Pictures of the Future

By 2020 manufacturers will be able to move from idea to finished product in a fraction of the time that is now required. The reason: even the most complex products—and their associated production processes—will be designed and tested to perfection in the virtual world.

Products and manufacturing processes are already being developed and tested in virtual environments. But translating them into their real-world counterparts is still a challenge. As Siemens draws closer to bridging this gap, new possibilities are materializing, including factories that design themselves and walk-in Websites in which consumers build their own products.

Siemens’ recent acquisition of UGS has given its Automation and Drives Group—the leader in the 121-billion-€ world automation market—the tools to merge the real and virtual worlds of production.

Depending on who’s doing the arithmetic, the world market for electronic automation technology is valued at between €120 billion and €230 billion. In 2006, according to the German Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers’ Association (ZVEI), it grew 6 %.

Siemens experts simulate new factories on computers long before anything is built. These 3D virtual models contain thousands of parameters, most of which are from real machines. The models are used in calculating optimal machine arrangements, component transport routes, the risks associated with transferring production to another location, and even the strain on a worker’s back.

October 2020. At the grand opening of a luxury hotel, representatives from the world’s hospitality industry are on hand to admire the building’s innovations. Among other things, the hotel is able to generate most of its own energy, thanks in part to new materials.

Special materials boost power plant efficiency, keep air pure, and clean our water. The smaller the particles, the more effectively they combat harmful substances such as ozone, thus improving environmental quality.

New materials are making gas and steam turbine blades ever more resistant to heat and corrosion. This results in higher efficiency and lower fuel consumption, thus helping to cut environmental pollution.

Munich, 2015. Only Julian’s cooking community can save him now. His wife is bringing along a dinner guest, and Julian, a game designer, has to improvise.

Communications technology is increasingly impacting our daily lives. Bandwidths are expanding in wireless networks and on the Internet, creating new possibilities for social interaction. Meanwhile, the Internet, wireless networks, and fixed-line networks are converging. In spite of many changes, Siemens still plays a key role in all of these areas.

Jarkko Sairanen, 43, is responsible for Nokia’s business strategy and technology planning. Before joining the cell phone giant, Sairanen worked at Boston Consulting. He has an MBA from INSEAD and an M.Sc. from the Helsinki University of Technology.

A prototype medical scanner from Siemens combines magnetic resonance tomography (MR) and an imaging process from nuclear medicine, providing entirely new insights into the human brain.

Palm Reading / New Era of Power in China / Mission with Vision / Higher Resolution CT

G2 Microsystems has developed a chip that can locate and identify objects. It has interfaces not only for WLAN and RFID but also for special sensors.

Peter Löscher, CEO of Siemens AG, reviews to 160 years of Siemens and identifies the challanges of the future.