Empa - Akademie - Digitalization and Materials Science

Digitalization and Materials Science

Digital science is a key player in our quest to meet sustainability challenges. It is creating new opportunities, including intelligent control and secure monitoring of numerous processes, and enables new perspectives, for instance through digital twins. Empa, as one of the main drivers of innovation in Switzerland, strives to accelerate this digital transformation with smart materials and new technologies – with humans always taking center stage.

Digital Twins to Improve Efficiency and Decision-Making

Analyzing large amounts of data is a daily challenge for organizations across different industries. Simplifying (such complex systems) is thus key to remain competitive and sustainable. Technologies, such as digital twins, serve exactly that purpose.

Introducing Empa’s first Virtual Lab >>> specially for researchers from all fields and industries
Deep Dive into Empa's Virtual Lab >>> for the general public

The Future of Drones

What will intelligent, nature-inspired robots of the future look like? And above all: How do we develop such robots? This is exactly where Empa's Sustainability Robotics Lab comes in; it develops novel, nature-inspired soft robotics systems for infrastructure maintenance and environmental monitoring.

Related events and target audience:

Bio-inspired Soft Aerial Robotics >>> for research teams and experts in the field
Seminar Series in Physical Artificial Intelligence >>> for researchers and industry

Advanced Manufacturing (AM)

Smart and novel materials are only impactful as long as efficient, optimized manufacturing processes and processing methods are at hand. As we aim to boost the technological implications of our novel materials, developing and refining manufacturing processes and processing methods is key. AM has evolved greatly thanks to digitalization and allows more flexibility in manufacturing than ever. What are the societal and environmental implications of AM's development and what is the interplay with other technologies?

Recently installed infrastructure at Empa in Thun supports our research and collaboration efforts. Moreover, our specialists at the Coating Competence Center in Dübendorf are devoted to close the gap between lab research and industrial production: Together with industry partners, they are developing the next generation of products with innovative and cost-efficient manufacturing technologies.