In early April, at the 2019 Hanover Industrial Exhibition, ThyssenKrupp officially announced the successful integration of "industrial data space" and blockchain technology. ThyssenKrupp and IBM have achieved phased results in the research of data encryption transmission in 3D printing, which is expected to help industrial 3D printing achieve new breakthroughs. Meanwhile, ThyssenKrupp will launch a new 3D printing technology center in Singapore this year.

During the Hanover Industrial Exhibition, Dr. Donatus Kaufmann, a member of the ThyssenKrupp Group's board of directors, and Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry of Singapore, Hsu Po kun, jointly announced the launch of the group's second global 3D printing technology center in Singapore.

In September 2017, ThyssenKrupp first launched a 3D printing technology center in Germany. This technology center can provide industrial 3D printing consulting and design services for internal and external partners such as mechanical engineering, aerospace, shipbuilding, and automotive. It customizes the processing of raw materials such as metals and plastics, and has significant advantages in supply chain and added value.

    At this technology center, all product design and manufacturing are carried out on a digital platform. Before the 3D printing process begins, only a CAD file containing the 3D design needs to be provided, and the printing equipment can directly carry out seamless production without the need to first manufacture tools or molds like traditional methods.

    Undoubtedly, CAD files and other data containing 3D design are the foundation for producing special components and are extremely important intellectual property for related enterprises. Currently, due to economic considerations, 3D printing is becoming increasingly dispersed, and remote printing and cross regional printing are becoming more common. In such a trend, it is particularly important to ensure effective protection of intellectual property rights when transferring data between enterprises.

    The data protection and intellectual property protection in the 3D printing process have brought new challenges to the manufacturing industry, and the industry urgently needs a secure solution that can ensure data sovereignty and traceability of data usage.

3D printing components produced by ThyssenKrupp

ThyssenKrupp Germany 3D Printing Technology Center

    Therefore, ThyssenKrupp took the first step by partnering with the world's leading artificial intelligence solutions and cloud platform company IBM to form an expert team, and for the first time combining "industrial data space" and blockchain technology, laying the foundation for further expanding the digital platform of 3D printing. In March of this year, the project team achieved new breakthroughs in data encryption transmission for 3D printing.

Industrial data space

    In 2015, 40 companies and the Fraunhofer Association for the Promotion of Applied Research in Germany jointly launched the "Industrial Data Space" initiative.

    Industrial data space is a protected space for data exchange. Data security and data sovereignty are the fundamental characteristics of the industrial data space. In this space, sensitive information is not migrated to external clouds, but rather exchanged point-to-point among partners through the Industrial Data Space connector.

    In this space, data is only exchanged when requested and published by trusted certified partners, and is only used for authorized purposes. Therefore, the data sovereignty and intellectual property rights of relevant organizations can be effectively protected. So far, the project has received support from nearly 100 well-known German and international enterprises, alliances, and organizations.

Blockchain

The function of blockchain technology is similar to an electronic log saved in parallel on all relevant parties' computers. Blockchain technology can provide transparent and immutable documentation of the behavior between network members based on defined permissions.

On the 3D printing platform of the project, consulting and design service providers can select 3D printing partners through the bidding process. With the help of smart contracts, data is transmitted and initiated through the "industrial data space", and after the partner is selected, other bidders are automatically rejected.

The data generated during the 3D printing process, the transfer of responsibility during the process, and quality inspection information will be stored in the blockchain and can be retrieved. Blockchain technology creates a single source of facts on the platform, making business interactions traceable, creating security and trust among all parties involved in the 3D printing process.

The collaboration project between ThyssenKrupp and IBM showcases the possibility of establishing a 3D printing network and how it benefits individual members. On this basis, we identified peers such as customers, 3D printing manufacturing engineering service providers, and printing service providers, and explored the first batch of potential partners for expanding networks and implementing other applications. In the future, the project will further expand the ecosystem and expand the functionality and services of 3D printing.

By combining "industrial data space" with blockchain, the project team has confirmed that enterprises can exchange sensitive data in the production process in a safe and effective way, protecting their intellectual property rights.

As an important step in the group's digital transformation, ThyssenKrupp also announced the launch of a new 3D printing technology center in Singapore in 2019. According to the plan, the Singapore 3D Printing Technology Center will serve as the regional hub of the ThyssenKrupp Byrd Millheim 3D Printing Technology Center and provide professional engineering and innovative services to partners throughout the Asia Pacific region.