Fraunhofer Institute for Material Flow and Logistics IML
Fraunhofer Institute for Material Flow and Logistics IML
Die 26. Ausgabe der Logistik entdecken vor einem blauen Hintergrund.
© Fraunhofer IML

© Fraunhofer IML

"discover LOGISTICS” #26

Content

Coverstory

Logistics of the Future: More Intelligent. More Resilient. More Sustainable.

For decades, logistics was considered a silent efficiency machine in the background of industrial production – precise, cost-sensitive, reactive. But in the midst of climate change, global crises, geopolitical tensions, digital transformation and regulatory upheaval, it is becoming clear that logistics is no longer just a service provider. It is becoming a systemic shaping force for a networked, sustainable and resilient society.

Logistics of the Future: More Intelligent. More Resilient. More Sustainable.

Two men are working on the tranport robot evoBOT.
© Fraunhofer IML

Knowledge Advantage for Logistics

Two researchers are standing next to the transport robot Odyn.
© Fraunhofer IML

“Silicon Economy”

No development without application: that is what Fraunhofer IML concluded when research on the Silicon Economy research began. Back then, the overarching goal was to develop a decentralized, open platform economy “made in Germany”.

There Is no Alternative to Open Source

Intralogistics

The New Logic of Intralogistics

How a modular operating system controls autonomous robot fleets − and companies regain their sovereignty

Into the Future With Aulis

A person holds a tablet in their hand on which Aulis is being used.
© Fraunhofer IML
A man walks through a logistics hall in which there are many colorful laserlights.
© Fraunhofer IML

Orientation by Light Track

With lasers, software and a lot of vision: With LARS, Fraunhofer IML is developing a flexible projection system that guides logistics employees through warehouses in real time − intuitively, safely and ergonomically. A conversation with the researchers responsible shows just how much the future can hold in a beam of light.

How LARS Is Rethinking Intralogistics for People

A Duty Instead of a Choice

The concept of sustainability has been shaping everyday life in our society for some time now: Where does my electricity come from? Combustion engine or electric car? Are my vegetables locally grown? What are often just considerations in everyday life are much more complex on an industrial level. It is not enough to produce meaningful sustainability reports; their effectiveness must also be verifiable. This is where the AI tool ”Sustainalyze” from Fraunhofer IML comes into play. This tool is designed to standardize and analyze key figures and data and prevent the concealment of facts.

Sustainability as a Benchmark

A woman and a man are engaged in conversation. There is a monitor in the background.
© Fraunhofer IML
A logistics center with various containers.
© industrieblick - stock.adobe.com

From Challenges to Opportunities

The sun rises over a logistics center in Dortmund, where a new working day begins. Trucks come and go as drivers steer their large vehicles to the loading gates. Conveyor belts and forklifts hum in the background. Every day, an enormous logistical effort is carried out at this central transport hub in Germany. Even at night. But despite the seemingly smooth processes, those involved face enormous challenges in yard logistics.

Evolution of Yard Logistics

Logistics Management

Resilience Reloaded

How can European supply chains become more resilient, sustainable and future proof? The EU project ReSChape provides answers − with in-depth analyses, concrete recommendations for action and practical impulses for business and politics.

Resilience Reloaded

A caricature of a man sitting on the world map with a laptop with colorful connections to the countries.
© Fraunhofer IML
Rescue workers walk along a street.
© benjaminnolte - stock.adobe.com

Digital Helpers in Times of Need

Flowers in their hair, glitter on their faces, net tops, bare skin. In July 2010, thousands make their way to Duisburg to party, rave and dance at the Love Parade. On the way to the site, the revelers have to pass through a narrow tunnel. At the same time, others are making their way back. The tunnel becomes a bottleneck. The rush is huge, it is narrow, panic breaks out. While the emergency services on site try to get the situation under control, rescue workers are alerted to attend to the injured.

