The MITTELSTAND – the small and medium-sized companies that form the backbone of the German business community – is quite rightly referred to as the ENGINE of the German economy. 99.5% of all companies in Germany are SMEs. They possess …
The Role of a Future-Oriented Culture of Learning and Training as a Prerequisite of New and Innovative Products and Services
An interview with Steinbeis expert Nicola Westermann and Michael Pahl, Innovation and Network Manager at embeteco
As part of a staff training project backed by the state of Lower Saxony through money provided by the European Social Fund (ESF), a …
Learning by Doing – Management Know-How for Technical Experts and Engineers
Steinbeis training keeps managers in good shape
Industrial enterprises with a focus on technology often fill management positions with people with a technical or engineering background. Although such employees have the required technical understanding, to fulfil their tasks effectively – …
Lower Resource Investments Thanks to SQB IMS
Integrated management system created by Steinbeis lays the focus on synergies
A management system capable of mastering all processes should allow companies to produce commodities and services that not only match customer requirements, but also the firm’s internal management objectives …
More Competences – More Opportunities
Team of Steinbeis experts participates in study on staff training needs in the automotive and OEM supply industry
How is the automotive industry performing at the moment, especially when it comes to staff training? What areas in particular do the …
Optimizing the Plastics Industry with AI
Steinbeis software STASA QC enhances the efficiency of injection molding processes
STASA Steinbeis Applied Systems Analysis has more than 20 years of in-depth experience in the development and programming of AI-based systems, as well as systems analysis, i.e. the handling …
WeKI-Go – Ensuring AI Conforms with Values
Experts at the Ferdinand Steinbeis Institute support SMEs on the path to forms of artificial intelligence that people can trust
Artificial intelligence (AI) should at all times be equitable, transparent, and sustainable. It should also never harm people. At the …
Just Like the Old Days, Only Modern…
Steinbeis Research Center in Würzburg combines tradition with digital modernity to create “stämps”
The real benefits of digital transformation only come to bear when it adds value for people and society. Explorative Digitalization Solutions, a Steinbeis Research Center, has been …
“Simply mapping things digitally saves time and money – especially for the New Mittelstand”
An interview with Carina Gliese (Steinbeis Europa Zentrum) and Thorsten Kroke (BCON2 GmbH)
InterOpera is the condensed name for a joint project looking at “digital interoperability in collaborative Industry 4.0 value creation networks.” Funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic …
Bursting with Energy
Introducing campoV – Germany’s first student residence designed as a so-called energy-plus building
Hearing that a student dormitary is, in a manner of speaking, bursting with energy is not likely to raise eyebrows. But people might take a closer look …
Education Requires an Enthusiasm for Technology
The Interaktivrat of the #techourfuture initiative concludes its work
In May 2023, the Ferdinand Steinbeis Institute (FSTI) of the Steinbeis Foundation brought its #techourfuture initiative to a close. The project gave fellow citizens – from schoolchildren to retirees, from the …
Supporting Children with Heart and Soul – and a Sustainable Organization
Steinbeis expert provides support with the development of a new organizational structure
Sixty employees, plenty of passion and dedication, and a mission that is as rewarding as it is challenging. These are the ingredients that define the ÖKJ, an ecumenical …
A Breath of Fresh Air in the Construction and Building Industry
A Steinbeis project brings together startups and established enterprises in the construction industry
Forward-thinking startups meet traditional players in the construction industry – a combination offering plenty of potential, as demonstrated by the GROUNDBREAKERS initiative. Launched by the Steinbeis Center …
Open strategy at Meat Counter
Staff is shaping the future of butcher Otto Müller from Constance
Who is actually responsible for the strategy of a company – its owners, management, or maybe even an external strategy consultancy? In many companies, strategies are discussed and planned …
A Coach for the Coach
Steinbeis consultant provides pre-startup support to a coaching practice providing psychological and psychosocial counseling
Helping others to help themselves – the central task for Gunnar Keck and his coaching practice, Coaching-Keck.de. Based in Waiblingen to the northeast of Stuttgart, Keck …
“It’s about shaping things to come”
An interview with Michael Konopka and Götz Schönfeld, initiators and managers of the 2023 Drees & Sommer Theme Journey
In more and more areas of society, the economy, and politics, “crisis mode” is turning into “situation normal.” Despite this, it’s …
Meet My Colleague, Mr. Robot
An essay on the challenges faced by German Mittelstand companies in the coming decades – and solutions
