TÜV SÜD Journal 3/2015 (english version) by TÜV SÜD

TÜV SÜD

journal est #16 to the t d‘s ture: When Holly woo Back to the fu visions become reality ove #24 on the m ng and Digitalization: emergi vanishing jobs oint #28 to the p rms are built How offshore wind fa into the sea

# 03 2015

ON G TRAININ THE FUTURE

TRAINS 2.0

Editorial

DEAR READERS, For more than 100 years now, TÜV SÜD has been deeply involved in mobility. As far back as the late 19th century, southern German Dampfkesselrevisionsvereine – the forerunner of today’s TÜV SÜD Group – inspected so-called locomobile, or steam-powered vehicles. The technical inspection of cars and motorcycles was added to the service range in 1906. With their tests and expertise, the engineers of the company known as TÜV at the time improved trafﬁc safety and were instrumental in helping new technologies become accepted among the general public and, thus, achieve a breakthrough. Today, mobility remains one of our company’s main focal points: on roads as well as on rails, for individual solutions as well as mass-transit issues. We not only help ensure the safety of existing technologies, but also further the development of new ones like e-mobility, self-driving cars and the increasing connectedness of vehicles.

TÜV SÜD Journal app for Android and iOS:

Our cover story on train travel will take you on a journey into the future world of the railroad. One word sums up the direction: digitalization. The ideas designed to make this form of mobility more attractive are multifaceted. As it has done in the past, TÜV SÜD will make a massive commitment in the future to ensure that new technologies are safe and viable.

Download now at www.tuv-sud.com/journal

Best regards,

Dr.-Ing. Axel Stepken Chairman of the Board of Management of TÜV SÜD AG

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Table of contents

#06

COVER STORY Railroad companies are reinventing longdistance travel as a way of fending off new competitors and business models like Uber, carsharing and intercity buses.

To the

On the

To the

TEST

MOVE

POINT

What’s on people’s minds around the world? We take a closer look at technical and social trends.

A look at the world of tomorrow: These innovations could soon be indispensable parts of our daily lives.

Get to the bottom of it: Our »addedvalue« pages make complex issues understandable.

#16 Back to the future Twenty-six years ago, director Robert Zemeckis blasted the teenager Marty McFly into the future – October 21, 2015. With astonishingly accurate predictions.

#22 For the thrill of it TÜV SÜD is the world’s leading inspector for amusement parks and fairs. The Group can look back on more than a century of work with these thrill-generating events.

#28 A charge on the high seas How do you erect a wind power unit out at sea? And how can you provide the stability it needs to put up with the pounding from the wind and waves? A seven-step guide.

#20 Inventive mind The technology philosopher Gerhard Banse, President of the Leibniz Association of Sciences in Berlin, talks about technical progress, fantasy and old dreams of the human race.

#24 Jobs of the future Robot consultants, simplicity experts, telesurgeons: Digitalization is sending shock waves through the working world. Which jobs will vanish and which ones emerge?

#30 Consumer adviser: camping tents Fun or wet, cozy or dank? When it comes to buying a tent, a few details may ultimately mean the difference between fun or frustration. Five tips that will help fun win out.

#4 TÜV SÜD in focus #14 5 minutes with TÜV SÜD

#27 On location #31 Dates/imprint

#32 5 minutes with TÜV SÜD #34 The ﬁnal say TÜV SÜD Journal 3

TÜV SÜD im in focus Bild

Making

A SPLASH

All on board? Summer, sun and blue skies – the perfect time to get out on the water. And before you know it, you have packed up your inflatable raft and taken off for the nearest river or lake. With your oars cutting into the water on the right and left – your fellow riders and you are soon flying down the white water or racing toward the next bay. The higher the waves and the faster the current, the more adrenalin you feel! The employees of TÜV SÜD Product Service work year round to minimize the risks that people face on water – whether a bone-jarring ride in white water or a leisurely canoe tour of a tranquil pond: Each year, Michael Rann and his colleagues test about 100 (inflatable) boats, kayaks and other leisure-time products for use in and on the water. The typical problems the team members uncover in their Hamburg lab include leaky air chambers or imprecise or excessive loads. The highlight of this work is the test out on the water. »We conduct these tests at Oortkaten Harbor in Hamburg or on the Hohendeich Lake – anytime of the year,« Rann says. »Occasionally, we will end up testing summer boats during a winter snowstorm. These are the moments you always remember.« More information: www.tuv-sud.com/inflatables

4 TÜV SÜD Journal

TÜV TÜV SÜD SÜD in imfocus Bild

TÜV SÜD Journal 5

Cover story

TRAINING

ON THE FUTURE Change is sweeping through the travel industry: Deutsche Bahn is coming up with new travel options to fend off the likes of Uber, carsharing and long-distance buses. Passengers should be able to pick them up even in the planning phase. Text: Timour Chafik

Illustrations: Skizzomat

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n a rear building, just about 500 meters from Munich's central train station, industrial designer Gerhardt Kellermann is conjuring up his vision of German train travel. The ultimate success of this new world will lie in its attention to details. Things like these small, three-centimeter-deep round indentions in the folding trays. Couldn't they be upgraded? With inductive charging sur6 TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D Journal

Titelstory Cover story

faces for smartphones and other devices. Now, that's more like it. And those white headrests in Deutsche Bahn's ICE trains. There's bound to be something better out there, something like infinitely adjustable headrests made of flexible, easy-to-clean plastic? Kellermann says: »You can add them to existing seats in a snap. You can bend them as needed. Thanks to their long ›ears,‹ they would also offer a certain

amount of privacy.« Or, moving into an even higher realm, separate »fresh air compartments« with panorama roofs through which the wind would blow – sometimes more and sometimes less depending on the train's speed. »This would offer a real change of pace during a long trip« and would give »the authentic feeling of train travel« back to passengers, the 31-year-old says. TÜV SÜD Journal 7

Cover story

TÜV SÜD Rail Transporting people and goods to their destinations is the key job of railroads in the global economy. The industry's success depends in large part on the following four factors: reliability, availability, maintainability and safety. To help ensure travelers and their baggage arrive reliably and safely at their destinations, TÜV SÜD Rail helps manufacturers, operators and government agencies fulfill these criteria. The company provides our rail industry customers a comprehensive range of services that includes consulting, engineering, testing, certification and training services for conventional and high speed trains as well as metro and light rail vehicles.

