MIMA Winners 2023

AWARD
MIMA Winners 2023

March 28, 2023

Roland Berger and Microsoft are excited to present the winners of the 2023 Microsoft Intelligent Manufacturing Award

The Microsoft Intelligent Manufacturing Award ( MIMA ) honors creative and innovative digital solutions that are paving the way for a new, transformative generation of manufacturing. For the first time, this year’s participants spanned across EMEA. They were asked to submit innovative projects in the spheres of production, purchasing, supply chain management, engineering and operations.

"We are particularly pleased that, for the first time, companies from numerous European and Middle Eastern countries competed in MIMA. Smart digital solutions like those used by our winners will help to increase the potential for seamless interaction in the future."
Portrait of Jochen Gleisberg

Jochen Gleisberg

Senior Partner
Stuttgart Office, Central Europe

For the fourth year in a row, Roland Berger and Microsoft received outstanding submissions from companies that are pioneers in the areas of digitalization, sustainability , adaptability and more in the world of manufacturing. MIMA recognizes the tireless work and groundbreaking solutions of these companies. “We are impressed by the quality and diversity of this year's applications, which demonstrate how Microsoft's cloud technology can increase the potential, sustainability and competitive advantage of the manufacturing industry. We congratulate all winners and applicants on their outstanding achievements and invite all interested parties to view the winning solutions and associated forward-thinking projects on our website,” says Jochen Gleisberg, Senior Partner Operations at Roland Berger.

Under the motto „Innovate, Transform, Sustain" applicants competed in five categories (Innovate!, Scale!, Add Value!, Disrupt! and Sustainability!) to demonstrate their innovative excellence. Once an initial selection round narrowed down the entries, a select group of finalists presented their projects during a virtual pitch day via Microsoft Teams. Finally, the MIMA advisory board, acting as the award jury, chose one winner per category plus an overall winner.

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MIMA 2023 Winners
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MIMA 2023 - Category Add Value!: Danone

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MIMA 2023 - Category Innovate!: Danieli Automation + Beantech

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MIMA 2023 - Category Scale!: TRUMPF Werkzeugmaschinen

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MIMA 2023 - Disrupt! Siemens AG - Digital Enterprise & Digital Services

Overall Winner: fischerwerke GmbH & Co. KG

Construction monitoring

This year's overall winner was fischerwerke GmbH & Co. KG for its “fischer Construction Monitoring” technology. This technology demonstrates what an intelligent and innovative solution for monitoring fasteners can look like through cloud-based transmission of sensor data and integrated data visualization. The solution allows users to instantly monitor construction forces and loads at the fastener point in real time.

This technology has a significant impact on measurement accuracy and predictive maintenance, differentiating it from traditional laboratory measurement technology and mechanical interlock devices. As a comprehensive, cost-effective and easily accessible solution for site conditions, the system is particularly groundbreaking. Currently, fischerwerke's tool is being used successfully in German robotics and crane technology; further projects in various industries with international reach are being planned.

As one of the jury members said: “This technology is a real game changer for the construction industry. It clearly stands out from conventional measuring and interlocking methods. We look forward to seeing their future projects in other industries.”

Innovate! DANIELI AUTOMATION + BEANTECH

Q3-Premium – Decision Intelligence Solution for Quality Management in Steel Manufacturing

DANIELI AUTOMATION + BEANTECH won in the Innovate! category thanks to Q3-Premium, a pioneering modular solution for plant-wide quality control and assurance. This suite of software modules is designed to meet the increasing requirements of steel production. Based on state-of-the-art IIoT, analytics and AI technologies and methodologies, the application builds a powerful quality-controlled system that is aimed at production optimization and final product quality improvement. It is expected to improve the conformity rate, as well as reduce overall waste, consumption and emissions.

Scale! TRUMPF Werkzeugmaschinen SE & Co. KG + prenode GmbH

Remote access using Equipment-as-a-Service

TRUMPF Werkzeugmaschinen SE & Co. KG teamed up with the start-up prenode GmbH to win in the Scale! category. Together, the two companies developed a new technology that enables live monitoring and remote troubleshooting for Equipment-as-a-Service (EaaS) in the sheet metal industry. Compared to existing solutions, the technology is unique in its ability to enable live monitoring combined with remote access, as well as in its use of Umati (OPC UA) to enable rapid troubleshooting by operators. The solution not only helps companies eliminate conflicts that arise in real time, but also increases visibility into actual production costs and profitability, making it technically relevant to other industries as well.

