Julian Stopper (Project Manager – Hintsteiner Group GmbH)
Sabrina R. Sorko (Senior Lecturer – FH JOANNEUM)
An exciting and insightful day at the Smart Production Lab at FH Joanneum in Kapfenberg has come to an end. In this laboratory, digitalization and automation are not just topics of study- they are already being put into practice. For more than five years, Industry 4.0 technologies and solutions have been successfully applied, and practical applications for the industry have been evaluated and developed. Using the example of analog clock production, these practical technologies are impressively demonstrated in a seamless production process.
As part of the Bridges 5.0 research project, the Austrian intervention aims to transform the Smart Production Lab from an I4.0 Lab to an I5.0 one. Therefore, an Industrial Research Project has been initiated to develop a procedural model for vision and strategy development regarding Industry 5.0 skills, using the Smart Production Lab as a case study. The project team, consisting of two bachelor’s and two master’s students from the Institute of Industrial Management, initially focused on assessing the current state by documenting workstations in the areas of production planning, MES, and laser cutting on the shop floor.
To achieve this, general metadata and framework conditions of the workstations were recorded using pre-structured documentation sheets. The required skills, workplace equipment, and existing interfaces complete the essential database for subsequent project phases. At the same time, initial points of connection for Industry 5.0 topics were discussed on-site with the responsible people. A real production order for manufacturing a clock was used to illustrate the practical workflow at the relevant workstations.
Project Team Member’s Statement:
“Visiting the Smart Production Lab during live production provided valuable insights and necessary understanding of the workstations under investigation. The lab’s progressiveness is evident not only in its current state of smart production but especially in its ambition to transform into an Industry 5.0 innovation hub in the coming years.”
Initial Findings:
The first insights from the project indicate that, beyond innovative technologies, perspectives on existing structures, processes, and technologies, as well as software potential must be reviewed from an industrial 5.0 point of view. Those aspects will offer opportunities and potential for a successful transformation in the context of Industry 5.0.
In the next phases, the project team will analyze how digital technologies can be used in a human-centered way to significantly enhance resilience and sustainability in production and supply chains. With a focus on vision and strategy development, the project results will contribute to advancing the Smart Production Lab’s evolution.
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June 5, 2025
