Futuristic cityscape with glowing blue lines and geometric shapes representing digital connectivity and infrastructure.

Revolutionizing 3D modeling for entire factories

Siemens partners with startups like German AI firm RIIICO to deliver best-in-class solutions. This collaboration exemplifies a new mindset, allowing big and small enterprises to combine their strengths to deliver exceptional outcomes. It's now even easier to do with Siemens Xcelerator.

RIIICO - what it's about

It is an essential building block for the future industrial metaverse: a tool that renders gigabytes of visual scanning data of factories quickly into accurate 3D-twins, from small boxes on the shop floor to complex steel structure underneath the ceiling. It’s also a problem quite a few startup companies claim to solve. Which is why RIIICO did not immediately stand out when it first contacted Siemens shortly after it was founded at the German technical university RWTH Aachen in 2021.

That changed, however, when Siemens, after seeing a demonstration of RIIICO’s technology, invited the company to play with a big pile of scanning data sent to them by Siemens Smart Infrastructure. “We ran with it,” remembers Jan Büchsenschütz, co-founder of RIIICO. Less than 24 hours after receiving the challenge the team returned a visual 3D-view of a factory floor. “That impressed us,” says Julian Boha from Siemens Digital Industries, who is responsible for Startup Collaborations. “It was exactly what was needed: fast delivery, accurate, and fine-grained. The perfect way to bring a shopfloor’s digital twin to life.” The consequence: today, a little over two years later, RIIICO has become a poster child of how Siemens cooperates at eye-level with startups.

In the video: Jan Büchsenschütz, Co-Founder of RIIICO, talks about the unique features of the startup's technology - especially within the Siemens Xcelerator ecosystem.

Focusing on the challenge, not the tools

Felix Fink (CEO), Patrick Mertens (CTO) and Jan Büchsenschütz (COO), founders of RIICO.

Startups like RIIICO are important drivers of innovation. And thanks to Siemens Xcelerator, they also have a global reach. In the picture (from left to right): Felix Fink (CEO), Patrick Mertens (CTO) and Jan Büchsenschütz (COO).

Siemens is always on the lookout for companies like RIIICO. With Siemens’ large portfolio touching different industries, be it manufacturing, mobility, or smart infrastructure, it offers clients holistic solutions for their needs, but not necessarily for every aspect of the tasks at hand. That’s where startups such as RIIICO come in. They can deliver solutions for unsolved problems. Similarly, such startups are often looking for partners whose offering complements their new tool. With the two companies working closely together, customers can focus solely on the challenge they face, rather than the tools they use.

Clearly, Siemens engages with startups because it has to. But it does not do so randomly. Siemens has a program called “Fast lane for startups”, which enables different types of collaborations. These include running pilots to enhance Siemens factories, becoming a Siemens portfolio partner, collaborating to jointly develop solutions for customers, or Siemens as financial investor. In addition, Siemens also supports certain startups to become a partner of Siemens Xcelerator, the open business platform for scalable solutions from Siemens. But while Siemens engages with many startups in different industries, RIIICO is special because the two companies work together in nearly all possible ways.

Becoming part of Siemens Xcelerator

At the beginning, Siemens usually gives practical support to startups, be it access to Siemens-experts or software. Siemens also often acts as an early adaptor to optimize processes in its own factories, or to jointly develop new products with startups for industrial customers. RIIICO, for example, took part in pilots for Smart Infrastructure and Digital Industries and also cooperated on projects for the automotive industry. This was followed by a software and technology collaboration, and today RIIICO already is compatible with the Siemens' software suites Tecnomatix and NX, cornerstones of product development.

But that’s not where the journey ends. After a startup has proven itself in such a way, it is ready to become an ecosystem partner of Siemens. This is to become a software and technology partner that creates versatile edge computing solutions, and possibly most importantly, to become a partner of Siemens Xcelerator. But what, exactly, happens there?

Diagram comparing traditional and digital approaches, with interconnected systems and simplified digital processes.

Comparison of point cloud data: On the left, a monolithic representation; on the right, processed data by the RIIICO Engine. Color-coded classes denote various objects. Data originates from the Siemens' training center in Bad Neustadt.

Startups are key to the Siemens Xcelerator platform

Siemens Xcelerator is a platform where industrial clients from around the world can look for solutions that suit their needs. “When selected startups such as RIIICO get on this platform, they can not only offer their product or service, but they can also expand their customer reach,” says Linda Krumbholz, Senior Vice President for Siemens Xcelerator Ecosystem and Marketplace. The pricing is flexible, as all software on the platform is offered as-a-service, being scaled depending on clients’ needs. Startups contribute to Siemens Xcelerator's vision like no other, as they provide cutting-edge solutions. “This is where Siemens Xcelerator plays to its central strength: delivering innovative solutions across the ecosystem to address customer needs,” Krumbholz adds. “Without startups on the business platform, this wouldn’t be possible.”

In RIIICO’s case this means combining its tool with software suites for factory planning, which is a key part of the Industrial Metaverse. “Alone, we might be perceived as just another emerging company. But being part of Xcelerator is a clear indication to our customers that we've passed rigorous scrutiny and that our product seamlessly integrates with others on the platform, setting us apart in the industry”, says Büchsenschütz.

In the video: How RIIICO revolutionizes the representation of factory data and creates precise 3D models.

Committed to delivering solutions to clients

Yet even Siemens Xcelerator is not the end of the road for a company like RIIICO’s collaboration with Siemens. In the future, it may become a certified Siemens partner through reselling agreements or developing a new product together. In addition, Siemens may choose to invest in selected best-in-class startups, either through partial equity or financial investment.

But, certainly, it’s not just technical compatibility that matters. While Siemens and RIIICO may not be equals, the relationship is shaped by both respect and openness, allowing both parties to learn from each other. As Jan Büchsenschütz, for example, points out: “We greatly appreciate Siemens' dedication to client solutions and their openness to novel startup solutions.” And, fittingly, Julian Boha states that he’s taken by RIIICO’s customer-first attitude. “They conduct lots of customer interviews to ensure product-market fit,” says Boha. “And it shows.”