01_E by Martin Jonson

Pictures of the Future The Magazine for Research and Innovation | Fall 2008

www.siemens.com/pof

The Future of Raw Materials Innovations in extraction, processing, and conservation

Early Detection of Diseases

Sustainable Buildings

Innovations in laboratory, imaging and information technologies

Energy-Efficient Solutions for Tomorrowâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Cities

Pictures of the Future | Editorial

Contents

s the global population continues to grow and the average age rises, the need to control healthcare spending is becoming urgent. Early detection of disease can offer an answer to this growing challenge that will benefit individuals, hospitals and societies alike. At Siemens, we are moving toward a vision of providing healthcare professionals with the vital information they need to de-

lows clinicians to scan hearts at elevated pulse rates, eliminating the need for beta blockers and other time-consuming steps. In magnetic resonance (MR), we are the only company offering a system capable of scanning the entire body in a single step. The third part of our vision is information technology (pages 6 and 104). Why is this so important? We believe information can optimize medical intervention at every

A New Vision of Healthcare Jim Reid-Anderson is Chief Executive Officer of Siemens’ Healthcare Sector.

Buildings account for about 40 percent of energy consumption worldwide. But advanced technologies could save much of this. Take The New York Times building (cover), for instance. Thanks to an intelligent management system from Siemens, it uses about 30 percent less energy than conventional office buildings.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Pictures of the Future

liver better and more personalized care across the healthcare continuum. To achieve this next generation in optimized care, we are integrating three key areas of healthcare: clinical laboratory diagnostics, medical imaging, and information technology. The integration of these disciplines began with the acquisition of several laboratory diagnostic companies — Diagnostics Products Corporation, Bayer Healthcare Diagnostics and Dade Behring, which quickly catapulted Siemens into the leading position in the €20 billion global in vitro diagnostics (IVD) market (pages 100 and 106). In vitro diagnostics represents less than two percent of global healthcare spending, yet contributes to more than 70 percent of clinical decisions. To address the potential of this rapidly growing area, we are currently investing approximately €300 million per year in research & development in laboratory diagnostics technology alone. Siemens also holds the market-leading position in the worldwide medical imaging business — an area in which we invest over €700 million annually in research & development (pages 89 and 95). We are number one in magnetic imaging, angiography and molecular imaging. Why are we so strong in these key areas? Quite simply because our innovative technology is focused on patient screening, early disease detection and efficient workflows — all of which lead to improved patient care and lower healthcare costs. In computed tomography, for instance, our Somatom Definition scanner uniquely al-

stage of the patient-care continuum. With cancer, for example, a blood test can detect proteins that may be indicative of an early-stage tumor. While such blood tests may point to a tumor’s presence, only a PET or MR scan can confirm the presence, location and size of a tumor. Along the treatment path, information technology helps ensure that workflows are optimized, standards are met or exceeded, and optimized medical treatment is delivered. Given our vision for the next generation of healthcare, it is easy to understand why Siemens has become the world’s first integrated healthcare company. The articles in the section of this issue that focus on the early detection of diseases (pages 84-113, plus a feature on pages 6-7) literally paint a picture of the future – and of the technologies in the Siemens Healthcare development pipeline that are propelling us there. One of the most interesting developments in the research area is optical imaging (page 89) – a technology that could accelerate the early detection of many diseases by using light to identify abnormal cells in vivo. This technology represents the marriage of diagnostics and therapeutics through advanced IT at the point of care. In combination with our rapidly-growing understanding of biomarkers and our steadily improving diagnostic capabilities, such new technologies should lead to revolutionary changes that will advance healthcare, reduce medical costs and save lives.

The Future of Raw Materials 112 Scenario 2020 Report from Morning Star 114 Trends Indispensable Assets 117 Copper Mining High-Altitude Profits 120 Mining Electrification Monster Drives 122 Rare Minerals The Mother of Invention 125 Interview. Vladimir Troyan Tapping New Technologies for Fuel 126 Pipelines Optimizing Our Lifelines 128 Facts and Forecasts Balancing Demand and Production 130 Offshore Drilling An Ocean of Opportunity 133 Interview. Matthew R. Simmons Twilight at the Pump 134 Tar Sands Electrifying Extraction 136 Water Purification Hope on Tap 138 Interview. Rhett Butler Solving the Global Potable Water Problem 139 Singapore Pooling Resources 141 Wastewater Treatment Making Pollutants Edible 142 Biomass Flaming Scrap

Sustainable Buildings 148 Scenario 2020 Efficient Dragon 150 Trends Simple Steps that Save a Bundle 153 Energy Efficiency Nature is their Model 156 Siemens Real Estate Going for Greener Pastures 158 London Shrinking our Footprints 160 Intelligent Sensors When Buildings Come to Life 163 Smart Meters Stabilizing the Grid 166 Networked Technology Smart Home, Smart City 168 Interview. Paolo Bertoldi The EU’s Green Building Initiative 170 Facts and Forecasts More Efficient Buildings 171 Building Planning Living for Tomorrow 172 Airflow Simulation Seeing the Invisible 174 Research Collaboration Learning in Alaska 176 Masdar City Oil-Free Future? 178 Combined Heat and Power How to Own a Power Plant

Early Detection of Diseases 184 Scenario 2020 No Cause for Alarm 186 Trends From Molecules to Man 189 New Imaging Methods The Future of Medical Imaging 191 Interview. John V. Frangioni Detecting Cancer Cells with Light 193 Interview. Mukesh Harisinghani The Nanoparticle Toolbox 195 Mammography The Battle against Breast Cancer 100 Breast Cancer Testing How to Fingerprint a Tumor 102 Facts and Forecasts New Focus on Early Diagnostics 104 Epidemiology Patterns in the Puzzle 106 Biomarkers Answers in the Blood 111 Lab Automation New Vistas in Diagnostics

Sections 4 Short Takes News from Siemens’ Labs 6 Electronic Patient Records Health on File 8 Siemens Environment Portfolio Climate Change Powers Growth 44 Siemens and Disney Create Your Own Future! 80 Research Cooperation Magnetic Mission 83 Siemens Venture Capital New Hope for Organ Transplants 114 Feedback / Preview

Pictures of the Future | Short Takes

Ships with Plugs

Good-bye Gearbox

ermany’s first shore-based electrical power supply station for merchant ships entered service in the city of Lübeck in August 2008. The new facility enables ships to tap into the local grid for their electricity needs, rather than producing power themselves with pollutant-emitting diesel generators. At the heart of the Siemens solution is the Siplink system, which makes it possible for the first time to link ship and shore power networks, even if their frequencies differ. sw

n an effort to make offshore wind power facilities even more reliable, Siemens will soon be testing a new type of wind turbine that works without a gearbox. The main benefit of the new unit lies in its simplified design, which requires fewer machine components, and will therefore result in lower maintenance costs and a higher level of availability. This is especially important for offshore facilities, where turbine breakdowns are prohibitively expensive. Siemens Energy will test two gearless wind power facilities in Denmark. The facilities have a combined output of 3.6 MW.

iemens researchers are developing organic cell sensors for use as early warning systems to detect the presence of polluted water or air (see p. 60). The cells, which react to deviations in water or air quality with measurable alterations to their metabolism, live in a culture medium mounted on a silicon chip. The chip evaluates sensor data and forwards it to a process control system. sw

Maximum protection. Whereas forgery-proof RFID chips (left) are usually employed in situations where protection against imitations and copies is the main concern (e.g. with medications or automotive and industrial machine replacement parts), quantum cryptography chips (above) are ideal for companies that need secure communication channels to protect them from industrial espionage.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Living Sensors S

No Eavesdropping wo encryption technologies developed by Siemens will soon make life difficult for product pirates and would-be eavesdroppers. The company’s new authorization procedure for RFID chips enables the authenticity of a chip attached to a product to be verified with a technique similar to the one used for digital signatures. The chip encodes a query from the reader device with its own private key. The receiver can verify the correctness of the answer to this query by means of the matching public key in a process that takes a mere tenth of a second. The technique thus makes unauthorized copying or chip alterations impossible. In the past, such procedures couldn’t be used with small RFID chips — but optimized algorithms and non-programmable switching components have now enabled Siemens experts to greatly reduce the computing power and expense of the procedure. Siemens has also made phone and data-line tapping physically impossible with a quantum cryptography chip for industrial applications that it developed as a prototype together with the Austrian Research Center and Graz University of Technology. The chip, which will replace a previously used key distribution system based on mathematical algorithms, uses photons to generate a random number sequence. The new system registers any attempt at tapping, as such activities initiate quantum physical processes that alter or destroy the photons. If such an attempt occurs, the system responds by generating a new key. sw

Cell sensors react like living organisms to toxins and pollutants

Shore-based power connections reduce emissions, fuel costs, and noise

Low-maintenance wind turbines without gearboxes offer major benefits, especially on the high seas.

Siemens is conducting the research project, which will last two years, in order to determine in which performance class (if any) the units will be able to compete with conventional facilities. Gearless drive systems are generally heavier than conventional ones and also more expensive to produce. Wind turbine gearboxes transform the low rotation speeds of the rotor into the high speeds required to generate electricity. The gearless wind turbines, on the other hand, are equipped with synchronous generators that directly convert each rotor movement into electrical energy. These generators have torque of 2,500 kilonewton meters (kNm). By comparison, a powerful automobile electric drive has torque of less than one kNm. fm

Luminescent Plastics R

esearchers at Osram and Siemens Corporate Technology have developed white organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) that boast a service life of more than 5,000 hours, while consuming less energy and achieving higher levels of brightness and robustness than ever before. The active layer of the OLEDs is less than

half of a thousandth of a millimeter thick and is made of plastics that light up when an electric current flows through them. Laminar OLEDs, along with LED point-light sources, could revolutionize lighting, because they could be used to create illuminated wallpaper and tiles, empyreans, and transparent light sheets. OLED tiles

Siemens lighting subsidiary Osram is developing OLED tiles that are three times more efficient than light bulbs and could be used in future lamps (right).

from Osram have an efficiency of 46 lumens per watt, which is three times the efficiency of a light bulb. Osram researchers have also raised the bar for white LEDs, as their recently developed unit is only one square millimeter in area. But that’s not all — it also holds the world records for luminosity and efficiency. fm

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Pictures of the Future | Short Takes

In one of the biggest e-health projects in Europe

| Electronic Patient Records

WebEPA is helping to avoid redundant exams at Rhön-Klinikum AG’s 47 clinics. The organization is based in Bad Neustadt an der Saale, Germany (left).

New View of the Body A

new procedure developed by Björn Heismann has made it possible for the first time to depict body functions using a contrast medium and computer tomography (CT). Until now, such functions could be displayed only via complex and expensive nuclear-medicine procedures. Heismann’s research was based on the Björn Heismann uses CT to make body functions visible ability of advanced CT devices to quantitatively detect X-ray energy and evaluate the associated signals. When used with the Siemens Somatom Definition system, which has two X-ray sources and two detectors, the new procedure enables CT to generate sharp images of a very rapidly beating heart, for example, while at the same time lowering the patient’s exposure to radiation. Thus equipped, the Somatom Definition is also potentially able to generate two data sets from differing X-ray energy intensities. The contrast medium enables the user of the device to differentiate among the various tissues depicted, and then characterize and analyze them with algorithms developed by Heismann in order to identify the presence and nature of tumors or blocked blood vessels, for example. sw

Ceramic Bakery D

r. Wolfgang Rossner is known as “The Lord of Ceramics” at Siemens Corporate Technology in Munich, where he supervises a Competence Center team that mixes ultrafine ceramic powder to create materials with new properties. The most innovative part of the research done here involves using atomic structures to create the new substances and then Ceramics expert Wolfgang Rossner: It’s all in the mix. customizing the various material components in accordance with their planned applications. Such lab work can be a basis for innovative products, as Siemens experts demonstrated in the mid-1990s with the development of a special ceramic for X-ray detectors. The material has since become an indispensable part of many leading detectors. The ceramic materials can not only be found in extremely fast-working computer tomographs; they also enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of many other products, including everything from giant turbine blades to tiny light-emitting diodes. fm

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Health on File Rhön-Klinikum AG is in the process of networking its 46 clinics based on the use of Web-based patient files. The objective is to generate a dramatic improvement in the quality of care.

patient suffering from chest pains has just been admitted to the emergency room. After obtaining the 55-year-old man’s consent, his attending physician checks the patient's electronic file. The file indicates that the man has already undergone a bypass operation, does not tolerate certain contrast agents, and is diabetic. Moreover, the document displays earlier ultrasound and X-ray images, and laboratory test results, as well as electrocardiogram data. Thanks to these, the patient can be treated promptly. In situations such as this, but especially in treating the chronically ill, patients gain considerable benefit if their medical histories are available to attending physicians in as complete a form as possible. The latest IT solutions now make this possible. The Rhön-Klinikum AG — a private hospital group and health service provider — is a pioneer in these efforts. In the near term, all patients handled by the group — more than a million each year — will profit from electronic patient files. All this effort makes the enterprise one of the largest privately-financed IT projects in the German healthcare system. At present, patient files are being implemented in the group’s own medical care centers in Frankfurt/Oder (near Berlin) and Giessen near Frankfurt, Germany. The Web-based e-health solution, which Rhön-Klinikum AG calls WebEPA, was conceived in cooperation with Siemens’ Healthcare Sector, and is undergoing continuous development. Its advantages are enormous. With a few clicks of a mouse, medical professionals have digital access to medical findings and diagnoses — be they X-ray images

or laboratory blood test results. Any authorized person in the wards, examination and treatment rooms, or in the operating room who requires rapid access to a patient’s overall situation can examine the relevant information in the file, using a standard personal computer and the Internet. “Regarding admissions or transfers, the patient no longer needs to bring along documents and images from previous examinations,” says Dr. Peter Heil, business manager for eHealth at Siemens Healthcare. Access to individual patient data is strictly controlled. Upon admission to the hospital, the electronic patient file is explained in detail to the patient. Only after the patient has given consent are access rights granted — and then only to the attending physicians. Mechanisms for secure authentication as well as rule-based access control ensure that only authorized persons have access to the files. New findings and diagnoses automatically flow into the file. If the attending physicians require the support of other departments, they can expand access rights as needed; for example, to a radiologist. Every instance of digital access to patient data is logged, and therefore traceable. If an electronic file is dormant for an extended period, its access rights expire. The data can then be accessed only in the case of an emergency. However, if the patient is readmitted at a later time, new access rights can be granted. The file is reactivated, and the individual medical history can be traced back over years. All things considered, WebEPA adds up to an extremely stringent data privacy regime.

“The comprehensive patient information offered by WebEPA helps doctors avoid unnecessary duplication of examinations — a key advantage of the patient file,” says Heil. Until now, admission to the hospital often resulted in examinations that had already been conducted by the patient’s private-practice doctor. That will no longer be the case. For instance, X-rays provided by the patient’s own specialist will be automatically available — even if the patient has forgotten to bring them along. On the other hand, when it comes to operations, up-to-date blood tests will continue to be ordered, even if recent results are available. To make use of WebEPA’s advantages, an increasing number of doctors in private practice are joining Rhön-Klinikum’s project, and the software is also being implemented by other associations. In the near future, community hospitals and doctors in and around Bamberg, Germany will examine this form of cooperative effort. They will draw on the same technological base as Rhön-Klinikum. Standardized Platform. The IT product employed in Bamberg and by Rhön-Klinikum is part of Soarian Integrated Care, a comprehensive eHealth solution that Siemens has been offering since 2003. Beyond patient files, it supports vital management and treatment processes. “The advantage of the Siemens solution is that existing IT systems may continue to be used. WebEPA integrates systems that previously provided patient or billing information, and combines them in a unified platform,” says Heil. Previously, these so-called primary systems, which, for exam-

ple, distributed the results of computed tomographs or other diagnostic devices from various manufacturers, were often mutually incompatible. Soarian Integrated Care, on the other hand, uses standard interfaces such as HL7. In this way, primary systems can be integrated and data made available in a Web-based patient file. Experts from Siemens IT Solutions and Services have tuned this application — ultimately, a “translator” between existing systems — to precisely meet the requirements of RhönKlinikum’s existing infrastructure. For example, using this system, RhönKlinikum doctors can discuss complex cancer treatment online. “Specialists, such as oncologists and radiologists, can exchange views during conferences. Together, they can digitally access test results, and discuss these in real time, even though they are located at different facilities,” says Heil. In the past, preparation for such conferences was, as a rule, time-consuming for participants. WebEPA has changed all of that. Its advanced IT functions improve efficiency as well as treatment comfort. What’s more, specialists agree that the technology offers considerable potential for cutting costs and improving care. For the Rhön group, these are the main reasons for successively linking all of its clinics. Experience in everyday clinical operations will show exactly where the heavy lifting needs to be done, and how significant overall savings may be. Meanwhile, electronic patient files are already demonstrating their greatest value — to the patients themselves. Andreas Kleinschmidt

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Pictures of the Future | Environmental Portfolio

Why Climate Change Is Powering Growth Siemens’ leadership in products and solutions designed to protect the environment and the climate is worth a bundle. In 2007 the company posted sales of approximately €17 billion in this area and helped its customers reduce their carbon dioxide emissions by 114 million metric tons.

ust about everyone today agrees that climate change is threatening both the environment and the global economy. In the summer of 2008, the heads of the leading industrialized nations — the G8 — pledged to work to cut greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2050. This is also the target being pushed by climate experts on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). It’s clearly time for the world to act. According to a study conducted by British economist Sir Nicholas Stern, the consequences of extreme weather or a rise in sea levels could impact the global economy and necessitate expenditures of between five and 20 percent of gross world product (GWP). On the other hand, implementation of effective measures to combat climate change would cost much less. Limiting the rise of average global temperature to under two degrees, for example, would require an estimated investment of only around one percent of GWP a year (Pictures of the Future, Spring 2007, p. 84). Such an investment would make ecological sense, and in most cases economic sense as well — after all, it would provide many companies with opportunities to achieve sustainable growth. For many years, Siemens has been a leader in environmentallyfriendly power generation and distribution, as well as energy-efficient

products ranging from lighting systems and drive units to building technology and solutions for environmentally-friendly production processes. Now, for the first time, a company-wide team led by Siemens Corporate Technology has documented the company’s complete Environmental Portfolio, which lists all products and solutions that help protect the environment and battle climate change. The list accounts for nearly 25 percent of the company’s sales, and in 2007 amounted to around €17 billion — much more than any competitor. In that same year, Siemens customers reduced their carbon dioxide emissions by 114 million metric tons, which is more than 20 times the level of CO2 that Siemens itself produces. Independent auditing company PricewaterhouseCoopers has confirmed the validity of the Siemens Environmental Portfolio and the savings it has generated, as well as the method Siemens used to calculate the savings. Siemens expects its Environmental Portfolio to expand at an annual rate of ten percent over the next few years solely through organic growth. The company’s target is to achieve a portfolio level of around €25 billion by 2011. Siemens also has ambitious goals for its own environmental protection activities. In 2007, the company emitted a total of 5.1 million tons of CO2 equivalent. This figure consists of all

Power Transmission: 5,000 MW Energy Highway High-voltage direct-current power transmission (HVDC) has proven to be a very effective technique for transmitting electricity over long distances with minimal losses. An example is an HVDC “electricity highway” being built in China between Yunnan Province in the southwest and Guangdong Province in the south. In mid-2010, this HVDC line will begin transmitting 5,000 megawatts of environmentally friendly electricity from hydropower plants over a distance of 1,400 kilometers at 800 kilovolts. Other ecological power transmission and distribution systems from Siemens include power grid links for off-

Mass Transit: Cutting Energy Bills by 30% The transportation sector accounts for 25 to 30

shore wind parks, gas-insulated transmission lines, gas-insulated transformers, and the Siplink DC coupler, which eliminates the need for diesel generators on docked ships.

Server Farms: Achieving 80% Utilization Rapidly growing data volumes and ever-more

percent of global end-consumer energy con-

powerful computers are pushing up energy con-

sumption. And mobility is going to substantially

sumption and putting a strain on the environ-

increase in the future, which means transporta-

ment. Experts have calculated that computer

tion must become more environmentally

servers around the world require the complete

friendly. The Velaro high-speed train — the

output of 14 power plants in the 1,000-

Combined Cycle Power Plants: Achieving 58% Efficiency

Light-Emitting Diodes: Saving up to 900 Billion Kilowatt Hours

The most environmentally- and climate-friendly conventional power plants are

The use of efficient lighting technology could reduce global electricity con-

world’s fastest rail vehicle — requires the equiva-

megawatt class. Siemens’ “Transformational

combined cycle gas and steam facilities that use natural gas. Such plants have

sumption by more than 900 billion kilowatt-hours per year, which is half of

lent of only two liters of gasoline per person and

Data Center” Environmental Portfolio compo-

a peak efficiency of more than 58 percent, and their CO2 emissions per kilo-

China’s annual electricity consumption. Based on the current worldwide elec-

100 kilometers when half full. The consistent

nent balances economy, ecology, and flexibility

watt-hour (g CO2/kWh) are only around 345 grams. The corresponding aver-

tricity mix, such a reduction would also lower CO2 emissions by more than 500

lightweight design of subway trains in Oslo has

by addressing all aspects of a server farm, from

age figures for coal-fired plants worldwide are 30 percent peak efficiency and

million metric tons per year. Energy-saving lamps from Osram boast a high

reduced energy consumption by 30 percent.

planning and construction to operation and out-

1,115 g CO2/kWh. The Siemens Environmental Portfolio therefore includes the

level of luminous efficiency and use up to 80 percent less electricity than light

Road traffic energy efficiency can be improved

sourcing. It also includes systems for active en-

modernization of old coal-fired plants. The company’s technicians recently

bulbs. They also last up to 15 times longer. LEDs are the light sources of the fu-

as well — by using LEDs in traffic lights, for ex-

ergy management and computer center automa-

raised the efficiency of the Farge plant operated by E.ON by three percentage

ture. These semiconductor compounds directly convert electricity into light

ample. Siemens’ Environmental Portfolio for the

tion. The Transformational Data Center has

points to 45 percent — an improvement that reduces annual CO2 emissions by

and last for more than 50,000 hours. Like energy-saving lamps, LEDs consume

transportation sector also includes traffic and

enabled Siemens-operated server farms to in-

100,000 tons. The Environmental Portfolio for fossil power generation also in-

up to 80 percent less electricity than light bulbs. Siemens’ Environmental Port-

parking management systems, airport naviga-

crease their capacity utilization to more than 80

cludes fuel cells, heat and power co-generation, and power plant control

folio also includes fluorescent lamps and electronic ballasts, Halogen Energy

tion lighting, and rail traffic automation and

percent, which in turn lowers energy consump-

technology.

Savers, and high-intensity discharge lamps.

power supply systems.

tion.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Pictures of the Future | Environmental Portfolio

Industry: Enormous Energy-Saving Potential

Air and Water Treatment: Radical Reductions in Pollutants

Ever-more efficient devices and the retrofitting

Whether for steel, paper, or other products — the world’s 20 million motors

Siemens’ Environmental Portfolio includes systems for maintaining water and

of existing equipment with the latest technology

used in manufacturing account for 65 percent of the electricity consumed by

air purity. The Cannibal system for wastewater processing reduces biological

are reducing the environmental impact of med-

industry. Energy optimization measures for such motors could cut annual CO2

solids in water by up to 50 percent. In addition, Siemens supplies systems for

ical systems. The Somatom Definition computer

emissions by 360 million metric tons — that’s almost Australia’s annual emis-

treating industrial waste water used in sectors such as the paper industry. Flue

tomograph uses up to 30 percent less electricity

sion figure. Energy-saving motors’ losses are more than 40 percent lower than

gas treatment systems, such as electric filters, remove air pollutants such as ni-

than a conventional unit and also contains 83

those of standard motors. By enabling various drive speeds, the use of a fre-

trogen oxides and sulfur dioxide. Such systems, in fact, achieve nearly 100-

percent less lead. As much as 97 percent of the

quency converter cuts energy consumption by up to 60 percent. Siemens’ En-

percent separation at power plants, industrial facilities, and waste incineration

vironmental Portfolio also includes diesel-electric drives for ships, solutions for

plants. Finally, the Meros process for cleaning sinter exhaust at steel produc-

the metalworking and mining industries, energy recuperation systems for the

tion facilities lowers emissions of dust, heavy metals, organic compounds, and

paper industry, and energy management and consulting services.

sulfur dioxide by more than 90 percent in many cases.

Somatom Definition’s weight can be recycled. The Magnetom Essenza magnetic resonance

Buildings: Saving € 1 Billion in Energy

Renewable energy sources are becoming in-

unit has a lower wattage for energy and cooling

Buildings are indirectly responsible for more

creasingly important. In Germany, they already

than its conventional counterparts, thereby re-

than 20 percent of global greenhouse gas emis-

account for more than 14 percent of electricity.

ducing electricity costs by as much as 50 per-

sions. The biggest energy consumers in build-

Siemens supplies highly efficient wind power

cent. In addition, the use of refurbished systems

ings are technical facilities and lighting systems.

facilities for applications on land and offshore.

reduces CO2 emissions by 10,400 tons per year.

Optimized heating, ventilation, and air condi-

Some 7,000 Siemens wind turbines are in opera-

tioning systems in a renovated building can re-

tion worldwide. Since 2003, the company has

duce energy consumption by more than 40 per-

installed over 3,300 MW of wind power, which

cent; average savings of 25 percent have been

save 8 million metric tons of CO2 per year. The

recorded to date. Even individual room controls

largest turbine has an output of 3.6 megawatts

can optimize indoor climates and generate en-

and a rotor diameter of 107 meters. The rotor

ergy savings of up to 14 percent. To date,

blades, which are single-cast and thus have no

Siemens has optimized 6,500 buildings world-

seams, are tough enough to withstand even

wide in energy performance contracting pro-

gale-force winds. Siemens also supplies com-

grams, saving more than €1 billion in energy

plete photovoltaic facilities, thermal-solar power

costs. Such savings alone are enough to recoup

plant turbines, and biomass plants.

the customer’s initial investment.

emissions generated by energy consumption for electricity and heat, di- converters would result in a 60 percent reduction in electricity consumprect greenhouse gas emissions and emissions produced through busi- tion. Similar potential for improvement can be found in the power genness trips. By comparison, automakers produced two to five times more eration sector as well. The average efficiency rating for coal-fired power emissions per employee — and oil companies generate around 200 plants worldwide is 30 percent. Siemens technology achieves a 47 pertimes that level. Despite its relatively low CO2 footprint, Siemens is deter- cent efficiency rating, however, and combined cycle plants will soon mined to achieve a 20 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions reach 60 percent. Consumers can also do their part — for example, by relative to sales by 2011, as compared to 2006 levels. using energy-saving lamps and light diodes, both of which consume 80 The growing concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere has a major im- percent less electricity than incandescent light bulbs. New refrigerators pact on climate change — and we must do everything in our power to can also help, as these require as much as 75 percent less energy to opdiminish this trend. There’s still time to act. erate than 1990 models. Most of the technology needed to do so is alSiemens is the only company able to offer ready available. London offers a good examefficiency-enhancing products, solutions, and Environmental Portfolio: ple. According to a study conducted by McKgreen technologies across the entire value €25 billion by 2011 insey on behalf of Siemens, the British capital chain. It offers everything from equipment for +10% per year could cut its CO2 emissions by 44 percent bepower generation, transmission, and distributween now and 2025 using solutions already tion to energy-saving services, as well as available — without reducing its citizens’ state-of-the-art IT solutions for energy man25 23% quality of life (p. 58). agement. All of these are part of the Environ19% The greatest potential for energy savings mental Portfolio, which includes: 17 15 can be found in buildings, which account for Products and solutions that display extraornearly 40 percent of global energy consumpdinary energy efficiency, such as combined tion (pp. 48–79). Savings of approximately 30 cycle power plants, energy-saving lamps, and percent could, for example, be achieved here intelligent building technologies. through more effective and efficient insula All equipment and components related to 2006 2007 2011 (target) tion, ventilation, air conditioning and heating the utilization of renewable energy sources Sales from Environmental Portfolio products systems. The situation is similar in industry, (including components for renewable power and solutions (in € billions) where the lion’s share of electricity consumpgeneration itself) — e.g. wind power facilities Share of total Siemens sales accounted for by tion is accounted for by electric drives. Equipand their grid connections; steam turbines for the Environmental Portfolio ping these with state-of-the-art frequency solar energy.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Green technologies for water treatment and air quality maintenance. is currently 578 g CO2/kWh. The product of the 233 g CO2/kWh differExperts from Corporate Technology and the Siemens Sectors have also ence and the amount of electricity generated annually at new combined calculated for the first time the greenhouse gas savings potential for cycle plants installed by Siemens during the corresponding business year each Siemens product and solution. Their calculations are based on a be- equals the emission reduction. Siemens’ Environmental Portfolio refore-after comparison specific to each product or solution, such as the duces annual CO2 emissions for the company’s customers by 114 million effect of a power plant modernization, or the impact that energy per- metric tons . In fact, products and solutions installed in 2007 alone have formance contracting has on energy optimization in buildings. Direct led to savings of 30 million metric tons. That total is set to increase to comparisons were also made with a reference technology. For example, 275 million metric tons in 2011, which corresponds to the current CO2 emission reductions resulting from the use of low-loss, high-voltage di- emissions of Tokyo, New York City, London, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Rome combined. rect-current (HVDC) transmission Siemens has firmly embedded systems were calculated through its Environmental Portfolio into a comparison of emissions genSiemens Cuts CO2 by as its business strategy. The comerated by conventional AC transRome ~ 15 Mt much as the Emissions pany consistently addresses the mission. The experts also comof Six Major Cities growth market for climate protecpared new facilities with existing Hong Kong ~ 40 Mt CO2 reductions 275 Mt CO2 tion solutions and plans on exones, whereby corresponding avby customers CO2 reductions panding its lead in this area. This erage global emission factors for achieved through Singapore ~ 50 Mt will not only safeguard Siemens’ power generation were utilized. Siemens products Total and solutions in own future and generate value The following example illusgreenthe year in queshouse gas for employees and shareholders; trates how the method works: tion London ~ 50 Mt 114 emissions produced it will also make a major contribuState-of-the-art combined cycle 84 Annual savings by 60 through prodtion to reducing CO2 emissions power plants have an efficiency Siemens** New York ~ 60 Mt ucts and soluCity worldwide. Customers will benerating of approximately 58 pertions from previ5.1 ous years fit from enhanced energy efficent and emit 345 grams of CO2 2007 2002– 2006 2007 2011 ~ 60 Mt Tokyo per kilowatt-hour (g CO2/kWh). ciency, which will lower costs and 2005* (target) * Based on comparisons with existing installations: Wind power The experts compared this to enable them to succeed in a (since 2003), combined cycle plants, high-voltage direct-current Total transmission (HVDC), energy performance contracting emissions the global average emission facfiercely competitive environ** Includes all greenhouse gases: Emissions from production, elec(as CO2 tricity and heat consumption, business trips, and the company’s vetor for electricity generation ment. ∑ ~ 275 Mt equivalent) hicle fleet. Mt = megatons (millions of metric tons) across all energy sources, which Norbert Aschenbrenner Sources: Siemens, McKinsey, UN Statistics, as well as multiple government sources

Wind Power: 3.6 Megawatts per Turbine

Medical Scanners: Up to 97% Recyclable

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Raw Materials | Scenario 2020

Highlights 17

Copper Gold Mine Siemens technology allows a 13km conveyor belt to generate 90 million kWh per year at the Los Pelambres copper mine in Chile.

Motorized Monsters Sophisticated electric drives from Siemens make some of the world’s biggest trucks and excavators remarkably energy efficient.

The Mother of Invention Deposits of many coveted metals will soon be depleted. Recycling efforts and the search for alternative materials are being stepped up — and necessity is living up to the adage about being the mother of invention.

Twilight at the Pump Former U.S. government advisor Matthew Simmons discusses our dangerous dependence on petroleum and the fuzzy science upon which reserves are calculated.

Electrifying Extraction A revolutionary, induction-based process promises to extract oil from tar sands using much less water and without excavation.

Hope on Tap Siemens sent small mobile drinking-water plants to areas hit by the recent earthquake in China. These “Skyhydrants” produce up to 10,000 liters of purified drinking water per day.

2020

Masha, a journalist, is visiting the innovative Morning Star oil sand production facility in Siberia, where chief engineer Vasily uses a foldable OLED display to explain how the facility’s underground extraction system works. A pipeline in the background transports extracted bitumen to a processing plant. Intelligent monitoring systems ensure that everything runs smoothly.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Russia in 2020. Vasily is an engineer who manages a new type of oil sand production facility in Siberia at a location that is virtually isolated from the rest of the world. The facility is, however, very efficient and environmentally friendly. A visiting journalist is touring the installation to learn about its operations.

Report from Morning Star

he world isn’t what it used to be, Vasily thinks to himself as he scowls and crushes a mosquito. He’s already been bitten 11 times today — the one he just crushed makes that 12, which is a lot, even for Siberia. The Siberian summer wasn’t any picnic ten years ago, when Vasily was sent into the wilderness by his company to extract oil from tar sands, but at least the swarms of mosquitoes that now plague the region didn’t exist back then. “It’s global warming,” one of his colleagues remarked earlier

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Raw Materials | Scenario 2020

Along with petroleum (left), our industrial society

| Trends

relies on copper, coal, and chrome ore (center). Even more valuable and indispensable is clean drinking water (right).

that morning. “The higher temperatures soften the soil, which gives our little friends ideal conditions for breeding.” One thing Vasily hates almost more than mosquitoes are visits from outsiders, which for him means anyone who is not part of his little world in the taiga. The worst such outsiders are company representatives, who come once or twice a year to the enclave with the splendid name of Morning Star to make sure everything is running smoothly. Vasily views such visits as unnecessary, because as the chief engineer he’s the one who built the extraction facility and the pipeline station, and he’s got everything under control, as he repeatedly informs his superiors in an annoyed tone of voice. Company executives have been patient with Vasily’s grumpy attitude because he’s produced outstanding results for them. For his part, Vasily tries to keep his contacts with the outside world to the necessary minimum, which isn’t that difficult given his isolated location. In this regard, Morning Star is a little like Sleeping Beauty: loved but somehow forgotten. The company wants to change this, however. At Vasily’s urging, and because of everstricter environmental regulations, the firm introduced a new oil extraction method two years ago — one that is both highly effective and very environmentally friendly. This socalled induction technique was used commercially for the first time in 2015 in Canada, where it has proved itself many times over. Now the company wants the public to learn more about it and its success. “The journalist from St. Petersburg has landed,” Vasily is informed by a voice from his radio. “Get over to the production facility and put a smile on your face — it’s a woman.” This news puts Vasily in an even worse mood than before, as he has major problems dealing with fashion-conscious women from Russia’s glittering metropolis after his ten years in Siberia. The journalist, whose name is Masha, looks with fascination at the test tube the grumpy facility manager has placed in her hand. Only a short time ago the viscous black substance in the tube was lying dormant beneath her feet, trapped in sand for millions of years. The bitumen is now sent via pipeline to a processing plant, where it is converted into pure petroleum. Later on it might be used to power a hybrid car in China, for example, if the vehicle’s electric motor happens to need a boost. Extracting oil from tar sands isn’t really all that unusual, Masha thinks to herself. After all, this type of oil production has become more common since the black gold from conventional sources started getting scarce. What catches her attention about the Morning Star facility,

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

however, is how undamaged the landscape appears. There are none of the giant open pits or similar blights that oil sand extraction often leaves in its wake. The only things that indicate a human presence are a few buildings and transformer shacks, while in the distance a pipeline disappears into the vast taiga. “The efficiency and environmental friendliness of the facility result from our new mining method,” Vasily explains as he pulls a waferthin, foldable OLED display out of his pocket that depicts the details of the underground production system. “Look,” he says. “Around 20 meters under the ground below us is an inductor that runs directly through the oil sand, and running right beneath the inductor cable is a drainage pipe. We send an inductive current into the field, which slowly heats up the sand. This causes the bitumen to separate from the sand grains and flow into the drainage pipe.” He points to a large blue nozzle sticking out of the ground about 100 meters ahead. “That’s where the drain comes to the surface,” he says. “A pump then sends the bitumen to our pipeline station, which gets a lot of work because our technique is very productive.” Masha begins to write in her electronic notebook. “How do you ensure the security of the pipeline?” she asks. Vasily scratches his chin. “Our control center at the edge of the forest has six screens that display all pipeline data in real time,” he explains. “Wireless sensors mounted inside the pipeline every 100 meters or so monitor the entire system. These sensors are self-organizing, use hardly any energy, and immediately pass on their readings to the next sensor in a chain that ends in our control room.” “Is that for detecting terrorists?” Masha asks. “Terrorists?” Vasily says with a smile. “We don’t get any troublemakers out here — except maybe some lovesick moose or a whacked-out bear every once in a while. But of course we’d notice immediately if someone tried to do something to the pipeline, because along with the usual parameters, such as pressure and temperature, our sensors can also register vibrations and digging and hammering sounds. Still, their main purpose is to detect tiny leaks.” “And how do you get the electricity you need out here in the middle of nowhere?” Masha asks. “We’ve got a small cogeneration plant that provides heat and most of our electricity,” Vasily replies. “It’s not very demanding, and it will consume just about anything — like us.” Masha gives Vasily a sly look. “And what do you do when a lovesick moose comes by?” “If it’s all right with you, I’d like to explain that to you over a cup of hot tea this evening,” Vasily says with a smile. Florian Martini

Indispensable Assets The world’s population is growing, and so is its demand for raw materials. That’s made natural resources costly. Siemens is developing efficient, environmentallyfriendly technologies to keep raw materials available at reasonable prices.

he roots of our prosperity literally run deep — in some cases, several thousand meters below the earth. That’s where the life blood of our civilization lies, trapped in stone, covered by oceans or hidden beneath the desert sands for millions of years. The subject is raw materials, and they range from oil and gas to potable water and precious metals. A growing world population is developing an ever-greater thirst for these resources, and that is driving up prices and making oil and metal ores more expensive than ever before. Mother Earth doesn’t yield up her treasures as willingly today as she did only a few decades ago, when oil and gas were practically spewing out of the ground in some regions and a number of metals could be found just a few meters below the surface. Many of the world’s bestknown natural resource deposits will soon be depleted, which means companies must find new ones in places that are harder to reach. This will make exploration and extraction more

costly. In order to pump oil profitably from the deep ocean or mine copper in remote regions, we will need highly efficient technologies for extracting nature’s treasures in the most environmentally-friendly manner possible. “The oil industry in particular needs costcutting technology that can also raise productivity and efficiency,” says Michael Koolman, an oil and gas expert at Siemens’ Energy Sector. “Companies in the industry continue to make a lot of money, but they also have to invest a lot more than they used to in new equipment.” According to market research institute CERA, the cost of oil drilling and the construction of new wells has more than doubled in the last eight years. There’s no end in sight to this price spiral, as demand for oil continues to grow at a breathtaking pace. Today, we collectively consume around 84 million barrels of oil per day — but by 2030 that figure is expected to reach 116 million barrels, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA — see p. 38). The

IEA also estimates that some $5.4 trillion will have to be invested in new oil fields between now and then if the rising demand for energy is to be met. “The future of oil exploration lies on the ocean floor,” says Koolman. It is there, he says, that the largest untapped petroleum reserves can be found. Because the most lucrative deposits are no longer located in shallow coastal waters, but instead beneath the high seas, exploiting them is a very complex and expensive undertaking. Oil companies have to drill several kilometers into the ocean floor in stormy seas. And through it all, ships and drilling platforms must be kept in exactly the right position, as any significant motion threatens to twist drilling rods, potentially resulting in damage costing millions. Yet this is a challenge that sophisticated technology from Siemens can help overcome — as is already the case at an oil platform operated by Transocean, which began drilling off

the coast of Nigeria in May 2008. Here, Siemens’ new SIPLINK system is helping the giant floating island stay put even if power should fail (see p. 30). It does this by linking the two electrical networks on board the platform in such a way that the drive systems are continually supplied with energy and will keep operating even if one of the networks fails. SIPLINK also reduces energy consumption by up to 30 percent. The system not only makes the platform more secure than before, but also much less expensive to operate. Along with petroleum from beneath the high seas, in the future our oil will be obtained from unconventional sources such as tar sands. “Although this type of extraction is nearly three times more expensive than conventional oil production, the expected long-term trend in oil prices ensures that even the most costly procedures will become increasingly profitable,” says Koolman. Experts believe there are some 178 billion barrels of oil in Canada’s tar sands —

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Raw Materials | Trends

| Copper Mining

At the Los Pelambres copper mine, a conveyor belt transports ore from the pit to the processing plant, 13 kilometers away — and generates electricity on the way.

one of the biggest such deposits in the world. “However,” he points out, “Extraction here is often very damaging to the environment.” That’s because huge areas must be transformed into open-pit mines or hot steam must be pumped into the sand to bring the oil-bearing substance to the surface. This consumes huge quantities of water and energy, according to Koolman. But a new procedure developed by Siemens could radically reduce the need for excavation and water (see p. 34). Researchers plan to heat up oil-bearing sands with an induced electrical current to extract oil from viscous sands. The new procedure is still being tested in a laboratory at Siemens Corporate Technology in Erlangen, Germany; but plans call for a pilot facility to go into operation in Canada as early as 2010. The innovative method is not only much more environmentally sound and energy-effi-

The mining industry also needs unique innovations, as companies continue to dig ever deeper in order to reach minerals such as iron ore and copper. This not only costs a lot of money and energy but can also cause grave environmental damage. Some deposits are located in almost inaccessible regions, which pushes up investment costs for their extraction. The amount of copper used worldwide each year is expected to increase to some 28 million tons by 2025, according to Germany’s Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources. The figure for 2004 was 16.5 million tons. To satisfy this demand, copper mining companies will have to invest in highly efficient technologies that raise productivity and lower energy consumption. The operator of the Los Pelambres copper mine in Chile is doing just that with sophisti-

steps to recycle products with a view to recapturing raw materials. For instance, Siemens designed the new Oslo subway to be completely recyclable. Companies can also replace rare and expensive raw materials or avoid using them at all. A Siemens Corporate Technology team, for example, is studying this and also proposing alternative materials. For example, the company is now developing special techniques to reduce the amount of indium it uses and is funding the development of laser welding processes requiring no solders made of silver and tin.

Although Los Pelambres is located in a remote region of central Chile, near the tallest peaks of the Andes, where it is subjected to storms, snowfall and rock slides, the pit is among the world’s most profitable mining operations. The conveyor facility, which was conceived and built by Siemens and ThyssenKrupp, makes a decisive contribution to the plant’s economic success. The gigantic conveyor belt not only transports ore to the valley below, but also generates electrical power. In fact, it produced 90 million kilowatt-hours in 2007. “Just as in a hydroelectric power plant, potential energy is converted to electrical energy,” explains Christian Dirscherl, Mining Marketing Manager for Siemens’ Industry Sector. When the belt is fully loaded, gravity pulls the rocks downward and it runs by itself. The ten Siemens electric motors needed to start and maintain the belt’s speed operate as generators to produce electricity, at an efficiency of up to 15 percent.

Thirsty Planet. There’s one very valuable resource that many think we have a surplus of — water. Although 71 percent of the earth’s surface is covered by water, over 97 percent of it is undrinkable. Clean drinking water is thus a rare

Explosive Demand. Even nine years after entering service, the conveyor belt is the longest and most efficient of its type in the world. Mining operations are major consumers of electrical power, and in Chile, electricity is a scarce commodity. Even during the planning stages in the late 1990s, investors and operators paid close attention to efficiency, especially since

From left: Ore conveyor belts that generate electricity, mining trucks outfitted with

cient than the conventional technique; it’s also much more productive, as Koolman points out: “This method could increase a customer’s profits by some 20 percent.” Pipeline Simulator. Sophisticated solutions are needed not only for extracting oil but also for transporting it, as petroleum must sometimes travel thousands of kilometers to get from its source to the consumer. This requires systems ranging from huge automated pumping stations to intelligent monitoring systems (see p. 26). To help customers visualize how such highly automated systems work, Siemens has established a Pipeline Demo Center in Fürth, Germany. The Center illustrates how various technologies can interact with one another to overcome the challenges of such highly complex transport networks. “Visitors to the center can follow the path of oil or natural gas through a pipeline and test our innovations themselves,” says Sanjeev Sinha, who is responsible for pipeline projects at Siemens Energy. “There’s no other place like it.”

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

electric motors, and electronic modules for oil drilling ships. All three increase efficiency.

cated innovations from Siemens that have made the mine one of the most profitable in the world (see p. 17). One such innovation is a new type of conveyor belt that transports ore from the mine down to the valley at Los Pelambres. This ingenious 13-kilometer belt generates electricity while transporting the ore. The mine produces around 15 percent of its electrical energy on its own, which saves a lot of money — and more than 50,000 tons of CO2 emissions per year. These savings may be of interest to the ore processing industry, which is looking for ways to reduce its use of raw materials (see p. 22), many of which have gotten very expensive in the last four years. The price of copper has nearly tripled, for example. And there may soon be shortages of rare materials such as the indium used in light-emitting diodes, as known deposits head for depletion. Recycling is one solution, and many companies are now taking

commodity, although this usually only becomes apparent after a natural disaster such as the earthquake that hit China in May 2008. As that tragic event illustrated, advanced solutions are needed to purify contaminated water (see p. 36). One such solution is the Skyhydrant from Siemens, which can produce some 10,000 liters of clean drinking water a day. It uses ultramodern membrane filtering technology developed by Siemens’ Memcor subsidiary in Australia for municipal water treatment applications, among other things. To coordinate its water technology expertise, Siemens set up a global competence center in Singapore, which, since Fall 2007, has been developing innovations that will keep our most valuable raw material available at a reasonable price and at a low level of energy consumption. Ultimately, the value of key raw materials can’t be calculated, says petroleum expert Matthew Simmons (see p. 33), who suggests that demand for oil must be reduced. “If we don’t use less,” he says, “we could be looking at a savage resource war.” Florian Martini

High-Altitude Profits Located high in the Andes, the Los Pelambres open-pit copper mine in Chile is one of the world’s most profitable mining operations. Siemens automation and drive solutions help to make this facility one of the country’s showpieces for energy efficiency and resource protection.

ike a lindworm, the flightless dragon of Norse legend, the conveyor belt snakes out of the tunnel at the end of the Valle del Choapa. It is a dragon that devours mountains. Never-ending heaps of light-colored crushed rock travel down the 1.80-meter-wide belt toward the valley. The copper ore comes out of a mine, 13 kilometers away at an altitude of 3,200 meters above sea level — the Los Pelambres open-pit copper mine. The gigantic hollow is 2.5 kilometers long, two kilometers wide,

and by the year 2030 will be a kilometer deep. Every hour, the belt moves 8,700 metric tons of ore out of the mine and down to the processing plant, which is located at an altitude of 1,600 meters. This massive volume of ore is large enough to fill some 200 heavy-duty trucks. Without the conveyor belt, there would be no mine, says operations director Ricardo Funes Maggi, of mine operator Minera Los Pelambres. “The belt facility is the backbone of our operation.”