Digital Helpers in Times of Need

A Project With Vision

Automation, transparency, trust: The SKALA project illustrates that artificial intelligence and blockchain technology are becoming real game changers for logistics. Scalable open-source solutions are connecting entire value creation networks, which can benefit small and mediumsized companies in particular. Researchers at Fraunhofer IML explain exactly how this works.

A Project With Vision

A man explains the content shown on a monitor.
© Fraunhofer IML
A red chess figure lays on the ground next a white figure.
© Jezper − stock.adobe.com

Resilience – A Smart Move

Unpredictability is increasingly becoming the new political norm. This poses enormous risks for the market and the economy. In times like these, companies of all industries must be particularly well prepared for crises, according to researchers at Fraunhofer IML. While tariffs, disasters, and wars are driving the next crisis forward, technological innovations continue to evolve. Researchers offer recommendations on how companies can prepare themselves. 

Resilience – A Smart Move

Mobility and Environment

Faster, Cheaper, Smarter

High order volumes, growing complexity in global supply chains, volatile markets, and the ongoing shortage of specialists are presenting logistics companies with a wide variety of challenges. Increasing demands for transparency, delivery reliability, and efficiency are adding to the pressure. This often puts small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in particular under severe strain. How can they manage complex processes in the supply chain when resources are scarce, cost pressure is high, and the flood of data is difficult to keep track of? This is where the Fraunhofer IML's “Omnistics” platform comes in. The modular AI ecosystem was developed specifically for the needs of logistics companies.

Omnistics Makes AI Suitable for Mass Use

A green truck drives on the highway during sunset.
© Sergej Gerasimov via stock.adobe.com
A green station for packages with some open doors
© Who is Danny - stock-adobe.com

The Incredible Journey of a Parcel – How “Smarcel“ Automates Parcel Delivery

Are you familiar with this situation? There is no parcel shop nearby, your order ends up at a pickup station on the other side of town, or your package has been lost in transit. This marks the beginning of an odyssey that probably everyone has experienced at some point when receiving a package. To eliminate this annoyance, the Bonn-based start-up Innovative Robot Delivery (IRD) has developed the mobile parcel locker Smarcel. Fraunhofer IML and IRD are developing three important product addons for Smarcel as part of the “ProtoSAM“ project.

How “Smarcel“ Automates Parcel Delivery

Space for Profit and Planet

A container ship leaves the port of Rotterdam early in the morning. It heads for Hamburg. Once there, containers are unloaded. The goods from the containers are distributed to trains or trucks and taken to their intermediate destinations. Here, the goods are sorted, scanned, forwarded, lifted, moved and repacked in large halls. Stowed away, they wait for their onward journey before they reach their destination in a similar way. They are accompanied by their invisible greenhouse gasemissions, which increase from stage to stage.

Saving Resources at Warehouse Locations

A white truck on a neutral background
© nerthuz - stock.adobe.com
A picture of hydrogen molecules in front of a blue background
© peterschreiber.media - stock.adobe.com

New Sustainable Hydrogen Ecosystem Drives Energy Transition Forward

Deep in eastern Slovakia, a small bus travels through the hilly landscape. It is the first hydrogen bus “made in Slovakia.“ The destination of its journey is written on a sign at the side of the road: Košice. With this hydrogen bus, the region around the city of Košice, near the Hungarian border, is one of the pioneers on the road to a future in which alternative drive systems are becoming increasingly important. And the bus is just the beginning.

New Sustainable Hydrogen Ecosystem Drives Energy Transition Forward

A Load of Questions, one Answer: Innovation Lab

With the increasing spread of electric cars, various aspects relating to batteries continue to be discussed. Here is a selection: How long do lithium-batteries last? How are they disposed of? How safe is the technology? A web of questions surrounds the topic of electric mobility. The “Innovation Laboratory for Battery Logistics in E-Mobility“ (InnoLogBat) at Fraunhofer IML has taken on the task of solving this puzzle.

A Load of Questions, one Answer: Innovation Lab