So here it is – demographic change. In this edition’s Steinbeis Swipe, authors Dr.-Ing. Jürgen Jähnert and Moritz Stahl (bwcon research) assume demographic …
Prof. Dipl.-Ing. Karl Schekulin
Steinbeis bids farewell to a thoroughbred engineer with a spirit for inventive experimentation and a passion for innovation. Prof. Dipl.-Ing. Karl Schekulin passed away on May 19 at the age of 85. A first-generation Steinbeiser, he was held in high …
The Role of SMEs as an Engine of Creativity, Innovation, and Technology
Expanding and fostering the potential of SMEs is a crucial challenge of modern times
Innovative entrepreneurship acts as an driver of change in all areas of value creation in trade and commerce. Entrepreneurial thinking and market-oriented action provide impetus for …
Using Laser Technology to Combat Wear
Steinbeis experts offer customized solutions for medium-sized enterprises
For around two decades, the Steinbeis Transfer Center for Laser Processing and Innovative Manufacturing Technology has been developing applications that use laser deposition welding and laser hardening to deliver wear protection. The …
Enterprise Data Manager – Systematic, Efficient, and Future-Proof
Steinbeis experts co-develop a training program for technical experts and managers
To successfully transform into a data-driven company, it is important to use data like any other business resource in keeping with actual needs and sustainability factors. Against this background, …
The Ideal (Air) Flow
A family-owned business develops a test bed for optimizing fans with the support of Steinbeis experts
Since 1999, Hägele, a medium-sized enterprise based in Schorndorf east of Stuttgart, has been developing, producing and selling radiator cooling fans for “off-highway machines” …
Dear Readers,
Medium-sized companies are a key element of the German economy. According to the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action, they account for around 61% of total net value creation. This makes the German Mittelstand crucial for stability and …
EU4HEALTH: A Vision of a Healthier Europe
Team at Steinbeis Europa Zentrum provides support with submitting proposals and managing projects
EU4Health (EU4H), an EU program offering funding worth €5.3 billion between 2021 and 2027, is the largest health promotion program ever launched by the European Union. This …
A Clever Way to Monitor Welding Processes
Steinbeis experts and project partners develop a multi-module sensor system
An efficient process for joining metal parts, arc welding continues to play an important role in the manufacture of structural components and assembled parts. There are a number of reasons …
From Navigating Buildings to a New Museum App
An interview with Professor Dr.-Ing. Frank Deinzer, Steinbeis Entrepreneur at the Steinbeis Transfer Center for New Media and Data Science
Have you ever stood in an unfamiliar building with time running out before your next appointment, and you haven’t got …
“The issues with skilled workers are more of a threat to innovation than the lack of time”
An interview with Professor Dr.-Ing. Thomas Ritz, entrepreneur at the Steinbeis Transfer Center for Usability and Innovative Interactive Systems for Information Logistics
Innovation at SMEs: Theoretically, the millions of small companies in Germany should be predestined to come up with …
A Nice Place to Take a Seat
Steinbeis experts develop fair-faced concrete street furniture with added functionality
FiberCrete, the Chemnitz-based Steinbeis Innovation Center, develops, tests, and finalizes new fiber- and textile-reinforced building materials, composites, and technologies for production. As part of a joint project, the experts from …
Recruitment 4.0 – Digital, Fast, and Inexpensive
Steinbeis experts share new ways to recruit staff
The digitalization of recruitment processes is still in its infancy in many companies. While applicants now expect a digital, highly efficient application experience, it is still not uncommon to find employment ads …
Technological know-how for non-technicians
Steinbeis training provides a grounding in technical knowledge
It’s a problem many industrial enterprises are familiar with: Technical experts and engineers try to explain a complex innovation or a manufacturing process to people in commercial areas, or co-workers working in …
The Technology Radar – Compass for Systematic Technology Management
Steinbeis expert Professor Dr. Helmut Beckmann supports SMEs with the process of digital transformation
Digital transformation in companies is a central driver of advancement and even drives the upheaval strategies, processes, business methods, and technological progress. However, more than half …
Hand Over the Doh
Steinbeis experts use automation technology to pick and pack modeling clay
Lots of kids get excited about Play-Doh and other modeling compounds. It’s a great way to allow young ones to play and explore their creativity, develop spatial thinking, and …
Intelligent Systems for Modeling Real Processes
Industrial mathematics specialist TOPAS develops the digital technologies of the future for medium-sized enterprises
Intelligent systems are becoming increasingly important to companies, and this applies just as much to large corporations as it does to SMEs. But at the same …