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Los Pelambres is one of the most profitable mining

Raw Materials | Copper Mining

operations anywhere. This derives in part from highly efficient ore mills (left) and flotation cells (right), in which copper-rich foam is skimmed off.

there was no commodity boom in sight at the time. In fact, in 1999, copper prices reached a record low, with a metric ton of the metal going for only $1,320. Since then, the price of copper has risen to more than $8,000 per metric ton. The reason for the rise in prices is, above all, high demand from China. Half of the worldwide annual production of 15.6 million metric tons is used in building construction, for example in plumbing and roofing. Because of its good electrical conductivity, copper is also an essential element in electrical devices; it is found in wires and cables, electromagnets, electric motors, generators and transformers, in addition to everyday items such as coins and pipes. In Los Pelambres, the ore is blasted out of the sides of the open-pit mine. Giant power shovels load boulders, weighing many tons, into 320-metric-ton trucks. These transport the ore to a crusher, which breaks the rock between two giant drums. From there, the fragments, now no larger than 30 centimeters, fall directly onto the belt. “Because of the low metal concentration of 0.78 percent copper, an enormous amount of material has to be moved to make the process profitable,” explains Dirscherl. In other words, the conveyor belt, which consists of three sections, has to perform heavy labor. Traveling at a speed of six meters per second, up to 5,100 metric tons of crushed rock can be rolling downward through a tunnel at any given moment. The trip to the processing

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

plant takes 35 minutes. Because of the steep slope, which averages ten percent, there is a risk of uncontrolled belt slippage. But in an emergency, 13 disc brakes, each with a diameter of 2.5 meters, can stop the entire belt facility within 70 seconds. The ten drive motors associated with the belt consume power only if the belt is carrying less than 800 metric tons of ore. But in generator operation, they provide up to 17 megawatts of power, which is fed into the national power grid. The operation generates about 15 percent of the mine’s own power needs, thereby reducing carbon dioxide output by more than 50,000 metric tons per year. For this achievement, in 2005 Minera Los Pelambres was awarded the National Prize for Power Efficiency by the Chilean Ministry of Economics. “The motors are subjected to extreme loads; they have to withstand dust, moisture, dramatic temperature swings, and vibration,” reports Dirscherl. The conveyor belt therefore uses robust, maintenance-free machines made by the Siemens Dynamowerk in Berlin, Germany. Long-Distance Maintenance. At the heart of the conveyor facility is its control and communications system. Sensors connected to a fiberoptic network monitor all significant components around the clock. Siemens engineers anywhere in the world can log into the mining operation’s server through a virtual private network and quickly search for the cause of a fault. An on-site Siemens service team is responsible

for maintenance of the entire conveyor system, from the rollers to the belt and the motors. “Siemens’ services go beyond pure maintenance,” says Ricardo Funes Maggi. “For us, Siemens is a very important partner when it comes to achieving our main goal, which is transporting as much rock as possible.” Siemens is paid for its service on the basis of performance, which is measured in metric tons of rock transported. “That way, the same success factors apply to us as to the mining company,” emphasizes Dirscherl. In May 2007, Minera Los Pelambres extended its service contract for the conveyor system for the second time, this time to 2011. After the ore is transported into the valley, the more complex part of copper extraction begins. The ore has to be separated from the rock, and processed. To achieve this, the roughly crushed metallic compounds are first ground in huge mills measuring 12 meters in diameter to produce an ore slurry. “It’s like using a giant washing machine,” says Dirscherl. Falling lumps of ore, along with iron balls, shatter other fragments. Gearless ring motors supplied by Siemens wrap around crusher drums. Each of these electric drives has a rating of 15 megawatts, and rotates the drum purely through electromagnetic forces — in other words, without direct contact. Starts and stops are soft and easy on the machinery. “Because there are no gears and no transmissions, our ore mills exhibit extremely low wear,” explains Dirscherl. Gearless drives also have higher efficiency and use less energy than other motors.

So far, Dirscherl and his colleagues have sold more than 50 of these mills to mining operations all over the world. Metal from Foam. Once the rock has been ground, the actual separation process takes place. Los Pelambres uses so-called flotation cells — giant vats, each containing an agitator that mixes the powdered and chemically treated ore with water and atmospheric air. Because the chemically treated metallic compounds are less wettable than other minerals contained in the ore, they cling to the surfaces

Recently, Siemens began testing a new, highly-efficient flotation cell at Los Pelambres. The cell enables molybdenum extraction to be increased by more than two percent. What makes the Siemens cell unique is that it operates without an agitator, because the ore slurry is sprayed into the cell by a high-pressure nozzle, along with nitrogen, which is often used as a substitute for atmospheric air in molybdenum extraction. Thanks to this process, a larger proportion of tiny molybdenum particles, most of which were once lost, can now be separated from the slurry.

The conveyor belt transports up to 5,100 metric tons of rock to the valley — generating electricity on the way. of rising gas bubbles. At the surface of the flotation cell, a metal-rich foam collects and is skimmed off. To achieve a copper concentration of 30 percent, the slurry has to pass through multiple flotation stages. The resulting concentrate ultimately flows through a pipeline to the harbor at Los Vilos, where it is dehydrated and shipped to Japan. There, a smelter produces the pure metal by roasting the concentrate, followed by electrolysis. Along with copper, Los Pelambres also extracts molybdenum, which is recovered using the same flotation method. The mine’s ores contain 0.02 percent of this metal, which is used primarily in the production of highstrength steel alloys.

“An increase of two percent may not sound like much, but given the quantities produced here, it pays off,” says Wolfgang Krieglstein, Sales and Product Manager for flotation cells. Currently, molybdenum is trading at $77,000 per metric ton, and Los Pelambres produces just under 10,000 metric tons per year. In addition, the Siemens cell uses 70 percent less energy and 90 percent less nitrogen than comparable cells. Following these promising test results, Krieglstein and his colleagues are now working on a similar cell to increase the company’s copper yield as well. Thirsty Mines. The new flotation cell follows a trend in the mining industry toward in-

creased resource conservation. “Process improvement is an increasingly hot topic. The goal is to extract more metal from the mined ore, and use less energy in the process,” comments Dirscherl. Thanks to Siemens’ efficient solutions, Los Pelambres is at the forefront of this field. Another key topic is water consumption and treatment. “This is an area that will definitely have to be addressed more aggressively in the future,” says Dirscherl. In rain-starved Chile, mining and agriculture are the greatest consumers of water, and water rights are hotly contested. “Water is the critical factor when it comes to developing mining operations in northern Chile,” according to the Chilean economic web site Ecoamerica. Considering the circumstances, Los Pelambres is looking to the oceans. The company sees desalination plants as a potential answer, even though its mines are located up to 170 kilometers away from the coast, and at altitudes of up to three thousand meters above sea level. In spite of these challenges, Dirscherl is optimistic. Above all, he is convinced that taken together these developments offer tremendous opportunities for Siemens. “In addition to our energy-efficient mining technologies, we offer water technologies,” he says. “In other words, we have all the necessary expertise for water treatment within the company.” As a consequence, Siemens will continue to be one of the leading providers of solutions for the mining industry. Ute Kehse

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Raw Materials | Mining Electrification

Excavators can lift up to 120 tons per scoop. Trucks move up to 400 tons per trip. Catenaries (right) make transport quicker and more economical, while reducing emissions.

ere’s a dump truck that puts others to shame. Next to it, a man looks like a mouse. Its tires measure four meters in diameter. All in all, it’s as tall as a three-story building and as wide as a two-lane highway. Such supersized trucks are hard at work around the world in the copper mines of the Andes, in the diamond mines of Zambia, and in the bituminous sand pits of Canada. In their load compartments, each the size of a swimming pool, they haul raw materials to collecting points, sorting plants, and washing plants.

These trucks may be massive, but they’re not mass-produced. After all, they cost up to €2 million each. “It is crucial that these machines be used as efficiently as possible and experience an absolute minimum of down time,” says Walter Köllner from Siemens Energy & Automation in Atlanta, Georgia. The trucks’ threephase current drive systems, which Köllner also shares responsibility for marketing, are helping to ensure that this is the case. The motors, which are positioned on the rear wheels, can accelerate the dump trucks to 60 kilometers

For over 30 years now, Siemens has been using three-phase current drives for mining vehicles. “The rotating electric field can be transformed directly into mechanical rotation,” says Köllner. Some manufacturers, on the other hand, still prefer DC drive systems. In such motors, however, the current has to be constantly interrupted and re-engaged to generate a rotational movement. This limits the revolutions per minute that a motor of this type can attain. And it requires more parts that need to be maintained regularly. “Our alternating current

leased when a truck rolls downhill is fed back into the network via a second pair of conductors. Thanks to all these benefits, the technology quickly pays for itself, says Köllner. “After no more than three years, a mine operator can recover the costs of buying the trolley trucks and the costs associated with the installation of the overhead lines.” Speed is king not just in terms of transportation but also loading performance. That’s why monster excavators are also used in mines, alongside the giant trucks. These excavators

These converters, which are located in outsized steel cabinets, convert current from the diesel generator or cable into three-phase current that can be modulated. The converters feature particularly long-lasting circuit components that have proven their capability in rail technology. “Like mining vehicles, trains experience extreme conditions,” says Köllner. They have to be able to run at minus 40 degrees Celsius and in blistering heat. In addition, the converters’ air coolers must be extraordinarily dependable, even where air pressure is low.

motors can deliver up to seven percent more performance from the same amount of energy, and downtimes for maintenance and repair work are rare,” says Köllner. “Generally, just one technology check a year is all that’s needed.”

are massive steel systems that resemble the bow of a ship and sit atop caterpillar tracks. Their grab arms look like electricity pylons and their shovels are as big as mobile homes. With just one scoop, they can move around 120 tons. It takes just four shovelfuls to fill the load compartment of a giant truck. “The process barely takes two minutes,” says Köllner. Such excavators are also powered by Siemens three-phase drives. At present, there

Digital assistants. Sophisticated control systems are also vital when it comes to keeping maintenance and repair times short. For example, thanks to these systems, the machines’ functionality can be monitored from a control center (see Pictures of the Future, Spring 2005, p. 51). “Our regional set-up and local partners can also offer rapid assistance if need be,” says Christian Dirscherl, who develops full-service solutions for mine operators at Siemens’ Indus-

Monster Drives At open pit mines all over the world, mechanical monsters are hard at work. They dig for bituminous sand, for example, or transport tons of copper ore. By equipping the giant excavators and trucks with state-of-the-art, ultra-efficient electrical drive systems, Siemens helps its customers to save energy, time, and money.

per hour as well as brake them. This is no mean feat, since the trucks weigh around 200 tons each — about the same as 130 mid-range cars. Once the trucks are fully loaded, the drives need to move up to 600 tons through sand, mud, and deep holes, as well as over steep hills. Electricity, not Diesel. A 3,000 hp diesel engine generates the current. So why doesn’t it just propel the truck too? “The reason is simple. It’s just not worth putting the engine and gears of a car onto the slopes of a mine. A gearbox powerful enough to handle the workload required of these trucks would be enormous, and would also need a lot of maintenance,” says Köllner, explaining the drawbacks of purely mechanical propulsion. Not only do the trucks dispense with gearboxes. Thanks to their electric drive systems, they also do without clutches and brake disks in normal operation. Electrical resistors are used to brake the vehicles, and speed can be steplessly adjusted via three-phase current frequency. “Such trucks are essentially driven like a car with an automatic gearbox,” says Köllner, who is an engineer and has actually driven one of the behemoths.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Giant Trucks, Zero Emissions. AC drives also form the basis for a development from Siemens that can significantly speed up the transport of mining products: trolley trucks. Such vehicles function like streetcars — sporting antler-like pantographs that can be raised and lowered at the press of a button. This means that the driver can link the truck to overhead conductors (catenaries), which are generally installed on steep slopes. “This is where conventional trucks, despite their 3,000 plus hp, can only advance at a snail’s pace,” says Köllner. The catenaries can provide the drive systems with almost 6,000 hp. This means that the truck’s speed can almost double, and the mine operators can reduce the number of expensive mechanical giants they need to have on site. The environment benefits from trolley technology too. There are no local emissions, since the diesel engine switches itself off automatically when contact is made with the overhead line. What’s more, the braking energy that is re-

Thanks to catenaries and three-phase current drives, giant trucks can achieve outputs of up to 6,000 hp. are more than 150 such excavators in operation worldwide. “We use four motors with different outputs,” says Köllner. “The most powerful, at 2,600 hp, lifts and lowers the excavator arm, while another moves the shovel. A third ensures that the excavator can turn and a fourth drives the caterpillar tracks.” Unlike the trucks, the excavators remain in the same place for long periods and don’t require a diesel generator. Be it trucks or excavators, converters are at the heart of all three-phase current drives.

try Sector in Erlangen, Germany. In fact, service is due to be expanded even further. “In the future, we want to equip excavators and trucks with sensors that will enable obstacles to be detected reliably, even in very dusty conditions,” says Dirscherl. As is the case with road traffic, new assistance systems will increase safety and make the driver’s job easier. One day, the giant trucks may even be able to set off on their hunt for raw materials without drivers. “But that really is still a pipe dream,” says Dirscherl. Andrea Hoferichter

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Aluminum and copper ingots (right). These

Raw Materials | Rare Minerals

metals are used in products such as electrical cables (below). But as demand grows, prices are rising and the risk of shortages is increasing.

omputer chips are literally like sand on the beach. Silicon — which is basically just sand — is the raw material used for the inner workings of computers, MP3 players, and countless other examples of our digital world, What’s more, silicon is inexhaustible. But other things aren’t. In fact, the world electronics industry is currently threatened by an acute shortage of raw materials. That’s because every microchip contains a tiny amount of rare materials such as germanium or tantalum, as well as silicon.

In the face of exploding oil prices, public attention has not exactly focused overwhelming attention on these materials. However, such an attitude is not without risk. Raw materials such as metals and minerals account for 40 percent of industrial production costs in Germany. According to a 2006 report on the status of raw materials from Germany’s Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Materials (BGR), the nation’s metal, iron, and steel imports amounted to €16.3 billion in 2004 and €30.9 billion by 2006. These figures illustrate how de-

Finite doesn’t mean that a resource is geologically exhausted; it just means its price may be too high.

blame — that is to say, an imbalance between the current supply and demand. Chromium is the best example of this. Although there are enough sources of chromium in the earth’s crust to last 600 years, the price of chromium has more than tripled since 2003. “If a resource is finite, that doesn’t mean it’s exhausted; it just means that its price may be too high, and that using the material may eventually become uneconomical,” says Dr. Friedrich Lupp of Siemens Corporate Technology in Munich.

dustrial enterprises such as Siemens must seriously consider the implications of potential shortages. “Those who want to sustain their long-term position in the market must look to the future and thoroughly come to terms with change,” says Stephan Gierszewski of CSP Manufacturing Development. Gierszewski coordinates the “Innovation in Manufacturing” initia-

Indium in LEDs. Indium may be rare, but that doesn’t mean it’s scarce at Siemens. Small amounts of the metal are used for X-ray tubes. “But this indium is completely recycled when the emitter expires, which means that our purchases are limited to new business,” says Dr. Ludwig Herbst of the sMET team. Siemens’ sister company Osram would be directly affected

So is it time to give the all-clear signal? Not quite. A few raw materials really are in short supply. Last year, for instance, New Scientist published the shocking prognosis that geological reserves of indium would last for only five more years. According to Germany’s BGR, however, this forecast only took known resources into account. Many deposits may not yet have been found. New Scientist’s conclusion is also based on the fact that indium is not mined separately; in fact, it is always extracted as a byproduct of smelting zinc. Nonetheless, large in-

tive that was launched to raise awareness of this issue at Siemens. A key part of the Initiative is its “sustainable Material, Energy & Technology“ (sMET) program, which is charged with setting up a global network of experts to deal with these three areas. The program’s objective is to distribute best practice solutions throughout Siemens to serve as trend-setting standards. “We are searching for both internal and external solutions and are initiating further developments,” says Roland Kolbeck, spokesman of the sMET team.

by an indium shortage. The company uses the metal to produce indium tin oxide (ITO) for transparent electrodes, which are used in organic LED products, for example. According to Friedrich Lupp, Siemens CT is working on technologies using multi-layer systems that will dramatically decrease indium usage. The first prototypes of this kind of system have already been tested successfully. The sMET team believes that there is no need to act on the shortage of germanium, as Siemens doesn’t make products requiring this material.

The Mother of Invention Copper, indium, germanium — our world would not function without these raw materials and others like them. Yet their prices are increasing dramatically and reserves appear to be declining. A team at Siemens is analyzing what shortages would mean for the company, and suggesting some alternatives.

A Question of Price, not Scarcity. In the last four years the prices in U.S. dollars of many metals and minerals have increased dramatically; for copper the increase has been threefold. This news has shaken the political world, as increasing prices could be a sign of declining resources. Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economics and Technology (BMWi) has therefore commissioned the Rhenish-Westphalian Institute for Economic Research, the Fraunshofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research, and the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Materials (BGR) to investigate how short the supply of the most vital metals and industrial minerals really is. The good news is that there are sufficient reserves of almost all raw materials. “If a raw material is scarce, this is not a reflection of its geological availability,” says Dr. Gerhard Angerer of the Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research in Karlsruhe, Germany. When it comes to a supply shortfall and rising prices, market shortage is always to

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

The Price of Copper Has Nearly Quintupled Since 2000...

...And the Prices of Rare Materials such as Indium and Silver Keep Climbing

% 500 400

% 500 2000 Aluminum Copper

400

74.6 ct/pound 82.2 ct/pound

300

200

100

1991 = 100% Indium: $220/kg Germanium: $1,080/kg Silver: $4/ounce Tin: 260 ct/pound

0 2000

2001

Aluminum

2002 Copper

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

19 91 19 92 19 93 19 94 19 95 19 96 19 97 19 98 19 99 20 00 20 01 20 02 20 03 20 04 20 05 20 06 20 07 20 08

pendent modern economies are on these resources — and how fragile this dependency is. Furthermore, as demand for raw materials continues to expand, even resource-rich countries such as China and the U.S. are being added to a lengthening list of importers.

Indium

Germanium

Silver

Tin

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Siemens is increasingly using

Raw Materials | Rare Minerals

laser welding systems that

| Interview

don’t require solder made out of expensive silver and tin.

Which raw materials will be particularly important over the next 20 years? Troyan: Petroleum and natural gas will remain the most important raw materials. However, gas hydrates — flammable ice-like compounds of water and gas — could greatly increase in importance, as they bind the largest deposits of methane gas worldwide. Because gas hydrates only remain stable at high pressures or low temperatures, they are only to be found deep in the oceans or in permafrost regions. The tundra, for example, harbors huge deposits of gas hydrates — but their extraction is very costly. Before we do anything, however, we need to obtain detailed information on their formation, extent, and decomposition if

Extraction

Reserves

Resources

Inventories

(1,000 t)

of reserves

of resources

(in years)

Germanium

0.087

0.45

> 0.5

Indium

0.405

2.8

>6.0

> 15

Silver

19.7

270

> 570

> 29

Tin

260

6,100

> 11,000

> 42

14,600

470,000

> 2,300,000

> 158

Copper

The sMET team is primarily concerned with materials used in large quantities throughout Siemens. The team has therefore investigated how much copper is used in each product family and how it can be replaced. The answer is simple. In many applications copper can be replaced with aluminum. In 2003 both metals were the same price; but today copper costs three times as much on the global market. Despite this tempting price advantage, the transition to aluminum is difficult. Aluminum

cannot be soldered without an aggressive flux because it immediately forms an oxide film on the surface when exposed to air. To deal with this problem, Siemens has developed a process that uses ultrasound to remove this film during soldering. A transition would be simplest in the case of busbar trunking systems — if the customers would accept it. “But many Asian markets simply don’t want any aluminum in their busbar systems,“ says Jochen Reitmeyer. “There is no logical reason for this stance, however.”

Buried Treasures Do you dream of getting a very high return from your investments? “If so, instead of taking your money to the bank, you might consider purchasing a Siemens subway train. It brings in more money at the end of its operating period.” That’s the conclusion drawn by Dr. Walter Struckl, Environmental Construction Officer for Metros and Streetcars at Siemens Mobility in Vienna, Austria. Struckl drew up the material declaration that was required by an invitation to tender on 33 three-part trains for the Oslo metro, including disposal costs. Such trains consist of around 45 tons of iron alloys, 31 tons of other metals such as aluminum and copper, 10 tons of plastic, and small amounts of paint and electronic components. Struckl presented the draft declaration to a recycling company and was astounded at the response. “They were particularly interested in the metals,“ he says. The cables also attracted plenty of interest because copper is traded as if it were gold nowadays. According to the recycling study, 95 percent of the raw materials used in a metro train can be recycled, including 85 percent of the materials and ten percent as thermal energy — through combustion used for energy generation. Specialized recycling companies separate the metals from the residue, shred them and spin them in a cyclone — a type of artificial tornado — where they are separated according to density and magnetic properties. A calculation carried out as part of the recycling study showed that the difference between recycling costs and recoverable scrap prices would result in a profit of €60,000 per train. “That was in 2006, however,” says Struckl. “In the meantime, the cost of raw materials has risen further, so the profit at the present time would be even greater.“ And this trend could continue as a result of the global surge in demand for raw materials. In addition, worn-out parts will be replaced again and again by new components during routine maintenance. In this respect, over the course of its three decades of service, each train is built many times over. It is a worthwhile investment even when a metro train costs between three and four million euros. As Walter Struckl says in plain terms, “If you really want to be certain of making money, buy a decommissioned metro train and open a waste management company.“

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Source: BGR et.al., see p. 28

Growing Demand is Prompting Reviews of Resources

In any case, substitute materials are not always the answer. For example, for health reasons, lead, which is comparatively inexpensive, is replaced with silver and tin, which are more expensive, scarcer raw materials. Each year demand for tin increases by ten percent. And for the past decade significantly more silver has been used each year than is mined. In 2007 alone, the figure was 800 metric tons. This has been balanced by the sale of government silver reserves. “One problem has been solved and another has been created,” points out Lupp. The sMET team at Siemens is therefore pushing for the use of a laser welding system that doesn’t require solder. Recycling is the Answer. According to the Fraunhofer Institute’s Angerer, the relative optimism of the BMWi study is due mainly to the fact that the three participating institutes took technological progress into account. These considerations fell by the wayside in earlier evaluations, like those in the famous 1972 Club of Rome report The Limits to Growth. As the current study shows, increasing efficiency through the use of technologies that cut back on raw material use is, however, an important factor. Taking into account all raw materials, both metallic ones and those used in energy generation, German industry could save €120 billion per year if all potential efficiency improvements were exploited. That would amount to 20 percent of resource costs. The black market for nearly all metals is flourishing. Home owners, construction companies, and local authorities are complaining about the disappearance of copper gutters and even iron manhole covers. The authors of the study are proposing that Germany, a country relatively poor in raw material resources, rely on lightweight construction, miniaturization, new production processes and, of course, recycling. This course of action is already bearing fruit. Fifty-six percent of the copper used in Germany is already extracted from copper scrap. Globally, the figure is only 13 percent. Bernd Müller

flected by the boundaries of the geological strata. The time it takes for them to return provides information on the subsurface composition. The technology thus significantly reduces the risk of drilling in the wrong place. How does Russia view its current and future role as a raw materials supplier? Troyan: Russia is rich in natural resources, and it’s still sitting on a large number of undeveloped petroleum and gas deposits. We know, for example, that there are huge reserves in places like eastern Siberia, the Barents Sea, the island of Sakhalin, and the northern Arctic Ocean. Extraction under Arctic conditions will be very difficult and expensive, however, and

Tapping New Technologies for Tomorrow’s Fuel Vladimir Troyan, 68, is Chairman of the Department of Geophysics at St. Petersburg State University, one of the oldest and most prestigious institutions of higher education in Russia. Troyan’s work focuses on seismology and the mathematical modeling of geophysical processes. Between 1993 and 2006 he served as the university’s vice-rector for Science. Professor Troyan teaches courses for a Siemens-funded, Englishlanguage master’s program in Applied and Computational Physics, which was set up by St. Petersburg State University in cooperation with three German institutions: the Technical University of Munich, the Technical University of Ilmenau, and the University of Leipzig.

we are to realistically assess potential dangers and the impact extraction would have on the global climate. In any case, methane needs to be extracted with the lowest possible losses because it’s a very powerful greenhouse gas that should not be released into the atmosphere in large amounts. Methane has been extracted from hydrates for 30 years in the Messoyakha gas field in western Siberia. Nevertheless, truly optimal extraction technologies probably won’t be available until the second half of the 21st century. Which technologies will have to be further developed if raw materials are to remain affordable in the future? Troyan: Exploiting fossil deposits in the northern seas will require an infrastructure that functions perfectly — and economically — even under the extreme geological and climatic conditions that prevail in those areas. This will cost a lot of money, which is why the price of gas and oil will remain high in the future. New technologies currently being tested in Russia could help increase the oil production yield, however, as they allow for things like horizontal drilling, the construction of multiple-chamber shafts, and maximizing pressure in the stratum. Nanotechnology is also opening up new opportunities that range from nanocatalysts for oil refineries to “intelligent” liquids that facilitate drilling processes, and special nanofoils that improve the frictional properties of oil and gas pipelines. Seismics can also help locate new deposits by generating shock waves that travel thousands of meters under the ground at intervals of just a few seconds. These waves propagate and are re-

will also require new technologies and international partners. And that’s exactly what’s happening now with the Total oil company’s involvement at the Stockman gas field in the Barents Sea. The Baltic Sea gas pipeline is also very important for ensuring reliable gas deliveries in the future, which is why the project is a major priority for both Germany and Russia. To what extent will environmental protection play a role in Russia? Troyan: The exploitation of natural resources always leads to major landscape changes. Open pit mining results in pits and spoil heaps that are often used as garbage dumps, for example, and this can lead to landslides, a lower water table, parched vegetation, and so on. Attitudes in Russia toward nature have changed over the last few years. Instead of viewing the environment as something to be consumed without consequences, the country is now taking a more conservationist approach. Put simply, in Russia we need to think about future generations, and we need to treat nature and our natural resources accordingly. Russia is part of the UN’s Global Environment Monitoring System project and has also signed the Kyoto Protocol. Back in 1993, our country introduced a government system for environmental monitoring to ensure adherence to standards. The increasing use of new technologies is now benefiting the environment because they make raw material extraction more efficient and reliable. So, while environmental damage resulting from the exploitation of natural resources remains a critical issue, we are nevertheless making progress. Interview conducted by Thomas Veser.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

At Siemens’ Pipeline Demo Center, an entire

Raw Materials | Pipelines

pipeline can be simulated — from control center to valve station. Except for its size, everything is the same as in a real facility (right).

shiny silver pipeline snakes over austere, brown hills, past dusty, green prickly pears that haven’t seen a drop of water in ages. Then it changes direction at a 90-degree angle and runs straight toward a compressor station where its pressurized gas content flows through a valve with a loud hiss. No, this is not New Mexico, but the city of Fürth near Nuremberg, Germany. More specifically, the action is taking place in building “F” of a Siemens site, where hardly anyone would expect to see a pipeline. What’s more, the

pipeline isn’t a real gas pipeline, but instead only a tube about ten centimeters in diameter that transports nothing more than ordinary air. The brown hills are just poster images on a wall, and the prickly cacti are made of plastic. Otherwise, everything here is brand new. At the Pipeline Demo Center everything has been reproduced faithfully. There’s a master control center, where information about the pipeline is collected on six displays; a second control center that runs on hot standby should the master control center fail — otherwise

gry nations, they are playing an ever more important role. “Transnational and even trans-continental pipelines are becoming increasingly important,” says Sinha. The pipelines that transport gas and oil from production fields to consumers are often thousands of miles long. “That places extremely high demands on the system’s reliability and security,” he adds. On the one hand, system operators must guarantee that the transport of the needed raw materials conserves resources to the greatest

cations and security equipment, and control computer software. Because of its expertise, Siemens is currently involved in two large pipeline projects. In South Africa, the company is equipping the control center and pumping stations of the “New Multi-Product Pipeline” with a fully automatic monitoring and control system. This pipeline, which runs from Durban to Gauteng, belongs to the Transnet, which operates the South Africa’s 3,000-kilometer pipeline network. The project is scheduled for completion

Hardisty in the Canadian province of Alberta, is scheduled to enter service in late 2009 and will have a capacity of up to 590,000 barrels of crude oil per day. Hardisty is located in the huge (roughly 141,000 square kilometers) Athabasca Oil Sands area, which is believed to hold reserves of about 178 billion barrels. In the past, oil sands were deemed to be too expensive to harvest because oil has to be practically “washed” out of the ground. But in view of record petroleum prices, it is now economical to exploit these reserves (see p. 34).

extent possible — which requires powerful pumps in the case of oil and high-performance compressors for gas. On the other hand, pipelines must also be protected against terrorist attacks and must be monitored continuously to prevent leaks. All of this requires a sophisticated system that automatically measures physical parameters such as pressure, along the entire line and transmits the resulting information to the control center via radio or satellite. Increasingly, fiber-optic cables are being laid along the pipelines too — “if the infrastructure of the country permits,” says Peter Wappler, who works in Erlangen and is responsible for the pipeline business.

before the 2010 Soccer World Cup kicks off, at which time it will be able to transport 16 billion liters of various raw materials — ranging from petroleum to diesel fuel or kerosene — per year. Since 1996, a team from Siemens has been working on renovating and automating old pumping stations that are in part still operated manually so that the pipeline can be completely controlled from the master control cen-

Previously, part of the Keystone Pipeline transported gas. But the pipeline is now being converted to oil transport. The pipeline initially runs eastward to a point southwest of Winnipeg, where it bends sharply southward. It terminates at the border between Nebraska and Kansas. From there, one branch goes to Patoka, Illinois, and another goes to the gigantic Cushing tank farms in Oklahoma, and then on to refineries in Texas. Siemens will supply

Intelligent Pipes. Siemens not only produces a spectrum of instruments for pipeline operators, but also offers software solutions that control and monitor entire pipeline systems. “The company is present all the way from the point where raw materials are fed into pipes to the tanks where they are stored before being distributed to customers,” says Wappler. Operators can therefore buy everything from a single supplier, whether it be compressors with associated drives, electric motors or gas turbines, associated automation technology, communi-

ter in Durban. “Combining the old and the new — that’s the challenge in this project,” says Wappler. Existing parts, like pumps, valves and communications equipment, must be integrated into the new control system. Siemens is also playing a key role in a major Canadian energy project. A few months ago, TransCanada Corporation awarded Siemens a contract to equip its Keystone Pipeline with power supply equipment and electrical pump systems — an order worth €150 million. The 3,456-kilometer pipeline, which begins in

Optimizing Our Lifelines Pipelines carry valuable raw materials to consumers. Keeping natural gas and oil flowing as quickly and reliably as possible requires powerful compressors and pumps, as well as sophisticated software that monitors and manages pipelines around the clock. Not only does Siemens supply all of the technology needed, but customers can also check out what’s on offer in a new Pipeline Demo Center.

known as a Disaster Recovery Center; a compressor station, where the gas is compressed to allow transport through the pipeline in the first place; and a measuring station with read-outs of the flow rate, temperature, pressure and vibration of the pipes. Simulated Disaster. In addition to simulating normal operations, the Pipeline Demo Center can simulate disasters. Sanjeev Sinha, sales manager for pipeline projects and supervisor of the Demo Center, illustrates a simulated attack in which the control center has been disabled. The computers at the adjacent table immediately intervene; the Disaster Recovery Center takes over. And in no time, the monitors show the location at which gas is escaping from the pipeline. The pressure drops, but not for long. The valves in the critical section are automatically sealed and the leak is isolated. “What this facility provides is a unique opportunity for customers to follow the entire path of oil or natural gas through a pipeline and test associated monitoring systems,” says Sinha. Pipelines are our civilization’s arteries, and in the age of increasingly scarce raw materials and growing competition among energy-hun-

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Siemens will help to transport 590,000 barrels of oil a day from Alberta, Canada to refineries in Texas. 37 pumping stations, the associated switching stations, 19 transformer stations, as well as power distribution systems. Powerful Compressors. Siemens is setting standards not only in integrated software solutions for pipeline management, but also in compressors. Since July 2008, the “Megatest Center” — an extension of existing manufacturing and testing facilities in Duisburg, Germany — has been in operation in a 180-meter, 40-meter-wide and 35-meter-high factory hall

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Valuable Raw Materials: aw materials are basic substances that enter pro-

Global oil consumption at the moment is around 30

2015. “That’s because the situation on the oil markets

duction in an unprocessed state. There are plant

billion barrels per year; proved oil reserves are currently

will remain tense, as supply struggles to keep up with

and animal-based agricultural raw materials, industrial

calculated at 1.1 trillion barrels. According to the Insti-

demand,” says IFP Director, Olivier Appert.

raw materials such as petroleum and natural gas, base

tute for the Analysis of Global Security (IAGS), the lion’s

Demand for natural gas will also continue to rise.

metal ores such as copper and iron, and construction

share of these reserves (66%) are to be found in the

Germany accounts for 18% of European gas consump-

raw materials such as sand and gravel.

Middle East, primarily in Saudi Arabia (23%). The second

tion, making it the second-largest natural gas market in

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

ing capacity to 800,000 tons per year by 2014. Chile

OPEC: Oil Production Stretched to Capacity

currently accounts for more than 30% of global copper reserves, followed by the U.S. and Indonesia (7% each). Iron, in the form of steel, is by far the world’s most

Production

Available

important metal. A total of 55 million tons of steel (ap-

in April 2008

capacity

prox. one-third of total European demand for steel) was

9.05

10.90

used by the construction industry in the EU in 2005. The

and third largest reserves are in Canada (15.8%) and

Europe after the UK (20%). An analysis carried out in

resources. Reserves refers to those raw materials whose

Venezuela (7%). After reaching a record high of $147

2005 by Prognos and the Institute of Energy Economics

Iran

3.93

4.02

existence has been proved, and which can theoretically

per barrel in mid-July 2008, the price of oil has fallen by

at the University of Cologne predicts that natural gas

United Arab Emirates 2.65

2.88

be economically obtained with today’s technologies. Re-

nearly $50 per barrel, but future developments are un-

consumption in Europe will increase from 480 billion cu-

Kuwait

2.59

2.62

sources, on the other hand, have either not been pre-

clear. There are several reasons for high oil prices. De-

bic meters in 2003 to 640 billion in 2020. The Interna-

Iraq

2.34

2.45

cisely geologically located, or else have been demon-

mand is rising, especially in China and the U.S. This situ-

tional Energy Agency reports that global natural gas

Venezuela

2.32

2.50

strated, but the cost of their extraction remains

ation is exacerbated by financial speculation, the threat

consumption will increase by 1.5% a year over the next

Nigeria

1.86

2.47

uneconomic. A study conducted in 2005 by the Fraun-

of political conflict, and OPEC ceilings. OPEC president

two decades, reaching some 4.055 trillion cubic meters

Angola

1.82

hofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research, the

Chakib Khelil says he expects the long-term oil price to

per year by 2030. Nearly 36% of global natural gas re-

Libya

1.76

1.80

(German) Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural

settle at $78 per barrel, provided the dollar increases in

serves are located in Russia, which is followed by Iran

Algeria

1.38

1.40

Resources (BGR), and the RWI economic research insti-

value and the political situation in Iran improves. The

and Qatar (approx. 20% each). World market prices for

tute concluded that rather than being depleted, the re-

head of Investment Strategy at SEB Bank, Klaus

natural gas are developing in a manner similar to oil

serves of many raw materials have actually been in-

Schrüfer, believes prices will hover at just above $100

price developments, except with a certain time lag. At

perts at the BGR, annual global copper consumption will

creasing due to technological advances, exploration,

per barrel in 2009, while the IFP energy research insti-

the end of July 2008, for example, the price of natural

reach 28.5 million tons by 2025 (as compared with

Because of its low specific weight, aluminum is very

and higher levels of recycling.

tute in France expects oil to cost $200 per barrel by

gas moved to over $9,000 per ton, after having cost as

16.5 million tons in 2004), whereby China’s share may

popular in the packaging industry — but it’s also in-

little as $5,000 in 2007.

total as much as 40%.

creasingly being used in automotive production, which

Reserves

Resources

in million t

Reserves

159.0

25,000

>55,000

157

>346

3.15

>1.500

>476

1,340.0

160,000

>800,000

119

>597

Copper

14.6

470 >

2,300

>158

Nickel

1.4

140

100

Zinc

9.4

220

1,900

202

Tin

0.26

6.1

>11

>42

Bauxite Lead

Duration in years Resources

Estimated Output of Key Base Metal Ores 2000 - 2025 Bauxite Lead Iron ore

2020

2025

Increase

Annual

136.00

154.23

178.80

191.09

40.5 %

1.4 %

3.10

2.84

2.66

2.57

-17.1 %

-0.8 %

1,070.00

1,289.25

1,449.06

1,528.96

42.9 %

1.4 %

Copper

13.20

17.70

24.1

28.4

113.3 %

3.1 %

Nickel

1.27

1.88

2.44

2.75

116.2 %

3.1 %

Zinc

8.79

10.60

12.64

13.73

56.2 %

1.8 %

Tin

0.25

0.26

0.27

0.28

11.3 %

0.4 %

by the BGR, nearly 28% of the total global steel demand of around 1.1 billion tons in 2004 was accounted for by China (302 million tons), followed by the U.S. (11.4%) and Japan (7.4%). Between now and 2025, China will use more than 1.4 billion tons of crude steel per year, or more than four times its current consumption. Calculations made by the U.S. Geological Survey in 2006 estimate that the known iron reserves of 160 billion tons levels .

Prices for metal raw materials have risen even more

The high demand for copper is primarily a result of

now accounts for 26% of global aluminum consump-

dramatically than those for oil and gas. Consider copper,

rapid economic growth in Asia. China’s demand for cop-

tion. The material is also used in buildings and high-

which is obtained mostly from iron sulfide ores, in

per is growing at a double-digit pace, for example —

voltage lines. According to the World Bank, global de-

which it occurs alongside metals such as zinc, silver, and

and the price of copper has more than quadrupled over

mand for primary aluminum was around 32 million tons

nickel. Copper is used mainly in electrical cables be-

the last five years, from $2,000 per ton in 2003 to

in 2005.

cause of its good conductivity, and can also be found in

$8,940 per ton in July 2008. Analysts at Commerzbank

The primary aluminum requirement of China alone

pipes for home construction and machines. With 3.67

Corporates & Markets believe the supply situation will

more than doubled between 2001 and 2005, making it

million tons, China accounted for just under 22% of

normalize, however, and that prices will once again fall

the top consumer, ahead of the U.S. Global demand for

global copper consumption in 2005, followed by the

below $8,000 per ton. One reason for this is a $5 billion

aluminum is expected to rise to 47 million tons per year

U.S. (13.3%) and Japan (7.1%). According to market ex-

investment that will more than triple Chile’s copper min-

by 2025.

Global Petroleum Reserves in Billions of Barrels

99.0

UAE

97.6

Venezuela

80.0

Russia

Nigeria Kazakhstan

60.0 41.5 36.2 30.0

In addition to conventional reserves, there are global reserves equivalent to 1.8 trillion barrels in the form of oil sand. The biggest deposits are to be found in Canada and Venezuela, each of which hold around onethird of total global reserves.

27.6

Qatar

115.0

Kuwait

47.5

Iran

136.3

Iraq

Libya

Russia

179.2

Iran

Sylvia Trage

Global Natural Gas Reserves in Trillions of Cubic Meters 259.8

Canada

2010

mechanical engineering industries. According to a study

could last more than 120 years at current consumption

Saudi Arabia

2000

next biggest steel consumers were the automotive and

25.8

Saudi Arabia

6.8

UAE

6.1

U.S.

5.8

Nigeria

5.1

Algeria

4.6

Venezuela

4.3

Source: Oil & Gas Journal, January 1, 2007

Extraction

* in millions of barrels per day

Source: Oil & Gas Journal, January 1, 2007

Consumption Levels and Reserves of Key Base Metal Ores

Source: International Energy Agency (2008)

It is important to differentiate between reserves and

Saudi Arabia

Iron ore

Liquid Solution. In addition to growing interest in deep sea pipelines, the world is also turning to the transport of liquefied natural gas, or LNG. The production of liquefied natural gas is worthwhile only when a gas field is far from customers, or when the only alternative is a pipeline across impassable or dangerous terrain. To liquefy natural gas, it must first be cooled to a very low temperature (see Pictures of the Future, Spring 2008, p.46). This process requires powerful compressors, as do the huge gas tanks being built around the world to store supplies. “Combined with the unique range of products supplied by Siemens, these developments certainly do open up outstanding market opportunities for the company,” says Wappler — and increasing interest in the Pipeline Demo Center. Jeanne Rubner

Balancing Demand and Production

Source: USGS (2006), USGS (2005), BGR (2005) — 2004 figures

on the grounds of a former blast furnace (see Pictures of the Future, Spring 2008, p. 46). Six pipelines, including compressors and drives, can be operated simultaneously at full capacity at this center, which is the only one of its kind in Europe. “That’s important, because the operators of pipeline systems want to be sure that the lines work flawlessly,” says Wappler. As a rule, testing occurs at night, so that the Duisburg public utility company can supply enough electricity and gas. The most powerful compressors, which are needed for liquefied natural gas, each require up to 70 megawatts of power, whereas pipeline compressors operate in the range of 25 to 30 megawatts. Because of the need to conserve energy, compression technologies are becoming increasingly important. In the past, natural gas was flared off at oil fields. But today it is considered the raw material of the future, and every effort is made to recover it. In addition, natural gas produces less carbon dioxide when burned, as compared with petroleum, which is a plus in view of the struggle against climate change. “The trend is therefore toward gas,” says Wappler. As a consequence, high-performance compressors are needed to compress gas approximately every 150 to 200 kilometers. When it comes to deep water operations, the number of compressors must be minimized. Thus, in the case of the planned 1,220kilometer Baltic Sea pipeline, there will be only one compressor station; but it will be rated at 70 to 80 megawatts. Siemens’ experience in Belgium’s Zeebrugge harbor makes it an ideal partner for such projects. Zeebrugge is the European terminus for North Sea gas that flows in the summer from Great Britain to the continent. The harbor’s compressors rely on Siemens Technology.

| Facts and Forecasts

Source: Mineral resource trends, RWI, ISI, BGR, 2005

Raw Materials

Nearly 36% of global natural gas reserves are located in Russia. (as of January 2007)

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Because of the risk of rupturing a drilling pipe,

Raw Materials | Offshore Drilling

offshore platforms can’t be allowed to drift — not even in the stormiest seas. Powerful motors ensure that such giants stay put (image below right).

hose were truly the good old days. In August 1859, in Oil Creek, Pennsylvania, oil industry pioneer Colonel Edwin L. Drake had to drill to a grand total of only 21 meters and 20 centimeters before hitting “black gold.” A year prior to Drake’s breakthrough, oil had been successfully extracted near Celle in northern Germany, after the thick liquid had seeped through to the surface on its own. And in the 15th century, monks on the shore of the Tegernsee, a lake in southern Bavaria, enjoyed similarly easy access to the coveted substance — simply taking their “Saint Quirin oil,” which was used for medicinal purposes, from a source above ground. Today, billions of dollars are spent in the search for new oil deposits, which can take years or even decades to develop. This is because the vast majority of oil reserves are found between 500 and 3,000 meters below the ocean floor — and must be evaluated using sophisticated geological studies and tapped by means of costly drilling operations. The costs of extraction are particularly high when the oil is offshore. A drilling ship costs $300,000 to $500,000 a day, and taking into account all the costs for personnel and other equipment, expenditures for the search for oil can easily reach several million dollars every day.

or oil present, and provides an indication of the size of any reservoir that may be found. If these results are positive, production can begin. In shallow waters oil companies use drilling platforms. “Jack-up platforms,” for example, have legs that are lowered to the sea floor and are suitable for depths of up to about 100 meters. “A semi-submersible,” on the other hand, is a floating platform that either is anchored to the sea bed or relies on auxiliary motors to stabilize itself. One thousand meters is the maximum depth for this type of platform. If an oil deposit is even deeper beneath the sea, drilling ships are used, which also use auxiliary motors to maintain their position. Called “thrusters,” these motors also have to work against the torque of the drill to keep the ship from revolving on its axis. All of this amounts to a formidable challenge. “Oil production vessels and drilling platforms must precisely hold their positions even in stormy seas — otherwise drill pipes can break, which can cause damage costing tens of millions of dollars,” says Jürgen Moser, Senior Expert at the Siemens Energy Sector in Erlangen, Germany. And that’s exactly what thrusters are designed to prevent. For these powerful drive units, dependability is not an option. They simply must never break down.

“In addition to having a very secure power supply, these units must be ready for service even if an electrical subnetwork on board the ship fails,” says Moser. Reliable Propulsion. Considering the challenges of deep ocean drilling, it is easy to see why conventional on-board power supply systems on drilling ships feature redundant designs — two separate on-board networks, each with its own diesel generators. However, such

Moser, “What’s more, it’s no problem to feed electricity from one subnetwork into the other, for example for powering the drills, mud pumps, or lighting, some of which are connected to only one network.” Finally, the system makes it possible to achieve energy savings of up to 30 percent, because the diesel generators in both subnetworks can be optimally operated for each specific need. The first drilling platform to use the SIPLINK system has been operating since May 2008 in

Production vessels must be able to hold their position, even in a storm. That’s why they need reliable propulsion. generators usually run inefficiently under low partial loads. So if one network fails, half of the thrusters also stop running. “That’s an especially big problem if it occurs just when some of the thrusters in the remaining subnetwork are down, for example when they’re being serviced,” Moser explains. “You can’t simply feed power from the subnetwork that’s still operating to the one that’s stopped running, because this would cause a very high current to flow in the transformers.” With this in mind, Siemens and U.S.-based Transocean,

waters off the coast of Nigeria, and a second platform is being converted for the system this year in Singapore. Transocean is also having new drilling ships built in South Korea. The vessels will be equipped with the SIPLINK system, with the first of these expected to enter service before the end of 2008. “SIPLINK can be installed in any ship or on any drilling platform whenever a major overhaul is planned,” says Moser. “And the costs of the system are no higher than those of a conventional solution.”

have developed a system based on SIPLINK (Siemens Multifunctional Power Link) technology that makes the on-board power supply more reliable. On ships equipped with SIPLINK, each thruster is supplied by both networks, which are connected by a Y-shaped switch consisting of high-performance transistors. “If one of the networks stops operating, it’s not necessary to switch over to the other one, and current spikes don’t occur in the transformer,” says

Yet another major challenge in offshore oil production is getting the oil to shore, a job that’s usually taken care of by pipelines or tankers. To ensure that tankers don’t have to wait long, the oil is often pre-processed and temporarily stored in Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessels. An FPSO vessel stays in waters either very close to the drilling platform or to the drill holes on the sea floor.

