Quality Intelligence

Contact

Name

Felix Sohnius

Chief Engineer

Phone

work
+49 241 80 25828

Email

E-Mail
 

Fields of Expertise

Ensuring product and process quality is a timeless task in every manufacturing company. Traditional methods of quality management are facing new challenges in the context of the digitalisation that goes hand in hand with an increasing availability of data and the complexity of analyses. In addition, there is a lack of future-oriented targets that include sustainability as a significant quality feature. By bringing together established procedures with new technical and analytical possibilities, we are able to fully exploit the existing stored data and expand available information sources by adding context-specific interfaces. Along with technology-driven quality assurance through machine learning methods, we research the connections between quality management and holistic sustainability management of products and processes at the Quality Intelligence department of the Laboratory for Machine Tools and Production Engineering.

Our team includes young scientists from the fields of engineering, natural sciences and economics. Together we develop solutions for current and future entrepreneurial challenges of quality and sustainability management and ensure transferability to the production environment through a vivid exchange and the cooperation with industrial partners from various sectors.

Our fields of expertise in the area of quality-related analysis of production data, data-driven sustainability assessment and transformation and the transfer of current research results into the industrial environment are further described in the following.

 
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Our Skills

 

Quality Management

Quality-oriented Business Strategy

By enabling the integration of predictive quality applications into established processes and workflows, we empower existing business to use data-based decision support in quality management.
 

Data Based Fault Detection

By analysing the manufacturing sequence in a method-based manner, we identify the potentials of data-based quality management. We uncover existing and required software as well as the necessary hardware interfaces as part of implementation projects and ensure their usability for the cross-process analysis of interactions between process and quality characteristics.

Quality and Defect Prediction

As business digitalisation increases, so does the availability of data. Empowered by this, we develop new approaches for acting proactively in contrast to reactive quality management. We use machine learning methods to predict process- and product-related quality and to identify and eliminate the causes of errors.

Evaluation of Data Suitability

A strong data basis is indispensable for profitable data analysis. Using methodical approaches, we identify data gaps along the process chain, derive actions to improve the data basis and evaluate the context-specific suitability of the data.

 

Sustainability Management

Sustainable Business Transformation

Empowered by extensive knowledge of common sustainability standards, guidelines and laws, we support the establishment of a company-wide sustainability strategy. In doing so, we rely on data-driven sustainability management. Our focus is the development and integration of a sustainable business direction into existing company workflows.

Operational Sustainability Management

The operational implementation of a sustainability strategy is accompanied by many challenges. Our experience in quality management within the production context makes it possible to channel defined sustainability strategies and targets into concrete fields of action. We define target systems based on key figures and control target projects on the basis of data. The conflicts between economic and ecological goals are countered with a visualisation of the conflicting goals, which enables data-based decision-making support and company-specific prioritisation of the sustainability targets.

 

Modelling of Sustainability Indicators

For the quantitative evaluation of the products' and especially the processes' sustainability, key figures are used. Defining these in a way that suits the needs of the company is a challenge that we can support through our extensive cross-sector experience. Particularly in the area of cause-effect analysis we profit from our cross-functional cooperation and utilise our well-founded knowledge of data analysis from data-driven quality management.

 

Context-specific Selection of Life Cycle Data

In order to examine the life cycle of processes and products in the context of sustainability analysis, it is imperative to include heterogeneous data from different sources. We merge these to conduct a holistic evaluation of relevant variables and to increase the sustainability of the production processes, taking the entire life cycle into account.

 

Digital Transformation Management

Operationalisation of Research Competences

By providing a wide range of services, we support companies in overcoming current challenges in the areas of quality management, sustainability management and digitalisation within the production environment. Our goal is to enable companies a direct access to the latest and most promising developments and consequently to empower the digital transformation of industry practice as well as the development of future-proof business models.

 

Change Management

By systematically identifying areas of action and specifically initiating change initiatives, we enable companies to undergo digital transformation. Through targeted, methodical support, the projects' success as well as their integration into existing organisational structures and mechanisms is ensured.

 

Services

Our research focus provides manufacturing companies with insights into the latest technologies and methods in the field of quality and sustainability management. With our technological and strategic expertise, we assist in the transformation and continuous improvement/optimisation of business processes.

The advantages of cooperating with us:

  • Get state-of-the-art solutions from the leading research institute in the field of quality management and sustainability management!
  • Work with a young, dynamic team on innovative, customised solutions for your company!
  • Benefit from current achievements and recent developments related to the "Internet of Production"!
  • Be part of our strong network within the broad research landscape of RWTH Aachen University and the industrial landscape in Germany as a production location!