Data spaces: First implementation for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises

• VDMA and T-Systems bring standardized machine data into Manufacturing-X
• CO2 footprint of products from the supply chain live from four continents
• Demonstrator at Hannover Messe in Hall 9, Stand F25

VDMA and T-Systems, together with the umati (universal machine technology interface) initiative, are presenting the first global Manufacturing-X solution with open standards for machine data at Hannover Messe. The demonstrator shows the CO2 footprint of various products in a data space. Plants in Asia, Brazil, Germany, Spain and the USA share data from their production processes and Manufacturing-X ready equipment. The solution calculates the product carbon footprint live and documents it in a digital product passport. The participants always retain sovereignty over their machinery and production process data.

For the first time, small and medium-sized enterprises in particular, can experience an implementation of the "X for Machinery" architecture developed by the VDMA and use it as a blueprint for their own simple access to data spaces. The "X for Machinery" architecture describes how a selection of internationally established standards and technologies can be used and combined to realize access to data spaces. The architecture is based on the rules of the International Data Space Association (IDSA) and uses OPC UA and Companion Specifications like OPC UA for Machinery (OPC 40001) for communication. This ensures data sovereignty and creates a trustworthy ecosystem in which standardized production information can be shared and used.

The demonstrator realizes the FX-Port concept and brings standardized machine data from four continents into the data space using the umati.app platform and a data space connector. The data space infrastructure, the authentication of new participants for the data space and the connector, which is tailored to the special requirements of machine data, are provided and operated by T-Systems.

“Data spaces are the digital foundation for Europe’s future,” explains Christine Knackfuß-Nikolic, Chief Technology Officer at T-Systems. “They are not only the key to a secure and sovereign data economy, but also the catalyst for groundbreaking innovations. By providing high-quality, interoperable data, we are creating the foundation for an AI-driven economy that strengthens Europe’s global competitiveness and secures our digital independence. Data spaces are our opportunity to unleash the untapped power of 80 percent of data and generate an additional 270 billion Euro in GDP by 2028. They are nothing less than the fuel for Europe’s digital renaissance.”

The solution involves international partners such as the Federation of Industries of Minas Gerais (FIEMG), Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), The Smart Manufacturing Institute (CESMII), TRIMEK S.A. part of Innovalia Metrology, the Institute for Production Management, Technology and Machine Tools (PTW) at the Technical University of Darmstadt and interop4X.

Experience the data space live at the Hannover Messe at umati in Hall 9, Stand F25.

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VDMA and T-Systems, together with the umati initiative, are presenting the first global Manufacturing-X solution with open standards for machine data at Hannover Messe. © Deutsche Telekom/ iStock/ Sakorn Sukkasemsakorn/ Aslan Alphan; Montage: Evelyn Ebert Meneses