An Ocean of Opportunity About one fourth of all known oil reserves are beneath the sea floor. Tapping these remote deposits is an extremely complex and costly endeavor. Oil companies must drill kilometers beneath the seabed, while coping with gale-force winds and stormy seas. Technologies from Siemens play a key role in enhancing safety and reducing costs on offshore platforms and drilling ships.

The hunt for petroleum requires the combined skills of scientists from very different disciplines, including geologists, geophysicists, and geochemists — all of them on the lookout for very specific geological structures. Oil deposits are often under high pressure, and contain salt water and natural gas. They are usually confined by a rock stratum that must be both permeable and capable of storing the liquids. Oil is created in a layer that lies even deeper,

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

called the source bed, from which hydrocarbons typically migrate in the form of small drops into a reservoir. That migration stops beneath an impermeable layer of clay or rock salt, for example. It is exactly “traps” like these that the oil companies search for — a job that involves screening layers of rock. This process begins by dispatching ships equipped with special microphones called geophones to a location where it

is believed oil can be found. Air guns are used to create sound waves that penetrate the sea floor, where they are reflected at the boundaries of different rock strata. By means of these reflected waves, scientists can define the stratification beneath the sea bed and determine whether there are layers that can serve as reservoirs for oil or gas. If the results are promising, the first test bores follow. This stage of drilling tells geologists whether there is any gas

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Raw Materials | Offshore Drilling

Among other things, Siemens supplies measuring technology, telecommunications systems, and electrical networks for such ships. A ship’s entire electrical system is contained in an “E-House” — a gigantic, specially designed container that can be custom-tailored to the needs of any customer and manufactured in advance at inland locations. “The E-House is installed on deck rather than below decks,” explains Knut Arne Thanem, Senior Project Manager at Siemens Oil & Gas Offshore AS in Oslo, Norway. “That saves space for petroleum.”

| Interview

the Gulf of Mexico, in Azerbaijan, and off the coast of West Africa. And more offshore deposits have been making headlines of late. Brazilian oil company Petrobras, for instance, recently discovered two large reservoirs: the “Tupi” field, found in November 2007, 250 kilometers off the coast of the State of São Paulo, is believed to hold deposits of between five and eight billion barrels, or about 1,000 billion liters; and the “Carioca” field, which made headlines worldwide in April 2008. The field is 270 kilometers south of Rio

The most attractive oil fields are under the sea. They are productive for between 10 and 20 years on average. Siemens experts have already designed a two-story E-House with a surface area of 15 by 30 meters for a Norwiegen customer. It was built at an on-shore facility in Dubai in 2007 and 2008 and installed on board its ship at a coastal dry dock there in August 2008. “We delivered the E-House complete with all the electrical components — it only had to be lifted with a crane onto its prepared base,” Thanem says. “That saves a lot of time and money.” Siemens has already designed another E-House for a sister vessel.

de Janeiro and reported to be about as large as Tupi. More exact numbers regarding its size will not be available until 2009, however. “The most promising oil fields of the future are at sea — off the coasts of Brazil, Angola, and Nigeria, as well as several patches in the Gulf of Mexico. Saudi Arabia also has offshore oil reserves,” says Dr. Werner Zittel of LudwigBölkow-Systemtechnik GmbH in Ottobrunn, Germany. Zittel is among the experts active in the Energy Watch Group (EWG) organization. “All of these oil fields are very difficult and ex-

Down to the Last Drop. But while the world waits for Brazil’s offshore oil, other fields are drying up. The output of the North Sea reservoirs peaked in 2001, for instance, and several fields in the Caspian Sea are fast approaching their peaks. The amounts being extracted from other deposits, on the other hand — for example in the Gulf of Mexico and off the coast of Africa — are still rising modestly. And The average lifes span for a reservoir is ten to 20 years, and some fields are even active for 30 years. “Offshore fields are being exploited faster in order to recover the high costs of drilling in less time,” says Hilmar Rempel of Germany’s Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Materials (BGR) in Hannover. “Due to intensive extraction, these fields are being exhausted more quickly than oil fields on land.” To obtain maximum yield from offshore reservoirs, oil companies are applying increasingly sophisticated technologies. In fact, if all they relied on was natural pressure, only between ten and 30 percent of the oil could be extracted. “Secondary processes” involve forcing water or other substances into the reservoirs to maintain internal pressure. This boosts the level of oil extraction to as high as 60 percent. Yield can also be increased by means of a technique called “steam flooding,” which calls for injecting superheated steam with a temper-

would be possible to recover up to 13 billion of those. But in reality Prudhoe Bay produced 1.5 million barrels a day for almost 11 years — or around six billion barrels. Today the field produces only about 200,000 barrels a day. Is Prudhoe a typical example? Simmons: Yes. Many oil fields are coming to the end of their useful lives. In Mexico, for instance, the Cantarell field came on line in the mid ’70s. When it opened it was unbelievably productive — 40 wells produced one million barrels per day for almost 20 years. Then, in 1997, the field’s reservoir pressure started to decline. PEMEX drilled another 400 wells and repressured the field. Productivity quickly rose

Matthew R. Simmons is Chairman of Simmons & Company International, a specialized energy investment banking firm that has completed projects with a combined value in excess of $140 billion. He received an MBA with Distinction from Harvard Business School. He is a member of the National Petroleum Council, Council on Foreign Relations, and The Atlantic Council of the United States. Simmons’ recently published book Twilight in the Desert: The Coming Saudi Oil Shock and the World Economy has been listed on the Wall Street Journal’s best-seller list.

The complete electrical system for an oil

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

containers. These E-House modules are installed directly on the deck of a ship.

pensive to open up, however.” Brazil’s Tupi field is a good example. The oil there is at a depth of 7,000 meters and covered by a layer of salt 2,000 meters thick. So it will take several years before the Tupi oil finds its way onto the world market.

ature of 340 degrees Celsius into the deposit under high pressure. And extraction equipment on the sea floor, installed and maintained by robots, is becoming increasingly important. (see Pictures of the Future, Spring 2004, p. 51) Located directly at the source, robotic systems can separate undesirable substances such as water and sand from crude oil, for example, making extraction more efficient. Christian Buck

How can we kick the oil habit? Simmons: We are going to have to make the most abrupt retreat in human history. If we don’t use less, we could be looking at a savage resource war. The G7 countries should urgently develop a blueprint for sharply cutting oil use worldwide. Next, they should call for an overhaul of labor markets that would provide incentives for people to work at home with a view to sharply reducing long-distance commuting and boosting the energy efficiency of the transport system. Third, they should create incentives for food to be produced locally.

Twilight at the Pump

production vessel can be housed in gigantic

Offshore Future. Even with all of Siemens’ advanced technologies, however, oil production on the high seas is still a job that requires tremendous investments of labor and capital. But the investment is worth the effort. About one third of all petroleum produced worldwide today comes from offshore deposits, and experts estimate that roughly 25 percent of all reserves are beneath the seas. Well-known examples include the oil fields in the North Sea, in

have no idea how to price this incredibly scarce and absolutely irreplaceable product.

Worldwide, we are now consuming around 88 million barrels of oil per day. Do we know how long our reserves will last? Simmons: No. We don’t have a clue. We don’t know how much oil is in a field until it comes to a halt. Look at Prudhoe Bay in Alaska, the largest oil field the U.S. has ever had. When it was discovered, estimates said that the field had 25 billion barrels of reserves and that it

to 2.2 million barrels per day and then, in 2005, it collapsed. We have an increasing number of Prudhoe Bays and Cantarells. Surely there are a few untapped fields… Simmons: There could be. There’s an exciting development offshore from Brazil called the Santos Basin. In very deep water they’ve discovered a series of seemingly huge structures. But they estimate that it will take until 2020 to 2025 before they really know what’s out there. Estimates for the single largest structure run from 1.5 billion barrels to 33 billion. That indicates how fuzzy the science is. Are we powering the world economy on fuzzy science? Simmons: It’s as if we had gotten everyone on earth into a plane, gone up to 35,000 feet and then discovered that there was no fuel gauge. The pundits tell us we’ve got plenty of fuel to make it home, but what if they’re wrong? Why is oil becoming so expensive? Simmons: Very simply because demand has exceeded supply. In fact, demand is growing while supply is falling. We are getting into an extremely tight market. Refiners have to pay top dollar for crude because it’s getting really hard to find. What we were seeing recently at $140 per barrel was cheap. In six months to five years we will see oil between $200 and $500 per barrel. Think of it in cups. Divide $140-per-barrel oil into a price per cup and you get 21 cents. Can you think of anything that costs that little any more? In my opinion, a more realistic price would be $5 per cup. That would come out to $3,360 per barrel. We still

You’re calling for radical changes in our society and lifestyle. Simmons: We’re already moving in that direction. The big, centralized dairy farms in the U.S. are becoming less and less viable because they rely on shipping their products long distances. Our next Administration is going to have to encourage this trend. The result will be that people will spend less time on the road. Could all of this be a blessing in disguise? Simmons: It could. The skyrocketing price of oil is already bringing thousands of jobs back to the industrialized countries because the cost of shipping from so-called low-wage countries has become too high. This could usher in a growing movement to small, localized, highly automated production centers. How can alternative energy sources help? Simmons: I’m not a scientist. I’m a banker. All I can say is that a large and growing proportion of the earth’s population lives within a hundred miles of a coastline. We should therefore start thinking about ways of harvesting the power of the oceans in terms of tides and winds to produce electricity. For example, I’m very excited about a project we have started in Maine. Our plan is to build 95 floating windmills that will have the longest turbine blades ever built. Another vision is to use the electricity derived from wind and ocean power to drive electric vehicles or to produce synthetic fuels. That would allow us to use our current infrastructure — including the cars now on the road — to buy time while developing even more efficient alternatives. Interview conducted by Arthur F. Pease

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Bernd Wacker and his team want to heat up

Raw Materials | Tar Sands

tar sand using an induced current. In this way, oil can be extracted in a greener way than is the case with open pit mining (small picture right).

hen Bernd Wacker, a researcher for Siemens, flips the switch mechanism in his laboratory in Erlangen, Germany, you’d best run for cover. At that point up to 400 amps of current shoots through a thermally insulated copper loop into a small sandbox and heats up the grains of quartz soaked in salt water. If the observer doesn’t keep to the safety clearance of one meter, things can quickly get uncomfortable. “You can receive superficial burns if you wear a conductive item such as a wristwatch,“ explains Wacker. “Things really get heated up.” The thing that is giving visitors the jitters is also having an electrifying effect on Wacker, who works at Siemens Corporate Technology. That’s because his experiment could prove that moist sand can be warmed by electromagnetic induction alone — in other words, not through the heat from a coil, for instance. “The setup behaves much the way as does a pot of spaghetti on an induction stove,” says Wacker. The current-carrying copper coil gives rise to an alternating magnetic field that generates eddy currents in conductive materials. Such eddy currents heat the metallic pot — or sand soaked in salt water, as the case may be. And the result is a whiff of revolution in Wacker’s lab. Why? Because if the process developed by Siemens researchers succeeds in heating up bituminous sands in Canada with

method is also the most environmentally damaging one. “Around 70 percent of Canadian oil sands are extracted through open pit mining,“ says Michael Koolman from the Siemens Energy Sector. “Huge areas are cleared, and then excavators roll in.“ According to Koolman, who is an oil and gas expert, the wilderness is literally turned upside down. Moreover, large amounts of methane — a greenhouse gas 21 times more harmful than CO2 — are released during excavation. The extracted tar sand is then mixed with water and separating agents. The heavy sand settles out; the oil collects in a foam on top and can be skimmed off. An additional problem is the large amount of water used. “The water table sinks, for example, and this can have negative effects on the ecosystem,” says Koolman. He estimates that open pit mining will continue for approximately the next 20 to 30 years until reserves close to the surface have been exploited.

process, the viscous mass is separated from the water and processed into synthetic crude oil. The remaining water is re-purified and supplies the boiler at a later time. This method spares the environment from being excavated; however, water and energy consumption are still high. “This is where our electromagnetic induction process comes in,” says Wacker. The method developed by his team will initially be used to support the on-site process, making it considerably more effective. An inductor that is roughly as thick as an arm

lower,“ explains Koolman. In the in-situ process the steam injector would consume up to 12 megawatts of power. The induction process, on the other hand, requires considerably less electricity. Siemens experts consider their method to be advantageous because if reservoir pressure becomes excessively high, the hot steam could break through the overburden along with flammable gases, igniting oil in the immediate subsurface environment and presenting a serious fire risk. “Electric current is considerably easier to control,” says Koolman.

Siemens scientists want to heat bituminous sand using an induced current — like a pot of spaghetti.

Full Steam Ahead. Since 2002 a less intrusive extraction method has been developed for getting at oil buried as much as 60 meters beneath the surface. In this so-called in-situ method, steam at a temperature of up to 300 degrees Celsius is injected under high pressure into the reservoir through a pipe. A 25-centimeter-thick drainage line runs about six meters beneath the steam inducer. After the tar

and looks similar to a cable runs parallel to the steam pipe in the earth. “The operator then sends electrical energy into the reservoir and an alternating magnetic field is generated around the inductor,“ explains Wacker. “This field creates eddy currents in the conductive sand that slowly heat up the bitumen and mineralized water on the tar sand grains.“ Droplets of bitumen finally separate from the grains and flow into the drain line. When combined with conventional steam injection, over 20 percent more material can be extracted in the same time, depending on reservoir conditions. Because of the high yield, the specific water con-

At present, the induction method is in operation only in a sandbox at Siemens’ Erlangen campus. But by 2010 a pilot system in Canada’s prairie province of Alberta may show what it’s capable of. “For that project, we will first have to design an entirely new induction cable,“ says Wacker. This represents a new challenge for our engineers, as up to now the inductors have been restricted to kitchen stoves and measured a maximum of two meters in length. “In contrast, when it comes to Alberta, we will need a cable several kilometers in length that is also resistant to high temperatures and voltages,” he explains.

sands have been “steamed” for a few weeks, the pressure and temperature in the deposit increase and the reservoir becomes more permeable. At this point, a mixture of bitumen — a substance similar to tar — and water slowly separates from the grains of sand and drips into the 1,000-meter-long drain line. It can then flow to the end of the line and be extracted from there. In this way a total of about 1,000 barrels of bitumen per borehole can be obtained each day. In a further step in the

sumption is dramatically reduced, adds Koolman. “Normally four barrels of water must be turned to steam to produce one barrel of bitumen. With our process only half of this would be needed.” Depending on extraction time and the geological composition of the reservoir, steam injection could be avoided altogether; the tar sand could be processed with electrical induction alone. “The advantage of this method would be that absolutely no water would be needed. Energy use would also be

Extensive simulations confirm that the researchers‘ idea could succeed. A computer evaluated the 20-year life cycle of a typical tar sand reservoir. Here, for the first time, the Siemens experts have connected a conventional reservoir simulator to an electromagnetic simulator. The result was clear, reports Wacker enthusiastically. “With our induction process the customer’s profit would increase by around 20 Florian Martini percent .“

Electrifying Extraction Around 90 percent of global oil reserves are bound up in tar sands and schists. Although expensive, extracting oil from these reservoirs is becoming increasingly viable. Siemens is developing a revolutionary, induction-based process that promises to obviate excavation, cut water demand, and significantly boost profits.

the help of the induction effect, it will mean that oil can be extracted from viscous sludge in a way that is more effective and environmentally compatible than conventional methods. That would be a method with a future, given the enormous reserves lying under the Canadian wilderness. Experts suspect that the sandy soils contain around 178 billion barrels of crude oil, barely three percent of which has been exploited since the 1960s. Although the extraction of the coveted raw material is nearly

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

three times as expensive as conventional oil production, the rising price of oil is ensuring that even the most costly procedure is becoming increasingly viable. Canadian energy authority NEB estimates that a total of US $94 billion will have been invested in production by 2015. Oil sand production ought to then triple as a result. The problem is that extracting that oil isn’t exactly the best thing for Canada’s natural environment. Today, the most common extraction

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Pure water for China’s earthquake victims.

Raw Materials | Water Purification

The Skyhydrant can purify up to 10,000 liters of water a day. It uses ultrafine membrane filters (bottom) that can reliably trap viruses.

he people of the southern Chinese city of Jiangyou say that a bowl of water can save a life. The saying was coined by their city’s most famous son, Li Bai, a renowned poet 1,300 years ago. Li is said to have been very drunk when the Chinese emperor unexpectedly appointed him a government official. The emperor expected Li to present him with a couple of new verses to show his appreciation for being so honored. Thinking quickly, the poet poured the contents of the nearest bowl over his face, sobered up, and began composing.

center of Jiangyou, happens to be named after the poet Li Bai. “We’ve lost everything, and now we must learn to survive on the bare minimum,” says Li. She used to run a kiosk in the city, but at the moment she’s squatting down in front of her tent, cooking a meal of rice with cabbage and garlic. It’s not very filling — but at least it’s healthy and safe, because the water Li is using has been completely purified. Contaminated water, in fact, is one of the few things earthquake victims in Jiangyou don’t have to worry about these days. Just a

ogy from Siemens of the kind used at the world’s most advanced water treatment plants. “Skyhydrant enables us to use the best purification procedure that we know of for applications in disaster areas and throughout the Third World,” says Rhett Butler, who developed the device (see Interview, p. 38). “When the images of the earthquake in Sichuan began showing up on TV around the world, Siemens’ ‘Caring Hands’ immediately sent 15 Skyhydrants to the region to ensure that victims would at least have access to clean drinking water.”

Hope on Tap Clean drinking water is a scarce resource worldwide. But modern membrane technology of the type Siemens produces in Australia can help ensure supplies for people everywhere — like the victims of the recent earthquake in southern China.

Today, every child in China knows what he wrote, which translates as follows: “A waterfall rains down from a thousand meters as if the Milky Way were falling from heaven.” Li Wen also learned this verse when she was a schoolgirl — but the life-saving bowl of water has a completely different meaning for her. That’s because, since May 12, when a powerful earthquake measuring eight on the Richter scale destroyed most of Jiangyou, which is 100 kilometers north of Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan province, she and her family have been living in a refugee camp at the city’s Taibai Square. And the square, located in the

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

few days after the earthquake hit, a “water box,” as the refugees call it, was placed in the camp. This narrow cabinet about the height of a grown man is where the camp’s residents get their water for drinking, cooking, and washing. The nondescript unit filters water from the local supply network, whose treatment plants were destroyed in the quake. Several thousand people are now using it to obtain water that is free of bacteria and germs. Clean Water Wherever It’s Needed. The official name of the water box is “Skyhydrant” and it uses state-of-the-art membrane technol-

Not much expertise is required to use the devices, which feature instructions posted on a small yellow sticker on the box. “It was very easy to assemble — it took us only ten minutes to unpack one Skyhydrant and put it into operation,” says Li Zaoyang, an engineer from Jiangyou’s water authority, which operates the Skyhydrant at Taibai Square. A hose connects the device to a faucet normally used to water the grass at the square, while a second hose runs from the Skyhydrant to a small water tank that Li set up on a folding table. There hasn’t been much for him to do since then. Once a day, he moves a small lever

on the top of the device’s housing up and down for one minute, opening a valve that lets out water. “That’s how we clean the filter,” he explains. Li himself is not very familiar with the exact details of this procedure, but he’s happy not to have to worry about it. After all, like everyone else in Jiangyou, Li has a lot of other things on his mind. Micrometer Virus Traps. Anyone interested in learning exactly how the water box works would be advised to take a trip to Windsor, Australia, 50 kilometers west of Sydney. There you’ll find a company known as Memcor, a subsidiary of Siemens Water Technologies, that employs 250 people and is the world’s leading developer and manufacturer of water treatment membranes. The company’s reception area contains a Skyhydrant, but it’s only a demonstration model. “That’s our mini-treatment plant,” says Memcor Managing Director Bruce Biltoft. “Our normal water treatment facilities are generally a little bigger,” he jokes. That’s because Memcor focuses primarily on solutions for municipal treatment plants and major industrial wastewater purification systems. At the heart of Memcor’s technology is a module that looks like a thick bundle of long spaghetti. Closer examination reveals that it is a series of very thin tubes. In fact, it takes an electron microscope to see that there are tiny perforations in the walls of the tubes. “Those are the membranes,” Biltoft explains. “Basically, they function like normal filters. The water molecules move through the holes, and all of the suspended materials in the water are left behind.” And he does mean all of them. With a diameter of only 0.1 micrometers (one thousandth of a millimeter), the pores are so narrow that they can capture even the tiniest particles. It also is impossible for bacteria to get through, and even viruses, which are much smaller, are trapped because they are bonded to other organisms. The only things that can make it through are soluble contaminants, which are removed in water treatment plants using additional process steps. Water flows through Skyhydrant’s filtration process as it would through a straw. The device’s tubes are over one meter long, yet have a diameter of just one millimeter. Unclean water flows across the outside of the tubes, is forced through the membrane walls, and is then siphoned off on the inside. Major treatment plants have hundreds or even thousands of membrane bundles encased in cylinders, with each bundle containing approximately 10,000

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Raw Materials

| Interview

| Water Purification

An innovative desalination technology from Siemens requires only half as much energy as the best previous systems to turn salt water into pure, potable water.

tubes. Here, pumps are used to generate powerful suction, and the water flow direction is briefly reversed several times each hour, before air is forced through the membranes to loosen up and clear away the residues on the outer walls. “All this is done by hand with Skyhydrant,” says Biltoft. In fact, the natural pressure of water falling two meters is enough to push water through the membrane, while shaking the bundle at the same time causes the tubes to rub against one another and release dirt. This is exactly what happens when Li Zaoyang jiggles his Skyhydrant’s lever. Over 800 Patents. As simple as the filtration process is, extensive research and development was needed before it to be used in water treatment plants. It all began in 1984, when scientists at the University of New South Wales in Sydney were working on blood filtering systems for dialysis patients. Several scientists realized that the membranes they were using could also be applied to water treatment technology. After setting up their own company, they began developing membranes that could function reliably for up to ten years and could be produced at a reasonable cost. “We registered over 800 patents,” recalls Biltoft, himself an engineer and one of the company’s pioneers. And the effort paid off. The filtration idea is now a well-established process worldwide. But to get to this point the Australians needed the help of international partners who could provide specific components and expertise. One of those partners was Siemens, whose subsidiary Siemens Water Technologies acquired Memcor in 2004. Things have been moving in a very positive direction ever since. Every day, a machine spits out dozens of kilometers of membrane fibers. These fibers are glued together into bundles using synthetic resin. The resulting modules are used at facilities around the world. “Demand is increasing rapidly,” Biltoft reports. “At the moment, our production volume is growing at a rate of 20 percent per year.” Memcor’s business volume is thus expanding at a rate twice as high as that of the membrane technology industry as a whole. “That creates perfect conditions for us to further develop our products,” says Biltoft. The plan is to make the membranes even finer, more durable, and less expensive to produce in the future. This will benefit not only Siemens’ major customers but also the people whose welfare is a top priority of the employees in Windsor — people like Li Wen in Jiangyou, who knows better than anyone how a simple bowl of clean water can save a life. Bernhard Bartsch

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

dation, enables people in developing countries to use the most advanced water treatment process known. High-tech for the Third World — that sounds expensive. Butler: That’s what many people think, but actually the opposite is true. Membrane technology is much less expensive than any other method of providing clean water. It’s fairly easy to calculate. One Skyhydrant can be purchased for $3,000. That one unit can then provide 1,000 people with clean water for drink-

Solving the Global Drinking Water Problem Siemens manager Rhett Butler, who established the Skyjuice Foundation, has transformed a high-tech water treatment process into an everyday application for third world countries. In recognition of this achievement, he was presented with the 2007 Siemens Corporate Responsibility Award.

Ensuring that the world has an adequate supply of clean drinking water is considered one of the major challenges of the 21st century. Does your membrane technology solve the problem? Butler: Naturally, the problem is far from solved — and obviously I’m not going to solve it alone. Nevertheless, I’m firmly convinced that we now have the technology to provide everyone on the planet with clean water, even in the most underdeveloped regions of the Third World. Membrane technology has made this possible. What we need to do now is to make the technology widely available. Skyhydrant, which was developed together with my colleagues at Siemens and the Skyjuice Foun-

ing, cooking, and washing every day. And it can do so for ten years — that’s how long the membranes last if they’re well-maintained. So in the end, it comes out to 30 cents per person per year. Sounds great. Why isn’t there a Skyhydrant in every village from the Congo to the Mekong Delta? Butler: Because we’re just getting started. I didn’t even begin working on it until 2001, after working for more than 20 years as a manager at Memcor in Sydney. The company was developing highly complex filtration systems, but at some point I asked myself if it would be possible to use the membranes in simple, lowcost applications in the Third World. I then began experimenting in my garage after work with left-over membranes from the factory. The biggest challenge was how to clean the filters. But then I discovered that the filter fibers could also be cleaned using a hand-operated mechanism. In 2005, you took a temporary leave of absence to establish the Skyjuice Foundation… Butler: Yes, because I thought if I wanted to solve the world’s water problem, I would never be able to do so by just working long hours on nights and weekends. So I got in touch with several development aid organizations, who

were initially skeptical. Ironically, the big breakthrough came in December 2004 after the tsunami hit Southeast Asia. There was suddenly huge demand in the impacted areas for easily-transportable equipment for treating drinking water. Conventional units that use traditional procedures involving sand beds or active carbon weigh more than a ton, while one Skyhydrant weighs only 20 kilograms — and has the same capacity. My Siemens colleagues and our team of volunteers then collaborated in a massive effort and ultimately succeeded in building more than 100 Skyhydrants and shipping them to Sri Lanka in just a few weeks. That was more or less our practical test run. How many Skyhydrants are now in operation? Butler: More than 400, which isn’t very many really. This summer, however, the Skyjuice Foundation put its own factory into operation. This plant has the capacity to produce 200 Skyhydrants a week. Production isn’t the only challenge; we also have to actually get the devices to the people who need them. Siemens has donated many Skyhydrants to disaster areas, and aid organizations are also now getting involved… Butler: That’s only one possible approach. If you look at the history of development work, you’ll find that people will use water treatment facilities most often and in the most responsible way when they have to contribute for themselves — or at least cover a portion of the costs. Are you saying Skyhydrant could be sold commercially? Butler: Market mechanisms can do a lot. Right now, for example, we’re talking to micro credit banks that could theoretically sell Skyhydrants to operators of “water kiosks.” At the same time, Siemens and the Skyjuice Foundation, which together hold the rights to Skyhydrant, both agree that we will not seek to make a profit here but instead make the technology available at the lowest possible cost. We already have the technology and good concepts to solve the drinking water problem, so there’s no reason why we shouldn’t use sensible and ethical market mechanisms, such as micro-entrepreneurship to achieve our mutual objectives. Interview by Bernhard Bartsch.

Singapore: Pooling Resources Singapore has established itself as the world’s “Water Hub” — a perfect place for Siemens Water Technologies, with its worldwide water R&D activities. Working with local partners, the company is developing energy-efficient water treatment technologies there.

he building on Toh Guan Road is a functional structure with a plain facade, plenty of parking, and a foyer straight out a typical high school. And in fact schoolchildren often visit on class trips. But the people who actually study here are older. They are researchers from around the world who have come to Singapore’s “Water Hub” to develop solutions to one of the century’s greatest challenges — how to provide everyone on the planet with clean water, and to do so inexpensively, with the minimum of energy and in an environmentally responsible way. The answer to this question just might be right here in this building, in a large hall that houses dozens of devices — networks of water tanks, tubes, hoses, new water purification technologies and blinking instruments for analysis. Monitors in the hall display measure-

ment data, and in one corner a laser camera shoots bright flashes of light through a glass cylinder filled with water. “We’re working on eight projects and around 20 processes here — everything from simulations of fluid dynamics to refining our advanced membrane technology,” says Rüdiger Knauf, who is responsible for worldwide R&D at Siemens Water Technologies. A key partner in the Water Hub, Siemens established its global headquarters for water technology R&D here in 2007. Siemens Corporate Technology also operates a lab at the site. “Singapore will be the center and expansion springboard for all our innovation-related activities,” says Siemens Water Technologies Managing Director Chuck Gordon. The Water Hub location will thus supplement existing R&D facilities at six locations in the U.S., Germany,

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Raw Materials | Water Purification

Some industrial wastewater contains pollutants

| Wastewater Treatment

that conventional treatment plants can’t eliminate. A new Siemens process uses electricity to decompose these substances (small images).

Siemens develops high-precision processes for water analysis and purification at its Singapore water lab .

and Australia. The 25 scientists who work in the new laboratories registered 12 patents after just a few months of operations. “Our plans were ambitious from the beginning, but we’re still growing faster than even we expected,” says Knauf, the director of the new center. Pure Water for Singapore. That’s not surprising, given that the Singapore government has given a boost to international research efforts in water processing and treatment technologies that amazes even veteran R&D experts. As a result, Singapore is now the global center for the water purification industry. It realized much earlier than others that water technology would be a future growth industry. “Singapore’s government and research institutes were quicker than their counterparts in recognizing the urgency surrounding water management issues and associated technologies, so they are very proactive in promoting them,” says Gordon. “That makes Singapore an ideal location for us.” Singapore, as an island nation with an area of only 700 square kilometers, has had to cope with scarce resources for years. That’s why more than ten years ago the government began to investigate new techniques for safeguarding the water supply for the country’s 4.6 million inhabitants. Among other things, the city-state built one of the world’s first large plants for processing wastewater and converting it back into drinking water (see Pictures of the Future, Spring 2006, p. 22). The plant

processed 40,000 cubic meters of water per day in 2006. Plans call for this figure to be increased to 210,000 cubic meters by 2012. Most of the processed water is used by various branches of industry that require pure water, and Siemens has been supplying the necessary processing technology. Desalination Power. Recycling is just one possibility for safeguarding Singapore’s water supply. Another approach is to use seawater. Here again — as with all other processes related to the water cycle — the key question is:

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Hungry Cannibals. Winning the Singapore Innovative Technology Challenge was a big boost

A new desalination system from Siemens cuts energy consumption per m3 processed from 10 kWh to 1.5. How can such a system be organized in an inexpensive, environmentally sound, and energy efficient manner? To help answer this question, Singapore’s government provided innovative companies with $300 million in research funding. It also networked the country’s leading research institutes and administrative bodies, including Nanyang University, the A*Star development agency, and the Public Utilities Board, which established the Water Hub. This network has ensured availability of state-ofthe-art labs, access to well-trained personnel, and opportunities to conduct field tests. Siemens has been joined in Water Hub by other globally-operating companies, and around 400 people now work at the site.

An ultraviolet reactor (right) kills germs in water — without chemicals.

In June 2008, Singapore staged the first “International Water Week” exhibition that in the future will bring the entire industry together each year. During this year’s exhibition, the Singapore government announced it was providing US $3 million in research funding for the “Singapore Innovative Technology Challenge.” The goal was to find a technology capable of cutting in half the cost of converting seawater into drinking water. Many companies submitted concepts, with Siemens emerging as the winner. Instead of desalinating seawater by means of energy-intensive heating and vaporizing processes, the Siemens concept involves channeling water through an electric field. This reduces energy consumption per cubic meter of water from the ten kilowatt hours (kWh) common at conventional facilities to just 1.5 kWh. Even the best of the previous technologies based on reverse osmosis used twice this. “That’s a major breakthrough,” says Gordon. “Because of this development, we’ll be seeing more seawater desalination in the future.”

for Siemens researchers at the Water Hub. “It serves as a confirmation by the world’s leading independent experts that Siemens is on the right track with its development projects,” says Knauf, who is already preparing to address the next challenge. His researchers are now working on a new technique for minimizing sewage sludge, which is a major problem for operators of water treatment plants. “People don’t realize just how much of this stuff accumulates,” says Knauf. “You need a convoy of trucks just to remove the sludge from a single plant.” Before the sludge residue can even be transported, however, it has to be dehydrated and often dried in gigantic heaters, which consume lots of energy. To avoid this, Siemens developed the “Cannibal Process” in which much of the sludge is broken down biologically, using bacteria. This has led to approximately a 50-percent reduction in sludge mass. Hub scientists also have ideas about how to harness sewage treatment processes in completely novel ways. One possibility, for example, is to manage the decomposition process in such a manner that methane gas is created, which in turn can be used to produce electric power. “The procedures for this are currently in the test phase, but we’ll soon be starting a pilot project,” says Knauf. Bernhard Bartsch

Making Pollutants Edible Clothing and analgesic tablets have one thing in common: Their production creates wastewater that may contain large amounts of pollutants that are difficult to decompose. Existing treatment plants are ineffective against some of these pollutants. A new process from Siemens may change that.

e clean up wastewater with electricity,” says Dr. Manfred Waidhas, who has developed an electrochemical wastewater treatment process at Siemens Corporate Technology in Erlangen. The process converts water molecules into hydroxyl radicals that act as cleaning agents in the process. Hydroxyls — compounds of one oxygen and one hydrogen atom — rank among the most aggressive of all cleaning agents, and can break down the fundamental carbon-containing structure of all organic substances. “The resulting fragments of such pollutants can then be digested by bacteria in water treatment plants and thus rendered harmless,” Waidhas explains. With the new electrical treatment process, wastewater is pumped through a reactor that is encapsulated in a steel shell and contains electrodes like those of a lead battery. The electrodes carry opposite electrical charges. The difference in potential creates hydroxyl radicals

at the positively charged electrode and liberates hydrogen gas at the negative electrode. “To decompose the pollutant molecules as effectively as possible, they must adhere as tightly as possible to the oxide surface. The key is to find the most suitable electrode material for each type of wastewater,” Waidhas explains. The efficiency of the process can be further enhanced by selecting suitable operating parameters. However, electrode materials and operating parameters aren’t the only factors that are relevant to an efficient process. The quality of the wastewater matters as well. The greater the concentration of pollutants in the water, the more effective the process. That’s because at higher concentrations more particles adhere to the electrode surface, increasing the decomposition quota per kilowatt-hour. As a result, Siemens’ process is best suited for the highly concentrated wastewater from

the textile, paper, and pharmaceutical industries. Competing wastewater treatment systems use gaseous ozone. Like Siemens’ electrochemical method, these systems use hydroxyl radicals to produce the cleansing effect. “But our method for producing free radicals is more energy-efficient,” Waidhas points out. What’s more, the electrochemical process saves space, as it does not require an oxygen tank for ozone production, and is especially simple to operate. “All you need to run it is a wall outlet and a pump,” he says. The new process is being tested in a pilot plant that processes about 200 liters per hour of wastewater containing pollutants that are highly resistant to decomposition. “The results indicate that the process may be suitable for use on an industrial scale,” Waidhas reports. However, he adds, a great deal of development will still be needed before the solution is ready for the market. Andrea Hoferichter

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Raw Materials | Biomass

2007, p. 94). Up until a few years ago, the paper industry disposed of its waste in landfills. Today, it either avoids waste or converts it into energy. But the tiny particles of waste produced during paper production couldn’t be effectively burned, as they were simply too inhomogeneous and damp. The answer came in the form of a wheel that flings the particles at high speeds into the furnace chamber. This setup makes for a much better distribution of the particles and thus more effective combustion. It also eliminates the danger of slag buildup. The first SIPAPER Reject Power facility entered service nearly three years ago at a paper mill in Austria, where it produces heat and electricity for the factory’s own use. “This form of waste recycling cuts the factory’s primary energy use by up to a third,” says Dr. Hermann Schwarz, a technology product manager at the Siemens Industry Solutions Division in Erlangen. The technology, which is particularly suitable for burning damp biomass made up of different parts, “is ideal for medium-sized biomass

Flaming Scrap A technology developed by Siemens makes it possible to convert biomass waste into energy with a high degree of efficiency. A process developed by Siemens makes it possible to convert inhomogeneous and

ur little toy” is how engineers at the residual waste cogeneration plant in Böblingen, Germany, refer to their 20-meter tower, which is crammed into a hall located next to a residual waste and slag bunker. The engineers are used to large numbers — over 150,000 tons of waste is burned here each year in order to produce electricity and heat. “When we say toy, we aren’t being derogatory,” says plant manager Guido Bauernfeind. “On the contrary, the SIPAPER Reject Power facility is perfect for us.” One reason for this is that since September 2008 another type of raw material has also been converted to energy here — garden and forest scrap that has fallen through the facility’s sieves. The facility's tower, which is clad in silvery sheet metal, is itself a small power plant. Its furnace chamber looks like a giant pizza oven whose vaulted interior is lined with fire bricks and is additionally insulated by half a meter of

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

concrete. The outside temperature thus remains hand-hot, even when the fire within reaches 950 degrees Celsius. The RBB Böblingen energy cooperative collects 16,000 tons of sieve residues from clipping and forest thinning work each year. These are chopped into chips that are then used as fuel for cogeneration plants and wood-fired heating systems. The pieces that fall through the sieves are too small for this, however, as they would turn into slag after combustion and clog the furnace grates in large power plants. They also have a much lower calorific value, which would necessitate a specialized combustion procedure. “Our capacity would also preclude burning this material at our cogeneration plant,” Bauernfeind added. A solution was offered by SIPAPER Reject Power technology, which was originally developed by Siemens’ Industry Sector for the paper industry (see Pictures of the Future, Spring

damp sieve residues from wood chip production into electricity and heat.

facilities generating five to 25 megawatts,” says Manfred Haselgrübler, Reject Power manager in Linz, Austria. Larger systems are better served by conventional power plants that use either reciprocating grates or a constant air flow. But smaller facilities, such as Siemens’ cogeneration plant in Böblingen, which has a thermal output of five megawatts, can enjoy impressive efficiency. Indeed, the Böblingen facility has an energy yield of 85 percent. An 800-kilowatt generator delivers electricity to the grid; the remaining energy is heat, which is channeled into the plant’s existing district heating network. The Böblingen biomass plant marks the beginning of what will be a series of applications. For instance, burning coarse colza meal is also

being considered. “Organic waste from beer production would also be a possibility,” says Schwarz, who adds that the required technical adaptations would not be all that difficult to implement. “Basically, what we always need is a fuel with a certain type of particle size distribution — but we create that ourselves when we process it. The water content during this process can be up to 40 percent.” The key to efficient combustion involves determining the optimal fuel-air mixture — control is fully automatic. “SIPAPER Reject Power offers great potential for exploiting biomass,” Schwarz says. The most interesting markets for the exploitation of biomass waste at the moment are in the European Union — especially in Germany and in the Eastern European EU member states — as well as in Brazil and Indonesia. Biomass Boom. “Biomass harbors huge, largely untapped potential,” says Dr. Martin Kaltschmitt of the Biomass Research Center (DBFZ) in Leipzig. According to the DBFZ, more than 30 biomass power plants that use scrap wood or forest wood went on line in Germany in 2007, and a total of more than 200 such facilities are currently operating in the country. The development of biogas facilities has been even more dramatic. Energy production in 2007 was 828 petajoules (43% as heat, 38% as electricity, and 19% transport), which corresponds to around six percent of total primary energy use in Germany. “That figure could be almost doubled if all existing technological potential were to be harnessed,” Kaltschmitt explains. Ín any case, Kaltschmitt says, we can expect the biomass boom to continue throughout Europe and around the world for the coming years at least. It’s possible that bio-energy production could cover one-third of global energy requirements by 2050. This would require the exploitation of around one-fifth of arable land, according to the Copernicus Institute in Utrecht, Netherlands. However, Thomas Nussbaumer, a professor of Bio-energy at Lucerne University of Applied Arts and Sciences in Switzerland, believes such a development could exacerbate hunger in the Third World. To support his argument, he cites the negative results associated with first-generation agrofuels made from corn, rapeseed, soy, and sugar cane. But Nussbaumer admits that the potential to expand agricultural production in developing countries is still high. “Ideally,” he says, “The edible portions of plants would be used for food and animal feed production, while the rest would be put to work in energy production.” Urs Fitze

In Brief I Copper is in demand — its price has risen

PEOPLE:

nearly five-fold since 2000. The Los Pelam-

Los Pelambres Copper Mine:

bres Mine in Chile is particularly efficient at

Christian Dirscherl, Industry

extracting the metal, thanks in part to

christian.dirscherl@siemens.com

Siemens technologies. These range from an

Electric drive mining vehicles:

ore conveyor belt that also generates electric-

Walter Köllner, Industry

ity to an innovative flotation cell that in-

walter.koellner@siemens.com

creases the yield of metal. (p. 17)

Scarce resources: Stephan Gierszewski, CSP

I At many open-pit mines, mechanical

stephan.gierszewski@siemens.com

monsters excavate and transport ore.

Dr. Friedrich Lupp, CT

Siemens is equipping these behemoths

friedrich.lupp@siemens.com

with electric drive systems that can move

Pipelines:

loads of up to 600 tons. The motors are

Sanjeev Sinha, Pipeline Democenter

supported by current collectors that draw

sinha@siemens.com

power from overhead lines as if they were

Peter Wappler, Energy

streetcars, making these mining giants fast

peter.wappler@siemens.com

and efficient. (p. 20)

Drilling platforms: Jürgen Moser, Energy

I Many everyday products contain increas-

moser.juergen@siemens.com

ingly scarce exotic raw materials. Companies

Knut Arne Thanem, Siemens Oil & Gas

therefore have to think of ways to replace

knut.thanem@siemens.com

these rare ingredients. A team at Siemens

Oil extraction and tar sands:

is researching the risks associated with

Michael Koolman, Energy

potential shortages and suggesting

michael.koolman@siemens.com

alternatives. (p. 22)

Bernd Wacker, CT bernd.wacker@siemens.com

I According to former U.S. energy advisor

Water as a natural resource:

Matthew Simmons, a barrel of oil could cost

Bruce Biltoft, Memcor

up to $500 in five years. How long global

bruce.biltoft@siemens.com

reserves will last won’t be known until it’s too

Rhett Butler, Skyhydrant

late, says Simmons in an interview. (p. 33)

rhett.butler@siemens.com Rüdiger Knauf, Water Technologies

I Around 90 percent of world oil reserves are

ruediger.knauf@siemens.com

bound up in sand or shale. Extracting this oil

Electrochemical water treatment:

is far more expensive than using conven-

Dr. Manfred Waidhas, CT

tional sources, but it is becoming increasingly

manfred.waidhas@siemens.com

profitable. Siemens is developing a revolu-

Biomass as a natural resource:

tionary method that makes oil extraction

Dr. Hermann Schwarz, Industry

from tar sands more environmentally friendly

hermann.hs.schwarz@siemens.com

than it used to be. (p. 34) LINKS: I Clean water can be scarce, particularly after

Federal Institute for Geosciences and

disasters such as the recent earthquake in

Natural Resources (BGR)

China. However, modern membrane technol-

www.bgr.bund.de

ogy from Siemens can quickly and safely pro-

US Geological Survey:

vide people with the precious resource. The

www.usgs.gov

company has pooled its water expertise in

Singapore Water Association:

Singapore, where it is developing pioneering

www.swa.org.sg

innovations in areas such as sea water desali-

International Energy Agency (IEA):

nation. (pp. 36–41)

www.iea.org

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Cooperation | Siemens and Disney

EPCOT Park’s trademark and key visitor attraction is its 50-meter-high Spaceship Earth dome. It interactively presents both the innovations of the previous century and the opportunities of tomorrow.

visit Epcot every day to enter its 50-meter-high sphere, which resembles a giant golf ball but is actually a unique structural geodesic design. Visitors are quickly captivated, but their excited voices soon turn to a hush as the ride slowly begins to climb a spiral ramp inside the sphere. As famous figures from the past come to life, visitors hear the distinctive voice of actress Dame Judi Dench, who explains how each invention has built upon those that came before it, eventually leading to the creation of the world we live in today. When they reach the top of the sphere, visitors enter a giant planetarium where they can see the earth from a distance, while above them long rows of shining blue-white light diodes depict the infinite universe. At this point, video screens in each of the ride’s two-seat cars return to life, and participants are called upon to

This tailor-made future is the most surprising element of the ride for most visitors, since once they’ve made their choice, they see a short animated film about their future on a monitor. The main character in this film is an animated figure with the visitor’s face. Depending on the future selected, this figure might be eating breakfast in a futuristic home in the countryside, reading an electronic newspaper, going on vacation in a mini-submarine, or being saved after a skiing accident by a robot that has a direct wireless connection to the nearest hospital. High-tech systems can be found not only in these imaginary futures but also in the equipment used to create them. For example, visitors are photographed before the journey begins, and then intelligent image processing software identifies individual faces and maps them into the right videos.