Train travel as an experience of technology and design: Checking-in using a body scan, a window as a screen, swivel ergonomic seats, price and schedule comparisons with apps – and electricity-generating photovoltaic film

8 TÜV SÜD Journal

Cover story

train

Planning by app

The Munich industrial designer calls his ideas »add-ons« or »embellishments.« Solutions that take advantage of trains' current interior designs and do not require fancy innovations or extensive investments. Modules for an »economic concept for enhancing and modernizing existing trains.« Last year in Berlin, Kellermann showed off his »embellishments« at InnoTrans, the world's larg-est trade fair for transport technology. Deutsche Bahn, Germany's major railroad company, is always checking such proposals with great interest. But at this point it is focusing on other issues, things like adding free Wi-Fi service to its trains. Travelers who today hop aboard a train in Cologne, Barcelona, Hong Kong or St. Petersburg will most likely enter a high-speed module that was designed some time ago. In Cologne, it's known as the ICE, in Barcelona the Velaro E, in Hong Kong the CRH3 and in St. Petersburg the Sapsan. No matter what they are called, such trains have one thing in common: They are expensive. And, to make sure they earn their keep everywhere in the world, they are designed to do decades of service. »The vehicles being delivered today were planned and developed 15 years ago,« says Professor Andreas Knie, Managing Director of the Berlin-based Innovation Center for Mobility and Societal Change, InnoZ. This is an eternity in the age of bits and bytes, Big Data and the Internet of Things. Just who would have thought as we stood on the cusp of a new millennium in 1999 that smartphones and tablet computers would facilitate an »Outernet« and create an »alwayson lifestyle« that would free users from the confining wires of their desktop computers

»The has to redefine its purposefulness in a modern society« – Professor Andreas Knie, Innovation Center for Mobility and Societal Change, InnoZ

at home? That travelers would have such options as carsharing, long-distance buses and alternative taxi services as Uber? Or that they would no longer make their decisions in a travel agency and instead settle on an option after using an app that can spit out a price and schedule comparison in a flash? »When you take these factors into consideration, Deutsche Bahn is a victim of its long-term planning processes,« Knie says. Window as a monitor screen

Nonetheless, the train of the future could really become quite attractive: A commuter's mobile device would rouse itself before breakfast, recommending the smartest, fastest and environmentally friendliest route to work. The commuter would hop onto an e-bike to make his or her way to the train station and would be directed in a smart, convenient manner to the appropriate platform, train car and compartment, where the rider would be greeted by a swivel ergonomic seat that he or she could turn toward the window with a simple flick of the wrist. But this window would not just be any old window. It would also serve as a power gen-

erator – thanks to photovoltaic film – and a screen on which the passenger could work or stream a current television show. The commuter would not see any conductor walking through the aisle because there wouldn't be one any more: To get on the train in the first place, the rider had to undergo a total body scan and have the validity of his or her mobile boarding card checked. This card would contain all sorts of personal preferences – as »commuter Doe« heads off to the self-driving subway train at the destination train station, he or she would be directed past shopping deals that meet these preferences to a T. A fantasy of the future, no doubt. But these fantasies have real potential, even if they paradoxically make one point clear: No matter how rail-based mobility of the future may turn out, it will score points with passengers only if it thinks beyond the crossties. »You don't need any augmented-reality apps on train windows to pull this off,« Knie says. »We simply have to find a way to get people thinking about train travel once again.« And these travelers are becoming more and more demanding: They want to combine the train, car, plane and long-distance bus

Three books, one subject: Mobility of tomorrow Sustainable Railway Futures An

Customer view of mobility How customers

Tourism Report 2015 A look at travelers'

overview of the train's importance in terms of sustainable mobility: How can the train be »revitalized« as a modern means of transportation? Ashgate Pub Co., 261 pages

meet their transportation needs and what they think of the range of mobility options. Findings from in-depth interviews with 24 mobility users and experts. Springer Gabler, 148 pages

future needs that is designed to provide industry experts with ideas about developing new products, services and business models. Zukunftsinstitut, 120 pages

TÜV SÜD Journal 9

Cover story

with one another without having to commit themselves to one option or another well ahead of time. They want to cover the »last mile,« that mobility space separating the main travel hub from their own homes, as effortlessly as possible. Location-based services should help them spend the waiting time as comfortably, meaningfully and quickly as possible. And this should be preferably done in a smart setting. Train stations should be seen once again as »mobility cathedrals« or »mobility hubs« outfitted with an infrastructure and a service range that would rank with anything that cutting-edge shopping centers and airports may have to offer. »The train proved itself in the 19th and 20th centuries. It now has to redefine its purposefulness in a modern society,« Knie says. The train is no longer the primary means of transportation, Knie says, adding: Rather, it has taken on a complementary role. Google on rails

What train transportation needs is a new age of invention. Deutsche Bahn knows this and took a step in this direction at the beginning of 2015 by opening the DB Mobility Lab in Frankfurt – a laboratory of the future that has the feel of a start-up where staff members explore tomorrow's mobility and come up with such specific ideas as app-assisted seat reservations in regional trains or new lighting concepts (see "Points of view" on p. 12). »Stay hungry, stay foolish.« The muchquoted Stanford message of Apple founder Steve Jobs has also not been forgotten. It adds a hint of Silicon Valley to Frankfurt am Main. This summer, Deutsche Bahn held an event called »DB Pitch Infrastructure 4.0« for start-ups, the company's own incubator program. The motto: »Facilitating the integration of external innovations for DB Infrastructure.« Each team of applicants had five minutes to sell Deutsche Bahn representatives on its business idea, and, naturally, the event was held in the co-working space »betahaus« in the Kreuzberg district of Berlin. The best pitchers now have three months, Deutsche Bahn mentoring and €25,000 in start capital to flesh out their ideas. You can think of it as something like »Google on rails«: hip, young, hungry and 10 TÜV SÜD Journal

mobile

»People are not in order to travel to the center. Rather, the center is where people are mobile« – quote from a study by the Gottlieb Duttweiler Institute in Switzerland

