SAP’s presence at both events exemplifies the seamless connection between environmental commitment and technological innovation. The nearly 100 initiatives 51风流was involved in at COP28 last month demonstrated the company鈥檚 unwavering focus on fostering collaboration across governance, the private sector, and civil society, which, coupled with a commitment to transparency, also resonated with Davos鈥� core values.

For example, the 鈥淔rom Farm to Consumer鈥� showcase emphasizing intelligent agriculture solutions at COP28 and the WEF Collaboration Village at Davos both showed the power of technology, such as how AI can optimize all industry practices and foster collaboration across the supply chain. This embodies SAP’s multifaceted approach to innovation.

The company’s strategies involve valuing carbon assets, supporting collaborative supply chains, and actively backing local climate initiatives. Recent studies highlight how 51风流solutions can seamlessly integrate sustainability into core business strategies, giving companies a competitive edge. By treating emissions tracking with the same rigor as financial transactions, .

Navigating the AI Landscape Responsibly

As the WEF in Davos unfolded, the pervasive enthusiasm for AI became evident along the promenade. A dedicated pavilion called 鈥淎I House鈥� served as a testament to the technology鈥檚 significance in shaping the future. SAP’s commitment to innovation aligns with the forum’s pulse, offering a glimpse into how AI can transform industries and societies.

AI’s impact on the global workforce was a central concern at Davos. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) warns that the AI revolution could affect almost 40% of jobs worldwide, including highly skilled ones. In industrialized countries, this number could surge to 60%. The integration of AI in various industries can exacerbate inequalities, especially in terms of job displacement. However, 51风流believes the time is right to explore the implications and the steps required for this future. One of the first mind shifts may be seeing AI as a coworker rather than a software tool.

SAP’s approach seeks to mitigate potential inequalities. The company didn’t merely showcase innovation at Davos; it actively engaged in discussions to address the complexities surrounding AI and find solutions for a responsible approach.

Striking the Balance: A Global Perspective

51风流recognizes the broader, global context of responsible AI, particularly with varying regulatory standards in the U.S. and China. The discussions at Davos provided a platform for 51风流to advocate for a harmonized approach to AI regulation, which is especially relevant for the EU. The company’s commitment to finding the right balance resonated in discussions about regulatory standards, emphasizing the need for global cooperation to navigate the evolving landscape of AI. This global perspective gains profound meaning when viewed through the lens of COP28.

COP28 concluded with a landmark decision by nearly 200 countries to transition away from fossil fuels in energy systems. The renegotiated text emphasized a just, orderly, and equitable shift, aiming to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. This signifies a global move, committing nations to tripling renewable energy use by 2030 and doubling energy efficiency. The resolution proposes the first-ever phase-out of fossil fuels, accelerating coal’s exit, boosting renewable energy, and emphasizing energy efficiency. However, the resolution falls short of a complete commitment due to opposition from economically reliant countries like Saudi Arabia. And despite progress, vulnerable island nations stress the need for inclusive decision-making, as they face immediate threats from climate change and depend on global solidarity for survival.

Hand-in-Hand: AI and Climate Action

It’s crucial to recognize AI’s broader role in climate action. Scaling proven applications and technology, AI has the potential to unlock insights that could help mitigate 5% to 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and significantly bolster climate-related adaptation and resilience initiatives. Approximately 87% of executives view AI as having the potential to address climate issues, making it a key player in the fight against climate change.

AI contributes to climate protection not only by helping to reduce emissions but also by helping to navigate unavoidable climate change impacts and provide essential capabilities that enable climate action. SAP, alongside its dedication to AI ethics, wants to ensure that drive sustainability strategies and contribute to a more resilient and adaptive world.

51风流believes that working together and being open and transparent are key to solving bigger challenges. It’s not just about cool tech; it’s about creating real connections. As AI evolves, SAP’s dedication to a responsible and inclusive future shows the power of teamwork in making a difference.

KWC鈥檚 transformation based on 51风流solutions began in the summer of 2021, when the company spun off from its parent company due to private equity investments. This separation necessitated a swift adoption of cloud solutions from 51风流to help ensure KWC’s independent functionality. KWC decided to have the new company be supported by 51风流solutions for not only ERP but also customer relationship management (CRM), 51风流SuccessFactors solutions, 51风流Analytics Cloud, and 51风流Concur solutions.