Create Your Own Future! Those who want to have fun while they explore the inventions of humankind and the trends that are shaping our future won’t find a better place to pursue this interest than Disney’s Epcot theme park in Florida. The facility has been shaped by a winning team that combines Walt Disney Imagineers, Siemens, and Pictures of the Future. A universe of possibilities. Visitors can create their own future by individually answering questions on a

enturies pass by in minutes when you ride this time machine. Thousands of people embark on this journey, which introduces you to Egyptian pharaohs, the Phoenicians, Greek philosophers, Roman emperors, Gutenberg, Michelangelo, and much more. You’ll view steam engines in action and hear and see historic radio and television broadcasts. You’ll also witness the first lunar landing and the dawn of the computer age and the Internet. When you reach the climax of this journey through the past with all of its inventions, you’ll arrive in the present, where you’ll behold a view of infinite space and millions of stars. A voice will then call on you to get into the act and give some thought to shaping your own future. Welcome to the Spaceship Earth Attraction — by far the most impressive attraction at Epcot®, which is one of the four theme parks located at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida. “With the help of Siemens, we’ve created something here that’s never before been achieved with such intensity,” says Pam Fisher, who, as Senior Show Writer at Walt Disney Imagineering, helped shape the

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

concept behind Spaceship Earth. “For the first time, we are now able to integrate our guests personally into what’s going on in one of our attractions. They become part of the story, which is exactly what we want to achieve at Disney. In other words, we don’t just want to thrill and entertain our guests in a playful way; we also encourage them to work together and think about how they can help to design a better world.” Spaceship Earth’s senior show producer, Bob Zalk adds, “People’s own inspirations are based on real science and technology, not science fiction or science fantasy. Our ability to combine these inspirations with probable future developments is what sets Epcot apart. What’s more, Epcot fits in perfectly with the studies of the future that are known as Siemens’ Pictures of the Future. Disney and Siemens are ideal collaborators for the new Spaceship Earth attraction.” Living in the Past and Future. Spaceship Earth has been a hit with visitors since its reopening in March 2008. People from around the world

screen (center right). Each visitor then appears in his make decisions about their future in the “This incorporation of the visitor, and the or her own short video film. It’s even possible to language they originally selected for the tour. way his or her own imagination is stimulated, send electronic postcards from your own future to The questions they are asked are thoughtare what make the attraction unique,” says destinations around the world (bottom right). provoking. What aspect of the future interests Senior Show Writer Fisher. “The scenarios preyou the most — life at home, your health, sented in the Pictures of the Future magazine your work, or your leisure time? Where would were our most valuable source of inspiration you like to live — in the city or the countryside? Would you rather build a here. We Imagineers also learned a lot from the discussions we had with house with recycled materials or natural ones? What do you prefer — Siemens experts from Munich and Princeton and with the medical syshigh-tech or human touch? If faced with an emergency, would you act tem specialists we met at the Radiology Society of North America Conyourself or call for help? The visitor’s answer to each question deter- gress in Chicago. We also visited Siemens Corporate Research in Princemines which questions are subsequently asked. “We’ve installed 256 ton, where things were so exciting that we could have continued different options for the future, so everyone in effect receives his or her brainstorming forever. Our goal was to enable our Spaceship Earth customized future,” says Imagineer Ken Neville. “That’s one of the guests to experience the same amazement we had felt.” reasons why many people ride Spaceship Earth more than once,” adds Zalk. “They simply want to experience themselves in a different future Images from Tomorrow’s World. This amazement, this feeling of beeach time.” ing part of something they’ve never experienced before, doesn’t end for

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Cooperation | Siemens and Disney

visitors when they exit the ride — because they then enter the “Project Tomorrow” hall, where the real excitement begins. Many simply stand with their mouths agape when they see their own faces pop up on the hall’s giant globe and then fly to the countries where they come from. As if that weren’t enough, there are also many kiosks where visitors can send an e-mail postcard from the future to themselves or their friends — complete with photos and a scene from the video they have created themselves with the decisions they made about their futures. The walls of the futuristic hall are adorned with video screens showing interviews with winners of the Siemens Competition for mathematics, science and technology, who talk about future challenges and their plans for the fu-

that addresses one of the biggest challenges facing the globe today — how rapidly-growing cities can be supplied with energy in the future in a sustainable manner that won’t damage the environment. How much energy from renewable sources can be injected into the mix? What other forms of energy are required? And how much energy needs to be supplied to each consumer? “We spent a lot of time talking to Siemens energy experts to develop this game,” says Imagineer Brent Strong. “We first had to understand what the key elements would be — for example, that there will always be an energy mix, that certain applications require more energy than others, and that green technologies can not only make a city more environmentally friendly, but also more beautiful.”

it can get as large as a major metropolis with more than 10 million inhabitants. “This game incorporates a huge amount of state-of-the-art technology,” says Strong. “You’ve got the image processing system, the graphics, and the Teflon-coated sticks that have to withstand a lot of force — but that’s not why I think Power City will still be a big attraction even a few years down the road. I think the game will remain successful because it combines all these things with an outstanding overall concept, a unique playing field, and the ability to appeal to the whole family. The adults understand the real background of the game, while the children simply have fun moving the energy packets around.” What pleases him most,

A Spectrum of Technologies

In October 2005, Siemens and Walt Disney Parks and Resorts USA signed a sponsorship agreement that will run for 12 years. The cooperation goes far beyond sponsorship or the conceptual support Siemens provided for the new Spaceship Earth and Project Tomorrow attractions. Disney also uses Siemens technology in many other areas. For example, Siemens experts have installed building automation, security, and fire alarm systems at Disney Parks and Resorts around the world, including those in Paris, Hong Kong, and Orlando. They’ve also supplied such technology to Disney cruise ships. Osram Sylvania provides many Walt Disney parks with sophisticated lighting systems and is also participating in a major Disney project for replacing light bulbs with modern energy-saving lamps and light-emitting diodes. In addition, Osram solutions are integrated into Disney cruise ships, as are small motors and drive systems from Siemens, control units for climate systems, and water supply systems. Siemens has also supplied water treatment units to Disney water parks and to several hotels and theme parks. Innovative technology from appliance manufacturer Bosch Siemens Hausgeräte is featured in the new Dream Home at the Disneyland Resort near Los Angeles and will also equip vacation clubs. The Dream Home also employs Siemens Radio frequency Identification (RFID) technology allowing each Disney Cast Member to be recognized when they enter a specific room, which causes the room to take on that Cast Member’s “personality.” Automation technology from Siemens has played a key role in the success of Disney Hollywood Studios’ latest attraction, Toy Story Midway Mania. Players in this sophisticated ride don 3D glasses and use a small springPlayfully discovering the future. Along with visits to

action-shooter to hit various objects, whereby the darts and baseballs they

the past (lower row), interactive games are a big hit

ture. There are also display boards that highlight the latest developments and trends in fields such as energy, healthcare, and mobility, with many of the concepts taken from Siemens’ Pictures of the Future projects.

The Walt Disney Imagineers (the term energy and help cities grow (upper left), or supply a combines the words “imagination” and “engiskeleton with organs (upper right) in a sort of neer”) are a unique team — not likely to be telemedicine experience. Display boards show the found anywhere else in the world — connections to Siemens technologies (below right). comprised of creative engineers, software experts, designers, theater and film people, Organs for a Cheeky Skeleton. The biggest game developers, and writers. All of them attractions, of course, are the interactive love the challenges associated with their games the Imagineers have created, such as a sophisticated car race and work. “We spent months testing new virtual and real models of the reaction games that teach players about the processes that occur in the games over and over again at our facility in Glendale, California,” says muscles and the brain. The most popular games are Body Builder and Strong. “The breakthrough with Power City came when we got the idea Power City. Body Builder is a challenging 3D game in which players of shifting energy units around and distributing them throughout the wearing 3D glasses attempt to reinstall all the human organs into a vir- city.” tual skeleton on an operating table, thus bringing it back to life. Here, In the final version of the game, two players use a type of hockey spinal cords, kidneys, hearts, lungs, etc. all run by on a conveyor belt; stick to move energy packets from facilities such as coal-fired and wind players use a robot arm to grab them and put them in the right place, power plants to different private and industrial consumers. The city itself all the while having to listen to the cheeky comments of the talking is projected onto the floor underneath the players, whereby cameras skeleton. register the hockey sticks, the energy packets, and the force with which Just as Body Builder is a game related to real medical technology (e.g. the players attempt to move the energy in different directions. The more robotics and telemedicine), Power City is a fascinating game for all ages skillfully the players perform their tasks, the faster the city grows — and

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

with visitors. Here, they can move packets of virtual

shoot and many of the targets are virtual, but still move normally. The

Strong says, is when he sees a grandfather playing Power City with one of his grandchildren — “because we want our attractions to appeal to everyone regardless of age, gender, or cultural background.”

automation and control systems for the vehicles is from Siemens as is the wireless communication system linking the vehicles to the large central gaming computers that control the animated displays. “The tremendous range of products offered by Siemens is very attractive

Creating a Better World. Strong’s colleague Greg Butkus, who is the “Father of Body Builder,” describes the partnership between Disney and Siemens this way: “We Imagineers are experts for the fun part, while the Siemens people are masters of the technology details we need to depict the future. Together we make an unbeatable team. We contribute the edu-tainment element and the Siemens people provide the basis in reality that ensures that the future visions of Spaceship Earth never lose sight of reality.” Siemens’ broad portfolio of technologies is ideal for making sure that the future scenarios cover practically all aspects of life. As Pam Fisher points out, “If we can get the kids who play here to think creatively about their own future, then we’ve definitely accomplished a lot. The most important thing is to inspire them to make the world a better place, because they are the ones who will one day create the future in which they and their children and grandchildren will live. If you can dream it, you can do it — that’s our motto.” Ulrich Eberl

to us,” says Russ Oja, who as Director for Corporate Alliances at Walt Disney World Resort coordinates the cooperation between the two companies. “Siemens products and solutions can also be of great assistance to us as we develop further into an even more environmentally conscious and green company.” Carolyn Franz, Corporate Account Manager for Disney at Siemens, takes a similar view. “We’ve already staged a whole series of seminars and training sessions with Disney in order to promote mutual understanding and identify areas in which we can do further business,” she says. Siemens has even built its own VIP Center known as “Base 21” at the Spaceship Earth pavilion. The center is used by Siemens employees, customers and other important visitors for relaxation or conferences in a futuristic setting. It also allows visitors to interactively experience some of the latest technologies, including a door that suddenly becomes transparent when someone approaches it, state-of-the-art communication and control systems, and the “Magic Mirror,” which boasts a three-dimensional facial recognition feature.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Sustainable Buildings

| Scenario 2020

Highlights 53

Nature is their Model Buildings are coming to life. Thanks to automated management systems that ensure optimal lighting and ventilation via sophisticated sensors, building energy consumption can be reduced by up to 30 percent — as Siemens technology is already demonstrating in various buildings around the world. Pages 53, 56, 60, 66

Meters that Stabilize the Grid By allowing customers to benefit from flexible electricity rates, intelligent meters can reduce grid loads and save users money.

Seeing the Invisible Whether it’s minimizing patient infections in operating rooms or optimizing climate conditions at concert halls and airports — software for simulating air flows can be used for many applications.

Oil-Free Future? The world’s first CO2-neutral city is taking shape in Abu Dhabi. When completed, Masdar City will be fully energy self-sufficient.

How to Own a Power Plant From 2009 on, many households will be able to efficiently produce their own heat and electricity using mini-cogeneration units.

2020

Fun Jie Fan explains to his friend Tan Xiao the sophisticated efficiency features of a high-rise in the neighborhood that he helped modernize. Now that the project has been completed, residents are not only purifying their own wastewater but also need to buy 90 percent less drinking water. The use of distributed power systems has also lowered their dependence on externally-produced energy to practically zero.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Air-flow simulations for

Membrane filters for

Small home energy units

Light sheets and empyreans

Gas and odor sensors for

Intelligent meters for flexible

optimized climate conditions

drinking water purification

for cogeneration

made of organic LEDs

building management systems

heat and electricity rates

Efficient Dragon Summer 2020. Efficiency planner Fun Jie Fan is showing his friend and mentor Tan Xiao his latest successfully completed project — the modernization and efficiency optimization of a neighborhood in which Tan Xiao lived for many years before moving to Beijing.

un Jie, I’m thrilled — it’s exactly as you described it on the phone,” says Tan Xiao, who clearly cannot believe what his friend Fun Jie Fan, a famous efficiency planner in China, has done with the smallest neighborhood of this huge metropolis in northern China. “This neighborhood is really thriving and beautiful now,” Tan remarks. “There’s no noise, no smog, you’ve got a light rail system instead of all those cars, and there are parks where streets used to be. I can hardly recognize it any more.”

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Sustainable Buildings | Scenario 2020

Efficient building technologies save money and re-

| Trends

duce the burden on the environment. In London, such technologies reduce the amount of CO2 emitted annually by millions of tons.

Fun Jie grins sheepishly. “I’m pleased to hear those words from you, my friend,” he says. “Another thing that makes me proud is that the government has acknowledged the success of our pilot project by awarding us new contracts for the gradual modernization of the rest of the city.” “A city of 12 million consisting of… Fun Jie, please excuse me, but I’m an old man and I forget things quickly,” Tan says. Fun Jie laughs. “You mean energy-self-sufficient buildings — like the one we’re standing in front of now.” The two men look up at the skyscraper above them. “The government issued strict guidelines,” Fun Jie explains. All the energy used by every building has to come from renewable sources, and each building also has to purify its own water and reduce its need to buy drinking water from external sources by at least 90 percent. The government also wanted the neighborhood to have a better quality of life.” “But I know this building from back when I used to work in the area,” says Tan. “It looks the same — only the glass facade is darker.” “That’s because of the solar foils mounted on the front of the glass,” Fun Jie explains. “The foils not only produce electricity but also cool the building by shading it from the sun. But you’re right — you can’t see most of the technology we use because it does its work inside the building. For example, we’ve got an anaerobic biogas plant that transforms organic waste into combustible gas that’s used to fire the cogeneration units we installed in the offices and apartments, which in turn generate electricity and heat.” While Fun Jie continues his explanation, Tan makes a discovery as he looks at the upper floors of the skyscraper. “Am I seeing things?” he says. “Every other floor is missing on the top stories of the building.” “Oh, sorry,” says Fun Jie, “I almost forgot that. We gutted some of the floors at the top, left the elevator shafts in place, statically stabilized the free-standing floors, and installed flatlying windmills that optimally harness the wind up there to produce electricity. In this sense, the building is also a power plant that not only meets its own energy needs but also transfers power to the local grid. For example, if a building like this needs more electricity during peak hours than it can produce, it simply obtains the energy from the surplus in other buildings. This system actually reduces the neighborhood’s need for externally-produced energy to more or less zero. We also installed special meters on each floor. Anybody who’s interested can simply push a button on one of these meters and see not only how much electricity has been consumed but also how much has been transferred — and sold — to the grid. This motivates

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

the building’s occupants to reduce their energy consumption. The city government is even thinking about running a competition for a prize for the most efficient building.” Tan looks a little confused. “But what about in the summer, when the air conditioning is running in all of these buildings all day? Is the energy they produce themselves enough to cover demand?” he asks. “We came up with solutions for that issue as well,” Fun Jie replies. “For example, the windows don’t open, which means no hot air from outside can get into the building. Instead, outside air is channeled through ducts into the basement, where it cools off before being fed into the ventilation system. We’ve also got small sensors that create a balanced climate by adjusting temperature, light, and fresh air levels precisely to predefined values. For lighting, we use both efficient LEDs and OLEDs, which are flat, luminous, flexible plastics that can illuminate entire walls inside a building. So, as you can see, despite all the conservation measures we’ve taken, no sacrifices were made in terms of comfort or convenience. Our automatic fresh air intake system makes for an ideal climate, and this has led to greater productivity among office workers. The effect is further enhanced by air flows that were optimized using simulations. To ensure that the air in the building remains either warm or cool for the longest possible time — depending on the season, of course — all the floors were fitted with a combination of a double-layered facade and vacuum windows. In the winter, we also use special heat accumulators installed in the ceilings. These absorb heat during the day and emit it again at night.” “And how have you reduced the residents’ need to buy drinking water from outside?” Tan asks. “Oh, that’s simple,” says Fun Jie. “We utilize proven membrane technology that we’ve been employing for years. This technology is now so versatile that we can desalinate and purify water from the nearby sea without using much energy at all. We no longer use steam here but instead desalinate the water with the help of the membranes.” Tan makes a face. “So that’s why I had that stale taste in my mouth after I had a drink of water.” “What do you mean?” Fun Jie says with a look of surprise. “Fun Jie, you haven’t changed a bit,” Tan laughs. “Even after all these years, it’s still so easy to pull your leg. By the way, all this technology talk has made me hungry — let’s go get something to eat. Hey, I see someone selling food from a grill over there — fired up with good old charcoal. He must be the only one left in the neighborhood who’s still producing greenhouse gases.” Sebastian Webel

and, for the most, part they are already available on the market (see Pictures of the Future, Spring 2007, p. 86). Simple measures such as effective insulation and electricity-saving lighting based on energy-saving lamps or LEDs can dramatically increase building efficiency. Other measures include equipment for combined heat and power (see p. 78) that generates electricity and heat on site, as well as solutions that utilize sensors and building management systems, for instance, to ensure optimal air and light conditions automatically (see p. 60). Big Savings. How effective can the installation of energy-saving technologies be for a major city? In London, for instance, buildings account for two thirds of the city’s total CO2 emissions. But by 2025 the British capital could cut its CO2 emissions by ten million tons by implementing currently-available technologies. Associated energy savings alone would be sufficient to pay for nearly 90 percent of the solutions used (see p. 58). In Sydney, Australia, the office complex at 30 The Bond, illustrates the extent to which emissions can be decreased using a combination of energy-saving measures. Optimal air conditioning inside the office complex is achieved through integrated building management systems and a specialized cooling system that works with cold water instead of an air

Simple Buildings account for about 40 percent of energy consumption worldwide, and approximately 21 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions. However, the implementation of a number of simple measures can make it relatively easy to save at least a quarter of energy in most buildings.

Steps that Save a Bundle M

any a reader may have been astonished by an article about the future of construction in a July 2008 issue of the German current affairs magazine Der Spiegel. It claimed that “buildings are climate killer Number One, worse even than the huge fleet of cars on the road worldwide.” To laymen this might seem to be a bold theory, as up to now cars and factories have been branded as the main energy gobblers. The facts, however, tell a different story. High-rises, residential buildings, old buildings, office buildings and the like burn up around 40 percent of the total primary energy supply, while industry and transport account for approximately 30 percent. The corresponding figures for greenhouse gas emissions in buildings, industry, and transport were 21, 34, and 14 percent respectively. The rest was due to agriculture and forestry (see Pictures of the Future, Spring 2007, p. 83). The good news is this: Buildings have the greatest energy-saving potential. The 2007 re-

port of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) estimates that more efficient technologies could reduce CO2 emissions from houses by up to 40 percent by 2030. “However, many building owners are concerned by the initial investment for installing efficient solutions. They often prefer less expensive technologies that consume more energy,” explains Ulrich Brickmann, an expert on energy efficiency solutions for buildings who works at the Siemens Building Technologies (BT) division in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. With regard to residential buildings, an additional factor is that the person who usually has to make the investment — the landlord — is not the one who will benefit from reduced additional costs, i.e. the tenant. “These circumstances tend to limit buildings from achieving maximum energy efficiency. That has to change,” says Brickmann. Electricity-saving technologies and equipment with quick amortization due to low operating expenses have already been developed,

conditioning unit. The complex produces around 30 percent less greenhouse emissions than conventional office buildings of a similar size and has correspondingly lower energy costs (see p. 53). Abu Dhabi would like to prove that it is possible to save even more. In 2016 solar sails with solar panels will provide shade and generate electricity at the same time for the newly established Masdar City, which will boast a population of 50,000. Narrow shaded alleys will provide natural cooling, and electric trains will almost make cars unnecessary. The Emirates’ ambitious target is to create a CO2-neutral city (see p. 76). These examples illustrate the growing awareness of buildings’ potential for cutting energy costs and protecting the environment — not least because efficient solutions are experiencing increased demand due to rising prices for raw materials. Political decision-makers are also backing legislation that promotes

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Sustainable Buildings| Trends

Free-climber Alain Robert scaled the

| Energy Efficiency

NY Times Building as a protest against climate change — yet the building uses 30 percent less energy than its neighbors.

the efficient use of energy. For instance, from 2009 on, all houses in Germany will require an Energy Performance Certificate that documents their energy consumption. This, in turn, is expected to put pressure on building owners whose prospective tenants will be comparing the energy costs of different properties. In January 2008 the European Union (EU) also put forward a package of laws in its “2020-20 to 2020,” legislation according to which the EU should reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent by 2020. At the same time, the total proportion of renewable energy should increase to 20 percent and energy efficiency should rise by 20 percent. In Brickmann’s opinion, however, such political leverage is not enough to introduce efficiency solutions in buildings. “Saving energy through technologies that require a high initial investment is often a real dilemma for the managers of public buildings. They need new

the public. One platform that the company is already involved in is the EU’s Green Building Program, which has been in operation since 2005. Through the program, the European Commission gives advice on energy efficiency to the owners of commercial premises all over Europe and works with them to develop action plans for greater energy efficiency (see p. 68). The aim is to reduce their use of primary energy by at least 25 percent. If a participant reaches this target, it is awarded the status of a Green Building Partner, which it can use in its own advertising. By now, more than 70 European companies and institutions have joined the program as building owners. As one of more than 30 “backers of technology” for the Program, Siemens has committed itself to supporting a plan for promoting the Green Building Program. Siemens informs building owners about the program and helps participants to successfully implement their ac-

ready been certified,” says Rainer Kohns, who is responsible for the Green Building Initiative at SRE. For building owners within Siemens, however, certification is only the tip of the efficiency plan iceberg. “Over time, we want to make our most important sites and buildings at least 20 percent more efficient. We have over 3,000 facilities and buildings worldwide, and around half of them are candidates for the efficiency upgrade,” says Kohns. He and his colleagues have developed a comprehensive action plan to achieve this ambitious aim. The plan aims to optimize energy efficiency in any type of building, no matter what its condition. Special tools help experts to implement these measures effectively. They include a sustainability book that gives building planners tips on efficiency ranging from the outer shell to room comfort and building services engineering, and software for analyzing the investment and follow-up costs for efficient tech-

Nature is their Model

Low energy consumption can be achieved by all, regardless of age, whether at the Berlin

system solutions to cut their electricity bills and to take pressure off of their budgets, but in many cases they can’t get over the investment hurdle,” he says. Selling Efficiency. An answer to the energyinvestment challenge is Siemens’ combination of consulting, installation service, and financing models. Here, the customer does not need to make any preliminary investment. In stead, it pays for improvements over a contracted period based exclusively on energy savings. By way of such so-called Energy Saving Contracts, Siemens has renovated over 1,600 buildings to date in Germany alone. According to Brickmann, this has been a huge success. “We have invested in efficient technologies with a contract value of around €120 million in total, thus saving over €160 million in energy costs,” he says. With this success in the bag, Siemens is looking for partners and platforms with which it can continue to promote energy efficiency to

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

University of the Arts (left), Masdar City in Abu Dhabi, or 30 The Bond, in Sydney (right).

tion plans with the aid of technologies and Energy Saving Contracts. “The program allows us to kill two birds with one stone,” says Brickmann. “For one thing, our Energy Saving Contracts generally allow us to fulfill the Green Building Initiative’s energy-saving criteria from the outset. For another, the EU is offering our partners an incentive — their environmental activities can be publicized with the help of the Green Building Certificate.” The Berlin University of the Arts and Italian banking giant UniCredit are two of the most prominent partners to hold the certificate thanks to Siemens. After a comprehensive “technology facelift,” the bank’s headquarters in Milan today uses up to 32 percent less electrical energy per year. Sustained Success. Siemens Real Estate (SRE) has also pledged itself as a Green Building Partner (see p. 69). “Seven SRE buildings have al-

nologies. “With this model we want to maximize the energy-saving capabilities of each type of building, regardless of its structural design or whether it’s a new or existing site. This is the only way we can achieve the aim of reducing energy consumption for all Siemens factories and sites by 20 percent by 2011,” concludes Kohns. Looking to the future, Kohns adds that at the top of the agenda is a zero-energy house. Its energy requirements will be covered by renewable sources. Any electricity that is taken from the public electric grid will be balanced out by the surplus energy it produces. “To implement this project, the building’s overall environment will have to fulfill certain criteria,” says Kohns. “For example, the house must be well insulated so that it requires little energy for heating and cooling. At the same time, a sufficient amount of renewable energy must be available. Once these conditions are satisfied, the zero-energy house will soon become a reality,” he says. Sebastian Webel

State-of-the-art technology is making it possible to reduce energy consumption in buildings by up to 30 percent. Four buildings — in New York, Malmö, Madrid, and Sydney — demonstrate what can be achieved for people and the environment when sensors, special materials, energy supply systems, and information technology interact in an optimal manner.

ack in June, 2008 Alain Robert climbed the facade of the new headquarters of the New York Times Company to call attention to the problem of global warming. Ironically, the building on which he chose to unfurl a banner with a message about climate protection was designed precisely to address that issue. In fact, the 52-story building in Manhattan scaled by Robert, who is also known as “Spiderman,” offers an impressive example of how modern technology can be employed to conserve energy and cut CO2 emissions without sacrificing comfort. The New York Times Building (NYTB), which opened in November 2007, uses up to 30 percent less energy than conventional office high-rises. Designed by star architect Renzo Piano, the building has an unusual ultra-clear glass facade that allows neighbors to not only look into the interior, but also all the way through to the other side. The design allows passersby to look right through the lobby and into a garden featuring birch trees and moss. It’s like an oasis in the middle of Manhattan, one that symbolizes a key principle behind the building — to conserve energy with the help of, and in harmony with, nature. Glass skyscrapers normally waste a lot of energy because they collect heat like a greenhouse and then use air conditioning to keep themselves cool. But the NYTB is different. It has a second facade made of ceramic rods that extends from the ground floor to the roof and keeps out direct light. A shading system is programmed to use the position of the sun and inputs from an extensive sensor network to raise and lower shades, either blocking extreme light to reduce glare or allowing light to enter

at times of less direct sunlight. The shading system works in tandem with a first-of-its-kind lighting system that maximizes use of natural light so that electric lighting is used only as a supplement. Each of the more than 18,000 electrical ballasts in the lighting system contains a computer chip that allows it to be controlled individually. The Times Company is also able to use freeair cooling, meaning that on a cool morning, air from the outside can be brought into the building. Everyone knows it makes sense to air out your home in the morning on hot summer days — but it takes high-tech systems to achieve the same practical results in a building as big as the NYTB. The task is enormously complex. Interior temperature, outside temperature, the building’s configuration, the angle of the sun, and the electrical and heat output of the in-house gas-fired combined-heat-and power generation systems are just a small sample of the many variables that have to be monitored to ensure efficient use of energy in such a skyscraper. No building superintendent could ever make decisions on the basis of so much information. But in The New York Times Building these decisions are made by a building management system from Siemens that automatically monitors and controls the air conditioning, water cooling, heating, fire alarm, and generation systems. The building management system seamlessly integrates equipment from other manufacturers, which can then be operated by means of a centralized control interface. Building technicians are provided with real time information via an extensive network of hun-

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

A garden in the NY Times Building (left) boosts moti-

Sustainable Buildings | Energy Efficiency

vation while networked sensors cut power consumption. Malmö`s Turning Torso (below) and Sydney’s 30 The Bond (right) also save lots of energy.

dreds of sensors, including those for monitoring temperature, which are distributed throughout the building. While all functions can be regulated from a central control room, this usually isn’t necessary because all it takes is a few commands to get the systems to automatically adjust themselves to conditions on any day. Whether it’s a hot, humid work day, or a cold and dry holiday when only a few offices are being used — the goal is always to save energy by ensuring that as few systems as possible are in operation, without diminishing comfort in any way. “Nobody benefits from cooling an empty office in the evening,” says Gary Marciniak, Ac-

ensure that the most demanding tenant requirements will be met while using as little energy as possible. Siemens has also installed access control, video surveillance, and a complete fire protection systems in the Torre de Cristal. All relevant information — from lighting and air conditioning to heating systems, for example — will be available on control panels located throughout the building, thus helping to ensure smooth operations. Stability will also be maintained in the event of a failure of individual systems or in case the central control room itself is damaged. If a fire breaks out, for example, ventilation dampers would still automati-

If part of the building is not in use, the building management system will shut down its light and ventilation. count Executive at Siemens Building Technologies. “That’s obvious,” he adds. “But other factors are less apparent. For example, sometimes it’s more efficient to have one of two water pumps operating at full capacity, while at other times the greatest efficiency is achieved by letting them both run.” The system itself recognizes and automatically exploits such situations in order to maximize resource conservation. Crystal Tower. Similar technologies are being used in the Torre de Cristal skyscraper, which is still under construction in Madrid’s FuencarralEl Pardo district, one of Spain’s prime locations. When completed in November 2008, the “Crystal Tower” will be the second tallest building in the country. “Desigo” — an integrated building management system from Siemens — will help

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

cally close throughout the building to prevent smoke from spreading. The control panels will also use information from sensors to regulate air flows and thus the temperature of individual sectors of the building. If part of the building is not in use, its light and ventilation systems will be shut down. Individual control units will be networked and will constantly exchange information on conditions in their sectors, thus providing a real time overview of all building conditions and processes. Automated control procedures can then be used to make continual adjustments to enable optimal energy utilization. If, for example, the system finds that the upper floors are warmer than the lower ones, it will cool things off by automatically sending cold water to the upper floors through high-pressure pipes.

Warmer water from the top floors can transport heat down to the lower floors. Instead of heating the ground floor at the same time that the air conditioning is running in the top floor, the building automatically regulates itself to ensure energy efficiency. The intelligent control panels are also very efficient, consuming around 15 percent less energy than conventional units, says Margarita Izquierdo of Siemens Building Technologies, who is responsible for Energy & Environmental Solutions. Izquierdo helped her Siemens colleagues on the Torre de Cristal project to optimize energy efficiency in all areas. “The Torre de Cristal is truly avant-garde for Spain,” says Izquierdo. “Solutions for energy efficiency in buildings are in many respects still in their infancy here, which is why I’m convinced this project will serve as a model in many ways.” LED Lighthouse. Another energy-saving building is the 190-meter Turning Torso in Malmö, Sweden, which was completed in 2005. The building’s ambitious architectural style led the New York Museum of Modern Art to induct it into its Hall of Fame of the world’s 25 most fascinating skyscrapers. Light is one of its design key elements, with LEDs used to flood the corridors in symmetrical white light. “Other solutions like fluorescent lights would have created unattractive shadows,” says Jørn Brinkmann, who coordinated the installation of some 16,000 LEDs for Siemens’ Osram subsidiary in what was the first mass architectural application of such technology. When the Turning Torso was built, LEDs consumed about as much energy as fluorescent tubes — but today they use around a third less energy for the same output. But it was their

long service life that made them appealing in 2005. Back then, the owners of the Turning Torso may not have realized they would become pioneers in lighting systems for buildings. Minimizing Resource Consumption. The fact that impressive aesthetics and energy efficiency needn’t be mutually exclusive is also demonstrated by the 30 The Bond office complex in Sydney — the first building in Australia to receive five stars from the Australian Building Greenhouse Rating Scheme (ABGR). This stringent certification system was introduced by the government of New South Wales to encourage building owners to use state-of-the-art technology to minimize resource consumption. The highest rating is issued to buildings that operate with a carbon footprint that falls below a set benchmark. Greenhouse gas emissions at 30 The Bond, which was completed in 2004, are around 30 percent lower than in similar buildings. Those who visit it generally don’t realize at first that they’re in an office building, as there is a café located in an eight-story atrium whose huge size helps to cool the structure. The back wall is made entirely of sandstone, and the roof features a small garden right in the middle of the Australian metropolis. Depending on the weather, the garden is watered by a timed, drip irrigation system at night, so the upper floors take longer to heat up in the morning. Sixty percent of all workstations have a clear view outside, making the building a part of its natural surroundings. As with similar buildings in New York and Madrid, intelligent building management technologies from Siemens integrate various systems at 30 The Bond, including those for heat-

ing, air conditioning, energy and water supply, fire protection, and lighting. Several of the energy conservation strategies are also similar. Sydney’s 30 The Bond is divided into 80 zones that can be controlled individually, with only those parts of the building that are actually in use being illuminated, cooled, and ventilated. There are also CO2 sensors for measuring air quality in the conference rooms. The system channels fresh air into a room only if people are present. Completely new for Australia at the time the 30 The Bond building opened was the method used for cooling it. Instead of passing cold air directly into the office space, the system pumps chilled water through passive chilled beams (or radiators) mounted in ceilings. Chilled beams cool the space below by acting as a heat sink for naturally-rising warm air. Once cooled, the air drops back to the floor where the cycle begins again. Says Lynden Clark, who was responsible for engineering the Siemens solution at 30 The Bond: “When it comes to such ambitious projects Siemens is an enabler helping customers to achieve their individual goals, whereby we decide on a case-by-case basis which technologies are most suitable for a given situation.” It’s no coincidence that in many cases the solutions are based on the same principle as that applied in New York, Madrid, and Sydney, which calls for more extensively exploiting the surroundings of the buildings, the natural heat or cold, and the light of the sun. After all, nature opens up all kinds of opportunities for living and working in harmony with it in modern high-tech buildings — and intelligent building technology makes it possible to seize these opportunities. Andreas Kleinschmidt

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

In new Siemens buildings — be it in Vienna (left)

Sustainable Buildings | Siemens Real Estate

or Shanghai (right) — energy and water use will be lowered, and employees will benefit from ideal work environments.

Going for Greener Pastures Siemens real estate wants to slash energy and water use in thousands of company buildings. Potential savings are illustrated by an office complex to be built in Vienna, where 65 percent of the energy used for heating and cooling will be recovered.

or a company like Siemens, it pays to take a close look at buildings. The company owns more than 3,000 buildings and plants worldwide, and their energy costs amount to approximately €470 million per year. With increases in efficiency, this could be reduced considerably. Siemens Real Estate (SRE), the real estate company of Siemens AG, is tackling the issue in a systematic way. In conjunction with the Green Building Initiative (GBI), the energy and water consumption of SRE’s most important properties worldwide are set to be reduced by 20 percent. In the Green Building Initiative, SRE experts take into account the whole real estate life cycle. It begins with a requirements analysis and concept, continues with a planning stage and extends to construction, operation and demolition of a building. An important part of this is green building certification. This involves continually monitoring a construction project during its planning and realization phase and assuring the quality of the property. In the case of new building projects and redevelopment measures in European regions, SRE follows the criteria of the Green Building Program of the EU Commission (see p. 69). The EU grants this environmental distinction when the energy

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

consumption of a new building is at least 25 percent below the value of the guidelines then in effect. In addition, SRE satisfies the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) criteria, which are derived from a standard of the U.S. Green Building Council and are also widely used in Asia. Alongside energy consumption, other sustainability factors are also assessed, such as efficient use of water, indoor air quality, and the selection of materials. For example, Siemens’ newest buildings in Shanghai, Beijing and Moscow fulfill the LEED criteria. CO2 Reduction Program. Another component of the GBI is the “Natural Resources Management” campaign (NRM), which is designed to analyze how existing buildings are upgraded. NRM might, for example, examine the modernization of control systems for a building’s heating and ventilation systems. Such work would include replacing electric drives with higher-efficiency models. In an office building in Berlin known as “Nonnendammallee 101,” for example, additional insulation and the optimization of heating and ventilation systems resulted in a 26 percent reduction in heating costs. These steps also re-

duced CO2 emissions by 500 tons per year. This site is one of six Siemens buildings recently granted the Green Building label of the EU. But according to GBI coordinator Rainer Kohns, there’s more to a good building than energy efficiency. “To me, an efficient building is also one that has good acoustics and a good indoor climate — a building where the occupants feel comfortable and perform well,” he says. SRE hopes to reconcile these criteria with energy efficiency. One place they want to do so is Siemens City Vienna. Siemens City Vienna will integrate the company’s corporate units at its existing ViennaFloridsdorf location in the north of the Austrian capital. The site covers 485,000 square meters — the size of 100 soccer fields — of which 140,000 square meters are occupied by existing buildings, with a new building expected to cover an additional 100,000 square meters. The new structure will be a 12-story central building, the Siemens Tower, which will be connected to four and five-story office buildings. In addition to rooms for conferences and special events, a number of restaurants and a cafe will be integrated into the complex. “Our strategy is to optimize the thermal properties of the external envelope of the

building so we can scale back the heating and air-conditioning systems,” says Project Manager Erich Schöfbeck. When designing the building, experts used computer simulation to not only visualize the building itself, but how its systems will interact with its facade, and the effects of such interactions on the building’s thermal characteristics. Water Pipes instead of Air Conditioning. Sustainability was also behind the decision to use a mechanical ventilation system instead of installing an air-conditioning system. Through efficient heat recovery in the ventilation system, up to 65 percent of the energy employed can be reused. Occupants will be able to enjoy a comfortable atmosphere in both summer and winter. This will be achieved by means of water pipes installed in the concrete ceilings of offices. The pipes will cool the rooms in the summer and heat them in the winter. Experts call this a “thermo-active” building system. The water cycled through the ceiling pipes will be chilled in cooling towers that will surround the building. In these towers, water will be cooled in sprinkling systems. The cooling effect will be particularly noticeable at night, when outside temperatures fall. During the day, when room temperature rises with the number of people in the building, the use of office equipment and the sun, cool concrete ceilings will mitigate this warming and ensure a comfortable indoor climate. Concrete ceilings will thus be used as a storage medium for the coolness of the evening. In the winter, the same system will act as a heating mechanism in a similar way. Then, hot water will be pumped from the central heating system through office ceilings.

Another special feature will be a group of 26-meter-deep concrete piles that will help serve as the foundation for the Siemens Tower. These “energy piles” with integrated pipe systems will use the ground as an interseasonal heat store. Water will be pumped through the concrete piles. Depending on the water temperature, the latter either transmit heat to the soil or absorb heat from it. The temperature of the ground will be the immediate source of

space in the middle of a room. And in China, for instance, there is a culture of sitting much more closely together in offices,” says Kohns. With these differences in mind, SRE has entered into a partnership with the department of Building Climate Control and Building Engineering at Munich’s Technical University (TU). Together, SRE and the TU hope to develop sustainable building designs for various climatic zones. Their long-term objective is the develop-

Several Siemens buildings already hold the EU’s Green Building label or satisfy the LEED criteria in the U.S. and Asia. thermo-active cooling in the summer. In the winter, a heat pump will deliver the desired temperature. Of course, the Vienna design cannot be transferred in its entirety to other regions without modifications. “Other parts of the world have different climates and different cultural preferences. In southern regions, for example, people don’t necessarily feel like sitting next to a window. They have an abundance of sun and don’t find it uncomfortable to have a work-

ment of a zero-energy standard for administrative buildings. “We want buildings that have zero net CO2 output over the course of the year. Our approach is therefore to lower their energy requirements as much as possible early on. Of course, they will always need some energy. But it could come from renewable resources such as geothermal energy, groundwater, the sun and wind,” says Kohns. Only then will he consider a building to be truly green. Evdoxia Tsakiridou

Real Estate Around the World Siemens Real Estate (SRE), the real estate arm of Siemens AG, is represented on all five continents. SRE specialists design, build, finance and develop sites used by the company and provide Siemens units with advice and support regarding all aspects of real estate management. SRE oversees roughly 16.9 million square meters of land and 9.3 million square meters of building space at over 3,000 locations worldwide and is directly responsible for running these properties.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

London plans to cut its greenhouse gas

Sustainable Buildings | London

emissions by up to 60 percent by 2025. A Siemens-McKinsey study shows how it can meet its objective.

unchecked rise in temperatures could cost five to ten percent of global economic output, according to the former chief economist of the World Bank.

ants McKinsey & Company analyzed more than 200 technological abatement levers that would reduce the city’s CO2 emissions by almost 44 percent by 2025 relative to the 1990 figure of about 45 million metric tons, in addition to cutting water consumption and improving waste disposal. Many of the levers they identified also make good sense in economic terms. For example, nearly 70 percent of the potential annual savings of almost 20 million metric tons of CO2 identified for London can be achieved with the help of technologies that pay for themselves, largely by reducing energy costs. Over their lifetimes, in other words, they result in no additional costs, but actually help to save money.

Comparative Emission Targets

Comparative Environmental Footprints 5,000

Values per year (2005 or most recent available before)

Technologies alone could cut London’s CO2 emissions by 44 percent by 2025 relative to 1990 levels. This would enable it to meet its Kyoto objective (a reduction of 12 percent by 2012). For comparison, the EU’s target is a reduction of 20 percent by 2020, and the national target of the British government is a reduction of 30 percent by 2025. T The city’s 60 percent target could be brought within reach by means of new regulations, changes in the public’s behavior (fuel-saving driving, use of public transit, and lowering thermostats) and future technological innovations. Effectively applying all the analyzed abatement levers by 2025 would require an additional investment of about €41 billion, less than one percent of London’s economic output. This roughly matches the results of the 2006 report by Sir Nicholas Stern, which put the costs of stemming the greenhouse effect at up to one percent of global gross domestic product per year. On the other hand, accepting an

Ambitious Aims. The British metropolis has its work cut out for it. By 2025, London intends to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 60 percent relative to the Kyoto base year of 1990 — an ambitious but, as the study shows, feasible objective.

CO2 emissions — buildings kg CO2/person

2000

-30.0 %

- 60.0 %

- 43.7 %

1200

2.5

750

Air pollution kg particulate matter (PM10)/person

Domestic waste kg/person 200

Water m3/person

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

45.1

9.2

1.8

1.4

2.5

1.4

1.2

1.1

3.7

25.4

3.0

1.0

2.7

Costs < 0 €/t CO2 (=cost savings) Costs > 0 €/t CO2

2005

Change to 2025

2025

Buildings

Transport

Decentralized Central 2025 after power and heat power gen- abatement generation eration levers

Decrease due to identified abatement levers

were to rely on renewable energies and gas instead of coal for the generation of electricity, for instance. London’s water supply network is roughly 150 years old and loses over 30 percent of the water fed into its 4,800 kilometers of lines. This means enough water to fill 350 Olympic-size swimming pools seeps into the ground every day. So for each liter of water not consumed, almost 1.5 liters less must be pumped into the system. By 2025, about 65 million cubic meters of water could be saved annually — some 13 percent of total consumption — through economically reasonable measures like dual-flush toilets or more efficient washing machines and dishwashers. About 64 percent of London’s municipal waste is currently disposed of in landfills — a large amount compared to cities such as Tokyo and Stockholm. Given the high and rising landfill fees and taxes in Great Britain, there are economically attractive alternatives to garbage disposal in landfills. Raw materials can be recycled,

and modern technologies can be applied to domestic waste for the purpose of creating new energy sources, whether by converting it into biogas or through direct combustion. The energy thus extracted can be used to supply thousands of households with electricity and heat. People Made a Difference. The study also shows that urban initiatives should not be limited to CO2 reductions. It’s equally important to achieve greater consumer acceptance of energysaving technologies. About 75 percent of the potential reduction in CO2 levels could be realized by individuals and businesses in London if they opted for more efficient technologies such as energy-saving lamps and more economical cars. Changes in regulations, taxes and subsidies, better financing opportunities, and education campaigns can help to change consumers’ attitudes and encourage them to make decisions that are not only economically efficient but also environmentally sound. Petra Zacek

Greenhouse Gas Abatement Cost Curve for London 2025 from Decision-Makers’ Perspective

800

47.0

600

Abatement levers that also make economic sense (13.4 Mt of CO2 savings)

400 39.5

36.1

31.6

18.0

1990

2005

2012 Kyoto

* compared with 1990 levels

2020 EU

2025 UK

2025 London

25.4

2025 After identified abatement levers

London New York City Stockholm Rome Tokyo

10.6

1000

CO2 emissions — industry kg CO2/person

45.2

1.8

Horizontal axis shows the CO2 savings potential in millions of metric tons per year, and the vertical axis shows the cost per metric ton of CO2 emissions avoided. Values below zero are negative costs, i.e. savings.

1400 -20.0 %

1,000

CO2 emissions — transport kg CO2/person

1600

Reduction* -12.5 %

2,500

Abatement costs €/t CO2

1800

Mt CO2

47.0

200 0

12 14

-200 Diesel engine efficiency package

Roof Insulation

Gasoline engine efficiency package Lighting in private households

Condensing boilers

Domestic appliances

Lighting (commercial)

Heat from existing power plants

Potential Mt CO2

Optimization of Wind power facilities onshore Floor insulation building automaExterior wall insulation Wind power facilities offshore Nuclear tion systems power Heat recovery Double glazing Replacing coal with gas

Gas engine in combined heat and power systems

Biofuels

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Newly built homes with extremely high energy efficiency

ities play a crucial role in the fight against climate change. They already account for over half the world’s population, and six out of every ten people on earth will be living in cities by 2025. Cities and their residents are also responsible for approximately 80 percent of the greenhouse gases emitted worldwide, a disproportionately large amount. Big cities are very aware of this problem, as a study entitled “Megacity Challenges” showed (see Pictures of the Future, Spring 2007, p. 14). But when big cities must choose between environmental protection and economic growth, the environment often loses out. But economic viability and environmental protection don’t have to be at odds. Researchers taking part in the “Sustainable Urban Infrastructure” project, which was carried out with support from Siemens, have for the first time determined the potential and costs of technologies for preventing greenhouse gases in cities. Using London as an example, management consult-

Mt CO2

Results of the “Sustainable Urban Infrastructure” Study: The greatest potential for savings lies in London’s buildings. They are responsible for about two thirds of total CO2 emissions in the city. Per capita, that represents 4.3 metric tons (t) of CO2 per year, a high value compared to other cities. The corresponding figure in Tokyo is 2.9 metric tons of CO2 per year; in Stockholm it’s only 2.6. By 2025 about ten million metric tons of London’s CO2 could be eliminated through better insulation of Victorian buildings, more energy-efficient lighting and modern building automation systems. And almost 90 percent of that reduction would pay for itself thanks to the resulting energy savings. Greenhouse gas emissions in transport could be reduced by 25 percent by 2025 — a reduction of 3 million metric tons of CO2 per year. Here, higher-efficiency cars are the most important abatement lever. They could help to eliminate more than 1.2 million metric tons of CO2. And it would be possible to eliminate another 400,000 metric tons of CO2 in local public transport by using hybrid buses, for example, which consume 30 percent less fuel than conventional diesel buses. When it comes to power generation, London could eliminate another 6.2 million metric tons of CO2. At the local level, various combined heat and power plants offer the greatest potential: 2.1 million metric tons of CO2 savings per year. An additional 3.7 million metric tons could be achieved at the national level if plant operators

Shrinking our Footprints C

Where London Can Save the Most CO2

Sustainable Buildings | Intelligent Sensors

Sensors were long considered too expensive for

Kerstin Wiesner (left) tests the sensitivity of gas

building systems. Research, however, is making them

sensors, one of many sensor types being studies

smaller, cheaper, and more flexible — such as

by Maximilian Fleischer (right).

Siemens’ CO2 measurement sensor (bottom left).

Bottom: Tempering metal films.

When Buildings Come Sensors are set to give buildings a spectrum of information — and scientists at Siemens are working on combining many of their functions on a single chip.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

t Siemens Corporate Technology in Munich, Germany, when physicist Rainer Strzoda enters his work area and wants to find out if the climate control system is working properly, all he needs to do is take a look at a small device on the wall. Today, the prototype laseroptic sensor developed by Siemens scientists reads 400 ppm CO2. “That’s a good value when you consider that our atmosphere currently contains 380 ppm CO2,” says Strzoda. “This means the room contains only a little more carbon dioxide than the outside environment.” As the day progresses, and Strzoda and his colleagues work on their inventions and discuss their results, the CO2 reading slowly climbs to around 600–700 ppm — solely because the scientists are breathing. Strzoda and his colleagues actually have it good. The air in most of the world’s offices and conference rooms has a CO2 content in excess of 1,000 ppm, the level at which people begin to feel uncomfortable and become tired and unfocused. Most buildings still don’t have CO2 sensors — but this will soon change, according to Dr. Maximilian Fleischer, who heads Strzoda’s research group. His team has produced many sensor-related inventions that have resulted in new products from Siemens. With around 150 patents to his name, Fleischer is one of Siemens’ most productive inventors (see Pictures of the Future, Fall 2004, p. 81, and Fall 2006, p. 58).

