Forging the Dutch industrial ALD hub
By fostering collaboration between companies focusing on atomic layer deposition as well as infusing them with the latest research results, a new TUE-led project aims to take the already strong Dutch presence in this field to the next level.
Put on your sustainability glasses once in a while and go blue
Sustainability has long been high on the agenda of idealists. But it’s only a matter of time before it becomes a requirement for all machines and systems. Jeroen Rondeel of Blue Engineering is firmly convinced of that. A crucial task is reserved for developers. Involved in the training “Design for sustainability,” Rondeel explains how you can make a world of difference with just a few simple tools.
Ask the headhunter
I’ll soon celebrate my 15th anniversary as operations director at an international medical technology company. It’s a nice job, but after all this time, it no longer challenges me. In part also because there are no further growth opportunities for me in Europe.
Teaching the factory a lesson
Angelo Hulshout has the ambition to bring the benefits of production agility to the market and set up a new business around that. Once we’ve retrieved the data from the factory, what to do with it?
High-Tech Systems: free virtual networking event
Do you miss meeting new people from your field of work, expanding your network and catching up with existing relations? At the next edition of High-Tech Systems, on 25 March, you have the opportunity to do so in our virtual event space. Attending this online event is free of charge, reserve your seat here.
Etulipa’s next-gen electrowetting displays shine in full color
After getting acquainted with electrowetting displays (EWD) in the Philips Research labs, Hans Feil and a few of his colleagues decided they wanted to dive deeper into the technology. Two decades and two spinoffs later, Feil’s Etulipa is ready to show what its fully colored and very low-power EWD technology can do.
“Start with system functions and think beyond the boundaries of your own discipline”
High-tech development processes are becoming so complex that organizations cannot avoid thinking and working in a multidisciplinary way. After all, the ideal solution is rarely one-dimensional. However, collaborating engineers from different fields are only successful if they understand each other’s jargon. VDL ETG T&D sends its technicians on a course at High Tech Institute so that they can train that skill.
Young ASML had electrons on its roadmap
In its early days, ASML was convinced that optical litho would only last for another decade. It seriously considered investing in next-generation lithography and even sold direct-write systems.
Analog electronic design without the trial and horror
Not unlike the arts, analog electronic design often hinges on intuition and sparks of inspiration. Anton Montagne has no qualms about that, but it’s no way to teach the subject. The self-described free spirit has made it his life work to offer a structured approach to analog electronic design, which he teaches in the training “Design of analog electronics – analog electronics 1” and several others.
Power duo puts all their effort into Eindhoven Engine
Internally, everything has been in place since October, but now, the outside world may know as well. The High Tech Systems Center (HTSC) of Eindhoven University of Technology is being integrated into Eaisi, the Eindhoven research institute for artificial intelligence. With the transition, HTSC figureheads Katja Pahnke and Maarten Steinbuch think it’s time to hand over the baton. They now have their hands free for their next Apollo project: Eindhoven Engine.
Culture versus strategy
Recently, in one of the company boards that I’m part of, we approved the new product strategy. This strategy is quite a deviation from the previous one in that we balance much more between investing in the current, main product, which used to get virtually all investment earlier, and new product initiatives to serve adjacent markets and help grow the business. However, after the board meeting, we discussed operationalizing the strategy and the main topic was that the most difficult part would be to change the culture of the employees in the business.
Smart industry: vision and reality
One of the best examples of smart industry I ever saw, was a Bosch factory producing injector systems for diesel engines. In this enormous facility, hundreds of machines were fully connected to a central data system. Big screens in the hallways detailed the status of every machine, the quality of the products, anything you’d want to know. Artificial intelligence was used to predict maintenance and prevent failures, optimize product quality and improve the design of the next factory.