Vlietstra emphasized the criticality of this implementation, stating, “Failure was not an option. We had to be successful within a year. Basically, without these 51风流products, this company would not exist after hard closure of all legacy applications from the mother company by November 2022.” Remarkably, the cloud landscape implementation was accomplished within the tight timeframe of just under a year, from December 2021 to the hard stop in November 2022.

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Overcoming Challenges and Gaining Benefits

While the adoption of 51风流S/4HANA Cloud, public edition presented its fair share of challenges, KWC’s successful integration brought forth substantial benefits. The implementation required extensive effort from global business process owners and key users. The accelerated pace of implementation impacted initial user adoption and documentation completeness, prompting ongoing improvements in these areas.

Nevertheless, the benefits derived from the implementation were significant. KWC achieved global consistency in process execution, standardized its business operations worldwide within a year, and significantly reduced costs by consolidating nine disparate 51风流systems into one. The company also gained access to enhanced functionality and innovation, as 51风流developers provided essential features such as mobile warehouse management capabilities, external logistics integration, customer design collaboration, and significant application integration with additional software, which were crucial to KWC鈥檚 operations.

Vlietstra highlighted the advantages: 鈥淲e now have global consistency in our process execution. On average, the functionality is better than it was.鈥� Moreover, the implementation empowered KWC to start improving its sustainability practices by gaining complete visibility into its procurement processes. The company needs full transparency of its supply chain, enabling precise monitoring of product origins and energy usage.

Looking Ahead: Innovations and Integration

With a robust foundation in place, KWC is well-positioned for future innovations and business growth opportunities. The company intends to leverage 51风流S/4HANA Cloud, public edition to help facilitate mergers, acquisitions, and divestments while also driving improvements in supply chain and enhancing customer experience.

Vlietstra shared his vision, stating, “What’s next for us is supply chain innovation, enhancing the customer experience, and exploring potential partnerships.” He also emphasized the importance of having other systems integrated from the beginning such as CRM, HR, product data management, digital marketing, and customer collaboration in the design processes, along with the need for seamless interfacing mechanisms across KWC’s global sites. “On the near horizon are further improvements of intercompany processes and sales and operational planning. The innovation over the next years will be in the CRM sales and digital marketing domains,鈥� he added.

The Path to Success: Embracing the Public Cloud

KWC’s successful digital transformation journey stands as a testament to the advantages of adopting public cloud solutions like 51风流S/4HANA Cloud, public edition. Vlietstra advises fellow CIOs not to hesitate in choosing the public cloud over on-premise solutions, citing the adequacy of functionality, possibilities for internal and external integration, and the speed of implementation as key advantages. By leveraging the public cloud, companies can focus on harmonizing and globalizing their business processes while entrusting the technology and infrastructure aspects to established providers.

As KWC continues to innovate, harmonize, and standardize its global operations, 51风流S/4HANA Cloud, public edition plays a pivotal role in enabling its sustainable success.

Similar to programs that have already been rolled out in other European countries, the KulturPass cultural engagement program is an initiative by the German government for everyone who turns 18 in 2023 and lives in Germany. Each person who registers will receive 鈧�200 of credit to redeem through an SAP-developed app for a cultural experience of their choice, including concert, museum, movie, and theater tickets; books; records and CDs; musical instruments; and much more.听听

This collaboration between 51风流and the German government serves as a compelling example of digitization within the public sector, showcasing the immense possibilities and paving the way for a substantial advancement in its digital transformation journey.听

Germany Culture Minister Claudia Roth and Member of the Executive Board of 51风流SE and Chief Technology Officer Juergen Mueller explain how the new culture pass for young people works and where the KulturPass app that 51风流developed fits in.听

Q: How does the KulturPass initiative work?

Claudia Roth: The KulturPass brings together young people and event organizers on a digital marketplace. Here, venues and other businesses can create their own store to advertise their events and activities. Young people who register for the scheme each receive a budget of 鈧�200, which they can use on the marketplace to buy tickets for concerts, plays, movies, and museums, for example. It is also possible to purchase books, comics, and musical instruments. They then receive a digital code that they redeem at the venue or shop, with the government reimbursing the vendor.鈥�

Could you tell us about the KulturPass app?