Sensors for measuring light and temperature are widely used today. Gas sensors — micro electrical-mechanical systems (MEMS) made of silicon chips and an oxidizing layer — are a relatively new development, however. These laser-optic sensors are still in the early stages of their development, and it will be some time before they hit the market. In contrast, the gallium oxide sensor — Fleischer’s career breakthrough invention — has been measuring the CO content of exhaust gas in thousands of small firing systems for years, thereby making it possible to optimize their energy output and emissions. In a completely different area of development, a new sensor from Siemens’ research labs that measures alcohol content in a person’s breath may soon go into production, and Sweden has announced that it plans to become the first country to combine it with a vehicle immobilizer to prevent intoxicated people from driving. This technology, which has been licensed from Siemens, can also be used in trains, streetcars, and in connection with potentially dangerous machinery. Big Savings from Tiny Sensors. Until now, sensors were rarely used in buildings because they were too expensive and too difficult to install and maintain. But recent advances in developing silicon-based sensor chips equipped with their own power source and radio module

to Life have caught the attention of building operators. That’s because such sensors can yield big savings. Intechno Consulting estimates that the global annual market for gas sensor systems will be roughly € 2.9 billion in 2010. Sensors play a key role in all scenarios involving the future of building system technologies. “Houses will no longer be empty shells; they will be intelligent systems that communicate with their occupants,” says Dr. Osman

Combined with user information, building management systems will be able to perform many new services. Building users will be able to inform such systems about when they will be arriving, which security mechanisms have to be used, and which rooms to ventilate. A variety of sensors will ensure that management systems always know when a toilet is in need of repair, where a corrosive substance has been released, or where people have gathered.

studied. Which procedure is more suitable for gas detection depends on the materials in question. The researchers place the desired combinations of the tiny oxidation surfaces they produce side-by-side on field effect transistors (FETs) in a chip. Examples include a barium titanate-copper oxide-mixed oxide combination for detecting CO2, and a gallium oxide with finely distributed platinum for detecting odors.

Office buildings will become intelligent systems that communicate with their users. Ahmed, who heads an innovation team at Siemens Building Technology in Buffalo Grove, Illinois. As soon as wireless-capable sensor chips can be produced cheaply, it will become feasible to link thousands of them in a finely woven infrastructure in buildings. “We will eventually be able to use sensors to imitate nature,” predicts Ahmed. Just as our senses and nerves constantly supply our brains with information that allows us to make decisions, processors in building management systems will be used to receive and process data from thousands of sensors, and then issue appropriate commands to a variety of subsystems.

Gas Detectives. In their labs, Fleischer and his team are already developing sensors that can monitor air quality in buildings. “To accomplish this, we need a chip that can measure at least four parameters: temperature, humidity, gases like CO2, and odors,” says Fleischer. To this end, he and his coworkers are studying detector materials to determine which reacts best with the gases to be detected. In a cathode sputtering facility characterized by a mysterious blueglowing plasma, the researchers are producing sensor surfaces only a few millionths of a meter thick. And next door, in a related experiment, a small device that uses a type of screen printing technique to detect gases is being

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Sustainable Buildings | Intelligent Sensors

| Smart Meters

An employee at an Energie AG test lab in Austria checks the communications capabilities of smart electric meters before they are sent to customers.

The substances being investigated in Fleischer’s lab don’t dock directly on a chip’s surface, but flow as if through a tunnel between a molecular capturing layer and the actual FET structure, causing a change in electrical resistance that the chip can read and convert into signals. If the chip is equipped with a radio module, it can wirelessly send the data to a building management system’s control units. Although Ahmed’s vision of tomorrow’s buildings may still seem like a stretch, initial steps in that direction have already been taken. “Comfort demands are increasing,” says Andreas Haas of Siemens Building Technologies in Switzerland. He believes trends in building technologies will parallel those in cars, for which sophisticated climate control systems are now standard. However, building operators are most interested in the savings potential that sensor sys-

tems offer. After all, sensor cost a lot less than renovating a building and, when combined with state-of-the-art optimized building automation, can produce even greater savings. Haas estimates that precise room climate sensors, and air quality and presence sensors can

ozone, which bonds to odor-producing molecules and neutralizes them by splitting them. This is why Siemens researchers are developing gas sensors that can recognize typical room odors. The researchers have used 18 different gases, such as ethane, propene, and acetone to

Indoor climate sensors and optimized automation can significantly lower a building’s energy consumption. reduce the energy used for heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and lighting by 30 percent compared to a building with conventional automation technology. Comfort is also affected by odors. “Rooms are often aired out only because they smell unpleasant,” says Fleischer. This needn’t be the case, since ambient air can be cleaned using

produce model odors. Hexanal, for example, is used for tests of sensors designed to detect odors in carpets. The scientists are also working on developing long-lasting odor sensors. “This kind of sensor needs to function for at least ten years if it’s going to attract interest on the market,” says Fleischer. If such a sensor reports a bad odor in the air to the control sys-

enough smoke could be produced to set off a conventional alarm. Such detectors — especially if combined with sensors for automated climate control — are at the top of building operators’ wish lists. Universal Experts. Siemens engineers are also working on non-chip sensors such as laseroptic devices that can remotely determine where most of a gas in a room is concentrated. Just down the hall from the laser-optic sensor lab, doctoral student Rebekka Kubisch is working with petri dishes full of a red fluid. The dishes are being used to grow cell cultures for “living” sensors that can do things such as measure water quality. “We mount these cells on chips, expose them to toxins, and then observe the types of reactions that result,” she explains. At present she’s examining how the skeletal muscle cells of rats react to various

Sensors that Will Change our Lives

Stabilizing the Grid

Sensors mounted on microchips, also known as micro electrical-mechanical systems (MEMS, left), can detect chemical substances, for example,

Smart electric meters not only provide the feedback that helps customers cut their energy use — they also give utilities a real-time overview of power demand. Siemens’ Automated Metering and Information System (AMIS) paves the way for the stable power grid of the future.

in combustion gases or industrial processes. One way in which MEMS operate uses semiconducting metal oxides laid down as a thin film on a chip. Any gas that docks with the sensor changes the electrical resistance of the semiconductor material, and the resulting signal is then read out by the chip’s processor. Siemens scientists have now succeeded in placing different gas-sensitive receptors on one chip in order to be able to detect more than one gas simultaneously.

Doctoral student Rebekka Kubisch measures the acidifi-

A new universal detector. Unlike chemical sensors,

Laser-optic gas sensors send a laser beam through a space in which a certain type of gas is to be de-

cation, impedance, and respiration rate of cell sensors.

cell-culture sensors react to a spectrum of toxins.

tem, the latter will issue a command to release ozone. The subsequent concentration of ozone can in turn be monitored by another type of sensor in order to prevent negative side effects, such as respiratory tract irritation. One of the main challenges in the development of gas sensors is the question of crosssensitivities. That’s because, if false alarms are to be avoided, the detecting material on a chip must respond only to the substance being searched for. This requirement also applies to fire alarms, of course, most of which still react optically to the presence of smoke. “But that might be too late for people near the source of a fire who have already inhaled a toxic gas,” says Fleischer. This is why building operators are interested in acquiring devices that detect the specific gases typically associated with flames. Such devices would be activated long before

waste water samples. Such living sensors offer tremendous advantages over chemical-based sensors because, while living cells react to all toxins, with chemical sensors you have to know in advance which harmful substance you want to test for. More importantly, living sensors could be used in green buildings that save energy by setting up as many closed cycles as possible, for water and air, for example. “Highly sensitive early warning systems are critical here,” says Fleischer. Looking further ahead, Ahmed adds, “One day we’re going to have buildings that don’t require any energy from outside. We’re going to need a lot of intelligent products to get there, and multifunctional sensors are an important piece of this puzzle.” Whatever the future has in store, Siemens scientists have already done a lot to take us a step closer to this Katrin Nikolaus vision.

tected. This could be inside a boiler, or a gas line suspected of having a leak. Each gas has a corresponding type of laser diode that is particularly suited to detecting it because the diode covers the spectral region in which the gas in question absorbs light. When the laser beam hits a surface, it is reflected and the resulting light is registered by a photodiode. Here, the light of the laser that passes through any gas present is absorbed more intensely than light that does not pass through the gas. The laser sensor’s photodiode can measure this difference. The least expensive laser diodes are those for detecting oxygen, which is why laser-based oxygen sensors are the most commonly used laser-optic sensors in industry. Laser-optic gas analyzers from Siemens are also used for monitoring waste gases from power plants. Scientists are also working on a laser-optic gas sensor for fire alarm systems. Using a laser diode developed by Munich’s Technical University that detects carbon monoxide (an indicator of fire), Siemens scientist Rainer Strzoda recently built a prototype that is now undergoing initial testing. Living sensors use living cells to detect harmful substances. Skeletal muscle cells from rats and human liver cells have proved to be particularly suitable here. The cells are cultivated in an incubator and then placed with a nutrient solution onto a silicon chip, where they adhere to the surface. This chip is then placed in device from start-up Bionas, where it is exposed to a stream of water that contains pollutants. The processor continuously measures several cell parameters and transmits the data to a computer. The measured values are cell respiration (i.e. the cells’ oxygen content), the acidification of the nutrient solution due to cell metabolism, the cells’ impedance — their adherence to the chip, the number of cells, and their form. Pollutants change one or more of these parameters. The researchers’ current objective is to increase the life span of such sensors from a few days to several months.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

elephone calling and Internet surfing at fixed prices — in telecommunications at least, the trend favors flat rates. But there’s no flat rate for electricity, where, to an increasing extent, the ground rule is “use more, pay more.” And that rule is likely to be applied even more stringently in the future. If you use your washer and dryer during peak demand periods, you’ll pay a hefty surcharge. But if you do your laundry at night, when demand is low, you’ll get a discount. And on weekends, electric power might even be free. Instead of fixed rates per kilowatt-hour, there may soon be different rates for different times of the day. Why make things so complicated when customers like them simple? The obvious reason is that the best way to get people to save energy is through their wallets. Variable rates are therefore a key inducement for increasing environmental awareness. Until now, for instance, consumers have received feedback on their electric power usage only once a year on a special bill. But now, legislators are starting to act.

The European Union has noted in its directive on energy efficiency and services that customers must receive more information about their energy consumption. Smart meters in the home that can sample consumption at 15minute intervals are seen as an answer. Actually, that’s nothing new. Many large industrial users already measure their electric power usage electronically, with the data read automatically via remote query by their utility companies and checked against an agreed-on load profile. “This technology is now also suitable for large-scale use by residential customers,” says Josef Kapp at Siemens in Stuttgart, who is in charge of business development in the IT sector for public utility customers. The benefits of smart metering could be huge. According to the German Ministry for Economics and Technology, meters that detect wasteful electricity use could save about 9.5 terawatt-hours annually. Many European countries have already implemented the EU directive, and in June 2008

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

AMIS users can read their electricity usage rates at

Sustainable Buildings | Smart Meters

the push of a button (left). A data concentrator (center) at a transformer substation collects data and transmits it to a control center (right).

the German parliament followed suit. Starting in 2010, smart meters will be installed in new buildings. By 2015 one-fourth of the nation’s old meters are slated to be replaced. Starting in 2011, German utility companies will have to provide load-based or time-of-day-based power saving incentives. All major German energy suppliers are now testing smart meters, but only 0.01 percent of all meters are smart. The reason for the hesitancy is that, according to a study by Accenture, a consulting firm, replacing one-fourth of the electric meters in Germany would cost about €1 billion and take 5,000 person-years. Automatic meter reading by remote query will be a significant benefit of smart meters for most utility companies. But the meters will be far more important in answering questions such as: What can be done to reduce load fluctuations in the power grid, so as to eliminate the need for additional power lines while also ensuring a stable supply? And how can ever larger amounts of renewable electric power be fed into the grid? Conventional electric meters can’t solve these problems, because they don’t link the customer’s use to power grid operation. But according to the EU, this is precisely where the greatest opportunity exists. The EU has therefore launched a study into the electric power grid of the future — a network that will be designed to intelligently manage and integrate the energy needs of power companies, power grids and consumers. One System. In Austria, this vision is already being realized. Energie AG, which is based in Linz, has already equipped 1,000 households with Siemens electric meters. By 2009 100,000 households will have been connected, and by 2014 by as many as 400,000.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Siemens’ Automated Metering and Information System, or AMIS, is unlike any other smart metering system. Its components not only measure consumption in homes, but also cover the entire supply chain, from power plant to consumer. A data concentrator at a local transformer substation collects energy use data gathered by individual meters on a second-bysecond basis, monitors the power grid, transmits this data to a control station, and feeds the data into the billing system. “AMIS customers get power grid automation free with their AMIS components,” says Alexander Schenk, Business Segment Manager for AMIS at Siemens in Vienna.

The AMIS meter will also be able to control the feed-in of electricity from solar cells on the roof or from a combined heat and power plant, or to reduce the feed-in rate if the input is excessive. The reason for selecting Energie AG as a pilot customer for AMIS has to do with its competitive environment. By providing services that offer distinct customer benefits along with innovative electric power products, Energie AG intends to not merely defend, but to actually expand its market share. As a first step, according to Alexander Schenk, a varying rate scale for different times of day will be introduced. The owners of night storage heaters have long

AMIS can automatically meter not only electricity use, but also gas, water, and district heat consumption. To communicate, AMIS uses powerline technology, in which the power grid transmits data. Other systems require separate radio or GSM communications or an Internet link, which add costs. AMIS is open to future interface standards. Such standards don’t yet exist, so in the meantime meters and data concentrators communicate via a proprietary Siemens communications method. But a simple download is all it takes to adopt new standards and to read meters from other manufacturers. AMIS will be able to integrate gas, water and district heating information via cable or wireless communications into the remote metering system. The resulting data can then be viewed by the customer, who can access his or her individual use along with load profiles via an Internet portal.

been familiar with this principle, but that system is inflexible. With AMIS, however, the Austrian firm enjoys a full range of marketing options, from energy discounts during vacation periods to combinations with low insurance rates. Austria isn’t the only pilot area where Siemens is active. In Milan, Italy, Siemens is helping municipal utility company A2A to install 60,000 ENEL smart meters every month. ENEL is Italy’s largest power company. The goal is to convert a total of one million customers to such systems. Siemens is integrating the meters into an automated system and establishing a link with an SAP software system. But neither energy conservation nor new billing models are key issues for ENEL in this project. The company’s main objective is to track down high power

losses in the grid and to stabilize the grid, which is being pushed to its limit by the installation of more and more air-conditioning systems. The company’s smart meter program is likely to continue, since about 30 million existing smart meters in Italy are no longer state-ofthe-art. Powerline communications, for instance, are only available 60 to 80 percent of the time in older meters, which is inadequate for smart grid applications. AMIS meters, on the other hand, can communicate more than 99.5 percent of the time.

Gearing up for the Smart Grid “The electric power grid is the last big unintelligent physical network on our planet,” reports The Daily Deal, a business information service. That’s bad for our budget and for the environment. However, according to the Electric Power Research Institute in the U.S., implementation of a smart grid would save five to ten percent of electric power without reducing comfort levels. That’s because renewable energy could be fed in to match consumption, and peak loads

Getting Consumers to Do their Part. Technology is only part of the solution; consumers also have to do their share. The Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy (ISE) Systems in Freiburg, Germany, examined how consumer behavior can help stabilize power grids. In a research project in Karlsruhe-Stutensee, approximately one hundred private households were equipped with communication-capable electric meters that were connected to a computer at a transformer substation. Under the slogan “Let the sun do your laundry!” the households received a text message encouraging them to wash their laundry whenever there was bright sunshine. Those who complied received a discount of €0.50 per kilowatt-hour. According to Sebastian Gölz of the ISE, customers tend to go along with such power-saving policies in the long run, but only if the savings are considered substantial. “We want energy saving to be fun,” says Gölz. This means that customers must receive feedback regarding their electric power consumption and costs within a short time frame. “If you only get an electric bill once a year, you can’t possibly figure out why you used more energy,” he explains. Bernd Müller

would be reduced. It will take many years to implement a continental smart grid. But even today the power grid can be endowed with some intelligence, and energy can be saved. For instance, Jackson, Mississippibased SmartSynch, a company in which Siemens Venture Capital (SVC) holds shares, provides the infrastructure for data communication between smart meters and network operators. The technology offers the capability of remote metering and information feedback to customers, which could support load-dependent management for consumers. Seventy-five electric utility companies with a total of 115,000 electric meters in North America are already using SmartSynch technology. Unlike Siemens’ AMIS meters, SmartSynch meters (photo) communicate via wireless. “Public Wireless (GPRS) is widely available and therefore better suited in sparsely populated areas,” notes Gerd Goette, Managing Partner at SVC in Palo Alto. Powerline communication, on the other hand, is limited in range and is therefore best suited for densely populated areas. Energy can be saved even without a smart grid if air conditioning and heating systems are properly adjusted and defective controls are replaced. Prenova, an Atlanta-based company in which SVC also owns shares, supplies energy cost reduction software that is used by about 50 retail and restaurant chains, such as Eddie Bauer and Burger King. Sensors installed in the buildings monitor the air conditioning and lighting systems as well as other power-hungry equipment, measure power consumption, and transmit such data to Prenova headquarters, where they are matched against weather information, time of day, and other factors. When appropriate, the software intervenes via remote control and optimizes the operating parameters of the lighting, air conditioning, and other equipment. This method can reduce energy consumption by 10 to 20 percent, a parameter that’s included in the cost calculations of Prenova’s business model. Prenova’s earnings as an energy management contractor are linked to the customer’s energy savings. Prenova also provides customer consultation on energy purchases, from the mix of electricity and natural gas all the way to the choice of utility companies.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Sustainable Buildings | Networked Technologies

Energy management systems can increase energy efficiency by as much as 30 percent. Users include the Sihlcity shopping center in Zurich, and Frankfurt’s Mövenpick Hotel (right).

energy efficiency of buildings by as much as 30 percent,” adds Wirth. Exemplary implementations of this interplay include large, new building complexes such as the Mövenpick Hotel in the Europa Quarter in Frankfurt, Germany, and Sihlcity in Zurich, Switzerland. This new 100,000 square meter shopping, residential, and leisure center, which opened its doors in March 2007, was built on the grounds of the former Sihl paper factory. “In Sihlcity, we installed our Designo management system, which takes over energy management for the entire building complex and controls all of the building systems, such as lights, blinds, heating, ventilation and air conditioning,” says Matthias Stauber, technical project director for Sihlcity at Siemens BT. Tenants as well as hotel guests can set their desired room climate. In Sihlcity, presence sensors in rooms, timer programs, and sensors that transmit exterior temperature to the management system determine actual demand. The system is then managed as energy efficiently as possible. For example, sensors measure CO2 concentrations in conference rooms and theaters, and control air exchange according to how many people are present in a room. In the summer, unoccupied rooms are cooled by exterior air to drive down air conditioning demand.

the optimum utilization of urban resources. In the lab, a complete apartment, fully equipped with Siemens household, electrical, building, communications and multimedia technology, is in operation as a living test environment. All of the devices can be controlled through a central communications node known as a gateway. Siemens has developed software that permits integration of various wireless protocols as well as interfaces to building technology systems. Corporate Technology has been demonstrating the results of its research in intelligent homes in Munich since 2006.

The test environment is systematically being expanded into a “pervasive computing lab” — an environment in which high-grade networked and distributed intelligent IT systems are embedded in everyday items that in turn recognize users’ needs, make decisions, and adjust themselves accordingly. New technologies developed by CT are to be installed and tested in the lab. “We are demonstrating first applications, showing how everyday items with embedded processors, sensors, and network connections can carry out their duties

lighting can function for years without battery replacement, CT researchers have developed and integrated software that ensures that the sensors acquire data only when it is needed. At night, for instance, they go into “sleep mode” or collect far less data, because blinds do not need to be controlled.

Intelligent Home. Siemens researchers at Corporate Technology (CT) in Munich, Germany are looking further ahead. Their motto is “from smart homes to smart cities.” On the seventh floor of Building 53 on the Siemens Campus, researchers are examining how processors, sensors, and network connections embedded in everyday items can take on control functions in building technology. With a view to the more distant future, they are investigating how these can be applied to

anywhere, at any time, in networked homes or in building technology,” says Cornel Klein, a software and systems expert who coordinates CT’s pervasive computing activities. Klein illustrates how autonomous such embedded systems have already become by pointing out that adaptive lighting systems can control natural as well as artificial light. “For example,” he says, “we can squeeze wireless light and temperature sensors, a processor, a memory chip and a battery into a tiny box that

searchers selected the IEEE 802.15.4 standard, which consumes considerably less energy than Bluetooth, but operates on the same 2.4 GHz frequency. This lays the groundwork for the application of wireless systems characterized by long service lives. For example, one goal is to eliminate the need for a control gateway, which would result in reduced installation costs in buildings. “Without resorting to a detour though a central gateway, the sensor networks

can measure light. The goal is to have it communicate with sensors in blinds, and, after analysis of the measured values, control the blinds themselves.” Because such units consist of numerous IT systems that can be applied wirelessly to building technology, they can collectively amount to an intelligent energy management system — an important research goal. How the systems collect data, communicate with and issue commands to one another, are deciding factors in their own internal energy management. For example, to ensure that adaptive

The goal is to develop an energy ecosystem in which light and temperature sensors work together with blinds.

More Efficient than Bluetooth. The choice of wireless protocol by which such sensors exchange data is important in achieving the lowest possible energy consumption. CT re-

Smart Homes and Cities Centralized management of building systems such as lighting and climate control results in more efficient operation and reduced energy use. Proof is offered by numerous buildings running on Siemens automation systems. Even greater savings would be realized through the implementation of intelligent sensor networks that would connect the dots from smart homes to smart cities.

n 2002, the European Union issued a directive to increase the energy efficiency of buildings. The directive calls for the Europewide certification of buildings and an “energy certificate” to document energy consumption. In Germany, this directive was incorporated into national law on July 1, 2008. The objective is to achieve an 18 percent reduction in national energy consumption by 2020, as well as to increase the portion of renewable energy to 14 percent. In addition, the European directive defines requirements for heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems — HVAC (see Pictures of the Future, Spring 2008, p. 29) — that,

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

along with thermal insulation of buildings, play a major role in saving energy. In the spring of 2008, the European Building Automation and Controls Association (eu.bac), which sets criteria for the energy efficiency of products, certified 27 electronic individual zone controllers made by 15 firms, including Siemens, according to European standard EN 15500. These can, for example, control heating radiators, cooling ceilings, and electric heating systems. Thanks to their appreciably greater precision, these certified controllers save a great deal of energy. “Studies have shown that reducing control deviations

from two degrees Celsius to 0.1 degree Celsius can result in energy savings of up to 14 percent,” explains Ulrich Wirth, chairman of the European Committee for Standardization’s Technical Committee for Building Automation, Controls and Building Management and an expert in building automation products and systems in the Siemens Building Technologies Division (BT), based in Zug, Switzerland. Additional potential energy savings result when optimized HVAC sensors and open- and closed-loop control systems are appropriately combined with lighting systems, blinds, and hot water systems. “This can increase the

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Sustainable Buildings | Networked Technologies

themselves will analyze the measured data, compare the given target and actual values, and, for example, control blinds in accordance with measured values,” Klein explains. Still, current blinds are not generally equipped with their own integrated sensor suite, and are therefore unable to detect their own condition, such as whether they are open or closed. But sensor systems are proliferating. “Refrigerators, washing machines, dishwashers, and other appliances and systems are becoming increasingly intelligent,” says Christoph Niedermeier, a software and energy expert at Siemens CT. Niedermeier explains that these devices use highly integrated information and

| Interview

What kinds of objectives are you trying to achieve with the GreenBuilding Initiative? Bertoldi: It all began in 2005 as a European Commission program. The Initiative’s objective is to improve the energy efficiency of existing commercially-utilized buildings. Owners of buildings that are not used for residential purposes are eligible to take part. First, an energy audit is conducted. A countermeasures plan describes the desired goals, and progress reports are issued systematically. Once the building achieves the set goals, the Commission grants it status as a Green Building partner. Participants can be advised individually as to how they can save energy effec-

“In the future, many decisions will be made on a local level, by embedded systems with access to a large amount of data regarding how and where optimization may be applied. These systems will be able to exercise intelligent selfmanagement,” he predicts. Networked Cities. The extent of this research topic becomes more apparent when the smart home becomes part of a larger entity such as a smart neighborhood or even a smart city. In the future, many buildings could be networked with one another and managed by a multitude of distributed IT systems in an energy-efficient manner — which is the vision of the Pervasive

The Tools for

In the Pervasive Computing Lab, Cornel Klein and colleagues investigate “smart home” conditions, such as the interplay between lighting and blind sensors, and the development of user-friendly interfaces (right).

communications technology, assisted by sensors and ingenious data processing, to measure their current energy consumption. In addition, they can communicate their condition to the outside world, for example, via Powerline networks. In this way, a refrigerator, deep freeze, washing machine and dishwasher can “agree” on when each device will be active. A prerequisite for all of this is that such devices permit time-shifted operation. “The customer is then able to use less expensive electricity. Utilities, on the other hand, can avoid peak loads by responding to power surges through the use of local generating units, such as with combined heat and power generation,” says Niedermeier. He adds that future networks will incorporate decentralized energy consumers, and will thus making central control impossible.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Computing Lab. Several decades from now cities will have countless autonomous, intelligently functioning IT systems that will have perfect knowledge of users’ habits and energy consumption, and provide optimum service — for example, by bringing renewable energy online as needed. In this vision, buildings not only communicate with buildings, or local energy generation units with power grids. Traffic signals know about traffic flow in a city as they exchange data and measured values with electric vehicles and simultaneously with electrical recharging stations, which in turn poll local, decentralized energy generators to see how much power they can supply. The goal of such a city is to optimally regulate and control resources by means of autonomous IT systems. Nikola Wohllaib

Paolo Bertoldi, 47, is director of the GreenBuilding Initiative, which was created by the European Commission to improve the efficiency of buildings. After completing his studies in electrical engineering at the University of Padua, Italy, Bertoldi joined the European Union’s Joint European Torus (JET) nuclear fusion project in Great Britain in 1986. In 1993 he became Head of Administrative Services in the EU Directorate-General for Energy and Transport. Since 2001, Bertoldi has been Principal Administrator of the European Commission Joint Research Center (JRC), where he heads research activities aimed at increasing energy end-use efficiency.

energy-saving solutions in commercial buildings. Because of climate change and rising energy prices, all EU member states need to concentrate on conservation measures; such programs have existed, to a similar extent, for several years in all European Union countries. Just how much money can businesses save? Bertoldi: Buildings consist of various systems, for example heating, air conditioning, lighting, and information technology. Take lighting, for example. Compared to an older system, today we can realize energy savings of about 70 percent. In existing buildings, the overall

create a favorable framework to ensure that investments are made in these technologies in the future. Have governments and the business world recognized the importance of climate protection? Bertoldi: Most certainly. In the past 15 years, I have never seen as much interest on the part of political decision-makers and business leaders in these topics, and in the restructuring of our energy system, as we are witnessing today. These issues are being taken seriously. Under the pressure of climate change and high energy prices, the economical use of energy is enjoying high-priority treatment.

Realizing Vast Energy Savings are at Hand tively and what technologies will be required. This helps the environment, reduces operating costs and, last but not least, helps to improve the building owner’s image. After all, it is advantageous to be perceived as being active in the areas of environmental protection and combating climate change. To what degree can energy be saved in renovation and new building construction? Bertoldi: About 40 percent of overall energy use in the European Union is attributable to buildings. Facilities and buildings not used for residential purposes, including offices, schools, universities, and airports, use about one third of that. If existing buildings were optimally renovated, and new structures built according to the appropriate standards, energy savings could as a rule reach 25 percent. This means that of the 467 million metric tons of oil used for European buildings in 2006, 116 million could be saved.

savings potential is generally about 25 to 30 percent. To cite a practical example, if a company renovates its buildings for greater efficiency with a one-time investment of one million euros, it can reduce its energy bill, which previously amounted to €200,000 per year, by perhaps €70,000. After about 15 years, the investment has paid for itself, and the savings begin from that point on. What do you expect of science, the business world, and governments? Bertoldi: These three sectors have to work closely with one another. Research develops new solutions. The business world converts these into products and provides the necessary financial means. And governments have to

In terms of technology, where do you think Europeans will stand in 15 to 20 years? Bertoldi: In my opinion, the important technologies that we will need in order to meet future challenges are already available. Almost all of them are already on the market. These can ensure that buildings are optimally heated, cooled, and illuminated, and that they are properly insulated. Research has already done most of the necessary work. Now it’s a matter of applying the results. The integration of these technologies is certainly of great importance; their efficiency can be improved even further by well thought-out building management systems. Interview conducted by Thomas Veser.

The EU’s GreenBuilding Program Participation in the European Union’s GreenBuilding Program is voluntary; there are no asso-

What specific steps would have to be taken to achieve this? Bertoldi: To increase the efficiency of buildings, one needs a multitude of technological, but also political measures. When it comes to new buildings, construction codes are important. On the other hand, when it comes to optimizing existing buildings, owners could above all be motivated by financial incentives. One example is the Energy Efficiency Prize of the Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW, the Reconstruction Loan Corporation). Endowed with €15,000, the prize has been awarded annually since 2003 for exemplary

ciated fees or dues. At present, more than 80 participants from ten EU countries are making use of the consulting service. In Germany there are 23 partners, including banks, insurance companies, city governments, educational institutions, and an environmental protection organization. National contact points in Germany are the German Energy Agency, the Berlin Energy Agency, and the Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research in Karlsruhe. In addition, firms in the building sector that want to improve the energy efficiency of non-residential structures may add their support. Siemens Building Technologies has also committed itself to a support plan, and as a result was awarded the European Commission’s “GreenBuilding Award” for 2008. Siemens informs building owners about the program and helps them to implement appropriate energy savings steps. In Germany, an outstanding “best practices” example of the GreenBuilding Program is the EnergiePark Erlangen, where geothermal sensors are employed for heating and cooling purposes, while photovoltaic modules drive heat pumps. Nuremberg, too, plays a leading role; there, an older building was retrofitted to meet the low energy house standard, while fulfilling the building’s landmark protection requirements.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Sustainable Buildings | Facts and Forecasts

Predominantly powered by sun and wind, EcoBlocks

Environmentally-Friendly Planning

such as these designed for QuingDao, China, will include thousands of residences and will be as self-sufficient and emission-free as possible.

Groundswell of Support for More Efficient Buildings lmost 40 percent of the world’s energy is used by

primarily as a result of stricter legal requirements and en-

the “California Green Building Standards Code” at the end

buildings. According to the German Energy Agency

ergy efficiency campaigns. Of China’s 40 billion square

of July 2008. It contains guidelines aimed at pushing

(DENA), potential savings of 30 percent are possible for

meters of residential and usable floor space, some 16 bil-

building energy consumption 15 percent below the val-

heat and 15 percent for electric power. A study by the

lion is accounted for by residential buildings within cities.

ues that are being achieved by current binding energy ef-

German Federal Environment Agency has even calculated

By 2010, the government plans to invest around $400 bil-

ficiency standards. The directive is set to become manda-

that by thoroughly renovating and insulating walls and

lion in energy efficiency improvements for buildings. Im-

tory for residential buildings in 2010.

cellar ceilings in old buildings, and installing double

provements will be documented in an effort to ensure

Europe has various initiatives, such as the “20-20-20

glazed windows, savings of 56 percent could be made in

that only energy-efficient construction plans are ap-

by 2020” motto. This means that by 2020, greenhouse

terms of heating energy (see Pictures of the Future,

proved. This is an important step, since China’s expendi-

gas emissions are to be reduced by 20 percent compared

Spring 2007, p. 86).

tures for new construction are expected to increase by

to 1990, the proportion of renewable energies increased

The global market for heating, ventilation, and air

9.2 percent a year until 2010 according to the latest fore-

to 20 percent and energy efficiency increased by 20 per-

conditioning products is estimated at around €80 billion,

cast by Freedonia. “Thanks to the introduction of energy

cent. Another European initiative is the voluntary Green-

according to the German Federal Ministry for the Environ-

use standards for new buildings, we have already saved

Building program, which has been in place since 2005. Its

ment, Nature Conservation and Reactor Safety and the

five million tons of coal between January and October

aim is to improve the energy efficiency of non-residential

German Institute for Economic Research (DIW); it is also

2007 alone,” says Xie-Zhen Hua, Deputy Director of the

buildings, such as offices, schools or industrial premises,

growing at five percent per year. Future improvements

National Development and Reform Commission.

by helping property owners modernize their buildings

here will come from optimizing existing technologies,

In the U.S., energy efficiency is growing in impor-

such as new types of coolants, and better control and

tance, particularly in public buildings, even though a

In the context of energy-saving contracting, such in-

process technology, using sensors and other technolo-

study by McGraw Hill Construction in 2007 revealed that

vestments can pay for themselves out of contractually-

gies. Demand for efficient building systems is growing,

the proportion of “green buildings” in the U.S. is still only

agreed savings within a defined period. According to the

0.3 percent of residential

Berlin Energy Agency, energy costs and carbon dioxide

real estate. The annual in-

emissions can be cut by an average of up to 30 percent in

creases of 20 to 30 per-

this way.

Household Energy Consumption in 19 Industrialized Nations 16

Exajoules

Percent 100

Space heating

Domestic appliances

Hot water

Lighting

90 80 58

60 50

Cooking

6 16

2 0 1995

2000

2005

40 30

1990

4 5

5 5

1990

2005

IEA 19: Association of 19 industrialized nations incl. Germany, France, UK, U.S. and Japan.

Energy Consumption in NonLighting Residential Buildings 6%

Source: Siemens AG

Other 60%

Buildings 40%

Residential buildings 65%

Non-residential buildings 35%

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Ventilation, air conditioning 23%

Hot water 10%

Other process heat 15%

Space heat 46%

Living for Tomorrow Siemens’ High Performance Building Project is harnessing the intellectual power of top researchers and universities to develop new visions of tomorrow’s buildings.

(see p. 68).

cent are, however, signifi-

“Across Germany, efficiency contracting will cut en-

cant. By the end of 2007,

ergy costs by some €800 million and carbon dioxide

4,100 buildings and facto-

emissions by 4.5 million tons each year,” says Michael

ries had acquired the “En-

Geißler, Executive Manager of the Berlin Energy Agency.

ergy Star” label for energy

By 2010, the agency anticipates the market volume for

efficiency, 1,400 of them

contracting to reach €4 billion a year. Contracting

in 2007 alone. In Califor-

providers such as Siemens can exploit significant growth

nia, the Building Regula-

potential here, since only around ten percent of the mar-

tions Committee passed

ket is being tapped.

Sylvia Trage

Heating Losses for a Typical Home with and without Insulation Roof 12,120 kWh/year

Walls 10,100 kWh/year

Roof 3,000 kWh/year

Windows 2,520 kWh/year

Windows 4,700 kWh/year

Walls 2,900 kWh/year

Ground/cellar 1,764 kWh/year

Ground/cellar 714 kWh/year

Without insulation

With insulation

Source: Germany Energy Agency

Source: Study: “Worldwide Trends in Energy Use and Efficiency”, IEA (2008)

he idea that a building is an inanimate structure consisting of four walls and a roof is giving way to something new. Today’s standards in building systems, particularly when it comes to industrial and public edifices, call for maximum comfort, optimal security, and intelligent energy use. And that’s just the beginning. State-of-theart building technology integrates lighting, water, heating, and air conditioning, as well as information systems. It also supports the interchange of data concerning lighting, temperature, ventilation, air conditioning, and energy. As a result, houses and public buildings are evolving into complex technological organisms. Indeed, totally self-sufficient residential complexes are already in the planning stage at a number of locations. In April 2008, Siemens Corporate Technology (CT) launched its High Performance Building project — a three-year program in which experts from thirteen CT Departments and the Building Technologies (BT) Division will collaborate with researchers from eight universities and research institutions, including the University of California at Berkeley, Carnegie Mellon, Munich’s Technical University, and the Fraunhofer Society. Headed by Vladimir Zahorcak of Siemens Corporate Research (SCR) in Princeton, New Jersey, the project is designed to seamlessly network the expertise needed to design tomorrow’s advanced buildings. The project brings together important crossdisciplinary technologies such as sensor systems, automation, security technologies, and remote maintenance. “Our objectives go well beyond reducing energy consumption or con-

serving resources such as water. We will be looking at new ways to optimizing the entire life cycle of tomorrow’s buildings,” says Zahorcak, who heads the Automation division at Siemens Corporate Research. The Project Covers Three Key Areas: Building technologies and their comprehensive control functions. These are a building’s least visible features. State-of-the-art heating, air-conditioning, and water supply and treatment systems not only ensure a comfortable environment, but also reduce energy costs.

But even the most efficient heating and water systems are of little use if the building exteriors continue to be built the way they have been for centuries. The new trend is called “smart building envelopes” — intelligent outer layers made of nanomaterials that can actually be electronically managed. With this concept in mind, High Performance Building researchers plan to control the amount of light admitted by windows to help optimize internal temperature control. Optimizing the life cycle. This includes a lot more than just a building’s design, construc-

Automating and Networking Tomorrow’s Buildings Electrochromic glass panes connected to temperature and light sensors

Weather station for local forecasts

Intelligently controlled dimmers

Building control elements and air quality sensors Integrated photovoltaic modules Automated window shutters

Communications link for optimization of electric power applications in several buildings through application of flexible rates in real time

Energy-efficient office equipment Fuel cell

Natural ventilation

Efficient heat exchanger with heat recovery

Control systems with real-time modeling, fault diagnostics and optimization

Energy-efficient cooling system and heat storage

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Sustainable Buildings

Airflow simulations (left) now make it possible to

| Airflow Simulation

visualize air currents in an operating room. This opens the door to identifying potential improvements, and thus reducing the risk of infection.

tion, and maintenance. Here, the key concept is the service life of construction materials — as defined by, for example, the Building Information Model (BIM), the standard planning tool used in the U.S. — as well as the demolition and recycling of those materials. This three-dimensional model includes all available data that pertain to the functionality and properties of building elements. “If we succeed in consolidating all of these parameters in a single model, we’ll be able to more precisely quantify and optimize building elements, including technical systems,” says Zahorcak. Finally, business management is another key factor in addition to operational efficiency in the product life cycle. Large, self-sufficient residential complexes, such as so-called EcoBlocks. Architects and urban planners expect different challenges in newly industrialized countries. So-called Superblocks designed for tens of thousands of people, like the ones already being developed in China, could turn into problem areas unless they are designed with the environment in mind. As an alternative, Harrison Fraker, an architect and Professor of Environmentally Compatible Design at the University of California, Berkeley, has designed EcoBlocks and convinced a developer to use that approach in QuingDao, China. “The residential blocks now being planned in QuingDao will be equipped with the most advanced environmental technology. Consisting of up to ten thousand apartments per section, buildings will be equipped with water purification systems, solar and wind technologies for energy production, a refuse incineration system, and their own sewage treatment plants. “Although the blocks will be connected to the external power grid, the ultimate goal is to maximize their self-sufficiency and approach zero emissions,” says Zahorcak. Self-Sufficiency for Sale. Fraker’s concept perfectly complements the High Performance Building project. In the future, Siemens could supply or develop all the technologies that contribute to the self-sufficiency of an EcoBlock. “That’s another important objective of the project,” Zahorcak emphasizes. “At CT we analyze which technologies already exist in the Siemens product spectrum and which ones need to be developed to support the implementation of such building projects.” Construction work in QuingDao is slated to begin next year. Over the course of the next three years, Zahorcak’s High Performance Building team plans to demonstrate what such buildings can do through a number of new examples. Klaudia Kunze

Seeing the Invisible One of the principal causes of hospital-based infections is the presence of airborne germs during operations. Simulation tools now under development for the visualization of operating room airflows will help designers optimize the placement of vents so that surgical wounds are ideally ventilated. More advanced simulation systems will take body heat and lighting into account.

n an operating room at the Rechts der Isar hospital in Munich, Germany, two doctors stand next to a patient. Behind them are tables for surgical instruments, and above the patient table is a large lamp. Suddenly, pieces of medical equipment begin to move as if by magic — as do strange lines that run through the operating room like colored cobwebs. “The lines show the currents; and the color is the speed of the air particles,” says Dr. Gerta Köster of Siemens Corporate Technology in Munich. Köster moves people and machines around with a mouse; the operating room is only a simulation. If a doctor stands between the air jets in the wall and the patient table, more airflow lines take a detour around the team of doctors, and less fresh air reaches the patient. That could be dangerous. The study “Krank im Krankenhaus” (Hospital Infections) from the German Society for Hospital Hygiene estimates that 15 percent of all patients in intensive care units acquire an infection, and there are indications that the main cause of infection is the presence of airborne germs during operations. For the most

part, the infectious agents come from the air breathed by operating room personnel, but they are also blown into the room from outside through bad filters. Studies carried out at Uppsala University Hospital in Sweden show that the risk of infection can be reduced by 95 percent through controlled ventilation of wounds. One important advantage of more-effective ventilation is that patients can more easily be cooled in this way. In the past, however, this was little more than wishful thinking. “In the operating room, it’s often like Grand Central Station,” says Köster. The constant comings and goings of medical staff change the air currents. Sometimes the doors are even open, particularly when emergency surgery is in progress. Today, the planning of operating room airflows is pretty much a matter of trial and error. There is usually a standard layout with vents for fresh air in the ceiling and air extraction vents in the walls. At Rechts der Isar hospital, however, clean air is fed in from a side wall so that its path to the patient is not impeded by the

large lamps above the operating room table. No one knows which arrangement is better. And that’s where the simulation comes in. When they hear the term “airflow simulation” experts generally think of finite-volume methods with elaborate interconnections, whereby the actual space is divided into small virtual volumes in a computer, with air movements being calculated for each area. There are commercial software packages that perform this analysis, and the results are very good. The drawback is that such a calculation can take several weeks — much too long for Project Manager and mathematician Gerta Köster. “We need interactive simulations in real time,” she says. In other words, when objects are moved on the display, the changes in airflow lines should be visible within seconds. Only then can operating room planners be satisfied that all of their questions have been answered. Mathematical Adaptation. To develop such a tool, Köster and her partners at the Computation in Engineering department of Munich’s Technical University (TU) and the Fraunhofer Institute for Building Physics in Holzkirchen had to find a more efficient mathematical approach. They opted for the “thermal lattice Boltzmann” model, for which, however, no suitable commercial software package was available. The researchers had to adapt the model to suit their own purposes (Pictures of the Future, Spring 2006, p. 68). What they discovered was that the underlying airflow physics for wall- and ceiling-based vents were the same, says the TU’s Dr. Christoph van Treeck, a project manager in the Computation in Engineering department. What’s more, the Boltzmann method proved it-

self to be well-suited to efficient programming because it calculated three-dimensional lattices in seconds. In an interactive simulation, this speed comes at the cost of precision, but the result is still good enough to generate reliable airflow lines. The software for ComfSim — which is the name of a joint research project funded by the Bavarian Research Foundation — is still being run on a multimillion-euro high-performance computer where it is successfully calculating airflows for ICE rail cars and aircraft at the TU. The finished product for OR planning, which is expected to be ready in two years, and for which Köster is still seeking development partners at Siemens divisions, will be run on a PC cluster costing only a few thousand euros. However, the software could already be used today to plan a new operating room. In principle, Köster believes, it would be possible to run a simulation during an operation and continuously monitor the positions of personnel and equipment, all the time dynamically controlling airflows. But this would not be

very useful. It would be better, she says, to run through various scenarios during the layout of the operating room and to define general guidelines for behavior. When an operation is planned, the doctor could run a simulation to optimize the placement of equipment and establish the workflow during the operation. “In the past, we’ve tried to position equipment and systems in the operating room so that they disrupt the airflow as little as possible,” says Dr. Rainer Burgkart, an orthopedic surgeon at Rechts der Isar. “But we did this based on our intuition. So of course we couldn’t know for certain whether we were ultimately achieving an optimal inflow of fresh air.” The full potential of the simulation software has not yet been realized. In the next step, the ventilation should be adjusted to ensure not only the correct temperature but also a sense of comfort for the persons in the room. The patient should be cooled, but not below a certain threshold, and the doctors must not perspire beneath their sterile uniforms. Another objective is to include light distribution models in the simulation. This is important because it makes a difference whether sunlight is flooding the OR, or whether it is foggy outside and lamps are turned on. The time is ripe for the introduction of ComfSim to OR planning, Köster believes. More and more hospitals are being built, and many old operating rooms are being renovated. The simulation tool would give Siemens a clear competitive advantage in designing these facilities. Köster’s message: “No one planning an operating room should do so without our airflow simulation.” From Operating Rooms to Architects. Considering that air currents are important not only in the OR but, in principle, in all buildings, the simulation tool could also be developed into a universal tool for architects. Currently, buildings are primarily designed according to visual criteria. But armed with an airflow and temperature distribution planner, an architect would be able to design buildings in which people are always comfortable — buildings in which the heating and cooling take place at precisely the locations needed. This would save energy. For example, the ventilation of concert halls could be simulated to ensure that the climate control was always ideal, regardless of whether the hall is mostly empty or packed. Eventually, simulations will also include crowd flows, such as those encountered at airport terminals. “That would allow us to take body heat into account when simulating a climate control system,” says Köster Bernd Müller Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Sustainable Buildings | Research Collaboration

The CCHRC (right) studies how the combination of solar, wind and biomass power can support environmentally-friendly, energy self-sufficient buildings for Alaska’s settlements.

from the manufacturing sector, including Siemens Building Technologies. Since September 2006, CCHRC scientists have been working in the organization’s Research and Testing Facility (RTF), which is located on the campus of the University of Alaska in Fairbanks. The building in which the facility is housed is ideally adapted to the harsh climate and incorporates innumerable sensors. For example, 1,200 sensors are used to monitor the humidity in the walls and the movements in the building’s foundations. Siemens supplied the RTF’s building automation technology, as well as a CO2-based, demand-driven ventilation system and the sensors and wireless transmission technology for controlling the heating, air conditioning, and ventilation system. The RTF laboratory is equipped with a climate chamber where researchers can test whether products are suited for cold regions. Products that pass this test receive the Certified Alaska Tough label, which sports a picture of a polar bear and its paw print. Microcosm Versus Climate Change. For Jack Hébert, President and CEO of the CCHRC, this region is the perfect place in which to develop innovative solutions for the energy-saving homes of the future. “Alaska is part of an international network of regions that are

Another danger is the thawing of the permafrost, which has caused numerous houses to sink into the resulting morass. “Sustainability is the biggest challenge we face,” says Hébert. “How will we build communities in the future? And is there even a future for the communities in Alaska?” Hébert’s positive answers to these questions are due in part to Alaska’s strengths as a research location. “Alaska is very international and full of innovative people,” he says. “It’s a

public grid or used internally, depending on the amount of electric power produced. The systems also continuously monitor the production of hot water by registering how much heat is being supplied by the various tested solar panels and forwarding the heated water to the heating system or water faucets. Hybrid energy systems of this kind could become big sellers outside of Alaska. “The knowledge we gain through our hybrid system will help us to install reliable setups at remote loca-

Solutions developed in Alaska’s Research and Testing Facility could provide answers for other remote regions. microcosm of the world as a whole. That’s why Alaska could be the place where we find the solutions that are urgently needed to ensure that humanity will have a sustainable future.” Experts at the CCHRC have been working on such solutions in research programs such as the Hybrid Micro Energy Project (HMEP). The project is designed to show how the smart combination of various types of renewable energies can make remote settlements less dependent on diesel and natural gas. To achieve this goal, the scientists are combining photovoltaic technology, solar thermal systems, wind

tions,” says Ben LaRue, Group Operations Manager at Siemens Building Technologies in Fairbanks. “The system’s hybrid nature makes it unique, since it employs a holistic approach that allows different sources of energy to be optimally used.” In such a hybrid system, a home’s automation technology must always be able to decide when the building should be supplied with energy from fossil fuels or from renewable sources. According to LaRue, HMEP also demonstrates that such hybrid systems can operate reliably under the harsh conditions en-

turbines, and a biomass plant that generates heat as well as electricity. In the summer months, solar power can make a major contribution to the energy supply, while biomass and wind energy are more important in the dark days of winter.

countered in Alaska’s scattered communities. To help bring about the necessary change in public awareness, Siemens is investing not only in new products, but also in the intellectual skills of young people. As part of its Building Education Program, the company supports, for example, the Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program (ANSEP), which is helping high school students in the state’s rural areas to get a better education in the natural sciences and engineering. Christian Buck

Learning in Alaska Alaska’s extreme weather is a challenge for buildings as well as for people. This makes it an ideal location for developing and testing energy-efficient, robust technologies for the houses of tomorrow. And that’s exactly what the Cold Climate Housing Research Center (CCHRC) in Fairbanks is doing in cooperation with Siemens.

airbanks is not exactly a comfortable place to live. For more than six months of the year, this former gold-mining town is in the depths of winter. The average annual temperature is a frigid minus 3.4 degrees Celsius, and the all-time low of minus 54.4 degrees Celsius makes Fairbanks the world’s seventh-coldest city. The people who live here need homes that can withstand the wind and cold, which amounts to a tall order for building planners

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

and construction companies. And because Alaska’s inhabitants already pay the highest heating bills in the U.S., they are particularly hard hit by rapidly rising energy prices. That’s why people here are especially interested in acquiring new, energy-saving technologies for their homes. However, most of the construction material has to be trucked in from elsewhere and is sometimes not suited for the extreme weather conditions found in the Arctic. As a result, some of the homes around Fair-

banks are built as though they weren’t in Alaska, but in far milder regions such as Oregon or Washington. And that’s where the Cold Climate Housing Research Center (CCHRC) in Fairbanks comes in. Its goal is to support development of robust, energy-efficient, and affordable technologies for homes in Alaska and other icy regions of the world. Founded in 1999, the CCHRC is a research initiative supported by the Alaskan construction industry as well as many partners

particularly affected by climate change and that therefore are especially aware of their responsibility for the Earth’s future,” says Hébert, who has lived in the far north for the past 35 years and works as a building contractor. Although living conditions have always been extremely harsh in Alaska, climate change has in some respects aggravated the situation. As the snow pack melts, for example, the result can be higher waves that threaten to inundate coastal villages.

