To secure an international top position for German industry in the future, excellence in production technology must be combined in the best sense with digital innovation capability (see USA) and a high speed of change in digitalization (see China). Within the scope of this digital transformation, innovative digital production and teaching concepts and methods must be developed for companies and individuals in the working world in digitized production environments in order to strengthen the Rhenish mining area as an economic and production location in the long term.

Participatory Center for Digital Additive Production for the sustainable integration of production and digital value creation in NRW

"NRW Digital AM Start" is a joint initiative for the digitalization and widespread introduction of Industry 4.0 and artificial intelligence as sustainable basic technologies of the future. Digital 3D printing benefits from these developments and at the same time serves as a central enabler for change, playing a central role as a bridge between the digital and real world. To this end, the Digital Production Center to be established is intended to serve as a central point of contact for companies in the Ruhr region.

Aerogel-Anwendungen: Unterstützung von der Entwicklung bis zur Marktreife

Für die Aerogel Launch Factory (ALF) in Jülich wurden Fördermittel des Bundes (BMWK) und des Landes NRW (MWIKE) bereitgestellt. Dies ermöglicht die Planung eines zentralen Technologietransferzentrums, das technologiegetriebene Startups und innovative Unternehmen unterstützt. Durch eine mögliche erste Pilotproduktion können diese ihre Ideen verwirklichen, Investoren überzeugen und finanzielle Mittel für den Aufbau einer industriellen Produktion einwerben. ALF vereint Kompetenzen aus Forschung, Transfer und Produktion.

Aerogele sind ultraleichte Supermaterialien mit hervorragenden isolierenden Eigenschaften, die in der Lage sind, giftige Stoffe zu binden. Sie können flexibel, hochtemperaturbeständig, formbar und elektrisch leitfähig sein. Aufgrund ihrer Herstellung aus nachwachsenden Rohstoffen sind sie zudem nachhaltig einsetzbar. Mit der Aerogel Launch Factory wird ein Zentrum geschaffen, in dem die spezialisierte Forschung an Aerogelen über verschiedene Technologiestufen hinweg erfolgen kann.

Umsetzung der Ressourcenwende in der chemischen Industrie durch biotechnologische CO₂ Nutzung in regionalen Wertschöpfungsketten

Das Projekt ReCO₂NWert verfolgt das Ziel, unvermeidbare CO₂-Emissionen aus industriellen Prozessen als wertvolle Ressource nutzbar zu machen. Viele Prozessgase enthalten CO₂, das bisher in die Atmosphäre gelangt und zum Klimawandel beiträgt. Durch die biotechnologische Nutzung dieses CO₂ soll ein Beitrag zur Reduzierung der Emissionen und zur Transformation der chemischen Industrie hin zu nachhaltigeren Produktionsweisen geleistet werden.

Im Rahmen des Projekts werden die CO₂-haltigen Rauchgase der MVA Weisweiler mithilfe eines Elektrolyseverfahrens abgeschieden und aufbereitet. Anschließend werden sie durch spezielle Mikroorganismen in industriell nutzbare Produkte umgewandelt – etwa Alkohole, die als Ausgangsstoffe für Kunststoffe oder kosmetische Inhaltsstoffe dienen können.

Ziel ist es, auf Basis dieses Beispiels eine biotechnologische Plattformtechnologie zu entwickeln, die die Nutzung kohlenstoffreicher Abgase ermöglicht und zukünftig auf unterschiedliche Abgasströme und Produktarten übertragbar ist. Damit soll ein wichtiger Schritt zur Ressourcenneuorientierung und zur Etablierung einer bio-basierten Wertschöpfung im Rheinischen Revier erreicht werden.

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The Launch Space Power-to-X (PHOENIX) focuses on the further development, demonstration, and implementation of the most promising approaches in P2X technologies. In the first core aspect of PHOENIX, technology development for high- and low-temperature electrolysis for H2O and CO2 is specifically driven forward using agile development methods. In parallel, in the second core aspect of the Launch Space, five sustainable P2X value chains in promising application fields are investigated. For this purpose, demonstrators will be set up, operated, and evaluated as mini-plant facilities. In both technology development and the construction of demonstrators, the rapid transfer of developed future technologies into industrial production chains is of central importance.