foolish. And for those who need a little more jargon: adaptive, shareable, personal and social. The study »Mobility 2025 – Traveling in the Future« that the Gottlieb Duttweiler Institute GDI prepared for the Swiss national railroad SBB sums up the situation this way: »Travelers will no longer adapt themselves to the system the way they do today. Rather, the system will be so multifaceted and can be so flexibly used and combined that it will appear it is actually adapting itself to travelers.« You already know what they are talking about: Facebook, Google and the like employ the same principles, but are free from any infrastructural restraints. By contrast, the train system can perform only within its system's boundaries. But this does not have to be a limitation: »People are not mobile in order to travel to the center. Rather, the center is where people are mobile,« the GDI argues. As a result, the study says, new locations will be created to provide travelers the support they need on their intermodal journeys. What matters is not the shell of a 19th century train station or an ICE train car developed 15 years ago. What matters is what goes into filling the neutral shell of the transportation infrastructure: Booking, billing and comparison portals are now standard technology-based options. They are »hygiene factors« that are considered commonplace and can be employed at least as well by new competitors like carsharing and long-distance bus operators thanks to smartphones and tablet computers. Rather, the challenge will be to introduce new services without putting a major effort into it and doing it in a quasi »en passant« fashion. Services that could turn the train as a »complementary means of transportation« into an experience and the

central train station into a new social magnet in a world increasingly being viewed as virtual. The control center: smartphone

But it is also a world of insufficient bike parking racks, broken air-conditioners, underground pedestrian passageways made of bare stone and filled with harsh artificial light. A world of high speed that is occasionally brought to a halt by late trains and strikes. It is a world in which star architects like Santiago Calatrava are inspired by a lounging woman and translate this inspiration into the Liège-Guillemins train station in Belgium with the help of massive amounts of steel, concrete and glass. But it is also a world in which you can travel to the Eupen train station located about 25 kilometers east and marvel at the – to put it mildly – rather functional side of railroads. The critical factor for the train's future, as well as for the future of other mobility service providers will be that they become so interconnected that travelers can be provided with a functioning infrastructure. It may sound rather matter of fact, but it will be key competitive factor: Travelers will make their decisions to take their trips by long-distance bus, train, e-bike or Uber intuitively and situationally with their smartphones. »Any company that can pull this off will excite customers,« Knie says. Assuming the phones are charged – perhaps at some point using an inductive charging surface built into the folding tray in the seat in front of each passenger. More information: www.tuv-sud.com/industry/rail

Cover story

Surrounded by competitors: The train must contribute to shaping the transformation of mass transit. New services and options like Uber, carsharing and long-distance buses are attracting travelers.

TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D Journal 11

Points of view

hat are the mobility trends of the future? What sort of image should we project to our customers? And how must our business operations change to live up to this image? These are the key points of our »Mobility 4.0« strategy that is being developed in such places as our Mobility Lab in Frankfurt am Main. Our aim: to create prototypes for new products and services and to act as the »traffic manager« in the product development process at Deutsche Bahn, Germany's largest railroad company. But: We are not the exclusive research lab with intent on forcing ideas on the entire company and transforming it. We are actually a breeding ground where we sweat the details. The »Süwex app« is a good example of our work: We developed this app for the regional express network in southwestern Germany that is operated by DB Regio AG. With this app, regular riders, that is, commuters, can reserve a seat. Admittedly, we're not talking about rocket science here. And we're not trying to apply our visions to rail travel 20 years down the road. On the contrary: Our primary aim is to focus on meeting customers' current needs, testing our ideas quickly and intelligently and expanding them when they work. At the same time, we are trying to get our arms around one big idea: the fact that travel assistance systems will work in a completely different manner in the future. This means one thing: Today, Deutsche Bahn is no longer just the carrier that transports goods and people from one train station to another. Rather, it now views itself as being a holistic mobility company – for a perfect mobility chain that extends from front door to front door.

»Deutsche Bahn views itself as a mobility company – for a mobility chain that extends from front door to front door.«

POINTS Kerstin Hartmann, Head of Deutsche Bahn's Mobility Lab that opened in the fall of 2014

TRAIN? BUS? Who gets left behind? 12 TÜV SÜD Journal

Points of view

»At the end of the day, something will have to lose out: motorized individual transportation.«

OF VIEW Matthias Schröter, Spokesperson for the Association of German Bus Operators

he competition never sleeps. With the introduction of long-distance domestic bus service in Germany on January 1, 2013, one new competitor finally had an opportunity to get out of bed and experience the insomnia for itself. Up until that date, Deutsche Bahn reigned supreme over this travel market. Now, it sees us in its rear-view mirror as well: During the first year of open competition, we carried eight million passengers. Last year, the total climbed to 19 million. Of course, we are proud of this achievement, but we have no intention of letting it go to our heads. Deutsche Bahn still transports more than 130 million people each year. But you cannot overlook one simple fact: Even though we may be the little guy in the marketplace, the entire system has been shaken. Long-distance buses are a niche market for people who may have been unable to afford a trip in the past or who are not interested in rapidly getting from one place to another. And these people are happy to take advantage of our mix of comfort, low price and easy booking. And don't forget: We already offer Wi-FI service on our buses! Nonetheless, Deutsche Bahn will continue to have a record number of passengers in long-distance travel. After all, the opening of the market has gotten the rail company's innovative juices to flow. All international comparisons also show that more passengers than before use buses and trains once a long-distance market has been liberalized. And because we are not traveling in a system of communicating tunnels, at the end of the day something will have to lose out: motorized individual transportation.

The opening of Germany's long-distance travel market is paying off for one group in particular – the passengers. But both Deutsche Bahn and bus companies are proﬁting from it as well. The rising number of passengers is bringing smiles to the faces of both travel providers. And both will continue to enjoy this success only if they remain innovative.

TÜV SÜD Journal 13

5 minutes

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TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D has been authorized by the Zhaga international industrial association to conduct tests and offer certiďŹ cations at its locations in Munich and Shenzhen of LED modules and lamp holders in accordance with Zhaga speciďŹ cations. The worldwide speciďŹ cations apply to size and mechanics as well as to photometric and thermal properties to ensure interchangeability for LEDs.

TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D will monitor the construction of a new offshore wind farm called North Sea One off the North Sea island of Juist. The company will certify the implementation phase and monitor the process all the way to approval for operation â&#x20AC;&#x201C; including the manufacture, transport, erection and start-up of the wind park. By 2017, a total of 54 wind power units will be in operation.

Industrial companies can sharply reduce their costs by improving energy efďŹ ciency. This conclusion was reached by the initial evaluation of the online tool ÂťEnergy EfďŹ ciency Check!ÂŤ that was launched in November 2014 by TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D and ILF Beratende Ingenieure. Companies were able to save up to â&#x201A;Ź700,000 in a three-year period. You will ďŹ nd more information at www.tuev-sued.de/is/ee-check.