Add Value! Danone

The Digital Manufacturing Acceleration Program

The Add Value! award went to the Paris-based food company Danone. The Danone Digital Manufacturing Acceleration program (DMA) aims to modernize Danone's global production factories to Industry 4.0 levels and beyond. Kicking off in Europe, the program is expected to increase future factory efficiency, flexibility and resilience. It comprises three streams: Blue Stream to support factories in identifying future use cases; Tech Stream to provide standardized and future-proof technical solutions; and Yellow Stream to improve the strategic planning and change management competencies in factories and minimize social impact with the use of digital training opportunities. This program is strongly impact-oriented and based on a methodology of changing people, technology and their interaction.

Disrupt! Siemens AG - Digital Enterprise & Digital Services

Trusted Traceability

Siemens AG - Digital Enterprise & Digital Services won in the Disrupt! category with a unique, holistic solution that creates more transparency along the supply and value chain. Ensuring supply and value chain transparency and traceability is a core objective of any company that wants to stay ahead of the curve in a competitive environment. The solution “Trusted Traceability” combines operational technology (OT), information technology (IT) know-how, the digital twin, trust technologies and Siemens' industry specific expertise into a ready-to-use application that ensures recall efficiency, regulatory compliance and more.

Sustainability! Outokumpu Oyj

Reducing the carbon footprint in stainless steel production

Finnish stainless steel manufacturer Outokumpu Oyj received this year's award for the most sustainable solution. It’s no secret that there is a growing need for companies to reduce all indirect emissions from their value chain. In fact, many are already calculating and reporting direct and indirect emissions. To calculate CO2 emissions along the entire supply chain, it is essential to also know the environmental impact of the materials used. Outokumpu Oyj developed a model that calculates the carbon footprint of its stainless steel products based on actual production and energy consumption data. This product-specific data benefits customers by providing valuable information on the extent to which Outokumpu Oyj’s materials contribute to the overall carbon footprint of their operations, and enables Outokumpu Oyj to more accurately monitor and reduce emissions in its own production.

In addition to the winners, this year's MIMA jury members would also like to praise a project by German engineering federation Verband Deutscher Maschinen- und Anlagenbau (VDMA), which was unable to enter the competition because the awards are aimed at individual companies, and not organizations. Since 2017, the VDMA has been working with 700 companies and partner organizations worldwide to develop standardized interfaces for production and operational information based on OPC UA technology, one of the most important communication standards for Industry 4.0. "This work increases efficiency in interface development, makes integration into existing system landscapes easier, and reduces the amount of interpretation required when using data," explains jury member Nico Hartmann.

MIMA 2023 Finalists

As well as the six winners, several other innovations made it to the final round of MIMA 2023. These finalists presented their cases on Pitch Day via Microsoft Teams. All MIMA winners and finalists will gain access to the prestigious MIMA Champions Circle (CC). This exclusive group includes representatives from the companies of all previous top 15 MIMA cases. CC members can enjoy networking opportunities, educational webinars and more.

  • Akzo Nobel: Improving worldwide production efficiency with Digital Manufacturing Platform
  • Alfa Laval: SNAPIT – Using AI to tackle the CO2 challenge for Heat Exchangers
  • Bosch & VHI: Connected Electric Oil Pumps
  • DANIELI AUTOMATION + BEANTECH: Q3 Premium Decision Intelligence Solution for quality management in Steel Manufacturing
  • Danone: Danone DMA (Digital Manufacturing Acceleration) Program
  • Festo: Festo Learning Experience
  • fischerwerke GmbH & Co. KG: fischer Construction Monitoring
  • Georg Fischer Piping Systems Ltd.: Delivering safe, clean and sustainable drinking water with Hycleen CONNECT
  • iFAKT & CTC (Airbus Composite Technology Center): Make Lean Leaner
  • Italcementi: AI Scanning Electron Microscope​
  • KUKA: KUKA Digital Services – An industrial IoT portfolio and data lake to smartify robotics and automation solutions
  • Outokumpu Oyj: Product carbon footprint on customer certificates
  • Phoenix Contact + Sennheiser + Halocline: Manufacturing Metaverse: Data continuity in digital twins from virtual reality to real-world manufacturing operations
  • Siemens AG - Digital Enterprise & Digital Services: Trusted Traceability
  • TRUMPF Werkzeugmaschinen SE & Co. KG + prenode GmbH: Remote Operations for Equipment-as-a-Service

Further reading