The project is supported by a strong consortium of industry and science, consisting of the Forschungszentrum Jülich, FH Aachen, Covestro, and RWTH Aachen.

In PHOENIX, the LTT, together with the ICE-2 of Forschungszentrum Jülich, is responsible for the potential analysis and multidimensional evaluation of the investigated P2X value chains. In a "bottom-up" approach, technical, economic, ecological, and social impacts of the P2X use cases are determined using a life cycle approach. At the same time, in a "top-down" approach, the large-scale use of P2X technologies in long-term transformation strategies for the Rhenish mining area is investigated. Both approaches are combined to provide an overall assessment of the P2X use cases.

The textile production of the future: A textile technology and development center is being created in Mönchengladbach.

The Textile Factory 7.0 serves as a model project for structural change in the Rhineland mining region. First, a technology and development center will be created, followed by an emission-free and digitized industrial park.

Instead of considering individual technologies in isolation, Textile Factory 7.0 combines the three megatrends of energy efficiency, AI-supported automation, robotics, and biotechnology in a practical textile real-world laboratory.

Modern machines and systems enable the development and testing of:

• On-demand production

• Microfactories

• Digital Textiles

This is complemented by textile technology and biological laboratories where sustainable raw materials are researched and new materials are developed.

The T7 Technology and Development Center

Close collaboration between research and industry creates new technologies, production concepts, and innovations for the textile industry. At the same time, the project creates new jobs in the Rhineland mining region.

From coal to AI: Textile Factory 7.0 is an example of the region's industrial structural change. The project strengthens the attractiveness and competitiveness of regional textile production in the long term. T7 Factory will create new jobs and specifically further develop innovative textile research at the site.

In the first development phase (2025-2029), a Textile Technology and Development Center will be established in Mönchengladbach, where the six core modules of Textile Factory 7.0 will be addressed in close cooperation between industry and research.

T7 Park – Emission-free and Digitized Industrial Park

In a second development phase, an industrial park of the future will be created beyond Textile Factory 7.0. Here, the textile and clothing industry will develop and produce under zero-emission conditions and with CO₂-neutral processes.

The industrial park offers space for innovative production facilities, company branches of the textile industry, and sustainable textile start-ups. This creates a modern industrial location that combines research, development, and industrial production.





Rethinking paper production in a new, climate-neutral way.

A research center for a nationwide innovation network for sustainable paper production is being established in Düren. In the Model Factory Paper, 17 leading companies from the paper and supplier industries have joined forces with partners from science to save 80 percent of the energy required for paper production by 2045.

Model Factory Paper is one of the most ambitious joint projects in the German paper industry. As an innovation network, it connects leading research institutions from various disciplines with one of the most energy-intensive industries. Together, they are researching innovative solutions for the sustainable paper production of tomorrow.

By developing disruptive changes in the highly automated manufacturing process, it supports paper companies in reducing energy consumption in production by 80% and conserving natural resources. The research work makes a substantial contribution to achieving climate protection goals and securing the future of the paper industry in Germany.



Competence Center for the Biological Transformation of Material Science and Production Technology |

By using local, renewable ressources instead of petrochemical-based feedstock, we want to develop the former Rhenish Mining Area into a resource-efficient Bioeconomy Model Region. To this end, current product concepts and production technologies must be rethought to enable a future-oriented industrial value creation that is ecologically and economically sustainable.

Our focus is the manufacturing of innovative products with high added value.

Our goal is to give committed people the freedom to pursue their ideas and to create sustainable jobs in the region.

At the Würselen-Aachen research airfield, technology transfer between research and industry is the focus. Initial projects include the DLR facility "Technologies for Small Aircraft", the Production Launch Center Aviation@NRW, and the planned research center FH-AERO.SCIENCE. At AeroPark 1-3, the settlement of aviation-related research and development is being driven forward.