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TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D expands its ďŹ&#x201A;eet-management services: In May 2015, the Belgian company TCOPlus and its afďŹ liated company FleetVision became part of the TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D Group. With this acquisition, the company has underscored its determination to become the market leader in ďŹ&#x201A;eet services outside Europe. ÂťThe software solutions offered by TCOPlus and FleetVision perfectly complement our own range of services. They enable ďŹ&#x201A;eet managers to conduct online simulations of tax effects and to make credible ďŹ nancial forecasts,ÂŤ said Rainer Laber (middle), who oversees the Fleet Business Unit at the TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D Group. ÂťWith TCOPlus in our team, we can now provide even more comprehensive support to our customers. This help will enable them to pinpoint and exploit savings potential.ÂŤ TCOPlus has multiyear contracts with major international customers and currently offers global reporting and applied ďŹ&#x201A;eet software solutions for 120,000 vehicles. FleetVision also provides global consulting services for ďŹ&#x201A;eet analysis.ÂŤ SBJOFS MBCFS!UVFW TVFE EF

14 TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D Journal

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Information and communications technology is making its way into production operations. The expanding networking link between production and the processing of huge amounts of data is creating major new challenges for industrial companies. Smart production systems are more vulnerable to attacks, sabotage and espionage. In a white paper titled ÂťManaging Security, Safety and Privacy in Smart Factories,ÂŤ TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D and OPX GPS GSFF the Munich Network put together BU XXX UVFW TVFE EF EJHJUBM TFSWJDF an overview of the latest information on this issue and developed management guidelines for companies that plan to turn their production facilities into smart factories. The challenge: A special security risk always arises when existing production and manufacturing operations are outďŹ tted with new communications technology and additional Âťintelligence.ÂŤ The white paper offers practical recommendations that complement the Digital Agenda and high-tech strategy of the German government.

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5 minutes

CharIn Initiative promotes uniform charging system

TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D Foundation helps Dresden college

A fundamental requirement leading to a breakthrough for electric cars is this: It must be faster and simpler to charge the vehicle than it is to ďŹ ll it up at the gas station. To turn this desire into a reality, leading OEMs, suppliers and TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D have joined forces in Berlin to Today, more than create the Charging Interface Initiative (CharIn). Their aim is to globally promote CHARGING STATIONS and reďŹ ne the Combined Charging System in Europe use CSS. (CCS). The system brings together charging with alternating current and the faster direct current process into one standard coupler connector, the combo connector. TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D is one of Europeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s leading certiďŹ ers of charging stations for electric vehicles and has been working for years to promote uniform high global standards for electric mobility â&#x20AC;&#x201C; including through its work in a global network of battery test centers and as a partner of OEMs in vehicle development.

1,000

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with TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D

Chemical unit of TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D celebrates 10th anniversary Eighty employees â&#x20AC;&#x201C; this was the goal that TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D Chemie Service had in mind when it opened in 2005. The company that was created from the self-monitoring activities of Bayer, Dow OleďŹ nverbund and Hoechst recently celebrated its 10th anniversary in business. Today, more than 1,200 employees in the Business Unit Chemical, Oil & Gas work in 30 industrial locations around the world to support plant operators in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. The growth has been fueled by a large number of acquisitions that have been made over the years â&#x20AC;&#x201C; including PetroChem Inspection Services and RCI Consultants in the United States and Swissi Process Safety in Switzerland. The broad international base is one of the unitâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s success factors: Thanks to TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;Dâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s global network, customers in such growth markets as China, Singapore and India can be assisted as well. IBOT OJDPMBVT SJOEŇ&#x2026;FJTDI!UVFW TVFE EF

The TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D Foundation promotes technical safety in every area of our society. As part of this mission, it conducts numerous projects designed to excite young people about technology and the natural sciences and to optimize initial training and higher education. One speciďŹ c program is the funding of three visiting professorships at the Dresden University of Applied Science. The aim of this three-year assistance program is to encourage an international engineering dialogue. The ďŹ rst professor selected for the program launched at the end of April 2015 was Masayoshi Tomizuka from the University of California at Berkeley, one of the leading researchers in vehicle automation technology. His visit was also used to strengthen the ties between the Dresden University of Applied Science and the University of California at Berkeley and to jointly tackle future mobility challenges. You will ďŹ nd more information about the visiting professorships online at www.tuev-sued-stiftung.de. manuela.schmid@tuev-sued-stiftung.de

1BSUOFSTIJQ JO -&% DFSUJŇ&#x201E;DBUJPO GPS &VSPQF High-potential alliance: Samsung Electronics and TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D have signed an agreement in Seoul, South Korea, that covers the certiďŹ cation of LEDs for the European market. The agreement is designed to provide the worldwide Samsung Electronics customers that use Samsungâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s LED components and modules in their products with a secure service. Samsung customers will proďŹ t from lower costs and will save time in the product certiďŹ cation process for the European market. The agreement covers Samsung customers around the world who make products for the European market. In the area of lamps and lighting systems, TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D offers a broad range of services and certiďŹ cations for worldwide market access. This work includes safety tests conducted in accor-dance with globally accepted standards as well as tests related to electro-magnetic compatibility, chemical standards, energy efďŹ ciency and various performance parameters. stefan.rentsch@tuv-sud.kr

TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D Journal 15

To the test

Twenty-ssixx yeaars aggo, thhe ﬁlm »Baackk to the Futuure II« wass reeleassedd – and toook movieegoerss onn ann am musing andd suurprrissinng joourney to the yeaar 20155. The timee haas come too seee juust what has becoome a realiity sinnce then.

In the skateboard era of the late 1980s, every young person was dying to have a »hoverboard« like the one shown in the film.