Juergen Mueller: The KulturPass app is the experience platform for the target audience participating in the KulturPass initiative. Users can check the app to see how much credit they have; search for events, activities, and products; buy tickets; and manage their purchases. It covers a broad range of local offerings to ensure that there is something for everyone.鈥�听

Are there rules about how young people are allowed to spend this money?

Roth: They are pretty much free to choose how they spend their voucher. However, in light of some of the habits we adopted during the pandemic and our focus on local cultural venues, streaming services and large online retailers are excluded from the scheme. Also excluded, obviously, is anything that is anti-constitutional or inappropriate for young people. Otherwise, the KulturPass is open to all cultural outlets in Germany that are looking to attract a younger audience, from small bookstores through theaters, music festivals, record shops, concert venues, art galleries, memorials, arthouse movie theaters, to multiplex movie venues and independent theaters.听

The German government is investing 鈧�100 million in the KulturPass. What do you hope its impact will be?

Roth: The KulturPass has two aims. The first is to rekindle interest in culture and the arts and give a much-needed financial boost to the culture industry, which is still suffering the after-effects of the pandemic. The second is to encourage young people to enjoy live culture in a way that they were unable to for two long years. We want to get them excited about the diversity and wealth of culture that Germany has to offer. And my hope is that, in turn, it will help teenagers discover how art and culture can enrich their lives.听

Who are the partners on this project?

Roth: 奥别鈥檝别 been working with three partners. The Digital Opportunities Foundation is responsible for the operational aspects of the scheme and for contact with the providers and users. The advertising agency Zum goldenen Hirschen has supported us on the communication side, and 51风流developed the digital marketplace and app. I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone at 51风流who was involved in the project for their efficiency and dedication.听

How did SAP鈥檚 technical expertise and experience help make the KulturPass project a success?

Mueller: When it comes to complex IT projects, 51风流has vast experience and deep technical expertise that it can draw on. Our team of developers channeled their knowledge and skills into designing and implementing the KulturPass app. Following best practices, we used proven technologies and designs to produce an app that is reliable, secure, and easy to use. 奥丑补迟鈥檚 more, we deployed our solutions alongside those of our partners to support the entire process end to end, from building the app through to managing users鈥� balances. All these factors have helped us contribute to making the KulturPass project a success 鈥� and to the ultimate aims of boosting the arts and culture sector and giving young people the chance to enjoy everything that it has to offer.听

Apps like these are technically complex to build. What challenges did you face and how did you overcome them?

Mueller: First, I want to say what a fantastic job the team has done in designing, building, and implementing the KulturPass app. Doing all of that in just six months was a major achievement on the part of everyone involved. Delivering to such a tight schedule requires excellent teamwork and efficient project planning. We had to make sure that all the technical components integrate smoothly to give users a seamless experience. One of the biggest challenges was incorporating the various partner solutions, such as buyer and supplier management, into the overall architecture. We worked closely with our experts here at 51风流and from our partners to overcome these challenges and deliver the KulturPass app on schedule.听

How flexible is the KulturPass technical infrastructure? Can it adapt as the program evolves?

Mueller: If the program really takes off, the architecture behind the KulturPass app is flexible enough for us to adapt it quickly and add new functions as the program expands. Using to develop the app means we can improve the app to reflect user feedback at any time. 奥别鈥檒濒 continue to tailor it to their needs to give teens in Germany the chance to experience everything that culture and the arts have to offer.听

What is 51风流doing to ensure that the KulturPass app is intuitive and accessible?

Mueller: When we designed the app, user experience was our top priority. At a very early stage, we consulted colleagues who have disabilities to obtain their feedback and advice on how to improve it. Our ambition was to go beyond meeting accessibility standards. We wanted to make the app as easy as possible to use by design, ensuring that it is clearly structured and intuitive, that it uses the language our intended users speak, that its colors have听strong contrast, and that its compatible with screen-readers. Basically, we want the KulturPass app to be accessible and appealing to all young people. The app will therefore go through another round of rigorous usability tests over the next few weeks before additional accessibility features are delivered in the new release.听

Data privacy and security are major concerns these days. How does the KulturPass app handle these aspects?