Digital Coordinators. Siemens is supplying the control systems that monitor the photovoltaic facility and that determine whether the electricity generated should be fed into the

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Sustainable Buildings | Masdar City

Today only a few buildings in the Middle East even have solar cells. But when it’s complete in 2016, Masdar City will boast zero net CO2 emissions. Narrow alleys and arcades will cool the city naturally.

“We need to fundamentally rethink the ways in which cities can conserve energy and other resources,” says Sultan Al Jaber, CEO of the Masdar City Initiative. “This will require extensive use of new technologies and even the creation of new urban development models, which is exactly what we’re doing with Masdar City.” Jaber believes Masdar City will serve as a model for the urban centers of the future — an important function, given that cities are now growing at a breathtaking rate worldwide. Effective Building Design. The celebrated architects from Foster + Partners, who are responsible for Masdar City’s overall concept, have calculated that energy-efficient city and building designs can reduce the future city’s CO2 emissions by approximately 56 percent. Their current plans call for elongated parks to cut through the city, serving as corridors that channel cool winds into its center. As is the case in traditional desert cities, most streets will be designed as small alleys rather than broad avenues. Like narrow tunnels, these al-

without electricity and artificial light? For me, sustainable ecological urban development means balancing proven elements with modern technology — and given the current plans for Masdar City, the project just might achieve such a balance.” Some 24 percent of the city’s envisioned CO2 emission reduction will be achieved using renewable energy sources. Foster + Partners

such as those for low-loss power transmission, innovative lighting, and water treatment, are also being discussed with a view to maximizing energy conservation. Joachim Kundt, the CEO of Siemens LLC UAE, has lived in Abu Dhabi for many years and is thus familiar with both the challenges and opportunities associated with the emirate. “In extreme climates like those on the Arabian

Abu Dhabi will eliminate emissions with efficient buildings, renewable resources, and electric vehicles. estimates that around half of the city’s energy could be generated with photovoltaic systems, with the remainder coming from solar-thermal power plants, solar collectors, waste burning, composting, and wind facilities. Largely forgoing the use of automobiles will also help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, which is why the city will be provided with a tightly woven public transport network of electrically oper-

Peninsula, intelligent building technologies can greatly help conserve energy,” he says. “For example, building automation systems that use sensors that recognize when a room is unoccupied and then automatically turn off lights and air conditioning, can significantly cut CO2 emissions.” All of this can also be done — whether in Masdar or anywhere else in the world — without restricting comfort. Suitable technolo-

ated vehicles (personal rapid transit). With this system, nowhere in the city will be more than 200 meters from a transport station.

gies are already available (see p. 50), and according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), consistent use of such technologies could lower CO2 emissions from buildings by up to 40 percent between now and 2030. “Masdar City is a model project,” says Rode. “It will produce a man-made world that will show us what is technically feasible. The challenge — from both an urban development and technological perspective — will be to transfer the knowledge and experience gained to established urban environments.” Abu Dhabi is taking the first step — and it appears that the emirate has realized that its biggest treasure is not to be found under the ground after all. Andreas Kleinschmidt

Oil-Free Future? The world’s first CO2-neutral city is taking shape in Abu Dhabi. Masdar City is to consume so little energy that local resources will satisfy requirements — without generating net emissions. If the project is successful, urban planners will have a blueprint that could help them prepare for an oil-free future.

bu Dhabi is tapping into a new source of energy that will never dry up. No, it’s not oil — even though around nine percent of the world’s known reserves of that valuable resource can be found underneath the desert sand in the emirate. Instead, a project known as Masdar (Arabic for “source”) will point the way toward a future without fossil fuels. In February 2008, construction began on Masdar City, a futuristic, environmentally-friendly metropolis, which Abu Dhabi will present to the world in 2016 as living proof that life without fossil fuels can offer plenty of quality. Some 50,000 people are expected to be living in Masdar City by 2016. The car-free metropolis, to be located between Abu Dhabi City and the emirate’s international airport, is a

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

hugely ambitious project. In fact, plans call for the city to emit zero net CO2 into the atmosphere. In addition, the city will use solar-thermal plants and photovoltaic facilities, for example, to produce clean energy at peak times above the level actually consumed. Powerful accumulators will then make energy produced during the day available at night. One possibility for such an accumulator is offered by molten salt batteries, which have a very high energy density. Conventional cities the size of Masdar can emit up to 22 tons of CO2 per resident per year, which translates into total annual emissions of around 1.1 million tons. Masdar City will get this figure down to zero using state-of-the-art technologies. There are several steps that can

be taken to achieve this ambitious goal. The first is to minimize energy consumption. Here, Masdar City will have to make do with only around 200 megawatts of installed electrical capacity rather than the 800 megawatts that cities of a similar size in its climate zone are accustomed to. Cutting down on the use of fresh water is one way to go about this, as obtaining potable water requires seawater to be desalinated by power-hungry facilities. In general, closed raw material cycles and consistent recycling will keep resource consumption down in the desert metropolis. The city’s remaining unavoidable energy needs will then have to be covered by power generated from alternative sources such as wind, the sun, and biofuels made from organic waste.

leys will guide the wind between houses, while the latters’ arcades will provide additional shade. There are good reasons why desert cities have been built this way for thousands of years. While the temperature in Abu Dhabi feels like more than 70 degrees Celsius in the summer, the various urban architectural improvements will make the temperature in Masdar City feel more like 50 degrees. The architectural approach being used for Masdar City has won praise from award-winning urban development expert Philipp Rode from the London School of Economics. “What exactly is sustainable ecological urban development?” he asks. “Does it refer to futuristic visions based solely on advanced technology — or is it more like ‘back to nature,’ where you live

Solar Power and Water Treatment. With Masdar City, Abu Dhabi is pointing the way toward a future of resource conservation. The emirate also wants the rest of the world to be part of the project, which is why companies from many countries are talking to Masdar planners about the types of technologies that would be most suitable for the city. Under review are solar-thermal facilities that use parabolic mirrors to heat water, which in turn produces steam to drive turbines and thus produce electricity. Many other solutions from Siemens’ Environmental Portfolio (see p. 8),

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Sustainable Buildings | Combined Heat & Power Systems

How to Own a Power Plant Innovative heating systems not only provide warmth but also satisfy two thirds of the electricity demand of an average four-person household.

Burner Stirling engine

Cold water

Generator Households will soon be able to generate their own heat

emand for resource-saving heat generation systems is growing. One driver of this development is the fact that well-insulated new buildings and renovated older structures have lower heating demand. In addition, high energy prices as well as insecurity on the part of consumers regarding the reliability of gas and oil supplies are also prompting researchers and developers to consider new heating methods. One such method is the simultaneous generation of heat and electricity by so-called CHP (combined heat and power) systems. These are among the most efficient methods of energy generation, because the fuel they use is transformed into electrical energy as well as heat — usually in the form of steam and hot water. More than 90 percent of the energy contained in fuel can be utilized by these systems, compared with only about 38 percent for electrical generation by a conventional power plant. This high thermodynamic efficiency can make a major contribution to operating economy as well as environmental protection. Simultaneously, emissions of carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxides are reduced. Until now, CHP technology has been limited to large installations. Although the idea of ap-

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

and electricity using a mini CHP device (left and above). Scientists are now fine tuning the technology.

plying it to single and multi-family homes is new; many manufacturers are already excited about exploiting this potential. Siemens Building Technologies (BT), for instance, has developed the electronics for a gas-fired micro heat and power cogeneration device (microCHP). “We see a clear line of development toward the use of personal small power plants in singlefamily homes in place of oil or gas-fired boilers,” says Georges Van Puyenbroeck, director of sales and marketing at BT’s OEM Boiler & Burner Equipment. With this goal in mind, BT specialists are working together with manufacturers of condensing boilers, including Viessmann, Vaillant, Remeha B.V., and the Baxi Group. How to Generate a Kilowatt. Until now, condensing boilers have produced only heat, but no electricity. MicroCHP devices, on the other hand, can do both. They work as follows: A gasfired Stirling engine is integrated into a wall-

mounted boiler. The temperature difference between the cold water and the heat provided is used to generate electricity. Current implementations permit the generation of a maximum of one kilowatt of electrical energy, of which about 900 watts can be used directly in the home or fed back into the energy supplier’s grid. The device itself uses 100 watts. For consumers, this means that they have at their disposal their very own miniature cogeneration power plant, which provides not only heat but also two thirds of an average four-person household’s electricity requirements. The remaining electricity is provided by the power grid to which the microCHP device is normally connected. Operation with liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) is also possible after appropriate readjustment of the device. Siemens electronics control the heat output to keep the Stirling engine within its permissible operating range and provide the desired temperatures for home heating and hot water at the proper times. In addition, the electronics monitor the feeding of surplus electricity back into the power utility’s grid. Control technology from Siemens ensures that the device, which operates in parallel to the power grid, is able to switch on and off at

the proper times. The burner for the Stirling engine alone produces five kilowatts of heat. An auxiliary burner can add between 10 and 30 kilowatts, depending on its size. As a special feature, the microCHP device can also operate independently of the grid. In this case, it disconnects itself from the grid and produces up to one kilowatt of emergency power for specially vetted emergency power groups such as refrigerators, freezers, and emergency lighting. “That is a key differentiating feature of our device,” says Wolfgang Huber, who is responsible for development at Siemens BT. Huge European Market. Even if its advantages aren’t obvious at first glance, the microCHP device is a significant innovation. Paul Gelderloos, manager of technical innovation at Remeha B.V., is certain that “the device is one of the most promising successors in the condensing boiler area,” he says. Georges Van Puyenbroeck adds that, “It offers simple access to alternative energy; installers know about boilers, only the electrical generation is new.” He sees great potential for the new product. “According to our market data, seven million wall-mounted boilers are sold in Europe every year,” he says. Product manager Markus Herger estimates that in its the first three years on the market, between 50,000 and 100,000 microCHP devices could be sold — and that sales will continue to grow after that. This depends on how energy suppliers respond and on political decisions. In countries where sales operations are about to be launched — the Netherlands, then England and Germany — there are so-called electricity buyback laws, which promote microCHP devices. “Other countries are not yet as advanced,” laments Herger. After about four years of development, Siemens’ development partners are currently testing the new microCHP devices in about 400 households in Great Britain, the Netherlands, and Germany. Experience has shown that the added cost of a microCHP device can be amortized within five years — but its price can be established only after the partners bring the device to market. Siemens intends to launch production of the control technology in the fall of 2008. Remeha B.V. plans to enter the Dutch market in the winter of 2009. And specialists are already working on developing the next generation of microCHP devices. These will be even smaller, lighter, and more powerful than their predecessors, and can be fired by a variety of primary energy sources such as oil or various gaseous fuels from biomass. Gitta Rohling

In Brief I Buildings account for around 40 percent of

PEOPLE:

global energy consumption and about 21 per-

Energy performance contracting:

cent of all greenhouse gas emissions. At the

Ullrich Brickmann, Industry (BT)

same time, they have a huge energy savings

ullrich.brickmann@siemens.com

potential. Many commercial buildings already

Energy-efficient buildings:

demonstrate that emissions and electricity

Carmen Sánchez, BT Spain

costs can be drastically cut without sacrificing

mcarmen.sanchez@siemens.com

comfort through the use of efficient technolo-

Lynden Clark, BT Australia

gies such as control systems, sensors, and

lynden.clark@siemens.com

building management systems. (pp. 53, 56,

Gretchen Schacht, BT USA

60, 66)

gretchen.schacht@siemens.com Efficient Siemens buildings:

I There are many ways of cutting emissions

Rainer Kohns, SRE

from buildings. The Sustainable Urban Infra-

rainer.kohns@siemens.com

structure research project shows how emis-

Intelligent sensors:

sions can be avoided effectively, especially in

Dr. Maximilian Fleischer, CT PS

cities, and highlights the potential and costs

maximilian.fleischer@siemens.com

of energy efficient technologies. In London,

AMIS electric meters:

for example, the use of existing technologies

Alexander Schenk, Energy

alone could cut CO2 emissions by some ten

alexander.schenk@siemens.com

million tons by 2025. (p. 58)

Facility automation: Ulrich Wirth, Industry (BT)

I Siemens is working with partners on study-

wirth.ulrich@siemens.com

ing how to make buildings much more effi-

Pervasive Computing Lab:

cient. Alaska, where climatic conditions are

Dr. Cornel Klein, CT SE

excellent for testing the efficiency and robust-

cornel.klein@siemens.com

ness of technologies, is a case in point.

High Performance Buildings:

So-called EcoBlocks are another example.

Vladimir Zahorcak, SCR, Princeton

These apartment buildings for many thou-

vladimir.zahorcak@siemens.com

sands of people are equipped with their own

Operating room simulations:

water purification systems, solar and wind

Dr. Gerta Köster, CT PP

power technology, refuse incineration plants

gerta.koester@siemens.com

and sewage treatment facilities, making them

Alaska research partnership:

self-sufficient and environmentally friendly.

Ben LaRue, BT Alaska

(pp. 71, 74)

ben.larue@siemens.com Small cogeneration units:

I Siemens Real Estate specialists are investi-

Georges van Puyenbroeck, Industry (BT)

gating how to increase the energy efficiency

georges.vanpuyenbroeck@siemens.com

of the most important of the more than 3,000

Markus Herger, Industry (BT)

SRE locations and buildings worldwide. They

markus.herger@siemens.com

have drawn up a comprehensive range of measures that will help optimize the energy

LINKS:

efficiency of buildings no matter what their

Cold Climate Housing Research Center:

condition. (p. 56)

www.cchrc.org Masdar City Initiative:

I Beginning in 2009, the successors to the

www.masdaruae.com

conventional condensing boiler (a small, gas-

GreenBuilding-Initiative:

fired cogeneration unit) will not only provide

www.eu-greenbuilding.org

heat, but also satisfy two-thirds of the elec-

Study Sustainable Cities:

tricity demand of an average household of

www.siemens.com/sustainablecities

four. (p. 78)

German Energy Agency: www.dena.de

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

The world’s largest magnet for brain imaging research

Research Partnership | Imaging Technologies

Interview |

weighs 57 tons and is housed in a specially-built structure. Some 870 tons of steel ensure that the device’s magnetic field does not penetrate to the outside.

Four years ago, your predecessor, Professor Walter Kröll, made a plea in our magazine for research that would put greater emphasis on innovation. He said that, in the scientific community, innovation should not be viewed solely as a by-product of scientific research. Do scientists in Germany have enough entrepreneurial spirit to turn good ideas into successful products?

Mlynek: Yes, that’s right. The Munich region has seen some wonderful development. But from the point of view of Germany as a whole, much more could be done. We have outstanding research here, and it has to be recognized and appreciated more often. In recent years, scientists have been much more willing to implement the results of basic research in applications and turn them into successful innovations in cooperation with the business

What Germany Must Do to Develop a Culture of Innovation

Magnetic Mission Together with researchers from the Helmholtz Association, Siemens is working on magnetic resonance imaging techniques for the early diagnosis and treatment of cancer, cardiovascular problems and neurological disorders.

eople are living longer and longer — a welcome development. But as the average life span increases, so too does the number of dementia patients. It is therefore all the more important to advance our understanding of the brain in both its normal and pathological states. One of the top sites for such studies is the Jülich Research Center in Germany, where scientists are engaged in investigations of the brain. Jülich is one of four research centers of the Helmholtz Association with which Siemens works in the healthcare sector. In the future, researchers at Jülich will be able to penetrate even deeper into the secrets of the brain — thanks to state-of-the-art imaging from Siemens. Beginning in the fall of 2008, a “microscope” like no other in the world will allow detailed views inside the human head. The device combines an extraordinarily powerful 9.4 tesla magnetic-resonance imaging (MRI) machine with a positron emission tomography (PET) scanner. “With our new machine, we will be able to pinpoint pathological tissue and structural changes in the brain to within 50 micrometers. Functional analyses will also be possible,” says Professor N. Jon Shah, director at the Institute for Neurosciences and Biophysics at Jülich and leader of the Brain Imaging Physics group. The two constituent systems of this unique, large-scale machine have different advantages. With the extremely strong magnetic field of the MRI scanner, the resolution of the images is increased by a factor of 2.5 relative to a model with 1.5 tesla (see Pictures of the Future, Fall 2005, pp. 62, 86). The PET scanner, on the other hand, can make brain

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

activities and metabolic processes visible, which allows inferences to be made about the receptor density of the nerve cells and tumor tissue. “Better insight into pathological changes in the brain could help delay the progress of diseases like Alzheimer’s by years through early administration of medications, for example,” says Shah. By the end of 2008, the system will provide the first test images. The first patient will be scanned in early 2009. Siemens hopes to derive considerable benefit from the partnership as well. “The project will help clarify whether there are new applications for MRI scanners and the combination of MRI and PET — such as in research on Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, and in oncology,” says Dr. Robert Krieg, who is responsible for business development of MRI technology at Siemens Healthcare. Powerful Tool Aids Cancer Research. Like the Jülich Research Center, the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) in Heidelberg belongs to the Helmholtz Association. As part of a strategic alliance between the DKFZ and Siemens, a prototype 7-tesla MRI machine was built — the most powerful machine ever used in cancer research. Among the objectives of the research is to identify tumors earlier and achieve better control of the treatment process. In the examination of tumors, DKFZ researchers want to determine not only their shape and size — morphology, in other words — but also information about their micro-environments. How well is a tumor supplied with blood vessels? How can it best be treated using radiotherapy? What clues do spectroscopic analyses give us re-

Since 2005, Prof. Jürgen Mlynek, 57, has been president of the Helmholtz Association, the largest scientific organization in Germany, with 26,500 employees in 15 research centers and an annual budget of 2.4 billion euros. Mlynek, who holds a doctorate in physics, was previously president of Humboldt University in Berlin, which he developed into a leading German university. From 1996 to 2001, he was Vice President of the German Research Foundation. Prior to becoming involved in research management, Mlynek taught and carried out research for ten years in experimental quantum optics, nuclear physics and surface physics. As a scientist, he has authored over 240 publications and holds several patents. He has also received a number of scientific awards.

Mlynek: In general, there is still no actual culture of innovation practiced at German universities and research institutes. As far as innovation and the transfer of technology and expertise goes, Germany has a mindset problem. Not all scientists are aware that findings in the lab could be intellectual property worth protecting. But applying for and publishing a patent must be an integral component of the culture of innovation. And unlike in the U.S., many researchers here are reluctant to form a company. There is more entrepreneurial spirit in the U.S., partly for historical reasons. After all, it was largely people with entrepreneurial spirit who immigrated to the land of unlimited opportunity. And that remains true today. The U.S. system is simply more dynamic. Can you give an example of this? Mlynek: Take clean technology, for example (see Pictures of the Future, Spring 2008, p. 22). Scientists, business people and providers of venture capital created a tight-knit cluster in Silicon Valley in California. At its core, this cluster is made up of top universities, surrounded by both small and large companies, plus an adequate amount of financial resources. As far as venture capital investments go, no region in the world achieves even approximately the orders of magnitude of Silicon Valley. Nevertheless, business-university and venture capital clusters are developing in other places, such as the Munich biotech cluster...

community. So now and then, I’m surprised that German firms are still seeking their fortune in partnerships with foreign organizations. Policy makers surely have a role to play… Mlynek: Yes, and with its “High-Tech Strategy,” the Federal Government has reacted appropriately and laid some good groundwork for forging better links between science and business — with the aim of optimizing the transfer of research results into practical applications. In the associated Industry-Science Research Alliance, leading members of the business community — Siemens is represented by Professor Hermann Requardt — the scientific community and the political sphere are working together to implement the strategy in the form of concrete projects. The creation of a highly-developed innovation network is crucial in this regard. Incidentally, the Helmholtz Association has been cultivating such a network for a long time now. We’re currently engaged in over 2,000 cooperative projects with industry. In what ways are you working with Siemens? Mlynek: We’ve been working with Siemens for years in research related to healthcare, energy, key technologies, transport and aerospace. We’ve come to know Siemens as a partner we can work with over long periods on arduous projects, particularly in the field of medical technology (p. 80). But the partnership is bearing fruit in the field of energy too.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Research Partnerships | Imaging Technologies

| Venture Capital

garding its metabolism? “With conventional equipment, resolution is usually two to three millimeters for morphological studies,” says Professor Wolfhard Semmler from the Medical Physics department in Radiology at DKFZ. “The new 7-tesla MRI machine will probably deliver a resolution of less than one millimeter.” This higher resolution will not only make the search for metastases easier, but will also allow physicians to determine a tumor’s level of malignancy with greater precision — based on information regarding its vascular tree, for instance. The first test subject will be examined by the end of the year. “We want to see how 7-tesla MRI can be used in the diagnosis of tumor conditions,” says Franz Schmitt, head of Ultra-High-Field Imaging and Collaboration Management at Siemens Healthcare. “Our partnership with DKFZ should help to indicate the applications in which higher field strength has advantages.” In addition, Siemens hopes to obtain insights into sequences and protocols for hospital practice, such as information about which measurement parameters are optimal for diagnostics. “At the moment, the 7-tesla MRI prototype is still a purely scientific instrument. However, through the partnership, we intend to turn it into a product in a few years,” says Schmitt.

For example, the solid oxide fuel cell was optimized in collaboration with the Jülich Research Center. And at the moment, Siemens and the German Aerospace Center are testing the combined operation of a fuel cell and a gas turbine. By 2010 they will be linked, and by 2012 construction of a demonstration power plant will begin (see Pictures of the Future, Spring 2007, p. 96). In another project that is being funded by Siemens, the Helmholtz Center in Potsdam is testing CO2 sequestration (see Pictures of the Future, Spring 2008, p. 40). Helmholtz is an interesting partner for Siemens. After all, we’re active in all fields, from renewable energies to efficient power generation and conversion. How can the science-to-industry transfer be strengthened in Germany? Mlynek: A lot has been done in the last few years. Today, there are about 100 transfer specialists working in the 15 Helmholtz centers, and they provide professional processing of scientific results, inventions and technologies. This also includes the search for cooperation partners. Our experts support spin-offs and also keep proprietary rights in view. So far, this approach has proven to be a success. In 2006, we had seven spin-offs. Each year, our people are responsible for 400 patent applications and about 400 licensing agreements. How important is basic research at this point for Germany as a business location? Mlynek: Very important. It’s the basis for innovations. But the greatest asset that we produce, as it were, for Germany is highly-trained young people. The Helmholtz Association attaches great importance to supporting young researchers and has thus developed a strategy that encourages the younger generations at all educational levels. It begins with the “House of Young Researchers,” an initiative involving Siemens. This particular program aims to get kindergartners interested in technology and science. In addition, we currently employ about 4,000 doctoral candidates — some of the leading minds of tomorrow. What are your hopes for the year 2015? Mlynek: That we no longer have to say that too few young people are going into engineering and the natural sciences. And especially, that we’re in a position where 50 percent of the first-year students for these subjects are women. I hope that’s not just wishful thinking. Interview by Ulrike Zechbauer.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Cylex scientists are working on a new test that will make it possible to measure a patient’s immune system activity.

bacteria) resulting in the activation of the cells and the increased production of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) in T-lymphocytes. ATP transports energy for many body processes and can thus help measure T-lymphocytel activity. After an incubation period of up to 18 hours, tiny magnetic spheres coated with antibodies are added to the blood. On the T-lymphocytes is a CD 4 receptor molecule, which docks with the antibodies. The T-lymphocytes that are enriched with ATP can now be extracted from the blood sample with the help of a magnetic field. The ATP inside the cell is then released and mixed with luciferin (a substrate) and luceriferase (an enzyme), generating a luminescent reaction. This reaction emits light, with the intensity depending on the concentration of ATP in the solution. This means that the more ATP a sample contains, the brighter it will shine, enabling the assay to measure the activation of Tlymphocytes and doctors to gauge the immune system’s activity. “Our ability to tell how well the immune system is functioning is revolutionary,” says Brad L. Stewart, President of Cylex. “It’s also novel to cause the reaction to take place in a whole blood sample so that the processes occurs as if in a patient’s body. In addition to focusing on making the procedure cheaper and faster, we have two other development aims,” says Stewart. “For one thing, we have so far primarily focused on immune cells with CD 4 receptors, but there are also cells that have many other types of receptors, such as B-lymphocytes, that are part of the body’s adaptive immune system. Additionally, the functionality of the immune system is critical for many areas outside of transplant medicine such as HIV, hepatitis C, cancer, and autoimmune disorders,” he says. The total market for the technology is around $1.8 billion. Siemens Venture Capital (SVC) invested in Cylex in March 2007, because of the company’s interest in diagnostics and its unique concept of

New Hope for Organ Transplants A blood test developed by Cylex Inc. can help determine how well a patient’s immune system is functioning. Siemens Venture Capital has invested in the company.

Improvements in PET (color images) and MRI scans (black and white images) are making it possible to diagnose disorders like Alzheimer’s at an earlier stage.

Metabolic Problems. Ground is also being broken by scientists at the Max Delbrück Center (MDC) for Molecular Medicine in Berlin-Buch, Germany. In September 2008, Siemens supplied the center for experimental and clinical research with a 7-tesla MRI machine intended primarily for research into cardiovascular illnesses, the first use of such a machine for this purpose anywhere. MDC scientists want to obtain new insights into heart attacks and strokes. To this end, small animals are being examined in a special 9.4-tesla MRI machine. The researchers change their genome and then use MR spectroscopy to determine the effects of this change on the animals’ metabolism. From these insights, they hope to better understand the genetic causes of metabolic problems in humans. The 7-tesla MRI machine is expected to be operational by early 2009. Another research partnership, this one between Siemens and the Association for Heavy Ion Research in Darmstadt, has resulted in establishment of the Heidelberg Ion Beam Therapy Center (HIT). At the HIT, cancer patients will be bombarded with atomic nuclei — heavy ions — from a particle accelerator (see Pictures of the Future, Spring 2004, p. 36 and Fall 2007, p. 33). Such beams release their energy in a narrowly defined region of the body, allowing precision treatment of conditions such as spinal column tumors. The HIT will likely be used for radiotherapy for the first time in the fall of 2008; full-capacity operation is scheduled for the second half of 2009. Christian Buck

ollowing a transplant, there is always a risk that the recipient’s immune system might reject the donor organ. Although progress has been in this area with medications, the latter also reduce the body’s ability to combat pathogens. Doctors must thus give patients just enough medication to ensure that the new organ won’t be rejected while retaining enough of the body’s resistance to viruses and bacteria. Doing so is complicated because so far it hasn’t been possible to determine the state of a patient’s immune system. Although simply counting the number of T-lymphocytes (white blood cells that support an immune response) in a blood sample has often been used, this approach doesn’t reveal how actively the cells can combat pathogens. In fact, 100 very active lymphocytes might function more effectively than 1,000 sluggish ones. To address this problem, Cylex Inc. in Columbia, Maryland, developed the world’s first FDA-cleared clinical diagnostic test to determine how well a patient’s cellular immune system functions. Cylex’s current assay, ImmuKnow, involves adding phytohemagglutinin (pha), a lectin extract from red beans, to a blood sample. In a complex series of biochemical reactions, this substance acts as an immune stimulant (like viruses or

cell-mediated immunity. “We are committed to personalized medicine in which treatment is tailored to the patient,” says Anupendra Sharma, Investment Partner at SVC, and an Observer on the Cylex Board of Directors. “To achieve this goal we will need products that make it possible to test the effectiveness of medication that suppresses the immune system. Cylex’ technology ideally supplements our own developments.” Sharma points to many ways in which Siemens Healthcare could work with Cylex, ranging from the development of automated processes to providing support for the international marketing of its product. After its success in the U.S. — over 125 transplant centers are using the assay — Cylex has now expanded into Europe and Asia. In Germany, the ImmuKnow assay is being used by labs at the universities in Göttingen and Bochum. The test has also been introduced at key labs in Italy and Spain. Its prospects are extremely good, since it helps provide better healthcare. For example, morbidity in organ transplantation is severe and post-transplant expected life span is only two to five years. A tool such as ImmuKnow, which helps physicians more effectively manage these patients, is a welcome and valuable addition. Bernhard Gerl

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Early Detection of Diseases

| Scenario 2020

Highlights 89

The Future of Medical Imaging Research is shedding light on the early detection and treatment of a variety of diseases — and providing new ways of integrating image-related information.

Battling Breast Cancer Advances in digital mammography — including a new 3D imaging process called tomosynthesis — are making it possible to catch previously invisible tumors.

104 Patterns in the Puzzle In conjunction with Siemens, medical researchers in eastern Germany are sifting through data from one of the world’s most comprehensive surveys. Their goal is to gain insights into the origins and treatments of the most common diseases. 106 Answers in the Blood Researchers are discovering ever more disease-associated biomarkers, thus improving the chances of early detection. Biomarker-based blood tests could eliminate the need for some biopsies and help to monitor patients’ therapies 111 New Vistas in Diagnostics Siemens’ Dimension Vista is an automated laboratory systems that performs previously sequential tests in parallel. It can analyze 200 samples and perform 1,500 measurements every hour.

2020

A sensor implanted in Dr. Fernandez’ earlobe can detect many disease-associated bio-

No Cause for Alarm Dr. Fernandez has early-stage Alzheimer’s disease and prostate cancer. Cause for alarm? Not really. By 2020 extremely early detection technologies and a combination of lab tests and smart imaging may make it possible to treat both conditions rapidly, painlessly and effectively without surgery.

markers — providing early warning of major illnesses. It has just sent a message to Fernandez via his PDA, telling him to contact his physician. A PET-MR scan confirms the device’s finding: early-stage prostate cancer. During treatment, a physician uses an infrared dye to make the cancer cells visible, thereby facilitating complete removal.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

hings sure have changed since the old days when I was in med school. Of course, that shouldn’t surprise me since I’ve been a podiatrist (yes, I’ve seen a lot of feet!) for over 40 years. But things have a way of looking different when you become a patient yourself. About five years ago I had a biosensor installed in the lower lobe

of my right ear. It was so small it was actually injected into the tissue. If you look carefully, you can see its combined computer-receiver-transmitter, which looks like an amethyst ear bead. Doctor said it would detect biomarkers for a slew of diseases — cancers, atherosclerosis, Alzheimer’s, you name it! Early detection was

the idea. All I had to do was use a mobile phone regularly. Phone sends a signal to the sensor, and the sensor downloads a mini report to a program in the phone: this is O.K., that’s O.K., you know. Well, anyway, couple of months ago, it said things were not O.K. “Contact your physician immediately,” the message read.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Early Detection of Diseases | Scenario 2020

Siemens’ vision of healthcare is based on the inte-

| Trends

gration of diagnostic information from every level of the body — from DNA and proteins to cells and the entire organism. The goal is personalized care.

So I did. Over at the local community hospital, Dr Pelzer downloaded a description of the findings from my phone. “Looks like you got a double whammy, Fred. System’s discovered early signs of Alzheimer’s and prostate cancer,” he said. “Let’s find out what this is all about.” After a quick series of blood tests confirmed my sensor’s findings, I was given an injection of two compounds, one that combined a positron-emitting (PET) radioisotope with a molecule designed to latch onto Alzheimer’s plaque, and another that combined a PET isotope with a molecule that hooks up with thymidine — a building block of DNA. “If there are any malignant cells in your body,” said Pelzer as I slid into position in a PET-MR scanner, “they’ll absorb the thymidine much faster than any normal cell and light up in the scan.” The next day I received an encrypted v-mail from Pelzer’s office that had been produced and sent by his hospital’s information system. “Dear Mr. Fernandez,” it said, “As you know, the information from your biosensor was confirmed by blood tests. Our scan then localized early-stage Alzheimer’s-related plaque as well as an earlystage malignancy in your prostate. Your Alzheimer’s disease (AD) condition can be controlled using the following medication... which is now available at the following pharmacies... We suggest a follow-up imaging test in the next two weeks to ensure that the medication is working. With regard to your prostate condition, we recommend treatment at the following medical center... If you would like to have your electronic patient record brought to the attention of a specialist at that center, press ‘Agree,’ and you will be contacted for an appointment.” “Sure I agree,” I muttered to myself as I pressed the virtual button on the screen. Within seconds, a return mail popped up. “Thank you for contacting our medical center. We have carefully reviewed your patient record and have made the following appointment for you...” It was a blisteringly hot August afternoon when I arrived at the Medical Center. Thanks to the hospital’s advanced information management system, I already knew what to expect. Information downloaded to my PDA guided me along a maze of corridors to the Center’s Integrated Visualization and Treatment Section. Minutes later, following administration of a mild tranquilizer and a local anesthetic, I was ensconced in a surgical device called a “Magnaviewer” that softly clamped around my lower torso. Dr. Pike, a specialist in genitourinary oncology, introduced himself. “I’ll be your master of ceremonies today,” he said jokingly. “We’ll have you back in business in no time.” Since I had told him that, out of professional interest, I would like to follow the procedure as

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

it took place, Pike explained every step. The Magnaviewer, he said, had access to the relevant 3D section of my PET-MR scan, which was superimposed on a real-time view of the surgical area. Using ultrasound to find its precise anatomical bearings in the context of the virtual MR image, the machine — guided by Dr Pike — inserted a needle-thin flexible endoscope through my lower abdomen. Outfitted with its own visible light nano-vision device, the needle followed a pre-calculated, optimized path to the cancerous area. After a few minutes I heard Pike saying, “We’re right in there now where the MR shows the cancer cells. But to find out more about those cells, I’m going to give those little guys a special infrared dye that only they can absorb.” I heard him give the machine a voice command. “There,” he said a moment later. “They’re lighting up like a Christmas tree. You could spot ‘em a mile away!” He explained that the endoscope was capable of producing a spectrum of wavelengths and simultaneously reading the reflectance of cells that had absorbed the dye. “There’s a lot of information in that infrared light,” he said. “Oxy- and deoxy-hemoglobin concentrations, water and lipid content. That kinda thing. It all goes into your file to help us zero in on the best treatment. But it also goes into a database that helps to fine tune our interpretation of what we see in MR images,” he said. The next step was supposed to be treatment — not an easy step since, according to the 3D MR scan, the cancerous cells had wrapped themselves around what might be a nerve, making even microsurgery risky. In spite of the feeling of invulnerability conferred by the tranquilizer, I felt a twinge of nervousness at this point. “Now don’t ‘ch worry” said Pike, reassuringly. “We’ve got a contrast substance here that homes in on nerve cells. “There,” he said with satisfaction as he injected it, drawing out the sound. “Now we see it. Sure as heck is a nerve.” “Tell you what we’re going to do now,” he said. And he explained that the wavelength analysis of the cancer cells had been matched to a database of therapeutic substances that could be combined with nanoparticles that...” Somewhere along the way through Pike’s description, I must have drifted off into a light doze. By the time I woke up I had been given a shot of molecules designed to be absorbed specifically by my cancer cells — and put them out of business. “You’re all set,” said Pike, slapping me on the shoulder as I headed for the door, still a little groggy. A week later I came back for a follow-up MR. The cancer cells were gone. All I could say to that was that things sure have changed since the old days when I was in med school. Arthur F. Pease

In Vitro Diagnostics

Cellular Diagnostics

Microscopic world

In Vivo Diagnostics Macroscopic world

DNA molecule Organism Cells and cellular tissue

Proteins

Organs

From

Molecules to Man

From genes and proteins to cells, tissues and our entire organism, scientists are in the process of piecing together a systems view of how we work. As they do so, they are linking the results of laboratory tests to diagnostic images, injecting the resulting knowledge into advanced decision-support systems, and devising strategies for early detection and targeted treatments.

n immense puzzle is being assembled. It begins with the genes and proteins that activate, accelerate, brake and shut down cascades of processes throughout our bodies. It goes on to include entire cells and the complex communities that form individual tissues. And it embraces the more familiar world of organs and organisms, attempting to differentiate, in each of its countless pieces, what is normal from what is not. In short, the “puzzle” is what scientists call systems biology. It is an integrated vision of everything from molecules to man, and it is — through our growing understanding of fundamental biological mechanisms — the key to the early detection of diseases. Like the holistic vision driving systems biology itself, Siemens Healthcare is moving steadily toward a form of informational integration that is designed to eventually bring all the pieces of the puzzle together. As it does so, it is riding the crests of fast-moving waves of change in medical imaging technologies (see p. 89), in vitro diagnostics (see pp. 100, 111), medical informatics (see p. 104), and a vast range of applications, including early detection of breast and metastatic cancers (see p. 95), prostate cancer (see p. 109), and disease-associated biomarkers (see p. 106).

Says Bernd Montag, CEO of Siemens Healthcare’s Imaging and IT Division, “Our unique advantage is embodied in the combination of molecular diagnostics and imaging, together with our advanced information and workflowenabled systems. These systems integrate the information from different in vitro and in vivo modalities, and, together with patient-specific data, transform information into knowledge that the clinician can leverage for optimized care. The true potential of this knowledge is that it will help to enable personalized medicine.” By acquiring Diagnostic Products Corporation, Bayer Diagnostics, and, most recently, Dade Behring, Siemens Healthcare has not only become “the world leader in the $32 billion (€20 billion) in vitro diagnostics (IVD) industry,” says Donal Quinn, CEO of Siemens Healthcare’s Diagnostics Division, but has magnified the power of its spectrum of imaging modalities. To understand what the synergistic potential of in vitro and in vivo diagnostics is in combination with advanced IT, consider the fact that an increasing number of blood tests may soon be linked to imaging information. For instance, most major illnesses, ranging from cancers to cardiovascular and neurological diseases can — at least in principle — be detected

through blood tests. That’s because diseased cells produce proteins that are substantially different from those manufactured by physiologically normal cells. These proteins migrate to the surfaces of cells, where they are eventually washed away into the blood. “If you can detect these proteins — also known as biomarkers — with blood tests, then the next step is to figure out how to localize the source of that biomarker with imaging — and evaluate it with IT,” explains Walter P. Carney, PhD, Head of Oncogene Diagnostics, Inc. of Cambridge, Massachusetts, a part of Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics. “What we want to do is to combine circulating biomarkers with imaging biomarkers to be able to visualize pathologies sooner and understand them in vivo. This will lead to uniting early detection technologies with personalized, targeted therapies — in short, connecting the dots between the worlds of in vitro and in vivo information.” And that’s what’s happening. At Siemens’ Biomarker Research facility in Los Angeles, for instance, researchers are beginning to redefine healthcare by developing imaging biomarkers that may be able to zero in on specific atherosclerotic lesions known as “vulnerable plaques” — those most likely to rupture, thus causing a

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Early Detection of Diseases | Trends

An operation first performed at Boston’s Beth Israel

| Imaging

Deaconess Medical Center this summer marked the clinical introduction of a new optical imaging technology that promises to detect cancer cells early.

stroke or heart attack. Such lesions are thought to be one of the major underlying causes of emergency room admissions worldwide. Expected to enter human trials in coming months at a major medical center in Los Angeles, the new imaging biomarkers hold great promise because, says Hartmuth Kolb, PhD, Vice President of Siemens Molecular Imaging Biomarker Research, “what we see as physical stenoses with angiography aren’t necessarily the vulnerable plaques. The vulnerable ones are essentially hidden. But with this new technology we hope to learn how to see them.” In this case, the imaging biomarkers, which are designed to bind specifically to proteins produced by vulnerable plaques, are being imaged with Siemens’ new HD (high definition) PET-CT (positron emission tomography / computed to-

sels to release targeted nanoparticles that would zero in on vulnerable plaques and be visualized by means of optical infrared imaging,” he says. Treatment might then involve an injection of nanoparticles carrying a therapeutic agent that would specifically target the cells in vulnerable atherosclerotic tissues. Worlds of Information. Nowhere is the complexity of the healthcare puzzle or the scope of the molecules-to-man vision more evident than in its information technology dimension. It is here that the results of billions of increasingly automated in vitro tests are merging with pa-

Research now in the pipeline could lead to development of chips capable of detecting predispositions to many diseases.

Cancer: An Example of How Early Diagnosis Cuts Costs Disease progression

Genetic predisposition

First mutations

Costs

Cancer starts

Cancer releases markers

15%

Cancer grows

Metastasis 80%

The earlier cancer is detected, the lower its associated costs will be.

Siemens Offers Solutions for all Phases of Treatment Comprehensive, workflow-oriented IT Prevention and early detection

Accurate diagnosis In vitro diagnostics (IVD)

In vivo diagnostics (imaging)

mography) scanner. Once vulnerable plaques can be pinpointed with these technologies, the resulting information might be mapped onto future angiography exams, allowing cardiologists to stent dangerous areas, thus preventing potentially unstable atherosclerotic lesions from rupturing and occluding arteries. An even more advanced treatment scenario is offered by Dr. Mukesh G. Harisinghani (see interview, p. 93), director of the Clinical Discovery Program at the Center for Molecular Imaging Research at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH). He points out that magnetic nanoparticles developed at MGH “can be tagged to identify specific types of receptors on the cells that form vulnerable plaques.” With this in mind, he foresees the evolution of angiography to include “a small catheter that Siemens is already developing that would be inserted into high-risk ves-

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

“It brings a patient’s longitudinal clinical information, such as past illnesses and history, and most current data, such as vital signs, meds, and test results to the physician’s fingertips in the form of a Web-based electronic patient record,” says Workflow and Solutions CEO Tom Miller (see p. 6). “What’s more,” he says, “as we enter the era of personalized and predictive medicine, such systems will also include genetic predisposition and other information that will alert and guide physicians in determining preventive measures, watchful observation, earlier diagnosis and the most appropriate treatments.” Many Soarian functions will eventually be

Personalized therapy

Ongoing care

tient data and being mined for knowledge creation. It is here that established modalities such as CT, MR, and PET are merging with each other (PET-CT, PET-MR) and with new technologies such as optical imaging to create even more exact information. And it is here that the intersection of biomarkers and an expanding universe of magnetic nanoparticles, radioactive tracer materials, and fluorescent molecules is set to unleash a revolution in early disease detection. How will organizations ultimately be able to focus all of this information in ways designed to intuitively support a physician’s decision-making process at the point of care? Probably the most advanced infrastructure now available in this area is Soarian, Siemens’ healthcare workflow engine. Across the board, from administration to clinical management, Soarian integrates information and presents it logically to clinicians.

powered by Siemens’ patented Remind platform (see Pictures of the Future, Spring, 2008, pp. 89, 92). Designed to dynamically integrate a patient’s imaging, lab and genetic results with those from patients with similar conditions, Remind is expected to aid physician decision making and help in the early detection of diseases. Like rivers pouring into a reservoir, data from many sources will flow together in tomorrow’s Soarian-Remind environments. For instance, in the context of a European Unionfunded program called Health-e-Child (see Pictures of the Future, Spring 2007, p. 72) Siemens researchers are using commerciallyavailable gene chips “to search for DNA changes that are associated with childhood brain cancers,” says Dan Fasulo of the Integrated Data Systems Department at Siemens Corporate Research (SCR) in Princeton, New Jersey. “Eventually,” he says, “the results will lead to development of a chip designed to detect genetic predispositions to many childhood diseases.” As researchers learn to detect such mutations and begin to develop strategies for visualizing and treating associated diseases, the resulting knowledge will be transformed into algorithms and will flow into the decisionsupport environment, where all children will benefit from the results. “Health-e-Child is about assembling the knowledge base for early detection of a range of pediatric diseases,” says Paul Camuti, President of SCR. “It is one of many systems that are helping us to put different pieces of a complex puzzle together to discover what combinations of diagnostics and therapeutics result in the best outcomes. This represents a fundamental transition from the trial-and-error treatments of the past to the knowledge-based diagnostics of the future.” Arthur F. Pease

The Future of Medical Imaging Medical imaging is helping to detect diseases earlier than ever before. On tap are infrared-based systems that pinpoint abnormal tissues and cells, blood tests that detect traces of cancer proteins, research that is zeroing in on imaging the first signs of Alzheimer’s, and strategies for accelerating the process of discovering new drugs.

athed in the glow of a parabolic surgical reflector, the small tumor and its associated lymph nodes were invisible. A previous magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan indicated the exact location of the cancer. The question now was which — if any — among the 30 lymph nodes in the patient’s breast, was most likely to have been seeded with cells from the

patient’s primary tumor? The surgeon was about to find out. Pressing firmly against the patient’s skin until she felt the tumor, the surgeon injected a fluorescent liquid into the growth. As she did so, a new imaging system known as Fluorescence-Assisted Resection and Exploration (FLARE) designed by John V. Frangioni, M.D.