16 TÜV SÜD Journal

To the test

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24 TÜV SÜD Journal

artin Hofmann can look back on a proud family tradition: Seven generations of his family have produced engineers. Martin’s ancestors were on the scene in the 19th century when the first steam engines went to work in the mining industry. His great-grandfather developed internal combustion engines at the beginning of the 20th century, and his father designed the first industrial robots in the 1970s. Martin Hofmann himself is the plant manager of a mid-sized solar technology manufacturer. His daughter Johanna is studying mechatronics. Even though this Hofmann engineering family is a figment of our imagination, the family history could have indeed played out this way. As one generation has passed to another, the engineer’s job profile has undergone a constant metamorphosis. With every advance in technology, new responsibilities were added to the profile, and new skills required. Following the emergence of the steam engine, assembly line and electronics, the world is now experiencing its fourth industrial revolution – a process that will naturally not occur overnight, but will change the working world step by step in coming years. The rallying cries of this revolution are Industry 4.0, robotics and interoperabil-ity. One example of this brave new world is the »smart factory« in which customer orders are received online, registered and then passed

On the move

NES

onto production and logistics. The product can be made by robots in an almost completely automated process and then readied for shipment. Added to this development are inventions like the 3D printer that has the potential to radically simplify the production of goods in small series and produce completely new business models. Robot consultants on their way

This will create opportunities. But even as the level of automation continues to grow, Wolfgang Dorst of the IT trade association BITKOM says that humans »will once again become the heart of the production process. As experienced workers and decision mak-

»Humans will again become the

FOUR TIMES A »REVOLUTION«

direct a surgical team. Other changes are predicted to include health navigators who will help patients operate complex medical systems, solar specialists, aqua farmers and simplicity experts who will be tasked with bringing the growing complexity in places like companies down to a human level. This is the optimistic outlook. But there is also another one. Take a study about the future of work that was released in 2013 by the researchers Carl Benedict Frey and Michael Osborne at the University of Oxford. Their study predicts that 47 percent of all jobs in the United States will become automated in the next 20 years. The »red list« of threatened jobs does not just include ones

heart of the production

process« – Wolfgang Dorst, BITCOM ers, they will manage and monitor production processes of the value chain.« For example as a »robot consultant.« This will be a new job that the non-profit educational organization Canadian Scholarship Trust (CST) expects to see arise in the next 15 years. The robot consultant will advise customers about the selection and configuration of robots that will perform such tasks as assisting the elderly with household chores – and help resolve conflicts. Drawing on information about future worldwide trends like digitalization, demographic change, personalization and security, CST researchers have taken the bold step of predicting which new types of jobs will arise in the near future. By 2030 at the latest, telesurgery will be practiced. This long-distance form of medicine will be used to conduct operations with robots’ assistance or to

like taxi driver and cashier. With the emergence of deep learning, the smart processing of huge amounts of data, highly trained employees will also see their livelihoods become endangered. This group could include insurance sales representatives, tax consultants and bank employees. The economist Jeremy Bowles of the London School of Economics has reached similar conclusions about job markets in Europe and Germany. Economists at Boston University and Columbia University in the United States are now calling for a new tax system that would reverse the distribution of income from lower classes to higher classes that has occurred as a result of the introduction of smart machines into the working world. But keep one thing in mind! A look back at economic history offers a much more positive picture. In 1931, economist John May-

The so-called ﬁrst Industrial Revolution was actually a process that occurred over a period of several decades. The revolution began in England. By the end of the 18th century, inventions like the steam engine and the mechanical loom were changing the face of the economy and society. By the 19th century, Germany was evolving from an agricultural country to an industrial one. At the dawn of the 20th century, the spreading use of electricity and assembly line production were raising industrial production to a new level. The third industrial revolution built on these changes: Since the 1970s, production has become further automated by the use of electronics and IT. Today, the academic world and media are full of talk about the fourth industrial revolution or »Industry 4.0.« This refers to the Internet-facilitated interoperability of customers, machinery and production.

nard Keynes feared that technology would fuel unemployment. These fears proved to be unfounded, as we all know. During the past 200 years, every surge in technology did indeed wipe out traditional jobs. But a huge number of new types of jobs and sales markets followed in its wake. Locomotive drivers and firemen took the place of coachmen. The car and train pushed the horse-driven carriage aside. Overall, the industrialization of a portion of the world has arguably created hundreds of millions of jobs – and generated the economic momentum that actually made population growth and global prosperity possible in the first place. The German Ministry of Education and Research has issued an optimistic forecast: In 2025, we will have a large number of business models based on individual products. Even the skeptical Oxford researchers Frey and Osborne think that new types of jobs will be created in every place where creativity, soft skills and dexterity are required – good prospects for future generations of engineers in the fictional Hofmann family. TÜV SÜD Journal 25

On the move

»IT WILL AFFECT JUST ABOUT « EVERY

INDUSTRY

Professor Axel Haunschild, Director of the Institute for Interdisciplinary Occupational Science at the University of Hanover, discusses the changing work environment and the digital proletariat.

Professor Haunschild, how will the spread of digitalization impact the working world? During each industrial revolution, people have debated whether higher or lower qualifications would result from the change. Both are correct. While some jobs and entire professions will fall victim to streamlining and automation, a need for highly qualified specialists in the areas of development, programming, management and maintenance of the new generations of machinery will arise. Which industry will be caught up in this change? It will affect just about every industry. The mail-order business is already using highly automated warehouse processes. You can also find many examples of the digitalization of work in the financial sector, the tourism business, the music industry and publishing. Even in the area of personal services, ways of supporting key human jobs like care of the elderly are being created by assistance systems. Will we still have hairdressers, master painters and roofers 20 years from now? It will be interesting to see how the crafts will evolve. By this, I am talking about the question of whether jobs that could theoretically be done by machines like hair cutting, painting and roofing will continue to be done by humans simply because people like to have contact with one another. So-called interactive services like advising do not just simply have a result as the goal. Rather, they are also shaped by the interaction process. 26 TÜV SÜD Journal

the same labor rights will not apply as they do in our system. Will a global digital proletariat arise? You could call it that. This proletariat, however, will not sell its physical labor. Rather, these people must be highly qualified, be responsible for their own further training – and take on many entrepreneurial risks themselves.

What about if the colleague is suddenly a robot? The first reaction will be to give it a name, that is, to make it human. The question is how much autonomy will be left over for people as automation expands. Will technology simply be our assistant or will a modern remake of Taylorism arise? The machines will be able to do more and more things – and people will come into play only when the machines are over their heads. What sort of working relationships will exist in Industry 4.0? They will be heterogeneous. But there will definitely be a need for specialists in a company. But the outlook is much different for services. In place of the traditional full-time employee, you will have freelancers who can work digitally from any place in the world. This will create the troubling possibility that many jobs will be outsourced and performed outside our employment system. As a result,

Professor Axel Haunschild Professor Axel Haunschild (who was born in 1964) became the Director of the Institute for Interdisciplinar y Occupational Science at the University of Hanover in 2011. He studied industrial engineering in Hamburg and earned his Ph.D. in human resources management in 1997 at the University of Hamburg. Before becoming a professor in Hanover, he taught at universities in Trier, London and Innsbruck. His research areas include new forms of work and organization, employment relationships, human resource management in creative industries, co-determination and work-life boundaries.