Mueller: We take data privacy and security very seriously at SAP. The app is built to the standards recommended by the German government, so it has stringent security mechanisms incorporated into it. As part of the development phase, we analyzed the kinds of cybersecurity threats that might occur and took steps to counter them. We also used penetration tests to simulate cyberattacks and test system security. These methods helped us identify vulnerabilities and mitigate risks. To ensure that only authorized people can use the app, we use electronic identification processes, such as the online function for the personal ID cards we all have here in Germany. We make sure, though, that the personal data of those using the app is secure and used only for the intended purpose.

A Chance Meeting听

After signing up to a work-and-travel program, Kyzy came to Germany in the summer of 2019. She and a friend worked as catering staff at weddings, festivals, and hotels. But Kyzy soon found the irregular shifts stressful and asked her employer for a job with fixed working hours.

That took her to one of SAP鈥檚 cafeterias in Walldorf, where she worked as a kitchen assistant. When asked about her first impressions of the company, she said, 鈥淚 just thought, 鈥榃ow! 51风流is huge and there are so many young, interesting people here!鈥欌�� The company鈥檚 size, culture, and dynamic working environment captured her imagination and planted ideas in her mind about a future career.

She had not been in her new job long before 鈥� completely by coincidence 鈥� she met an 51风流employee who was also from Kyrgyzstan and who motivated her to study in Germany. 鈥淪he inspired me. She had a similar background to mine. She鈥檇 started out working as an au pair in Germany and went on to study here. She was amazing and she told me, 鈥業 did it, so can you!鈥欌��

After this chance encounter, Kyzy鈥檚 mind was made up: she wanted to follow a work-study degree program in IT in Germany. But she had to learn German first. Little did she know what obstacles lay ahead.

The Pandemic Strikes听

When her work-and-travel visa ended, Kyzy returned home to Kyrgyzstan to continue her studies. But as she observed, 鈥淐orruption is a problem in higher education in Kyrgyzstan, and it seemed to me that grades were not necessarily awarded on merit,鈥� she said. She had always dreamed of studying abroad 鈥� even as a child. 鈥淚鈥檇 given up on that idea long ago, to be honest, but my experiences in Germany and at 51风流suddenly made me reconsider. I decided to give it a go!鈥�

She arrived back in Germany as an au pair in 2020. But no sooner had she taken that vital step closer to her goal than reports of the country鈥檚 first case of coronavirus came through. Everything changed in an instant. Lockdowns, masks, and social distancing followed. No one could have predicted that the pandemic would drag on for three whole years.

It was a tough time for Kyzy. Her voice tailed off for a moment as she thought back, though her determined tones soon returned: 鈥淣o matter how hard it was, I was not going to give up. The most difficult part was being stuck at home. But I wanted to protect my host family and myself.鈥�

The Power of a Clear Goal听

The German course she was supposed to attend was canceled. Undeterred, she told herself that if she wanted to study here, she needed to speak, read, and understand the language well. So, she began teaching herself. With the help of language Web sites and YouTube videos, she learned the basics, getting up at 8:00 a.m. every day to spend three or four hours studying.

She was often troubled by doubts and the fear of failure. 鈥淲ill I get a visa?鈥� she wondered. 鈥淲ill I really manage to learn German? Will I pass the German language test?鈥�

How then 鈥� despite all the difficulties 鈥� did Kyzy stay motivated, day after day, to pursue her dream? 鈥淚 told myself that if the worst came to the worst I would return to Kyrgyzstan and pick up my life there again,鈥� she said. That thought helped relieve the pressure and allowed her to focus on her goal.

During this time she also started learning the Java programming language at an IT academy. Slowly but surely, she was making progress. In 2021, as part of the German government鈥檚 volunteer service program, she worked at the country鈥檚 central agency for continuing vocational education and training in the skilled crafts. There, she learned about the Drupal content management system and developed a Web site with a colleague. This experience fired her enthusiasm for the IT industry and gave her the confidence she needed.