PhD that employs unique medical image fusion and visualization software from Siemens, combined a visible light image of the area of interest with an image of the invisible infrared light reflected from the fluorescent substance. The image appeared in real time on a nearby color monitor. The result was a clearly visible concentration of brightness at the tumor as well as

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Early Detection of Diseases | Imaging

a river of light moving from it beneath the skin. Following the tumor’s otherwise unknowable drainage path, the river flowed into a nearby lymph node. If any cancer cells had managed to migrate from the tumor, that’s where they would be. Within minutes the surgeon had resected both the tumor and the glowing lymph node, knowing that in all likelihood she had detected and removed any stray cancer cells at the earliest possible moment and had spared the pa-

saturation, hemoglobin and water concentrations in tissues, long before any anatomical or structural changes are visible to a surgeon’s eye.” Such a powerful tool could have far-reaching consequences. By providing feedback within just a few hours regarding a tumor’s response to a new medication, for instance, in vivo optical imaging could inexpensively accelerate and personalize drug testing as well as patient treatment.

Optical processes can detect physiological anomalies long before anatomical changes are visible. tient what would otherwise have been major surgery. The operation, which was first performed at Boston’s Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) in July, 2008, marked the clinical introduction of the FLARE imaging system created by Frangioni. Designed to detect the location of so-called “sentinel” lymph nodes — those into which a tumor drains directly and that are therefore most likely to harbor any cancer cells that may have migrated from the tumor — Fluorescence-Assisted Resection and Exploration is one of the first applications of the emerging field of optical imaging, a domain that promises to shed new light on shallow-tissue pathologies. “FLARE in particular, and optical imaging in general hold the potential of detecting the locations of cancer cells before they have a chance of colonizing distant tissues,” says Frangioni (see interview, facing page), an associate professor of medicine at BIDMC and inventor of the FLARE imaging system, which uses a software platform developed by Siemens Corporate Research (SCR). He adds that, because FLARE makes the exact location of many shallow-tissue pathologies immediately evident, it could significantly cut the time for such procedures. “This could add up to significant savings, because operating room time typically costs $40 to $50 per minute,” he says. A Spectrum of Applications. Frangioni and SCR associates Fred Azar, PhD and Ali Khamene, PhD, point out that fluorescent detection of sentinel lymph nodes is just the beginning. “In addition to detecting anatomical connections between tumors and lymph nodes as is currently the case with FLARE, optical systems can detect a spectrum of physiological processes that are indicative of cancer,” says Khamene. “These include changes in oxygen

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

| Interview

How do surgeons know which lymph nodes need to be taken out when resecting a tumor? Frangioni: Lymph nodes are the body’s first line of defense, and are the most likely place for cancer cells to migrate from a primary tumor. The problem is that until now there was no way of knowing which lymph nodes were at highest risk. This is the reason why surgeons prefer to resect all likely nodes. Take breast cancer, for instance. There are around 30 lymph nodes in a woman’s armpit. What the surgeon wants to know before removing the tumor itself is: which of these 30 nodes the tumor drains into directly. If you can identify those so-called sentinel nodes — and a

ture because it will provide immediate feedback as to a tumor’s response to chemotherapy.” Bye-Bye Biopsies? For all its promise, optical imaging is not a panacea. Because it is based on light, it is currently limited to applications involving shallow tissues or open incisions. “In other words, the challenge,” says Frangioni, “is to miniaturize optical imaging tools to the point that they can be used in the endoscopic environment — the large intestine and bronchi, for instance — while at the same time developing IR-visible chemicals that make tumor cells visible even if they look normal to the naked eye.”

Detecting Cancer Cells with Light

FLARE combines visible light (top left) and infrared (top right) into a single, perfectly registered image (bottom left) to show the path connecting a primary tumor with a neighboring lymph node (bright spot).

With this in mind, SCR researchers are working with the Beckman Laser Institute at the University of California at Irvine to develop a novel software imaging platform for a handheld laser and broadband diffuse optical spectroscopy probe that would work in much the same way as does an ultrasound transducer — but with light instead of sound. The device “would be applied directly to the surface of the breast, where it will emit light at many wavelengths and analyze diffuse reflectance, enabling the quantification of intrinsic physiological properties such as oxy- and deoxy- hemoglobin concentration, or water and lipid content,” says Azar. “This is a promising application for the fu-

Although these goals will take at least five years to achieve, Frangioni has already come up with the next step in optical imaging: the development of a completely novel “automated microscope” — a device that combines imaging in the near infrared (NIR) part of the spectrum with the gold standard in pathology: H&E (hematoxylin and eosin) staining. The staining procedure is used by histopathology labs in determining a wide range of tissue characteristics. The resulting information supports optimized post-operative patient management. Frangioni’s automated microscope can take a specimen such as a resected prostate, dice it into 1,000 five-micron-thick slices, stain the

John V. Frangioni (44), M.D., PhD, is an Associate Professor of Medicine and Associate Professor of Radiology at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) and Harvard Medical School, in Boston. His academic training includes an Engineering Sciences degree from Harvard College. Frangioni is co-founder of the BIDMC Center for Molecular Imaging and the Longwood Small Animal Imaging Facility. His laboratory is focused on solving clinical problems through the application of advanced engineering and chemistry.

woman typically has two or three per tumor — then you can limit the degree of surgery significantly. Have you developed an imaging system that promises to do that? Frangioni: Yes we have. We call it Fluorescence-Assisted Resection and Exploration — or FLARE for short. It consists of two components. First, you bind a fluorescent substance to human albumin to form a molecule that is just the right size to be caught by lymph nodes. When injected near a tumor while the patient is on the operating table, this substance flows to the tumor’s sentinel lymph nodes and concentrates in them. Within seconds of the injection, the nodes light up on a monitor, allowing the surgeon to see them perfectly. To make them visible, FLARE makes use of two cameras: a color video showing the actual surgical area and a near infrared image that sees only the fluorescent material. A third IR camera is available for more advanced applications. Where does Siemens come into the picture? Frangioni: The key to the clinical use of this technology is the ability to align these images perfectly in real time. And that’s where Siemens comes in. The company has provided this ability with the software they wrote. The acquisition and fusion of images from three separate cameras in real time is a tour de force. From a clinical point of view, this opens up amazing possibilities, such as being able to see the electrical activity of the heart exactly where it takes place.

What knowledge have you gained from your results? Frangioni: Based on our animal studies, we believe we will be able to greatly increase the speed and accuracy of many surgical procedures. But this remains to be proven in clinical trials. Your laboratory has also developed a kind of automated microscope… Frangioni: After a potentially cancerous tissue has been resected it is sent to pathology. But suppose there are only a few cancer cells hidden somewhere inside it. With today’s staining technology alone, you’d never find them. So what we’ve done is to develop a way of analyzing such slides by using a selection of infrared channels that can identify cancer cells by detecting differences in wavelengths associated with abnormal oxygen and water concentrations. And by marrying this invisible IR light with visible light we bring new information — such as the ability to see individual cancer cells in their anatomical context — into the pathology laboratory’s workflow. The machine itself can be loaded with, say, an entire lymph node or prostate in five-micron-thick slices. It digitally assembles the resulting microscopic images into a virtual macroscopic whole that a pathologist can zoom in to, and out of, with a resolution of one micron. This allows the pathologist to assemble a much more precise report for the patient’s attending physician than is possible at present. And that, in turn, helps to ensure more precise treatment management. Does the system learn to recognize the patterns that characterize cancer cells? Frangioni: That’s our goal. A learning algorithm developed by Siemens could potentially grow into a powerful diagnostic decision support tool for pathologists. Imagine a system that supports pathologists by presenting a report to them that allows them to use the stain data they are used to like a Google map to locate nests of cells that have been flagged as potential cancer points. This would result in earlier detection and improved treatment. The automated microscope could also sharpen MR’s ability to detect cancers at an early stage. We are now at the stage where we are detecting cancer cells in histopathology. The next step will be to develop a correlation between this and corresponding MR data. This will tell us what cancer cells look like in MR images. The resulting knowledge may soon make it possible to detect early-stage cancers with MR alone. Interview conducted by Arthur F. Pease

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Early Detection of Diseases | Imaging

slices with an NIR-fluorescent marker substance used in staging cancer cells, and scan the slides with a resolution of one micron at several wavelengths. The microscope’s image processing functions will be driven by a unique software platform now under development by SCR’s Azar and Khamene. “The platform will set the stage for joint analysis of in vitro — microscopic — and in vivo — macroscopic — data,” says Azar, who explains that it will assemble the entire dataset derived from a pathology sample and will spatially fuse it with a corresponding 3D MR image in order to pinpoint the locations of different cancer cell types — something that’s never been done before. “The result,” says Azar, “will be an unparalleled risk analysis tool sup-

as the ultimate early-disease-detection system: a laboratory the size of a pinhead that could be injected into the body and would continuously search for biomarkers indicative of cancer, atherosclerosis, and other major diseases. “We are developing implantable biosensors capable of detecting a spectrum of biomarkers,” says Weissleder. “It will be just like having an alarm system inside your body.” The long-range idea is that when such a system detects a disease biomarker, it will also identify it and wirelessly notify the user. “A blood test might then confirm the presence of the biomarker, and the resulting information would make it possible to sequence the disease protein, copy it, produce monoclonal antibodies from it and use these to carry specialized

Siemens is tapping into companion diagnostics — tests that predict whether a drug will help a specific patient. porting evidence-based decisions regarding follow-up treatments.” What’s more, thanks to advanced learningbased algorithms from Siemens, which will be tested at BIDMC, the new microscope “could automate the detection and classification of tumor cells with a very high level of confidence,” says Azar. “This would push early detection of cancer cells to new heights because no pathology department has the resources to comprehensively analyze biopsy specimens and investigate everything that looks the least bit suspicious,” he points out. In addition, as more and more MR and histopathology datasets are fused, researchers are laying the groundwork for discovering hidden pattern and tissue characterization information in MR images — information that, according to Frangioni and Azar, may soon make it possible to detect early-stage cancers with MR alone. Could this lead to virtual pathology? “Absolutely,” says Azar. Small Worlds — Early Warnings. While magnetic resonance imaging based on histopathology information holds the prospect of earlier, much less expensive and far more exact detection of cancers than is currently possible, a number of other strategies are now being developed that promise to push detection of several major diseases to an even earlier stage. In Boston, at Massachusetts General Hospital’s Center for Molecular Imaging Research (CMIR), for instance, support from Siemens is helping Prof. Ralph Weissleder, who directs the Center (see Pictures of the Future, Spring, 2007, page 74), to develop what he describes

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

substances to a nascent tumor first to visualize it, and then to destroy it,” says Christian P. Schultz, PhD, from Siemens’ Molecular Imaging Division, who heads the company’s Strategic Alliance with the CMIR. These specialized substances could be molecules such as iron oxide nanoparticles that can be imaged with MR, radioactive tracer materials such as fluorine-18 that can be imaged with PET, or fluorescent molecules that can be visualized with optical imaging. “So there are three routes to discovery and they are totally complementary,” says Weissleder. “I believe that each of these technologies will find its niche for specific applications, and that a given patient may wind up being tested with all three.” A Blood Test for Cancer. But before circulating biomarkers can be detected by a futuristic implantable lab or a conventional blood test, these harbingers of disease must be discovered and identified. That’s where Oncogene Science of Cambridge, Massachusetts, a part of Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics, comes in. The lab is renowned for its invention of a patented, FDA-approved blood test — the only blood test that can monitor the level of the HER-2/neu protein. Elevated levels of the protein are associated with aggressive breast cancer and may be a key player in the ability of tumor cells to divide and multiply. Originally limited to the detection of metastatic breast cancer, the HER-2/neu test has been shown to be clinically useful in the detection of primary cancer — an earlier stage of tumor development during which much less of the protein is released into the blood.

| Interview

Because of HER-2/neu’s growing importance as a biomarker for breast cancer — as well as indications that it may have diagnostic value with regard to several other major cancer types — pharmaceutical companies are becoming increasingly interested in working with Siemens to test their new therapeutic drugs. “The reason for their enthusiasm is clear,” says Head of Oncogene Science, Walter P. Carney, PhD. “Instead of having to test thousands of patients to form a purely statistical basis for the efficacy of a breast cancer medication, we have proven with two HER-2/neu-specific cancer drugs that if a woman’s HER-2/neu level is reduced by over 20 percent in response to a medication, she will respond well to that specific drug. This is important because it means that our method allows pharmaceutical companies to get their drugs approved in less time and with fewer patients.” What’s more, by developing tests that can predict whether a medication will work for a specific patient, Siemens could tap into a potentially huge new market known as companion diagnostics. “This is an area in which diagnostics and therapeutics are converging,” explains Lance Ladic, PhD, strategic development manager for healthcare at Siemens Corporate Research. “The idea is that before a drug can be prescribed, a diagnostic test should first be conducted to determine if the patient will respond to it. This is a potential growth area for Siemens and represents an entry point into the lucrative pharmaceutical market, a business with global revenues currently exceeding $600 billion.” Companion diagnostics are also good news for patients, as they enhance selection of optimal therapies and reduce adverse drug reactions. Adverse events cause more than two million hospitalizations and 100,000 deaths annually in the U.S. alone, costing the healthcare system approximately $100 billion, according to the Journal of the American Medical Association. Precisely Targeted Medications. Not only is Siemens advancing the early detection of diseases through biomarker discovery and companion diagnostics, it is also applying much of the resulting knowledge to the development of targeted treatments. “What we want to do is to integrate circulating biomarkers with imaging biomarkers and targeted therapeutic drugs,” says Carney. “For example, we expect the HER2neu test to evolve from a monitoring test for early detection of cancer recurrence — its current status — to an imaging agent that will make it possible to see it in vivo, and finally to medications that can use an HER-2neu-derived monoclonal antibody to target the tumor cells that produced the HER-2neu in the first place.

We’ve been hearing about significant progress in cancer detection and treatment for at least twenty years, yet cancer has stubbornly remained a top killer. Are we finally approaching a turning point thanks to advances in nanoparticle technology? Harisinghani: Nanoparticle technology holds the potential for becoming a turning point in the early detection of cancer metastases once it enters the clinical arena on a daily basis. As with all cancers, the key question is: has it spread — and the first place to look is in nearby lymph nodes. The problem is that today there is no single noninvasive accurate way of seeing whether a cancer has spread to these

The Nanoparticle Toolbox Dr. Mukesh G. Harisinghani has been director of the Clinical Discovery Program at the Center for Molecular Imaging Research and Director of Body MRI, Massachusetts General Hospital, since 2002. He is also Associate Professor of Radiology at the Harvard Medical School. Dr Harisinghani is active in the clinical applications of magnetic nanoparticles.

nodes — except for iron nanoparticles. When injected, these particles concentrate in functionally normal lymph nodes. They do so because macrophages in normal nodes clear impurities from the blood efficiently. Therefore, any circulating magnetic nanoparticles wind up inside these nodes. This information shows us which nodes are not normal because of their lack of nanoparticle uptake. The next step will be to take nanoparticles that are coupled with a therapeutic payload and inject them directly into cancers. In mice, this causes the particles to be carried to the cancer-affected nodes, which destroys not only the primary cancer, but its early metastases. However, we do not know whether such a process will work in humans. What are the prospects for combining magnetic nanoparticles with optical probes? Harisinghani: The prospects are very promising. In the laboratory we can already identify single cells using magneto-optical probes — in other words, a magnetic nanoparticle combined with a fluorescent molecule. Siemens has been actively involved in the basic science behind this development. The company has developed robust imaging systems and is involved in developing the MR-specific workflow processes and associated software. However, there is still a lot to be learned. We have to determine which molecules bind best to which cancers, what kind of light is best for visualizing associated probes, and how close an optical sensor must be in order to see them. These questions are currently in the process of being answered.

Is there such a thing as a molecule that zeros in on any cancer, regardless of location? Harisinghani: Yes, there is — it is a smart probe — a generic magneto-optical nanoparticle that is activated only by enzymes that are present in cancer cells. This probe was developed here by a team led by Dr. Ralph Weissleder (see Pictures of the Future, Spring, 2007, p. 74). Siemens funded some of the associated research and is involved in determining how the information can be visualized. Clinical trials on this new probe will probably commence at the end of this year at a medical center in Philadelphia. It will be the very first optical imaging agent of this type to be used in humans. One very interesting result of this is that optical imaging will probably usher in accelerated testing of new medications, particularly in relation to certain breast and prostate cancers. It has the potential to register very early responses to medications in tumors. And by combining it with magnetic resonance tomography (MR), or positron emission tomography (PET) — or both of these methods — we expect that it will significantly reduce the cost of drug testing. How might such a development change diagnostics and treatment over the next few years? Harisinghani: Optical imaging will open up the possibility of precise surgical intervention. Pathologies will be visualized and localized using positron emission tomography and magnetic resonance imaging and will then be surgically removed using optical fluorescence assistance. Thanks to this development, it will be possible for surgeons to be more accurate than has ever been the case in the past. What’s more, in many cases, no surgery will be necessary because when the light produced by a fluorescent marker that homes in only on cancer cells goes out following targeted medical treatment, it will provide objective proof that the cancer cells really have been successfully treated. In addition, with variations, this scenario will be applicable to many other diseases and most parts of the body. Nanoparticles are like shells. You can coat them with compounds that seek out unique domains. As a result, it is possible to exploit compounds that bind specifically to cancers or inflammations such as atherosclerosis. Here at MGH, we are working on what might be called a library of compounds. So what does all this amount to? In short, we are developing an increasingly comprehensive toolbox for the early detection and treatment of diseases. Interview conducted by Arthur F. Pease

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Early Detection of Diseases | Imaging

Digital mammography accelerates the screening

| Breast Diagnostics

process and delivers high quality images that help to detect cancers early. Breast cancer strikes approximately one out of every eleven women.

We believe Siemens can be a leader in delivering personalized medicine by providing the right diagnostics to the right patients at the right time.” That vision may sound like it’s still miles away. But in Los Angeles, at Siemens’ Biomarker Research lab, researchers have developed a PET-based imaging biomarker that binds to particularly malignant tumors. By doing so, it makes the tumors visible — and reveals them for what they are much sooner than would otherwise be possible. The compound is based on the same biomarker that is used in a blood test developed by Walter Carney’s group in Cambridge. “Together, the blood test and re-

because of their fast replication, radioactivelylabeled FLT is preferentially absorbed by these cells, which results in a bright spot on a PET scan that indicates the location of a malignant tumor. “This work is designed to help diagnose cancers early as well as to monitor response to therapy,” says Kolb. The FLT compound, which is now on its way to a Phase II trial, has already drawn the interest of several pharmaceutical companies, which are using it to evaluate new cancer medications.

XIP — an imaging platform that, for the first time, allows researchers to analyze images from any source.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Turbocharging Imaging Research. As the detection of diseases has moved from organs to cells, our ability to spot pathologies at an earlier stage has progressed steadily. However, research has been hampered by the heterogeneity of the imaging environment where, particularly when it comes to the crucial transi-

A new platform makes it possible to integrate and correlate microscopic and macroscopic imaging data.

Working under a contract from the U.S. National Institutes of Health, specialists at SCR have developed

lated imaging biomarker will be important because they target a protein that is generic for all aggressive cancers,” explains Hartmuth Kolb, PhD, vice president of Siemens Molecular Imaging Biomarker Research. Kolb’s lab, which specializes in developing compounds for PET-based imaging, is also exploring strategies for detecting cell proliferation — a characteristic of all malignant cancers. One such strategy is to attach the positronemitting radioisotope fluorine-18 (F18) to thymidine (a building block of DNA), generating F18-fluorothymidine (FLT), inject it, and image its localization with PET. Since tumor cells synthesize much more DNA than normal cells

will need to develop an early warning test to detect it before it causes irreversible brain damage,” he says.

In addition to its work in early detection and imaging of cancers, Siemens’ Biomarker Research lab is a leader in research related to Alzheimer’s disease. “We are working on the development of PET biomarkers for the detection of Alzheimer’s disease,” says Kolb. “This opens the door to early detection of the disease, and allows objective comparisons of new therapeutic substances.” Kolb is convinced that “in about ten or fifteen years” medical science will have advanced to the position where it can keep Alzheimer’s at bay. “Drugs for controlling it will be developed, and their effectiveness for individual patients will be ascertained with PET imaging. But we

tion from animal models to human testing, formats, data sizes and software are often worlds apart. With this in mind, researchers led by Gianluca Paladini at SCR’s Imaging Architectures Program — working under a contract from the U.S. National Institutes of Health’s Cancer Biomedical Informatics Grid program — developed XIP (Extensible Imaging Platform), an open platform that, for the first time, offers a standardized basis for analyzing images from any source, be it cellular, histopathological, preclinical, or traditional radiology. XIP is made possible by a new, modular plug-in architecture for imaging software that allows thousands of modules to be pieced together to form applications or even entire imaging workflows. This framework supports breakthrough multi-resolution imaging technology developed and patented by Siemens, which makes it possible to integrate and correlate microscopic (for example, in vitro) and macroscopic (for example, in vivo) imaging data. XIP, which is compatible with the international DICOM (Digital Imaging and Communication in Medicine) standard, will allow researchers and clinicians “to effortlessly integrate images from the full spectrum of modalities and developmental environments,” explains Paladini. “XIP is a game changer,” adds Frank Sauer, head of SCR’s Imaging and Visualization Department. “By creating an open, standardized environment for imaging, it will make it possible for a pharmaceutical company to, for instance, offer a new experimental drug with an associated plug-in software model. The software will analyze all the images produced while testing the drug, be they from PET, optical, MR, or other sources. This will lead to much faster analysis of the resulting information, and significantly accelerated drug development times, thus supporting earlier detection of diseases.” Arthur F. Pease

The Battle against Breast Cancer Early detection and diagnosis are crucial in the fight against breast cancer. Major advances in imaging technologies are now making possible more precise examinations that place less stress on patients.

argaret M. is relieved. She’s just had a mammogram, a procedure she doesn’t like and also finds uncomfortable — but she knows there’s no getting around it if she wants to protect herself against breast cancer. According to the World Health Organization, some one million women around the globe are diagnosed with breast cancer each year. The National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Mary-

land has calculated that there are 211,000 new cases per year in the United States alone, while the Robert-Koch Institute in Berlin reports that 47,500 women are diagnosed with the disease each year in Germany. German statistics also indicate that one out of every 11 women in the country will get breast cancer sometime in her lifetime, with women over the age of 55 facing the highest risk (see p. 99).

Nevertheless, the probability of dying of breast cancer is significantly lower today in the Western industrialized nations than it was in the mid-1990s. That’s because sensitive diagnostic procedures such as mammography are making it possible to detect cancers through screenings at an ever-earlier stage, which increases the chances of survival. Mammography, which remains indispensable for early detection, is an

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Breast cancer detection (from L) can include digital

Early Detection of Diseases | Breast Diagnostics

mammography, a biopsy, computer aided detection (CAD), ultrasound based on Automated Breast Volume Scanning (ABVS), and fusion of MRI & PET data.

imaging procedure in which low-energy (socalled “soft”) X-rays are used to produce an image of the breast. Such X-rays yield better images of gland tissue than high-energy radiation. Because layering in dense breast tissue often makes it difficult to identify tumors, doctors generally take two images at different angles — one from above, and the other on a diagonal from the side of the breast. This makes it possible to capture images of the armpit and pectoral area, which is important because most tumors grow in the top outer quarter of the breast, which faces the armpit. A major step forward has now been made with new mammography devices such as Siemens’ Mammomat Inspiration (not available for sale in the U.S.), which is equipped with digital detectors. The first of these innovative mammography platforms are already being used in hospitals in Asia and Europe. “Digital mammographic screening has been shown to deliver better results than analog systems when it comes to women who have dense breast tissue,” says Dr. Thomas Mertelmeier, Head of Innovation Women’s Health at Siemens Healthcare’s Special Systems business unit. Mertelmeier points to a study conducted at 33 breast cancer centers in the U.S. and Canada, the results of which were published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2005.” Reducing Radiation Exposure. Unlike conventional mammographs, which use X-ray film, Siemens’ newest mammography system is equipped with a digital detector that more effectively absorbs X-rays. This means the system can deliver better image quality than other systems without increasing radiation dosage. What’s more, the device uses tungsten as the anode material for the X-ray source. This leads

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

to the creation of a spectrum-adjusted X-ray that isn’t absorbed as intensely by the breast, while at the same time allowing a greater number of X-ray quanta to reach the system’s detector. The result is better image quality in digital mammograms. The reduced level of X-ray absorption also makes it possible to lower the mammography radiation dosage, especially for women with dense breast tissue. Digital mammography offers other advantages in addition to its improved image quality. For instance, it enables images to be viewed on a computer in real time, which opens them up to the world of computer aided detection (CAD) and allows them to be electronically archived and made available within a computer network to any number of participants. 3D Cancer Detection. Digital mammography can be used for both initial screenings and to

Image reconstruction is achieved in a manner similar to the technique used in computed tomography, whereby the images serve as a basis for calculating thin slices of the breast. Various breast tissue positions within these slices are then depicted separately, thereby increasing the potential for detecting anomalies. Three tomosynthesis prototypes are currently being tested at Malmö University Hospital in Sweden, Duke University in North Carolina, and the State University of New York. Swedish breast cancer expert Dr. Ingvar Andersson, who is testing the system in Malmö, says that he is very happy with its preliminary results to date. The New England Journal of Medicine reports that the risk of breast cancer is about five times greater for women with dense breasts than for those women with non-dense tissue. And while mammography remains the method

Digital mammography has set the stage for delivering improved image quality without increasing radiation. re-check an existing diagnosis. However, it reaches its limits with women who have very dense breast tissue, because it cannot detect all tumors through layers of tissue and can lead to false-negative diagnoses. Mertelmeier and his coworkers are therefore working on a new 3D procedure known as breast tomosynthesis (not available for sale in the U.S.), which is being researched to eliminate these disadvantages. With tomosynthesis, the X-ray tube is moved relative to the breast, generating 25 images over the range from +25 to –25 degrees, with a separation of two degrees between any two images.

of choice for breast cancer screening, clinical studies have indicated that performing an additional ultrasound exam may in some cases significantly increase cancer detection in dense breast tissue. According to a 1998 study by T.M. Kolb, the detection rate for non-palpable, invasive cancers increased by 42 percent in women with dense breasts when their mammography was followed by an ultrasound examination. That’s why Malmö University Hospital’s Dr. Andersson would like ultrasound to be added to the standard breast exam protocol for women with dense breast tissue.

syngo MammoCAD marks

ABVS ultrasound scanner

Fusion of sequentially-acquired MR and PET

a suspicious-looking lesion.

reveals breast cyst.

images reveals a two-centimeter lesion.

Jacqueline Bailey, marketing manager at Siemens Healthcare’s Ultrasound Business Unit in Mountain View, California, agrees. In North America and Europe, for instance, about two in five women, and in Asia three in five women, have dense breast tissue. “For these women, ultrasound may provide additional diagnostic information,” says Bailey. Ultrasound is a noninvasive imaging procedure that is free of ionizing radiation and that women usually find to be more comfortable than mammography since it does not require breast compression.

Once the data has been acquired, it is sent to an offline workstation for analysis and reporting. The volume data can be viewed in three different planes — as transverse, sagittal, and coronal sections. The latter, which allows the physician to review breast images along their most anatomically natural direction, runs from nipple to chest wall, and could not previously be represented by conventional ultrasound examinations. The scanner was rolled out for the media in the United States and Europe in fall 2008 and is expected to be available worldwide at the end of 2008. Ultrasound is the standard procedure for evaluating suspicious abnormalities following a mammogram, analyzing lesions, and guiding biopsies. New ultrasound breast imaging technologies make it possible for physicians to gain greater insight into tissue pathologies during diagnostic exams. One such innovation is eSie Touch elasticity imaging, a technology available on Siemens ul-

trasound systems. Elasticity imaging displays the mechanical properties exhibited by tissue. Here, the sonographer gently presses the transducer onto the breast, while the ultrasound system calculates and depicts the stiffness of a lesion. Clinical experience has shown that harder and less mobile lesions are more likely to be malignant.

Automated Imaging. Conventional ultrasound requires a hand-held transducer to manually scan the breast. This technique, however, delivers only a partial view of the breast from a limited number of positions, depending on how the user moves the transducer over the breast. In addition, it can be time-consuming. This is why Siemens set out to innovate this examination by developing a new automated ultrasound system designed specifically for breast scanning: the Acuson S2000 Automated Breast Volume Scanner (ABVS). This system quickly and painlessly surveys and acquires fullfield ultrasound views of the breast. In addition, it provides efficient and comprehensive analysis of the 3D data and facilitates easy, semi-automated reporting. The system consists of a column stand and arm assembly that holds a 15 x 15 centimeter transducer pod specially designed for breast ultrasound. Placed on the breast, it automatically performs the scan, creating 250 to 400 single images. Data acquisition takes only about 60 to 90 seconds, while the entire examination requires anywhere from four to 10 minutes, making it significantly faster than hand-held ultrasound.

High Specificity. Ongoing research, which is being conducted by Richard G. Barr, a professor of radiology at Northeastern Ohio University’s College of Medicine and a radiologist at Southwoods X-ray and MRI in Youngstown, has shown that elasticity imaging offers high specificity. Dr. Barr used Siemens’ real-time, eSieTouch elasticity imaging technology to study 166 lesions identified and scheduled for biopsy in 99 patients. Ultrasound-guided biopsies were performed on 80 patients with 123 lesions. Biopsy showed that elasticity imaging correctly identi-

New Perspective on Breast Imaging? Siemens is involved in an EU-funded project launched in the summer of 2008 with the universities of Erlangen, Germany, Leuven, Belgium, and Rotterdam, Netherlands. The goal of the Erlangen-based project is to develop a specialized device that will allow the breast to be examined using computer tomography (CT). Project researchers are hoping that CT will eliminate the problem of tissue overlapping in layered images. Up until now, conventional CT has not been used for breast cancer screenings because the associated radiation dosage was considered too high. With the new procedure, however, the patient’s breast is passed through an opening in the examination table. An X-ray tube with a detector rotates underneath the table, generating a complete 3D volume image. Plans call for a reduction of the radiation dosage down to mammography levels, while still achieving nearly the same image resolution. If these objectives can be met, the technique could be developed into a standard method in coming years.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

New ultrasound imaging technology is improving

Early Detection of Diseases | Breast Diagnostics

doctors’ ability to evaluate tissue. Elastography, for example, can be used to assess whether a lesion is benign or malignant.

fied all 17 malignant lesions and 105 of 106 benign lesions, resulting in a sensitivity of 100 percent and a specificity of 99 percent. The results of his study are now being verified in several studies in Europe and the U.S. The Role of MRI. Mammography and ultrasound are not the only technologies available for breast cancer screening and diagnosis. Physicians may also opt for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), which requires no exposure to X-rays. The American Cancer Society recommends that women at risk of getting breast cancer due to their genetic history (family history of breast cancer, etc.) should undergo a breast MRI exam every time they go for their annual mammography. This recommendation is based on a 2004 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, which revealed that MRI can detect tumors that do not show up on a mammogram. “MRI is ideal in terms of detecting and depicting new blood vessels,” says Birgit Hasselberg, an oncology product manager at Siemens Healthcare’s Magnetic Resonance division. “Because tumors need new blood vessels

in order to grow, the presence of such vessels can be taken as an indication of a tumor in a very early stage of development,” she adds. In addition to its role in screening, magnetic resonance imaging can also be used in planning surgical operations, monitoring tumor response to treatment over time, and post-operative assessment. Depending on how advanced it is, breast cancer may be limited to the breast itself or have spread to lymph nodes, in which case metastases are possible. Determining the stage of the disease is essential when selecting the proper treatment, which in turn can have a major impact on the patient’s chances of survival. That’s why it’s so crucial to detect the primary tumor at the earliest possible stage and then remove it completely. Magnetic resonance delivers images of the highest resolution that show the precise dimensions and shape of a tumor in its early stages. Because of its precision, the technology is ideal for assisting with the planning of opera-

Diagnosis Ltd. “Without CAD, it’s quite possible for a doctor to miss something.” At the same time, it’s not at all helpful if CAD software sees too much — in other words, places false positive marks on areas without any abnormalities. syngo MammoCAD has a low rate of false positive marks, with approximately 40 percent of normal cases having no marks at all. However, as CAD algorithms continue to advance, performance is expected to further improve. “The ideal situation, of course, would be if the system identified and marked only malignant lesions,” says Stoeckel. syngo MammoCAD identifies masses and clusters of micro-calcifications that warrant a second look from a clinician. Masses are visible in the images as areas of higher density and micro-calcification clusters are visible as areas with white dots representing individual calcifications.

tions and helps to ensure that the entire tumor is detected and removed, thus minimizing the chances of recurrence and helping to prevent spreading. If the cancer has already metastasized, magnetic resonance imaging can be used to take a whole-body scan and to identify the locations of distant tumors. In the near future, magnetic resonance technology will be used in breast spectroscopy devices now being refined by Siemens Healthcare in Erlangen, Germany. The instruments are now being tested in a multi-center study. Magnetic resonance spectroscopy imaging (MRSI) is a non-invasive procedure that can detect metabolic products and biochemical changes in cells. Here, Siemens’ syngo GRACE software reports on the concentrations of the body’s own metabolites, such as choline, in cells. This information enables doctors to draw conclusions regarding cell malignancy. The technique is ideal for monitoring the effectiveness of medication during treatment, as it can document treatment success or lack thereof on

Data that Supports Accurate Decisions. syngo MammoCAD is being continuously enhanced not only with regard to algorithm performance, but also with regard to the scope of clinical decision support. The next stage of software development, for example, will provide doctors with a description of each marking with regard to tumor shape, margins and density. Radiologists already describe lesions in accordance with the BI-RADS Atlas (Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System Atlas) standard that is used for diagnoses. In the future, CAD software will also be able to support this task. “CAD is thus being transformed from computer aided detection to computer aided description,” says Stoeckel, who is already working on the next stage of software development. A first step in this direction has already taken place. Radiologists are now able to use CAD to sort cases according to tissue density,

Without CAD software, doctors who have to evaluate dozens of cases per hour could easily miss a tumor.

The Road to Universal Screening The two houses of parliament in Germany

— the Bundestag and the Bundesrat — passed legislation in 2002 that would allow all female German citizens between the ages of 50 and 69 to obtain free mammography screenings in a practice similar to that already established in Scandinavia. Later, health insurance companies and the German medical association established a cooperative mammography project, which set up five reference centers in 2005. Several of the centers help to ensure nationwide coverage by sending out mobile examination stations in the form of large truck trailers (Mammotrailers). The vehicles con-

the basis of either rising or falling choline concentrations. An alternative procedure is the fusion of sequentially required positron emission tomography (PET) and MR images in which the PET scan depicts glucose metabolism in cells, while the MR image localizes the tumor. Because PET normally cannot function in the presence of magnetic fields, the two procedures are still performed separately in most medical centers. However, initial clinical results at the New York University School of Medicine show that combining PET scans with standard MRI breast scans improves the quality of diagnoses.

which enables them to view and address the most critical ones first. In the future, this decision-support system will work with the Remind platform (see Pictures of the Future, Spring 2008, p. 92) and combine artificial intelligence procedures with huge databases and tremendous computing power. The development of computer aided detection software for breast MRIs is moving in the same direction. “Breast MR CAD will inform users in their own language, meaning the BIRADS Atlas standard, regarding why it marked a particular area,” says Arun Krishnan, head of CAD Research at Siemens IKM CAD & Knowledge Solutions in Malvern, Pennsylvania. Plans also call for additional data such as digital patient records to be incorporated into the system further down the road. “Our overriding goal is to offer patients the best possible solution,” Krishnan explains, “with an emphasis on avoiding unnecessary biopsies.” Breast MR CAD

is currently limited to the realm of pure research at Siemens. When Margaret M. gets her next breast cancer screening test, 3D tomosynthesis will have replaced digital mammography. To ensure no lesions are overlooked, she will also undergo an ultrasound examination with the Automated Breast Volume Scanner. Increasingly sophisticated imaging technology is now making it possible to identify tumors at earlier stages, while modalities such as MRI and PET-MR image fusion are reducing the number of unnecessary biopsies. If a tumor is discovered someday in Margaret M’s breast, advanced CAD software should be able to generate a personalized treatment proposal based on a range of measurement data. And that means that she would have a much better chance of surviving to an advanced age than did her mother, who died of breast cancer when she was still young. Michael Lang

tain a waiting area, an examination room with mammography technology, and a small office. Siemens

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Source: German Federal Statistical Office

examination.

Development of age-specific breast cancer mortality (Comparison of the period 2000–2002 with 1990–1992)

-25 50

-30 -35

0 80 –8 4 85 –1 00

64 percent of all women contacted by the mammography cooperative having undergone a screening

-20

100

75 –7 9

several kilometers. This service has led to a high level of acceptance and thus participation, with some

-15

70 –7 4

travel all year round, stopping in defined areas for as much as 50 days, where they cover a radius of

-10

150

65 –6 9

by courier to a reference center, where a radiologist evaluates it. The mobile mammography stations

Estimate of age-specific incidence of breast cancer (2000)

60 –6 4

take measurements. They then save the data in encrypted form in a storage medium that is delivered

-5

200

55 –5 9

Poland, and Georgia. In Germany, the devices are normally operated by medical technicians, who only

90+

50 –5 4

Mobile mammography stations equipped with Siemens technology can also be found in Denmark,

Age group 40–44 45–49 50–54 55–59 60–64 65–69 70–74 75–79 80–84 85–89

45 –4 9

tors.

Reduction of Breast Cancer Mortality

Incidences per 100,000 women 250

40 –4 4

devices (Mammomat Novation and Inspiration) capable of taking measurements with digital detec-

Incidence of Breast Cancer by Age

35 –3 9

are now under way to deliver new Mammotrailers that will be equipped with digital mammography

Identifying Lesions with Algorithms. Computer aided detection (CAD) programs, such as syngo MammoCAD (not available for sale in the U.S.) from Siemens, are helping radiologists detect breast cancer as early as possible with unprecedented accuracy. CAD software analyzes digital mammograms and marks suspicious areas for review by clinicians. During routine clinical care, doctors may have to analyze dozens of patients per hour, leaving little room for error. “On average, one malignant lesion is found for every 200 patients who undergo a breast cancer screening,” says Jonathan Stoeckel, managing director of Siemens Computer-Aided

0– 14 15 –3 4

trailer pilot project, which utilized mammography units that store their data on X-ray film. Preparations

Source: Cancer in Germany, 2004

and an automotive supply company built 28 of these mobile mammography stations for the Mammo-

Percent

Age group

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

Early Detection of Diseases | Breast Cancer Prognosis Test

In a new test, tumor tissue (top) and magnetic particles are loaded into a device (bottom) that automatically extracts nucleic acids and analyzes the results for tumor genes.

infancy,” says Dr. Christoph Petry, Head of Molecular Research at Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics in Cologne. “In those days, patients were simply sent home after cancer surgery. But over the years, it was shown that around 70 out of 100 patients who had undergone surgery did not develop any recurrence of their cancer. They were permanently cured.” At the time, nobody knew who would belong to the 70 percent of those cured and who wouldn’t. It appeared to be a question of fate. Even today, we are still a long way off from correctly identifying all the women in the “70 percent low-risk group” who would benefit from less aggressive, yet equally effective therapy. This is why Petry and 35 of his coworkers from the Cologne research laboratory have been working since the start of 2007 on a new type of breast cancer prognosis test. The test identifies a significant proportion of low-risk patients — and in so doing holds the potential of sparing them from having to undergo chemotherapy in the future.

How to Fingerprint a Tumor Researchers are closing in on a diagnostic test that will be able to predict whether a patient with breast cancer can be successfully treated without chemotherapy. Automated analysis of tumor-specific genes is the key to a new world of individually-tailored treatment.

ere’s a distressing figure: Over 150,000 women are treated for breast cancer in Germany each year. However, for those whose disease is detected and treated early, the chances of recovery are good. To ensure that

100

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

no cancerous cells remain in the body after surgery, the majority of patients undergo chemotherapy. The severe side effects of this treatment are tolerated better by some women than others. However, medical statistics show

that around 70 percent do not even need it. “This fact has been confirmed by numerous studies that date mostly from the 1970s and 1980s, in other words, from times when chemotherapy as we now know it was still in its

Increasing Accuracy. A test of this kind must classify at-risk patients with superlative accuracy. Otherwise, the risk of dying from a tumor would increase dramatically for those patients who had been incorrectly-classified. On the other hand, the test’s ability to correctly assign patients who will later not develop any metastases to the “70 percent low-risk group” — a measure known as specificity — need not be as high. This property of the test, however, determines how many patients it can actually be applied to. In reality, it is already possible to identify patients who are at particularly high or low risk. To do so, a pathologist examines sections of tumor tissue under a microscope. “Based on the cell structure and the properties of the cells, which can be determined by special staining

reagents, a pathologist can give the attending physician important information as regards whether the tumor in question is a less aggressive one that will probably not spread into the rest of the body,” says Petry. Current methods, however, experience problems combining sensitivity and specificity at a high level. “But with our breast cancer prognosis test, we want to be able to give pathologists a method that has a previously unattained combination of sensitivity and specificity — in other words, superlative accuracy,” says Petry, who holds a doctorate in chemistry. “We’ll probably never achieve 100 percent accuracy. However, as appears to be the case, if we are able to say to many of those affected with 90 percent certainty ‘You don’t need chemotherapy’, then that’s fantastic. The risk of suffering a recurrence of the disease is then not really any higher for a woman who has re-

differing intensities of color reactions in the tissue, it uses — and this is the test’s key feature — an in vitro analysis of the nucleic acids (the carriers of genetic information) found in the tumor tissue. Magnetic Attraction This method uses an automatic nucleic acid extraction system developed by Siemens Healthcare and unique worldwide. The system runs on the Versant kPCR analytical system from Siemens. kPCR stands for kinetic PCR, a technique used to replicate and simultaneously quantitively determine nucleic acids using the PCR method (PCR: polymerase chain reaction). The Versant kPCR, which is fully automated and is expected to enter clinical service at the end of the year, extracts nucleic acids using silicic acid-coated magnetic particles. Nucleic acids bind to the silicic acid and thus to the

A breast cancer prognostic test now under development may be able to obviate chemotherapy for many patients. ceived such a diagnosis than that of any healthy woman developing breast cancer at some stage of her life.” The new diagnostic test is expected to be used in concert with current conventional analysis methods. In other words, after breast biopsy or surgery, tumor tissue is sent as usual to the pathologist’s laboratory, where it is placed in formaldehyde for a few hours to preserve it. The pathologist then embeds the pieces of tissue in paraffin and cuts slices from them, each five to ten micrometers thick, for investigation under a microscope. Siemens’ new prognostic test builds on this analytical material. However, rather than analyzing tissue-based cancer markers by means of

magnetic particles via the formation of hydrogen bonds. “Conventional methods result in unevenlysized particles that contain iron oxide and silicic acid in greater or lesser ratios. However, we have succeeded in optimizing the manufacture of these magnetic particles in such a way that they are evenly-sized and homogeneouslymagnetic and are characterized by constant and reproducible chemical and physical properties. The particles are made of an iron oxide core, measuring around 100 nanometers, and an even, ultra-thin silicic acid shell,” explains Petry. “This has the advantage that the particles are easily and highly dispersible, and can also be magnetized very effectively.”

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

101

102

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

New Focus on Early Diagnostics

eople are now living longer, not least thanks to ad-

skin cancer). Researchers are also working on new ra-

vances in health care. At the same time, the

diopharmaceuticals, like 18F-FLT, which can image cel-

world’s population continues to grow. It will increase

lular proliferation,” says Michael Reitermann, CEO of

Global Population Growth by Region: Holding Steady in Europe

from 6.6 billion today to 9.2 billion by 2050. Partly as a

the Molecular Imaging Division at Siemens Healthcare.

result of this demographic development, global health

These radiopharmaceuticals can show whether a tumor

care costs are expected to more than double within ten

has already formed metastases, for example. It may

years (from 2003 to 2013) — from about €2.3 trillion

also be possible to use radiopharmaceuticals in medical

to over €5.5 trillion. The costs of treating chronic ill-

check-ups for healthy persons, but they are not widely

nesses account for a large share of this, and they al-

used for this purpose because of radiation exposure.

5000 4. 25 2

costs requires a shift in focus from acute care to early

tection systems come in. They help physicians to recog-

diagnosis. This approach will be needed particularly in

nize tissue anomalies during cancer diagnoses and

the case of cardiovascular diseases and cancer. Accord-

thereby make the process of identifying tumors more

ing to the WHO, 17.5 million of 58 million deaths in

efficient. Although this technology has already been in-

2005 were caused by cardiovascular illnesses. In 2015,

troduced for breast cancer, it is only now starting to be

it will be 20 million.

used for diagnoses of lung cancer and intestinal cancer,

Cancer is on the rise too. In 2005, 7.9 million peo-

according to a (2008) study by Frost & Sullivan. This is

ple died of cancer, and the figure is expected to rise to

because different imaging techniques are used in these

11.5 million by 2030. The earlier these diseases are di-

areas. The study estimated the global market for com-

agnosed, the more effectively and thus cost-efficiently

puter aided detection systems to be worth $335 million

they can be treated. The WHO notes that a third of all

in 2007, and it is growing rapidly. In Europe alone, it

cases of cancer could be cured if the disease could be

will grow from $116.9 million to $449.8 million by

identified early enough and effectively treated.