On location

People:

Steve Hackett, International Account Manager of Fleet Logistics: »Many of our customers are now pursuing environmental strategies that can easily be brought in line with their cost management policies.«

A good deal for all

teve Hackett recently was cruising down the autobahn on his way to Cologne – as part of a business trip he was taking in a rented mid-sized luxury car. »All of a sudden, the steering wheel started to vibrate,« Steve says. »It was warning me that I was about to leave my lane.« When he thinks back on the incident, he gives the safety technology being used in today’s vehicles an A+: »Fantastic!« And he knows what he is talking about because safety and cars are what his job is all about: For the past four years, Steve has been an international account manager at Fleet Logistics, a subsidiary of TÜV SÜD. The company is Europe’s largest fleet manager with more than 150,000 vehicles under its care. Steve helps large international companies, some of which maintain up to 30,000 vehicles in their fleets, determine how they can optimally enhance these fleets and lease vehicles at favorable terms. In addition, he advises them about the vehicles they should offer to their employees and the safety features that these vehicles should have: When, for instance, a lane departure warning assistant causes the steering wheel to shake in order to prevent an accident, the safety feature not only protects the driver, but also prevents repair bills. »By managing the risks, we also keep costs under control,« Steve says. The growing concern among companies and employees about the environment also advances this effort. »Many of our customers are now pursuing environmental strategies that can easily be brought into line with their cost management policies,« Steve says. Companies are increasingly selecting cars with reduced engine displacement that use less fuel and thus help companies shrink their carbon footprints. Most countries use their tax systems to encourage this trend. »This pays off for both the company and the people who drive company cars,« Steve says. »The drivers benefit because environmentally friendly cars are generally subject to lower taxes – and companies see their costs fall. It’s a good deal for both groups.«

More information: www.ﬂeetlogistics.com

TÜV SÜD Journal 27

D AND #28 WIN OCEAN PING #30 CAM TENTS

A stiff breeze on the high seas: Wind farms operating far offshore are a driving force behind Germany’s energy revolution. But just how are such power producers erected? And how can builders provide the stability these units need to put up with the pounding from the wind and waves? A seven-step guide. Text: Timour Chaﬁk

GATHERING THE FACTS

TAKING THE PLUNGE

Before the rotary blades can begin to turn high above the waves, experts have to venture into the depths of the sea: Each tower site in a wind farm must undergo a geotechnical site survey. Can a foundation be laid here? Do unexploded ordnance or other underwater objects have to be removed? These geotechnical investigations are conducted with technology such as magnetometers or underwater robots.

When underwater robots get in over their heads, industrial divers then jump in to deal with an array of different situations, including those in which a cable cannot be properly retracted or problems occur with the corrosion protection on the foundation. These specialists view themselves as »maritime service providers,« as all-rounders who can draw on a stockpile of diving support vessels, diving control containers, pressure chambers and transportable pontoon bridges to perform any job that comes their way.

7 ... TURNING IT ON The individual units are then linked with one another and connected to the wind farm’s dedicated substation. Using alternating current connections, a sea cable transports the power to the nearest substation on land. The cable must be able to transport huge amounts of power over distances of 100 kilometers or more.

To the point

28 TÜV SÜD Journal

TO TH E P O I NT

3 A SOLID FOUNDATION A large number of foundation designs are used depending on the depth of the water and seabed conditions. In addition to tripods (left), these include tripile support structures, buckets (steel cylinders that attach themselves to the seabed using suction) or ﬂoating support structures. These are particularly well-suited for very deep sites. Other strengths: They are constructed on land and can be installed on the high seas without causing signiﬁcant noise pollution.

TURNING

POWER 4

6 Tower with elevator

FINISHING THE JOB To minimize the work that must be done at sea, as many components as possible are assembled at a harbor and are then transported to the foundation site by ship. In an initial step, the ﬁrst tower segment is attached to the support structure with the help of a crane or installation vessel. The remaining segments of the tower are added step by step. The work is complete once the rotor blades are attached to the nacelle. But no electricity can ﬂow just yet.

Let’s take the North Sea: The seabed here is usually sandy and soft. The foundations used in the new DanTysk wind farm located 70 kilometers west of the island of Sylt were built at depths of between 21 meters and 31 meters. Monopile foundations are well-suited for such environments. These support structures consist of a steel pipe that is driven into the seabed by a pile-driving hammer. A transition piece is placed over the bottom section of the tower.

Installation platform with crane

Hammer

Transition Piece Underwater robots Tripod Three steel piles branch from the center steel pipe. All parts are connected to one another on the seabed. Suited for depths of 20 meters to 80 meters.

Drives steel elements of the support structure into the seabed.

BLOWING BUBBLES The pile-driving work on the foundation can be very loud. Wind-farm construction work may not exceed 160 decibels in order to protect such marine life as porpoises. For this reason, an acoustic determent system is used even before construction begins as a way of scaring off animals from the area. As another way of mitigating noise under the water, a curtain of big bubbles is created.

Industrial divers Seabed

To the point

TÜV SÜD Journal 29

Human divers are used when robots have reached their limits – for instance, when cables have to be retracted or problems occur on the foundation.

PUTTING DOWN ROOTS

To the point

Advice:

Much at stake Soggy or dry? Cozy or dank? When it comes to buying and caring for a tent, the details can really count. Here are five tips you should keep in mind.

Which tent for which trip?

For journeys in the mountains, you need a tent that can be quickly set up and can put up with harsh elements. Geodesic tents are particularly stable – and can handle snow. But what if things heat up? Then, a dome tent with two entrances is what you are looking for. It will provide you with the breeze you need. In a hurry? The pop-up tent. One second, this tent is sailing through the air. The next, it is landing on the ground all ready to use.

3 In a fog

An introduction to herring

There is nothing fishy about. The word for »tent peg« or »stake« in German is »herring.« And that’s why they are securing the tent on this page. Your standard pegs, or »herrings,« are well-suited for use in dry, hard soil. But they bend easily. Thick, T-shaped stakes work nicely in sandy soil. The latest trend: screw-in pegs.