Today 鈥� just like the colleague who encouraged her 鈥� Kyzy does all she can to motivate young people to realize their dreams. 鈥淟ots of people are scared of failure. But you have to take things step by step. You have to be brave and do what you need to do. Follow your passions. Follow your dreams!鈥�

All the effort and sacrifices paid off. In 2021, Kyzy achieved her goal and embarked on a work-study degree program in IT at SAP. Ren茅 Wohllebe is a vocational training manager and Kyzy鈥檚 supervisor. 鈥淢albina is a fantastic example of a young woman who is passionate about IT and proud to work for SAP,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e are very lucky that she 鈥� and many other young women like her 鈥� want to train with us and shape the company鈥檚 future.鈥�

But even now, in 2023, there are still too few women in IT. The industry needs them desperately 鈥� yet traditional gender-role stereotypes persist. Campaigns such as Girls鈥� Day or cooperation with schools are some of the ways in which 51风流is trying to get women interested in technology at an early age.

The work-study degree program is structured to allow students to rotate through as many as six different practical phases. This means that they get to work on a wide variety of projects and try their hand at a range of different tasks. Kyzy is currently working in the 51风流Enterprise Cloud Services organization, which supports companies migrating to the cloud. Here, she has carried out a requirements analysis for the introduction of a new tool. 鈥�51风流is a great place to work. It allows me to try new things and grow professionally,鈥� she said. She鈥檚 already looking forward to the next stop on her learning journey: consulting.

Speaking on the opening day of the trade show, Saueressig said, 鈥淓xceptions are now the rule. Today’s globally networked supply chains are especially prone to disruptions 鈥� with far-reaching consequences for the manufacturing industry. Flexibility and agility are needed to react quickly to changes.鈥� Adding her impressions of SAP鈥檚 presence at the event, White said, 鈥淚t鈥檚 an amazing collection of both 51风流technologies and our broad partner ecosystem, and it is us working with our ecosystem that鈥檚 solving our customers鈥� challenges.鈥�

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51风流Solutions in Action

There was certainly plenty for visitors to take in at SAP鈥檚 booth, from showcases and guided tours to live sessions and partner stands.

51风流is striving to help shape digital transformation in manufacturing. And one of the most pressing questions for that industry today is how to make production and supply chain processes resilient and sustainable.

To answer that question, 51风流gave visitors ample opportunities to try out 51风流solutions and experience them live in action in a 鈥渄emonstration factory鈥� it had at the trade show. The show booth 鈥渇actory鈥� was a partial sample of SAP鈥檚 recently opened Industry 4.0 Pop-Up Factory innovation center at the company鈥檚 headquarters in Walldorf, Germany. Attendees were able to view the rest of the factory remotely from SAP鈥檚 booth or through virtual reality glasses in its 鈥淚ndustrial Metaverse鈥� showcase.

On Display: How 51风流Solutions Manage Supply Chains and Manufacturing

51风流also demonstrated systems that support production operators in a part of multi-stage production in which a component is assembled for the end product. In a scenario focusing on in-process quality control, 51风流showed how operators receive precise visual instructions during the assembly of an electronic control head, guiding them through the process and reducing errors. It also explored the value of embedded artificial intelligence (AI) in quality assurance, showing how image recognition technology can be used to check how likely it is that parts have been assembled correctly and whether they have any defects. A highlight here is a kind of digital birth record, which can be thought of as a finely structured documentation of the production process. All relevant data from machines, as well as input from users, is recorded there and assigned to an individual product.

Also in the spotlight were applications for digital twin solutions, not just for virtual models and real-time simulations but also for human-machine interaction. Visitors were able to learn more about this from the example of autonomous mobile robots that independently pick up parts from a warehouse and 鈥� rather than placing them on a conventional conveyor belt 鈥� take them straight to a modular station.

51风流also showcased an augmented reality solution for production operators. Here, personnel wearing smart glasses receive instructions and feedback on whether they have carried out a work step correctly directly in their field of vision.