2014.

One method of achieving this involves comprehen-

A more accurate early diagnosis means shorter and

sive screenings that identify risks in healthy patients. It

less stressful treatment, as well as better chances of re-

has been proven, for instance, that mammography re-

covery. What’s more, it reduces health care costs

duces the risk of mortality from breast cancer. In its

throughout the entire supply chain, because it lowers

World Health Statistics (2008), the WHO states that uni-

follow-on costs. For example, higher-precision labora-

versal availability of precautionary screening and asso-

tory and imaging processes can reduce the number of

ciated counseling of at-risk patients could reduce the

incorrect diagnoses and related unnecessary treat-

global mortality rate from breast cancer by 15 to 25

ments, or those that come too late. According to a

percent in women between 50 and 69 years of age.

study conducted by AdmeTech Foundation, better im-

There are still no reliable figures available for many

aging techniques and additional in-vivo and in-vitro

other illnesses, because the shift in focus to early diag-

screenings for prostate cancer could save $1.4 billion

nosis is just beginning.

per year in unneeded biopsies in the U.S. alone. There

If a health risk or an initial incidence of illness has

are still no global figures available for the over-all sav-

already become evident, early and accurate diagnosis

ings potential resulting from early diagnoses, however,

becomes important. Medical technology is pursuing a

because a number of factors affect how the benefits

variety of innovative avenues in this regard, particularly

are estimated.

4000

5 3000 4 3

2000

2 1000 1 0

0 2005

2010

2015

Asia Europe

2020

2025

What illnesses does a patient develop after recovery

tures of the Future, Spring 2007, p. 73), which medical

from an initial disease? How often is there treatment

researchers use to try to understand the origins and de-

for health risks that possibly would not develop into ac-

velopment of diseases .

tual illnesses? What sort of economic effect does the re-

In this connection, researchers are developing bio-

lationship between the illness and work output have? In

markers that dock on specific cells, e.g., cancer cells,

addition, more health-promotion programs that keep

which are made visible as a result. “Techniques involv-

each individual in good health for as long as possible

ing radioactively marked glucose 18FDG are already be-

will be needed in order to effectively reduce costs. Dagmar Braun

2035

2040

2045

2050

Africa North America Latin America and the Caribbean

The U.S. as an Example of the Relationship between Age and Chronic Illness

100

Percent 87%

80 67%

67%

60 40%

40%

in the field of molecular diagnostic techniques (see Pic-

2030

25% 15%

20 5% 0 Age 0–19

Age 20–44

One or more chronic diseases Two or more chronic diseases

Age 45–64

Age 65+

Fo re ca st fo r2 01 3

ated and interpreted. This is where computer aided de-

2. 86 8 3. 18 4

molecular diagnostic techniques must also be evalu-

Source: World Medical Markets Fact Book 2008, SG Cowen, Kalorama, TriMark, Management Estimate).

billions of euros

5. 51 5

6000 8

The tremendous amount of data generated by new

Keeping health care affordable despite these rising

ing used for certain types of cancer (such as lung and

1. 34 6 1. 41 4 1. 48 4 1. 56 4 1. 66 4 1. 76 8 1. 93 6 2. 10 2 2. 24 8 2. 41 1

according to the WHO.

Population in billions

19 95 19 96 19 97 19 98 19 99 20 00 20 01 20 02 20 03 20 04 20 05 20 06 20 07

ready make up 60 percent of health care expenditures,

Global Healthcare Expenditures: Rising to Nearly Six Trillion Euros by 2013

Value of Computer Aided Detection (CAD) in European Healthcare Market

500

Millions of US dollars 449.8

400

369.1 299.5

300 238.8 194.6

200 161.2 116.9

135.5

100

0 2007

2008

2009

Breast cancer CAD

2010

2011

Lung cancer CAD

2012

2013

2014

Intestinal cancer CAD

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

103

Source: Frost & Sullivan, 2008

Fully-Automated Replication. Now comes the replication of the nucleic acids using PCR. In the first stage, the messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) is transcribed into deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). The DNA is then replicated in 40 PCR cycles and its quantity precisely determined. “With our prognostic test, we look at the volume ratios of 12 tumor nucleic acids, thereby learning which of the 12 tumor-specific genes are expressed more, and which less,” says Petry. “These 12 values then provide a type of genetic fingerprint of the tumor, with which we are able to uniquely characterize the type of cancer.” If the cancer is a type with a low propensity for recurrence or the formation of metastases, then pathologists and oncologists can recommend that the patient not be required to undergo chemotherapy. “We are still in the early stages of development for this project,” cautions Petry. “It would therefore be premature to predict when we’ll be able to offer this test.” He is, however, convinced of one thing: “It’s not science fiction. We’ve completed the research stage. These tests will come, and they will make tumor therapy more effective and less harmful for patients.” Ulrike Zechbauer

The Sooner the Better:

Source: UN 2005

In the near future, day-to-day laboratory molecular diagnostics routines may look as follows: A lab technician takes a wafer-thin section of tissue prepared from a tumor sample and inserts it into a small tube. The tube is placed — possibly with a few dozen other tubes containing tumor samples from different patients — into the sample tray of the new Versant kPCR Molecular System. With the click of a mouse, the assistant can select the required test and start the system. From this point onwards, everything runs automatically. “A pipetting robot first adds a solution to the tissue samples. The solution dissolves the samples once they are heated. The nucleic acids in the samples are released in this process and, after magnetic particles have been added on a socalled deep-well plate, are absorbed by the particles,” explains Petry. The robotic system then places the deepwell plate on a magnetic block, which draws the magnetic particles and the nucleic acids downward, whereupon the remaining liquid, which mostly contains protein residues, is aspirated off. Once the magnetic field is switched off, the robotic system washes the particles by briefly shaking the plate — and aspirates off the “dirty” solution again when the magnetic field is reactivated. The cleaned magnetic particle/nucleic acid combination is subsequently separated and the separated nucleic acids are then available for the actual analysis.

| Facts and Forecasts

Sources: UN, World Population prospects 2006, Partnership for Solutions 2004, Chronic Conditions: Making the case for ongoing care

Early Detection of Diseases

SHIP volunteers undergo a full-body

Early Detection of Diseases | Epidemiology

magnetic resonance imaging scan (left). Their blood and urine samples are frozen for future analysis (below).

netic, imaging, and metabolic. The latter encompasses a large variety of metabolites that are dependent on enzyme activity, metabolic conversion rates, nutrition and the ingestion of medications, among other factors. When all of this data is compared, the result amounts to over 150 million variables for each person. In the spring of 2008, project researchers began another study called SHIP Trend, for which approximately 5,000 representative test subjects are being examined. With this new series of exams, the research group intends to ensure that the study remains up to date. “The cross-section of the population has changed in the last ten years. Young people who are 20 years old today have a different diet and lifestyle from their counterparts of ten years ago,” says Dr. Matthias Nauck, director of the Institute for Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine at the University of Greifswald.

tures. “This means that, for the first time, our researchers can identify a number of illnesses at a very early stage,” says Dr. Henry Völzke, director of the SHIP study. Researchers can also analyze whether common exams such as those for breast and cervical cancer are sufficient, or whether detection rates can be significantly improved by adding an MRI scan. The results of the first two series of studies are about to be published and will have a broad impact. “We’re doing research on illnesses that are relatively common, like heart attacks and strokes,” says Nauck. Epidemiology, the study of the causes, consequences and spread of illnesses in populations, is acquiring increasing importance because the population of the western industrial nations is aging rapidly and therefore becoming increasingly illness-prone. Many of these general demographic processes are at work in the region selected for

SHIP is expected to show the relationships between illnesses, life styles and genetic predispositions.

Patterns in the Puzzle In northeastern Germany, medical researchers are examining thousands of subjects in one of the world’s most comprehensive health surveys. Together with Siemens, they hope to gain insight into the origin and treatment of the most common illnesses.

usan is being examined in a Siemens Magnetom Avanto magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner at the hospital of the University of Greifswald, in Germany. Within minutes, the scanner has divided her entire body into thousands of virtual millimeter-thin slices, producing a huge volume of data. Beforehand, she had an ECG scan, her retinas were examined, and she submitted blood and urine samples that were used for a number of laboratory tests. Her DNA was examined with a gene chip, and the condition of her teeth was recorded. Susan, who is 40, will also spend a night under observation, in the hospital’s sleep laboratory. In addition, during a meeting with university staff, she reported her dietary habits, whether she smokes, how much alcohol she drinks, how often she’s been ill, and what medications she is taking. This is the third examination of her state of

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Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

health in the last 11 years, and this time the exam encompasses almost everything. At present, Susan feels fine. Like more than 4,000 other residents of the Germany state of Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, Susan is a test subject in the Study of Health in Pomerania (SHIP), one of the largest studies anywhere of the relationships between illness, living conditions and genetic predispositions. Are there specific circumstances in life that make women more susceptible to breast cancer? Is there a genetic predisposition to diseases of the liver and kidneys? Why are gallstones significantly more common in Mecklenburg-West Pomerania than in the world as a whole, with the exception of one group of indigenous people in Chile? Do poor teeth exert an influence on growth during childhood — or on the risk of a heart attack during adulthood? These are the kinds of questions SHIP wants to

answer. The objective is to lay the foundations for new treatment strategies. “Medical treatments have made considerable progress in recent years, but at the cost of becoming largely standardized. The effects of multiple illnesses are frequently not taken into account adequately — and the same goes for the specific characteristics of patients,” says Prof. Wolfgang Hoffmann, director of the Institute for Community Medicine at the University of Greifswald. The standard guidelines often enough reach their limits, particularly in the case of older persons with multiple illnesses. “We need innovative research that quickly and efficiently shows how best to treat such persons in accordance with their specific conditions,” says Hoffmann. This new, individualized vision of medicine confronts physicians with major challenges, since it does not rely on generally-applicable norms. On the contrary, in personalized medi-

cine, decisions are based on complex combinations of diagnostic data. The job of the Greifswald project is to filter out these combinations for each patient. Genetics, Imaging and Metabolism. In March 2008, the Community Medicine research association, which includes a number of departments of the medical faculty at the University of Greifswald, launched the third stage of examinations. It all began in 1997. At that time, the researchers randomly selected 4,310 test subjects between 20 and 79 years of age as a representative cross section of the approximately 200,000 people living in the communities of Stralsund, Greifswald, and Anklam. More than 3,300 of them are still available for examinations today. When the current series of exams has come to an end, the researchers will have three sets of records for each person: ge-

Customized Therapy. Siemens has participating in SHIP since the third series of examinations. “In the future, it will be vital to provide physicians with decision-making tools that are based on a large amount of medical data,” says Dr. Jürgen Simon, director of Healthcare Strategy, who is coordinating the project for Siemens Healthcare. This is the only way to adapt therapies much more closely to the specific characteristics of the patient. “Through SHIP, we can find out how an individual’s metabolism reacts to medications, for example,” says Nauck. Typically, patients receive standardized doses of medications — a strategy that fails to take individual characteristics into account. Often, for instance, a medication has no effect, because the patient lacks the enzyme needed to metabolize it. If this were known, the doctor could choose a different medication. Together with the University of Greifswald and other clinical partners, Siemens is therefore researching algorithms that identify relationships in millions of pieces of data. For instance, Siemens researchers in Malvern, Pennsylvania, are combing medical data for patterns based on medical hypotheses and statistical discrepancies. The SHIP study is the most comprehensive of these research projects, because it is the only one that also includes detailed data from medical imaging. Thanks to the MRI equipment provided by Siemens, researchers can, for instance, record even the smallest changes in vascular struc-

the SHIP study. In the economically underdeveloped region around Greifswald and Stralsund, for instance, the average age of the population has risen dramatically in only two decades because of migration and falling birth rates. Beyond its healthcare implications for the region, the SHIP study is therefore also investigating a general problem faced by industrialized countries. Blueprint for Early Diagnosis. The SHIP study will lead to changes not only in therapies but also in preventive care. For the most common illnesses, such as certain types of cancer, high blood pressure and diabetes, researchers want to create information clusters with a manageable number of relevant parameters. Then, instead of comparing millions of pieces of data for each patient, it will suffice to review an estimated 50 to 100. “If we can clearly identify certain predispositions and causes of breast cancer, for instance, women who are in high-risk groups can take advantage of more thorough monitoring,” says Hoffmann. The patterns for many other common illnesses are likewise being identified by sifting through billions of pieces of data. SHIP’s first results are expected in two or three years. At that point, physicians may start to have the information tools they need to determine the right therapies faster and more effectively — thus setting the stage for lowering public health expenditures. Katrin Nikolaus

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

105

Early Detection of Diseases | Biomarkers

New tests based on laboratory analysis of blood samples (bottom right) are making it possible to diagnose diseases such as cardiac infarction faster and more reliably.

ence provides an extremely specific indication of damage to the cardiac muscle. Increased troponin levels in blood serum are detectable around three hours after the beginning of a heart attack, rising to a maximum within around 20 hours after the attack, and returning to normal after two to three weeks. Compared to the Siemens test, no other procedure is quite so precise nor able to deliver such an unequivocal indication of an increase in troponin I levels. The Troponin-I-Ultra test in conjunction with the ADVIA Centaur was the first fully automatic analytic method to meet current guidelines of expert groups at the American College of Cardiology Committee in Washington, D.C. and at the European Society of Cardiology. Thanks to its sensitivity, the new test obviates the need for multiple exams, which are often required in the case of imprecise results. Obviously, that saves time and money. According to Dr. Till Neumann, Senior Physician at the Cardiology Clinic of the University Hospital in Essen, Germany, the introduction of new and more sensitive troponin tests will mean fewer borderline results — and therefore a greater significance for troponin-based diagnosis in everyday clinical practice. Troponin-I-Ultra is a prime example of the successful development of a range of new biomarkers that will enable earlier or more precise lab diagnoses of a variety of medical condi-

tions. All that is required for the test is a sample of the patient’s blood. This is much easier, quicker and less expensive than a scan. Test developers are therefore working to make Troponin-I-Ultra — which is particularly applicable to management of patients suspected of experiencing a heart attack — even more precise and meaningful. Hormones from the Heart. The ultimate goal, however, is to be able to recognize lifethreatening conditions long before they become critical. For instance, another test — one

the absence of any other clear symptoms.” The prognostic power of the BNP test has also been corroborated by the Heinz-Nixdorf Recall Study on the Early Diagnosis of Cardiac Disease, which was conducted at the University Hospital in Essen, Germany. This study involved the examination of almost 5,000 men and women from the Ruhr area of Germany in order to determine their risk of suffering from a cardiovascular complaint at some time in the future. The study revealed that today’s threshold value of 100 picograms per milliliter — a picogram is a tril-

Biomarkers reveal damage to the heart muscle — even when other tests fail to deliver clear diagnostic data. that detects the presence of B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP), a biomarker that is indicative of cardiovascular disease, can also be employed to help doctors reach a quick and accurate diagnosis. BNP is a hormone that is formed and secreted in the left or right ventricle of the heart during cardiac insufficiency, otherwise known as heart failure. BNP tests have been in use for a number of years now and, according to Alan Burkhardt, who develops such procedures for Siemens Healthcare in Tarrytown, New York, “they are very effective in detecting heart conditions in

lionth of a gram — should be reconsidered, and that in the future threshold values specific to age and gender should be assigned with a view to facilitating the diagnosis of myocardial damage at a very early stage. “The presence of troponin and BNP concentrations are important diagnostic indicators in today’s cardiology armamentarium. With the Troponin-I-Ultra and the B-type natriuretic peptide tests, we have two procedures that are of use both in emergency situations and in the early detection of cardiovascular disease,” says Burkhardt.

Answers in the Blood Accurately diagnosing illnesses such as cancer can be an extremely complex and protracted process. Yet there are now many tests that provide a fast and foolproof identification of diseases in the lab — often using just a few drops of blood.

s he was being rushed into the emergency room he was sure he would pass out. Gasping for breath and quite obviously in the grip of acute nausea, the only way he could fight off the overwhelming feeling of suffocation was by maintaining an upright position. Seeing what appeared to be all the symptoms of a heart attack, doctors set to work immediately. Yet after a thorough examination, including an ECG, they still could not be 100 percent sure of their diagnosis. They therefore resolved to monitor the patient’s condition with the

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help of a new and extremely precise test procedure. This proved to be exactly the right decision, since over the next few hours one of the patient’s blood values continued to rise, as doctors suspected it would. Later, an examination with a cardiac catheter confirmed their suspicions with the discovery of a stenosis in one of the patient’s cardiac arteries — the cause of the heart attack. Immediately thereafter, the patient’s cardiologist opted to insert a stent — a small metal tube to dilate the artery in question.

Released in 2006, Troponin-I-Ultra is the name of a test developed by Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics at its U.S. research labs. The test is used in conjunction with the ADVIA Centaur, a fully automatic immunoassay system from Siemens, and serves to detect the presence of the protein troponin in blood with the aid of receptor molecules (see graphic, p. 108). Troponin, which normally occurs only within the heart, is released into the blood as a result of the death of cells (necrosis) in the cardiac muscle (miocardium). In other words, its pres-

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The ADVIA Centaur System delivers reliable

Early Detection of Diseases | Biomarkers

laboratory results (left) and boosts productivity. Samples are processed automatically (right), obviating time-consuming steps such as pipetting.

Blood Test instead of Liver Biopsy. The ELF™ (Enhanced Liver Fibrosis) test was likewise developed to provide an early diagnosis and monitoring tool for liver fibrosis. Liver fibrosis is the response of the liver to chronic injury by viruses, alcohol abuse or metabolic disease-related conditions. It is manifested in an accumulation of connective fibrotic material leading to a stiffening of the liver tissue. Liver function is compromised if the condition becomes sufficiently advanced, and it can culminate in a life-threatening cirrhosis and complete liver failure. Liver fibrosis is also associated with a significantly increased risk of liver cancer. The gold standard today for diagnosis of liver fibrosis is the biopsy. Here, a doctor uses a needle-like instrument to remove a

lated to the level of fibrosis in the liver. The innovative feature of the new test is that it is the first blood test that measures direct markers of liver fibrosis that may accurately diagnose the presence of liver fibrosis in the first place, thus avoiding the problems and expense of unnecessary biopsies. The ELF score may provide physicians with a valuable new tool to better manage their patients with chronic liver disease. The ELF score is being clinically validated for use in patient groups on its own and in combination with Siemens imaging modalities at a number of sites in Europe and the United States. It is also currently under development for use on the Siemens ADVIA Centaur Immunoassay System, which offers laboratory

Blood tests could soon replace uncomfortable biopsy procedures in the diagnosis of liver fibrosis. small sample of tissue from the liver, which is then examined under a microscope. Such a procedure is not without risk. It can lead to significant complications such as internal bleeding and is not well tolerated by patients. Moreover, a liver biopsy is also relatively imprecise, since there is a significant sample error and no guarantee that the needle will actually encounter abnormal fibrotic tissue. For these reasons, repeat biopsies for diagnosis or monitoring purposes are not desirable. The clinical community has therefore long hoped for the development of a non-invasive liver fibrosis test for patients with chronic liver disease. The new ELF test spares both the patient and physician the hazards of an invasive procedure. It measures three biomarkers in a simple blood sample, which when combined generate an Enhanced Liver Fibrosis score that is corre-

customers a broad range of routine immunoassays consolidated on a single platform. “Our Enhanced Liver Fibrosis test meets a previously unmet medical need and is proprietary to Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics. The next step is to integrate the ELF test in our ADVIA Centaur immunoassay system and introduce it to major markets as soon as possible. Its availability will provide laboratories with a unique opportunity to offer their customers our innovative ELF Score as a routine test,” says Dr. Andrew Beard, Liver Fibrosis Senior Marketing Manager at Siemens Healthcare in Tarrytown. The ELF Score was first clinically validated in 2004 in a collaboration between Bayer Healthcare Diagnostics and the European Liver Fibrosis Group led by Professor William Rosenberg from Southampton University in the UK. Bayer

How to Detect Heart Attacks... Biotin-bound antibodies Addition of special magnetic particles

2.5 minutes

5 minutes

Healthcare Diagnostics has since been acquired by Siemens and in Europe a CE-marked ELF score is currently available for routine use and pharmaceutical testing from IQUR Ltd, UK. Early Detection of Septicemia. Doctors are under constant pressure to come up with fast and accurate diagnoses, i.e. to determine on the basis of the patient’s medical record and current symptoms the precise nature of a medical complaint. Yet often the problem is that medical conditions creep up slowly and only fully manifest themselves when it is almost too late to correct them. An especially insidious example of this is septicemia, a form of blood poisoning in which bacteria and other pathogens multiply at an explosive rate. Patients weak from a serious operation are particularly at risk from these hordes of hostile microbes. According to a large-scale study conducted by the German Sepsis Society for the years 2003 to 2006, there are 154,000 new cases of septicemia in Germany every year and 60,000 fatalities. That makes septicemia one of the biggest risks and most common causes of death for patients in intensive care. Siemens Healthcare has therefore developed a new procedure that — like the Troponin-I-Ultra test — is able to detect the presence of low concentrations of a specific biomarker in the blood. In this case, the test shows the presence of a substance known as LBP (lipopolysaccharide binding protein), the production of which is stimulated by the rapid buildup of bacteria. Regular tests of LBP levels in a patient’s body can provide early warning of the continuing presence of a local infection that has the potential to spread to the entire body, thus giving doctors a chance to prescribe the requisite medication before an infection gets out of hand. Yet what makes sepsis particularly dan-

...And How to Diagnose them Accurately Relative percentage standard deviation (% CV) 80 The Troponin-I-Ultra test from Siemens (orange line) is 70 significantly more precise than conventional cTnI tests (blue line) at low TnI concentrations in blood. That’s 60 why the marker has achieved an outstanding position in the diagnosis of heart attacks. 50 40 30

Heart muscle protein troponin I (cTnI)

Detection antibodies A patient’s blood sample contains the protein cTnI, which indicates damage to the heart muscle. The protein is detected using two antibodies (blue and green) in the Troponin-I-Ultra test. Once magnetic particles (orange) are added, the complex can be detected and determined using chemoluminescence.

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20 10 0 0.05 0.1 TnI-Ultra

0.2 cTnI

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6 0.7 0.8 TnI (nanogram/milliliter)

gerous is that while the outbreak of pathogens is often initially limited to a local area, the condition can in some cases, after a week or so, flare up again and spread rapidly and systematically to the rest of the body. It is often this “second hit” that proves fatal (see p. 110). However, the LBP test provides early warning of a continuing local buildup of bacteria, which is responsible for the second hit. Other tests, on the other hand, such as those based on detection of interleukin 6, an endogenous pro-inflammatory cytokine (messenger molecule), only respond once the infection starts to spread. “In other words, the LBP readings help doctors in intensive care to quickly make the right decision and thus save the lives of patients who would otherwise quite likely die from an infection that is identified too late or not at all,” explains Dr. Peter Zwerenz, Marketing Manager at Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics in Eschborn, Germany. The new LBP test runs on Siemens’ Immulite immunoassay system. The Immulite-System is already in widespread use, and is therefore available to the majority of intensive care units. Another challenge facing doctors is the choice of the right therapy, since not every form of medication is equally suitable for each patient. Take Herceptin, for example, a drug used in the treatment of breast cancer, but which is only suitable for tumors that produce a certain type of receptor: the HER-2/neu (human epidermal growth factor receptor). Herceptin blocks this receptor and therefore the signaling pathway that controls tumor development, thus inhibiting the growth of cancer cells. However, the HER-2/neu receptor is present only on the surface of a maximum of one-third of all breast-cancer tumors; only those patients who have it can be helped by Herceptin. With

this in mind, Siemens developed a test that measures the level of HER-2/neu receptor circulating in the blood. It is available both as a manual test and as an automated test that can run on the Advia Centaur. The test was developed primarily by Walter P. Carney, PhD, at Oncogene Science Diagnostics, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The company was acquired first by Bayer in 1999 and then by Siemens in 2006. In other words, the Siemens portfolio of companies now includes a highly creative enterprise for the development of biomarker tests. “The HER-2/neu-Test received FDA approval for monitoring patients with metastatic breast cancer in 2000,” Carney explains. In Europe, where many clinics now use it on a routine basis, it has been on the market for several years. “Regular measurements of HER-2/neu levels provide a very good indication of the success of chemotherapy and whether a metastasis is receding,” he adds. Moreover, after treatment has been completed, the test offers a simple

Personalized Diagnostics. The HER-2/neu test also paves the way for the development of increasingly personalized treatment, whereby therapy can be tailored to different types of tumors and diseases in line with an individual patient’s precise needs. The same applies in the case of another biomarker — carbonic anhydrase IX (CA-IX). CA-IX is an enzyme — a specific type of protein — that is produced in elevated quantities by hypoxic tumors, i.e. those suffering from a poor supply of blood and oxygen. Not only do such tumors generally have a higher resistance to radiation therapy, but they also have been clinically demonstrated to be more aggressive in most cases. A team headed by Walter Carney at Oncogene Science is currently developing a new in vitro test to detect CA-IX in both tissue and serum. At present, studies are being conducted to verify the procedure. Meanwhile, at Siemens Healthcare’s Biomarker Research Center in Los Angeles, Califor-

Biomarker-based blood tests can provide objective proof of the success of cancer treatments. means of monitoring for recurrence of the cancer. Such benefits are also confirmed by JeanPierre Lotz, Chief Medical Oncologist from the Hôpital Tenon at the Université Pierre et Marie Curie in Paris, France. “My first experience with measuring serum HER-2/neu for metastatic breast cancer showed that after patients were given chemotherapy, if the treatment was working, serum levels would rapidly decrease in the first three to four weeks after treatment,” he says.

nia, Hartmuth Kolb, PhD, is looking at a related issue. His group is currently developing new positron emission tomography (PET)-based biomarkers that bond to the CA-IX in hypoxic tumors. As a result, the hypoxic tissue shows up as a light-colored area in PET images. Following detection of CA-IX in a biopsy or serum sample, doctors might then determine the extent of a hypoxic area in the tumor by ordering a PET scan using this new biomarker, or even monitoring the progress of a CA-IX-based treatment.

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Using PET-CT images, a physician explains how

Early Detection of Diseases | Biomarkers

far a prostate cancer has spread. In the future,

Dimension Vista automatically processes up to 200

| Laboratory Automation

blood or urine samples per hour (bottom left), ana-

new types of biomarkers could help to detect

lyzes them with four parallel measuring techniques,

tumors at a much earlier stage.

and supplies diagnostically valuable information.

There are major advantages involved in such an approach. In the future, doctors could use a low-cost lab test from Siemens to examine tissue or serum for CA-IX and thus identify patients with a hypoxic tumor. Such patients would then undergo PET-scanning with the CAIX-biomarker to determine the location and size of the hypoxic area. They would then be eligible for personalized radiation therapy, or CA-IXbased therapy followed by treatment monitoring based on PET imaging for CA-IX. Since this combination of procedures is evidence-based, it would ensure that only those patients that genuinely required the procedures would receive them, and that treatment would be optimized for each patient. In that way, Siemens would be making a contribution to raising both the quality and efficiency of patient care.

A new MRI procedure reveals tumor-specific vasculatures, thus indicating where a biopsy needle should be placed. At present, a number of companies are developing new therapies based on CA-IX markers. However, it will probably be several years before such imaging biomarkers hit the market, since extensive clinical studies must be carried out before approval can be granted.

“It’s true that a single value is not particularly meaningful,” says Dr. Robert Krieg, Head of Business Development and Molecular Imaging for Magnetic Resonance Tomography (MR) at Siemens in Erlangen, Germany. “In order to produce genuinely meaningful results, you have to monitor PSA concentrations over time with regular measurements.” Research is therefore focusing on whether special variants of the PSA protein biomarker — the so-called f-PSA, t-PSA, and c-PSA values — might facilitate a more exact diagnosis. Naturally, doctors would like a test with an accuracy of 95 percent. But given the diagnostic limitations of PSA tests, doctors almost always resort to biopsies. As a rule, however, this too is a hitor-miss affair. Although the use of ultrasound to guide the biopsy needle helps, it rarely

New Perspectives in Prostate Diagnostics. Advances have also been made recently in the search for new and dependable methods of detecting prostate cancer. Here, experts are agreed that the classic biomarker — the PSA protein — is, on its own, an unreliable indicator of the presence of a tumor. Values tend to vary enormously and can also be increased as a result of cycling or sexual intercourse. The hunt for an alternative method is therefore in full swing.

Two Paths to Septicemia Detection IL-6 (µg/ml) 1000

LBP (µg/ml) 120

900

100

800 700

600 60

500 400

300 200

100 0

0 0

1 IL-6

110

2 LBP

Local bacterial infection

6 Start of sepsis

Bacterial infection (sepsis) of the whole body

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

A test for lipopolysaccharide binding protein (LBP) developed by Siemens can detect a life-threatening infection in weak intensive care patients at a much earlier stage than tests relying on the inflammation marker interleukin-6 (IL-6). The phase of dangerous local bacterial infection (from day 3, shown in light blue in the graphic) can be recognized only with LBP. LBP values rise continually. IL-6 values, in contrast, remain unremarkable, rising only once an infection has spread to the entire body (from day 8). By then, it is frequently too late to save the patient.

shows the actual tumor. As a result, doctors often have to take several samples before they can be relatively sure of having hit the suspect area — and even then, in some cases they wind up with false negative results because they’ve missed the tumor area. Krieg and his colleagues are therefore working on a new procedure that might be used alongside future f-PSA, t-PSA, and c-PSA tests. The procedure involves a specialized MR imaging technique for examining the prostate gland. A study conducted at the Martha-MariaHospital Nuremberg in cooperation with the Waldkrankenhaus Erlangen has already shown that such MR images help doctors target tumors with much greater accuracy when taking a tissue sample. Known as dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging or DCE-MRI, (see Pictures of the Future, Spring 2007, p. 67), this technique is designed to help doctors identify the network of blood vessels that typically form in the tissue around a tumor, thus providing them with much better orientation than a conventional ultrasound image. But if the f-PSA, t-PSA, and c-PSA tests now under development are successful, they may constitute a powerful-enough decision tool to obviate many biopsies. When, however, their values point to cancer, a urologist will be able to order a DCE-MRI exam to take a closer look. These two techniques would therefore be complementary and altogether important for a precise diagnosis. Although DCE-MRI is still under development, experience with the HER-2/neu and Troponin-I-Ultra tests demonstrates how lab diagnostics are already helping on a daily basis to identify disease and therefore improve the quality of patient care. Tim Schröder

New Vistas in Diagnostics Siemens has developed an automated laboratory system that combines a large number of instruments and tests in one machine and greatly accelerates workflows. Every hour, it can analyze 200 samples and perform 1,500 diagnostic measurements.

n medical laboratories, time is of the essence. During peak periods, hundreds of blood and urine samples can arrive each hour at the laboratories of large hospitals. Each sample is tested to determine an average of almost ten different values, which could indicate conditions such as inflammation, cardiac illnesses or abnormal iron metabolism. The burden on laboratory technicians is enormous. All too often, they have to hurry from one instrument to the next, with a blood sample in hand, measuring value A here and value B there. As a rule, a laboratory contains various pieces of equipment that each analyze only a small number of parameters. Often, the physician must take several vials of blood from

a patient at once, because the testing is carried out at several different machines. In 2007, in the interest of optimizing laboratory workflows, Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics began marketing the Dimension Vista, a multifunctional machine that combines a number of different laboratory analysis instruments in a single appliance. The gray-white machine resembles an oversized photocopier and can automatically conduct up to 1,500 different measurements per hour from 200 patient samples, which saves lab technicians a great deal of running around. Frank Kraft, product specialist for Dimension Vista in Eschborn, Germany, puts it in a nutshell: “The machine can perform 97 percent

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

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Early Detection of Diseases | Laboratory Automation

of the lab tests needed in routine and emergency hospital operations.” Currently, 105 different parameters can be processed simultaneously on the Dimension Vista system. These range from routine measurements all the way to very promising methods such as Cystatin C, a new marker of renal function. Over the course of the next year, additional tests will be added, some of them relatively unusual, including markers to facilitate therapeutic drug monitoring in order to prevent rejection reactions in organ transplant patients. There is no other product available that offers this kind of service, says Kraft. Parallel Approach. The speed of the machine is primarily due to the integration of four analytical processes that run in parallel on it and the way in which these processes are arranged. Under the hood are some sophisticated mechanical components and a sort of miniaturized filling system for samples and reagents. A

From the storage vessels, the sample is now transferred into measuring cells, also known as “cuvettes.” These form the heart of the machine, which is a “cuvette ring” — a rotating disc equipped with holders for 182 cuvettes. Three of the four analysis modules are arranged around this ring. This integrated design is unique and makes it possible to test

washes each cuvette, allowing it to be reused. For particularly demanding analyses, however, the system loads a new cuvette from a storage container — this too is unique and combines speed with high quality. Dimension Vista’s four analytical techniques measure a wide range of parameters. In combination, their performance is unprecedented.

Dimension Vista integrates four parallel analytical techniques into one system, making it extremely fast. each sample with multiple analytical systems simultaneously — and not in succession. The cuvette ring rotates forward every few seconds, advancing its samples to the next measuring point. Of course, the tests themselves take longer than the time it takes to go from one cuvette to another — after all, reagents such as antibodies, which are devel-

One of the tests uses a method that was developed in-house and is still unrivaled — the LOCI technique, or “luminescent oxygen channeling immunoassay.” This test makes it possible to detect the presence of target molecules, such as those that indicate anemia or thyroid illnesses, for examples, in a patient sample through the binding of antibodies.

Each sample is recorded by means of a bar code (middle) and then transported from

lab technician simply places patient samples in a holder on a conveyer belt that automatically pulls them into the machine. Inside, a small tube is lowered into each sample, where it draws off a few drops and initially distributes them among storage vessels. The advantage of this methodology is that, after only a few moments, the machine returns the original sample container to the operator. The sample is therefore available for other tests. In the case of conventional instruments, on the other hand, the original sample often remains in the system for a much longer time until a measurement is completed. Only then can a technician carry out the next measurements at different instruments. But with Dimension Vista, since portions of the sample are siphoned off into storage vessels, the process is faster and requires a smaller sample volume in the first place, which is easier on the patient and on the hospital’s logistics.

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measuring point to measuring point in the cuvette ring (left). Right: special liquids for cleaning the cuvette ring.

oped by specialists at Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics, must be pipetted into the samples. In another automated step, small pipette arms suspended above the cuvette ring draw liquids from cooled storage containers and small glass vessels in the interior of the machine. Here and there, an arm moves and injects reagents into a cuvette, depending on which parameter is being measured. Some reagents must react with the sample volume for a relatively long time before a value can be measured. No problem. A computer maintains a record of what stage each sample is at and when it must be processed. After the required measurements have been completed, Dimension Vista empties and

Usually, such tests require many steps involving various pipetting and cleaning operations. These steps are not needed in LOCI. The test is therefore up to ten times faster than conventional tests. In addition, it can be used to detect minuscule concentrations of molecules in the blood — substances such as troponin-I, for instance, which is released when a heart attack occurs. To this end, the blood sample is mixed with specific antibodies that bind to the molecule. When illuminated, this antibody-molecule complex releases excited oxygen molecules. The latter cause luminescence in a second substance, which is ultimately measured with a different wavelength. In addition to the LOCI unit, the Dimension Vista contains a photometer that records certain substances by means of characteristic light absorption. It also includes a “V-Lyte-Module,” which measures the electrolytes sodium, potassium and chloride as ions.

How Proteins Reveal illnesses. Dimension Vista’s fourth module is its nephelometer. Nephelometry is an optical analytical technique used to determine the concentration of a dilute suspension of small particles, in this case in liquids. The leading developer and user of the technique was the former Dade Behring company, which became part of Siemens in November 2007. Nephelometry is particularly well suited to detecting plasma proteins in the blood and other body fluids. These proteins are molecules from which a physician can infer the health of a patient. Many illnesses are associated with specific changes in the concentration of characteristic proteins that can be detected in the blood or in other body fluids. Based on this information, a physician can reach conclusions about the risk of a heart attack, for instance, the development of rheumatic illnesses, or dangerous inflammation reactions. “Identifying inflammations is very important before an operation, for example, to determine the extent to which a patient’s immune system may have been weakened,” explains Kraft. In nephelometric tests, proteins react with antibodies. Depending on the protein concentration, a more or less dense protein-antibody network results, which in turn scatters beams of light. Based on the amount of scattering, the instrument can then calculate the concentration of plasma proteins. Three Thousand Measurements per Hour. Of course, Kraft admits, very large laboratories already have automatic analytical systems — fully automatic lines of equipment that occupy entire rooms. But the majority of private and hospital labs still use a hodgepodge of instruments. “In such case, the Dimension Vista is an ideal supplement,” says Kraft. “It’s the golden mean between complete automation and the conventional lab.” Those who want to achieve higher processing rates can link Dimension Vista with a second unit. In this way, one laboratory technician can perform over 3,000 measurements per hour. Daily inspection and quality control are prescribed for laboratory instruments — a sort of quotidian calibration. Are the measurements accurate? Is the instrument working properly? For most labs with a large number of instruments, the answer to such questions entail a huge amount of work. Dimension Vista shortens this process considerably by reducing the number of instruments required and implementing quality control and inspection procedures automatically. Dimension Vista’s developers like to call this ultra-integration. Tim Schröder

In Brief I Systems biology is the key to early detection

PEOPLE:

of illnesses. Siemens offers a unique combina-

Health-e-Child:

tion of molecular diagnostics and imaging to-

Paul Camuti, SCR

gether with modern information and workflow

paul.camuti@siemens.com

systems. These systems integrate results from

FLARE:

in-vitro and in-vivo modalities, making

Dr. Fred Azar, SCR

personalized medicine possible. (p. 87)

fred.azar@siemens.com Digital mammography:

I Early detection and diagnosis are crucial fac-

Dr. Thomas Mertelmeier, Healthcare

tors in the fight against breast cancer. Major

thomas.mertelmeier@siemens.com

advances in imaging techniques now allow

Ultrasound:

more precise examinations that subject pa-

Jacqueline Bailey, Healthcare

tients to less stress and discomfort. These in-

jacqueline.bailey@siemens.com

clude digital mammography systems and spe-

Magnetic resonance tomography:

cial computer programs that analyze

Birgit Hasselberg, Healthcare

mammograms and mark areas where there is

birgit.hasselberg@siemens.com

reason to suspect a tumor exists. (p. 95)

Computer Aided Detection: Jonathan Stoeckel, Healthcare

I If breast cancer is detected and removed

jonathan.stoeckel@siemens.com

early, the chances of recovery are good. In the

Dr. Arun Krishnan, Healthcare

future there will be diagnostic tests that fore-

arun.krishnan@siemens.com

cast how successfully breast cancer patients

Breast cancer prognosis test:

can be treated with various tumor therapies.

Dr. Christoph Petry, Healthcare

This could spare many of them a difficult

christoph.petry@siemens.com

chemotherapy treatment. (p. 100)

SHIP study: Dr. Jürgen Simon, Healthcare

I In northeastern Germany, physicians are

juergen.simon@siemens.com

conducting one of the world’s most compre-

Biomarkers:

hensive data-gathering studies, involving

Dr. Walter P. Carney, Healthcare

thousands of test subjects. In cooperation

walter.carney@siemens.com

with Siemens, they are searching for patterns

Dr. Alan Burkhardt, Healthcare

related to the development and treatment of

alan.burkhardt@siemens.com

the most commonly encountered illnesses.

Dr. Andrew Beard, Healthcare

The study is intended to reveal the connec-

andrew.beard@siemens.com

tions between illnesses, lifestyle factors, and

Dr. Peter Zwerenz, Healthcare

genetic predisposition. (p. 104)

peter.zwerenz@siemens.com Dimension Vista:

I Precisely diagnosing disease is often a very

Frank Kraft, Healthcare

complex and lengthy process. Thanks to new

frank.fk.kraft@siemens.com

diagnostic tests, though, conditions such as myocardial infarctions can be detected earlier

Prof. John V. Frangioni

and with greater reliability. Biomarkers can

jfrangio@bidmc.harvard.edu

unambiguously confirm damage to the heart

Dr. Mukesh G. Harisinghani

muscle, for example — even in instances

mharisinghani@mgh.harvard.edu

where other types of examinations have found nothing. What’s more, doctors can use

LINKS:

blood tests to reliably determine that patients

Siemens Healthcare:

are receiving the right medications, and to

www.siemens.com/healthcare

monitor the relative success of therapy. And a

Harvard Medical School:

new system is available to ensure fast work

http://hms.harvard.edu

procedures in the lab. (pp. 106, 111)

MGH: www.massgeneral.org

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

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Preview Energy and the Product Lifecycle As energy costs rise, products are being ever-more carefully analyzed in terms of their CO2 footprints. This goes for everything from home appliances to the complex industrial machinery used in producing a spectrum of goods. How much energy do machines consume from cradle to grave? What pollutants and greenhouse gases do they account for? How can these be reduced or avoided? And to what extent can all of this — including cost-effective recycling — be accomplished, paid for and amortized in an environmentally-responsible way as a result of intelligent product design?

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Department

Digital Watchmen Security is fundamental for our society. And yet threats abound – in public transit systems, at major sporting events, in tunnels, and on the internet. Danger also lurks in products ranging from toys to donated blood. In each of these cases, and countless others, technology offers answers — many of which come from Siemens. For instance, the company offers intelligent surveillance systems capable of identifying suspicious situations; radio frequency identification (RFID) chips that can inexpensively keep an eye on the contents of shipping containers and pharmaceuticals; and advanced cryptography systems that, based on quantum physics, ensure data is not vulnerable to tampering.

Innovations for Developing Markets Not only must technology meet customer needs, it must also be ideally suited to local regions and markets. Just because a product is successful in Europe or the United States, in no way guarantees that it will also be a hit in Africa, Asia, or the Middle East. In short, different cultures and infrastructures demand their own — often tailormade — solutions. For example, Siemens has developed a traffic management system for Chinese cities that’s based on the local mobile phone network. The system is capable of analyzing vehicle flows in real time. And on the shores of Lake Victoria, in Kenya, Siemens’ Osram lighting subsidiary has developed technology that ideally meets the area’s needs for inexpensive and environmentallyfriendly power, lighting and drinking water — without being anywhere near a power plant.

Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008

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Publisher: Siemens AG Corporate Communications (CC) and Corporate Technology (CT) Wittelsbacherplatz 2, 80333 Munich For the publisher: Dr. Ulrich Eberl (CC), Arthur F. Pease (CT) ulrich.eberl@siemens.com (Tel. +49 89 636 33246) arthur.pease@siemens.com (Tel. +49 89 636 48824) Editorial Office: Dr. Ulrich Eberl (Editor-in-Chief) Arthur F. Pease (Executive Editor, English Edition) Florian Martini (fm) (Managing Editor) Sebastian Webel (sw) Ulrike Zechbauer (uz) Additional Authors in this Issue: Dr. Norbert Aschenbrenner, Bernhard Bartsch, Christian Buck, Dr. Dagmar Braun, Urs Fitze, Bernhard Gerl, Andrea Hoferichter, Ute Kehse, Andreas Kleinschmidt, Klaudia Kunze, Dr. Michael Lang, Bernd Müller, Katrin Nikolaus, Gitta Rohling, Dr. Jeanne Rubner, Tim Schröder, Dr. Sylvia Trage, Dr. Evdoxia Tsakiridou, Thomas Veser, Nikola Wohllaib, Petra Zacek Picture Editing: Judith Egelhof, Irene Kern, Jürgen Winzeck, Publicis Pro, Munich Photography: Kurt Bauer, Susetta Bozzi, Jay Carlson, David Hancock, Katharina Hesse, Bernd Müller, Simon Katzer, Bernhard Linder, Peter Lüders, Rupert Oberhäuser, Volker Steger, Steffen Thalemann, Jürgen Winzeck Internet (www.siemens.com/pof): Volkmar Dimpfl Address Database: Susan Süß, Publicis Pro, Erlangen Layout / Lithography: Rigo Ratschke, Büro Seufferle, Stuttgart Illustrations: Natascha Römer, Stuttgart Graphics: Jochen Haller, Büro Seufferle, Stuttgart Translations German — English: TransForm GmbH, Cologne Printing: Bechtle Druck&Service, Esslingen Picture Credits: Vincent Laforet / courtesy of The New York Times (Title), Rhön-Klinikum AG (7 l.), Deutscher Zukunftspreis / Ansgar Pudenz (8 r.), Getty Images (14, 30, 53 l.), Wildlife / Harms (15 m.), Panthermedia (15 m.), Picture Alliance/dpa (15 r., 23 r., 54, 74 t., 76 b.), Transocean (16 r., 31 m.), Visum (23 l.), private (25, 33, 91, 93), Suncor Energy Inc. (35), Disney (44, 46 t., b.m., b.r., 47), Jay Carlson (45, 46 b.l.), Foster + Partner (52 m., 76 t., 77), Nic Lehoux / N.Y. Times (53 r., 54 l.), Energie AG (63), Smart Synch (65 b.), Sihlcity (66), Eddy Gorts (68 t.), Arup (71 t.), CCHRC (74 b., 75), Cylex (83), Bayer (86 back), Prof. Schubert, Uni Magdeburg (86 f.), Peter Rigaud (104, 105 l.). All other images: Copyright Siemens AG Not all of the healthcare products mentioned in this issue are commercially available in the U.S. Some are investigational devices or are under development and must be approved or reviewed by the FDA and their future availability in the U.S. cannot be assured. This is particularly applicable to the following: Mammomat Inspiration, Breast Tomosynthesis, syngo MammoCAD, Computer Aided Detection, REMIND, Breast MR CAD, advanced CAD software. Pictures of the Future, Somatom Definition, SOARIAN, ACUSON, REMIND, syngo, Mammomat Inspriration, Versant kPCR, Magnetom Avanto, ADVIA Centaur, Immulite, Dimension Vista, LOCI, ELF and other names are registered trademarks of Siemens AG or affiliated companies. Epcot is a trademark of The Walt Disney Company. Other product and company names mentioned in this publication may be registered trademarks of their respective companies. The editorial content of the reports in this publication does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the publisher. This magazine contains forward-looking statements, the accuracy of which Siemens is not able to guarantee in any way. Pictures of the Future appears twice a year. Printed in Germany. Reproduction of articles in whole or in part requires the permission of the editorial office. This also applies to storage in electronic databases or on the Internet.

Order number: A19100-F-P125-X-7600 ISSN 1618-5498