab is to optimize processes in the manufacturing, logistics and aviation sectors. The new facility will be open to other companies interested in collaborating with Deutsche Telekom and Fraunhofer to develop application-specific IoT prototypes.
“The Labs pair two fields of competence that have to be involved, together, in any successful IoT-related digitization. Fraunhofer is providing comprehensive expertise in hardware and applications in IoT environments. And Deutsche Telekom is providing its network expertise, together with IoT and cloud solutions, all of which are key elements for IoT-based digitization,” said Michael ten Hompel, managing director of Fraunhofer IML.
In an initial phase of the collaboration process, the two partners will work jointly with interested companies to identify requirements for IoT solutions and to define these applications. Subsequently they will create them by developing and producing hardware, software and connectivity prototypes. Both partners said that efforts will be concentrated on producing solutions that can later be launched for mass-market use.
“At Telekom Open IoT Labs, we will not be pursuing basic research. Instead, we will offer companies specific benefits by solving their problems using IoT solutions,” said Anette Bronder, head of digital and security department of Deutsche Telekom. “All the technologies necessary for IoT solutions are in place. Now, we need to find application areas that will offer companies real value, in both the short and long terms.”
Initially, the Deutsche Telekom/Fraunhofer team plans to concentrate on solutions based on NB-IoT technology. “The logistics sector is moving very rapidly on digitization. With IoT solutions, companies will be able to achieve high added value, in the short term, in a number of business processes,” Bronder added.