To prevent condensation, good tents have several vents – if possible, they should be located directly under the tent roof and in the wind deflector. Expensive models prevent condensation by employing membrane technology. An air-tight and waterproof tent floor will keep out moisture from the soil.

LONG LIVE THE TENT As generally is the case, one rule of thumb applies: Good care leads to long life. You should remove any stones and sharp objects from your camping site before you set up the tent – these objects could ruin the tent floor. If at all possible, you should pack and store a tent only when it is dry to prevent mold and stains from forming. If you have no other choice, you should let the tent dry out completely at home.

More information: www.tuv-sud.com/camping_tents

30 TÜV SÜD Journal

Choosing quality

If a tent has been subjected to a rainfall simulator as well as zipper, flame-resistance and other tests in a lab, it is entitled to bear a certificate issued by TÜV SÜD. If you want to be certain about a tent’s quality, you should look for this label. More information is available from the toll-free service hotline: 0800 - 888 4444

Dates | Academy

10/11/12 CALENDAR

You can experience TÜV SÜD in person at the following trade fairs, congresses and events. Our team of experts is looking forward to meeting you. More information on these dates: www.tuev-sued.de/corporate-events

OKTOBER eRUDA, Fürstenfeldbruck/Starnberg/Ammersee, 10/02–04/2015 E-rally for pedelecs, e-cars und e-trucks in the Lake Ammer region of Germany Expo Real, Munich, 10/05–07/2015 International trade fair for real estate and investment it-sa – the IT security fair, Nuremberg, 10/06–08/2015 Current trends and innovations in the IT security industry eCarTec, Munich, 10/20–22/2015 Leading international trade fair for electric and hybrid mobility

NOVEMBER SPS IPC Drives, Nuremberg, 11/24–26/2015 Europe’s leading fair for automatization. The SPS IPC Drives includes the full spectrum of electrical automatization. The fair displays all components including entire systems and integrated solutions for automatization.

Nominate yourself now and win! Does your company place a high priority on further training and individual support to employees? Then, you should nominate yourself for the German Training Award 2016! For the fourth time, TÜV SÜD Academy and EuPD Research Sustainable Management are looking for companies, organizations, institutions and government agencies that provide strategic support to their employees and encourage further training. The initiative helps participants efficiently and sustainably improve their training and talent management by sharing scientific know-how with them.

Quality standards in further training In presenting the German Training Award, the initiators intend to set scientifically based and practical quality standards in training and talent management. The award is presented to small, mid-sized and large companies. The evaluation of the nominations is conducted with the first expert-supported and practically tested quality model for business training and talent management in Germany. More than 460 companies have nominated themselves since the initiative began three years ago. Participation pays off for large companies as well as small and mid-sized businesses and organizations. Every nominee will receive a free individual score of its training and talent management that ranks it against the other nominees as well as an assessment of its strengths and weaknesses that experts will conduct at the conclusion of the evaluation as part of a telephone discussion if desired.

Fill out a questionnaire and qualify All companies and organizations can qualify for the German Training Award by filling out a questionnaire. After answering the qualification questionnaire, a panel of experts will review and evaluate all nominations and select the top three in each of five categories for the final round. More information and nomination documents are available at www.deutscher-bildungspreis.de. The nomination deadline is October 31, 2015. anne.dreyer@tuev-sued.de

IMPRINT Publisher: TÜV SÜD AG, Westend Str. 199, 80686 Munich | Owner: TÜV SÜD e.V. (74.9%), TÜV SÜD Foundation (25.1%), Westend Str. 199, 80686 Munich Head of Corporate Communications: Matthias Andreesen Viegas | Project Head & Editor in Chief: Jörg Riedle Contact: +49 (0)89 5791-0, info@tuev-sued.de | Realization: Medienfabrik Gütersloh GmbH, Neumarkter Str. 63, 81673 Munich Printing: Eberl Print GmbH, Kirchplatz 6, 87509 Immenstadt | Photo credits: corbis (2, 4, 5, 16, 17, 18, 22, 23, 27, 28, 29, 30), TÜV SÜD (2, 14, 15, 27, 32, 33), Dan Zoubek (20, 21), Gerhardt Kellermann (3, 12,13), Bernd Roselieb /DB AG (12), BDO Bundesverband Deutscher Omnibusunternehmer (13), Surya Zaidan/123RF (22), NBC Universal (16, 17, 19), Ociacia/©Shutterstock (24), University of Tokyo (17, 18), University of Delft (19), Illustrations: Skizzomat (cover, 6, 7, 8, 11), LULU (34, 35) TÜV SÜD Journal is published quarterly. Articles in the magazine are copyrighted. TÜV SÜD Journal is printed in a climate-neutral process using paper from sustainable forestry.

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print production

TÜV SÜD Journal 31

5 minutes

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With the deadline set for the late part of the year, large companies are running out of time to implement the European Union directive designed to increase energy efďŹ ciency. An energy audit conducted in accordance with DIN EN 16.247 is necessary if a company does not operate a certiďŹ ed energy management system based on DIN EN ISO 50.001 or has no registered environmental system based on EMAS. TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D provides a full range of assistance with these issues.

The latest version of the German Industrial Safety Regulation took effect in June 2015. It governs the provision and use of work materials as well as the operations of technical systems subject to inspection. TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D Academy has developed a series of seminars to help companies economically implement the regulation. More information at www.tuev-sued.de/akademie/2611015.

TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D's testing lab in Hamburg can now assess furniture in accordance with the ÂťGolden MÂŤ quality seal. The authorization was recently issued by the furniture association Deutsche GĂźtegemeinschaft MĂśbel e.V. (DGM). The seal shows consumers that strict guidelines regarding safety, stability, construction and functionality have been fulďŹ lled. In addition, it demonstrates that furniture emits no odors and noxious substances.

