InterOpera - Digital interoperability for Industry 4.0Reconceiving data rooms - the Asset Administration Shell in practice

InterOpera - Digital interoperability for Industry 4.0

Within the InterOpera project, Steinbeis Europa Zentrum, Fraunhofer IPA and SCI 4.0 have created solutions for a digital, open data space. The project was funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action and is in line with the 2030 vision of Industrie 4.0.

In collaboration with the Industrial Digital Twin Organisation (IDTA), of which we are a member, we have developed a targeted exploitation and standardisation process for Germany. The results are available to companies worldwide and are aimed at all sectors allowing for international standardization.

In order for all players (assets) in a collaborative and interoperable value creation network to be able to communicate with each other as autonomously as possible, a solid basic structure, the asset administration shell, is required. It implements the digital twin - the virtual representation of an asset.

The Asset Administration Shell is a type of digital container that bundles and structures all relevant information about a physical object or system. It makes it possible to share and process this information interoperably, which facilitates the efficient control and monitoring of products or processes in industry. In this context, interoperability means that different systems or devices can communicate and work together, regardless of their origin or the technologies used.

In InterOpera, 28 submodels for the Asset Administration Shell were developed by method consultants and working groups for specific questions from companies, which can be used interoperably by different manufacturers and systems. With the help of defined processes and training, companies will be able to develop their own submodels with minimal effort in future. The standardised submodels are available to interested companies and will be incorporated into international standards.

InterOpera has enabled academia, large companies and SMEs to collaborate closely. Over 100 institutions, including around 35% SMEs, have supported the project with their expertise and advanced the asset administration shell as the basic structure for an interoperable data network.

"The purely digital modelling saves time and money, especially for SMEs, if information is available directly in digital form and without loss of information, so that it can be processed directly. New business concepts can also be modelled, e.g. a ranking for environmentally friendly products or digital engineering of products in the value chain."

Thorsten Kroke, Managing Director of BCON2 GmbH and head of 6 sub-model projects