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Ń&#x192; 5Â&#x153;7 4Â&#x153;% IBT CFFO JOWPMWFE XJUI *5 TPGU XBSF GSPN UIF WFSZ TUBSU More than ten percent of all purchases in Germany are now done online. E-shopping is booming as growth rates exceed 20 percent every year. Every other German bought products online last year. When the ďŹ rst online shops were opened in the early 1990s, hardly anyone expected them to be so successful. After all, simple lists with product images were used in the beginning. The Internet â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and, thus, online shops â&#x20AC;&#x201C; took off shortly after graphics-capable browsers entered the picture. At the time, TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D was already working intensely on the quality of software. In 1999, the Information Technology Department was created. The testing program ÂťTĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D sa@fer-shoppingÂŤ was introduced a year later. Today, the company's experts are not just involved in data protection and data security of online portals to facilitate safe credit-card purchases. Their work also focuses on secure IT structures in companies and functional security and interoperability of components in complex digital systems. IFJEJ BU[LFS!UVFW TVFE EF

32 TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D Journal

5 minutes

New foundation promotes safety in athletics Sports promote good health. At the same time, people injure themselves year after year while playing such sports as soccer and tennis â&#x20AC;&#x201C; in professional, leisure-time and school competitions. A new foundation has been created with the mission of reducing the Each year, German insurers register about number of sport-related 380,000 accidents that occur at school. accidents and injuries. Together with the ARAG insurance group and other initiators, TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D has started the ÂťAthletic SafetyÂŤ Foundation. The foundation's work is being directed at athletes, coaches and PE teachers and experts in physical education, athletic training, sports medicine and politics. The goal is to make prevention of sporting accidents a part of every-day training practices and thus to make it a standard. The focal points are practical steps like special forms of training, exercises or technical and political guidelines like regulations.

RISK FACTOR AHLETICS:

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Excellency in energy storage In May 2015, TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D was presented with the ÂťAnnual Best CertiďŹ cation Service Institution in the Energy Storage IndustryÂŤ award for its contributions to the development of safe and quality energy storage systems at the recent China International Energy Storage Station Congress (ESSC). Volker Blandow, head of the e-Mobility business line, received the award on behalf of TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D. ESSC is one of the most prestigious energy storage conferences in China and was attended by more than 1,000 experts in the energy storage ďŹ eld, including representatives of the National Energy Administration, Ministry of Science and Technology, Energy Research Institute of the National Development and Reform Commission, State Grid Corporation of China, ESS system enterprises and battery manufacturers, who shared ideas and opinions on topics such as technological and market developments in the industry. KBOF MJN!UVW TVE QTC TH

with TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D

ÂťStar of SafetyÂŤ for Horst Schneider A major honor for a life in service of trafďŹ c safety: Horst Schneider, the Chairman of the TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D Foundation, was awarded the Bavarian state medal ÂťStar of SafetyÂŤ at the end of June 2015. The award is presented by the Bavarian Interior Ministry to recognize individuals for their long-term contribution to safety and security in the southern German state. Horst Schneider was honored for his more than two decades of volunteer work as President, Vice President and Treasurer of the Bavarian TrafďŹ c Safety Organization. In his address honoring the medal recipient, Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann noted that Schneider broadly expanded the activities of the safety organization during his presidency. In particular, Herrmann said that the statewide organization now had a signiďŹ cant amount of funds that it can use to carry out many accident-prevention projects and had served in particular as the guardian of the most vulnerable on the state's streets and roads. Horst Schneider has worked at TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D for more than 40 years. After serving in a number of managerial positions in the company's business operations, he became head of the former Mobility Division in 1996. In 2010, he joined the Board of Management. In May 2015, he became Chairman of the TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D Foundation. Schneider is also Vice President of the German TrafďŹ c Safety Organization. He was President of the Bavarian TrafďŹ c Safety Organization for 21 years (until 2013) and a member of the Board of Directors of the German TrafďŹ c Safety Council until the end of last year. Horst Schneider became Chairman of the TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D Foundation in May 2015.

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TĂ&#x153;V SĂ&#x153;D Journal 33

The ﬁnal say

IPHONE ON WHEELS

34 TÜV SÜD Journal

The ﬁnal say

App-managed, GPS-connected and self-driving: Will smart suitcases be the next big digital must-have items after smartphones?

hen heading on a trip, the Rhineland canon Marquis von Hoensbroech packed everything he needed into wooden cases, including spice-filled containers, silver shoe buckles and asparagus tongs. Movie diva Marlene Dietrich would not dare cross the Atlantic without her refrigerator-sized suitcases that she called »elephants.« And German Emperor Wilhelm II filled an entire train car with his luggage – including a round basket for his imperial dachshund. Luggage in general and suitcases in particular are still considered to be status symbols – assuming that they have a gleaming aluminum shell or a leather cover. Today, the suitcase is taking the next step in its evolution, one that is leading it in the direction of the Internet of Things. Established luggage makers and a start-up in California are locked in a competitive battle right now to determine who will assume market leadership in a new high-tech segment: the smart, connected, appmanaged, self-driving suitcase. Market leader Samsonite has joined forces with the Korean technology group Samsung to develop models that can communicate with their owners and airlines’ booking systems. Such suitcases will be able to do such things as check in on their own and

broadcast GPS signals to make it easier to find them. Also being planned: Electrically powered suitcases that would trail behind their owners in airports – the imperial dachshund sends its best regards. The French competitor Delsey is also working on a smart suitcase. It is even letting its current and potential customers select its future features. The list of options includes integrated luggage scale, a smartphone charging device, interior lighting, fingerprint ID, luggage lock status and built-in speakers. Bluesmart, a start-up based in Silicon Valley, plans to use some of these features in its own electronic suitcase. In addition, its suitcase automatically locks itself when the Bluetooth contact to the owner’s smartphone is disrupted. And: A Bluesmart app in the smartphone collects data about the travel route, visited airports and the length of time in a particular country. The Bluesmart suitcase is scheduled to go on sale in December 2015. Despite all of this innovation, one wish is likely to remain unfulfilled: What would it be like if the shirts, pants, blouses and skirts in a suitcase came out as precisely as they were packed? Now, that would be real progress. TÜV SÜD Journal 35

»E« stands For ENCOURAGING

bviously, electric cars have not yet caught on as expected. Nonetheless, the market is generating high growth rates. Figures from the Center for Solar Energy and Hydrogen Research in Stuttgart show that the number of electric cars registered around the world has been doubling year after year. The million-vehicle level is expected to be broken in the near future (see graphic). An encouraging outlook, for TÜV SÜD, too: »We are focusing intensely on e-mobility because the electric drive train represents the clear future of vehicles,« says Volker Blandow, Global Head of E-Mobility at TÜV SÜD. Blandow says he is certain that electrification will take hold in 10 to 15 years. Two factors underpin this belief: People’s environmental and climate consciousness is rising around the world. And battery costs per kilowatt hour have plummeted in recent years.