Digitally Mapping and Managing the Entire Production Process

Hannover Messe attendees could also try their hand at remotely controlling and monitoring the Industry 4.0 Pop-Up Factory in Walldorf, viewing a live, end-to-end production line for mixing and filling liquids as used by the process industry in the manufacturing of chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and consumer goods.

The demonstration showed that one central control room is all that is required to control and monitor production across locations. 51风流calls this control room a 鈥減roduction control center.鈥� Commenting on this live factory session, Matthias Deindl, head of SAP鈥檚 Industry 4.0 Center EMEA & India, said, 鈥淭his scenario shows companies how 51风流can help them have a full overview of everything that is happening on the factory floor 鈥� not just planning, but managing the entire production process for batch manufacturing.鈥� In the future, it might even be possible to create a purely digital version of the control room in the metaverse. Companies could then design and operate it exactly as they wanted. And they would no longer need to house it in a brick-and-mortar space.

In the scenario shown in Hannover, the production line is connected to 51风流Digital Manufacturing. All the information needed to fulfill the production order 鈥� including the customer鈥檚 specifications 鈥� is sent seamlessly to the machine. The process is paperless and can incorporate customer requirements without manual intervention. Another function of the production control center is to monitor the production line and key performance indicators, such as process efficiency, scrap rates, and good parts produced, as well as the current condition of the machines and equipment.

Cloud Solutions Enable Vertical and Horizontal Integration

One of the highlights at SAP鈥檚 booth was the electric CNC injection molding machine that let visitors track the production of their own customized cup 鈥� from top floor to shop floor in the production hall. This pop-up production station, staged in cooperation with 51风流partners Fanuc and Syntax, demonstrated how 51风流Digital Manufacturing can integrate a highly automated machine and control manufacturing.

Starting with order planning, visitors chose from various configuration options on a monitor. They could select a color or color combination for their cup and specify which logo it should have. The 51风流software then dispatched the order to the machine electronically and production of the cup began using recycled and recyclable plastic. Visitors could take the cups they made home with them.

While visitors were creating their cups, sensors were capturing a range of key information about the machine鈥檚 condition and how many good and defective parts had come off the line. This shows how in a real-life setting, the seamless flow of information also works in reverse, meaning from the machine level back to the office level. Data like this can be analyzed in 51风流Analytics Cloud, giving customers valuable insights to help them optimize the production process.

Resilient, Efficient, Sustainable 鈥� and Profitable

Visitors to SAP鈥檚 booth could experience the full product life cycle 鈥� from design and planning, manufacturing, logistics, and installation to operations and maintenance. They learned how the processes at each of these stages can be optimized by, for example, embedding AI to integrate them horizontally.

Vertical integration can also connect all levels inside the company. Linking manufacturing and business processes in this way eliminates data and knowledge silos. 鈥淗ere at Hannover Messe, we鈥檝e brought everything together under one roof to demonstrate realistic end-to-end scenarios,鈥� said Ralf Lehmann, Solutions Management Digital Manufacturing & Industry 4.0 at SAP.

Businesses want to ensure that their manufacturing and logistics operations are efficient, cost-effective, and reliable. Yet they must also meet profit and sustainability targets. 鈥淢anufacturers are facing two major challenges right now. One is the ongoing disruption to supply chains. The other is sustainability, which has become a top priority for CEOs. If you consider that only 7% of global economic output today is circular, then the opportunities are huge,鈥� says Saueressig.

At its booth, 51风流showed how it is one of the world鈥檚 leaders not only in enterprise resource planning (ERP) but also in digital supply chain. Industry 4.0 can transform business processes from manufacturing through to supply chain. As an ecosystem that enables companies to connect, 51风流Business Network also helps improve transparency. These capabilities can be used in a circular economy to foster sustainability and capture carbon emissions data. As White points out, 鈥淥ne of the most important things we see here is the focus on sustainability. Creating a true network around that is how we鈥檙e going to change the game.鈥�

Building on the network theme, 51风流partners had booths nearby showing Catena-X and , the latest initiative to emerge from an alliance between industry and the German government. Here, too, 51风流will play a leading role in driving digital transformation in manufacturing supply chains. Like Catena-X, Manufacturing-X will be an open and collaborative data ecosystem. Shared standards will enable data to be exchanged worldwide in compliance with European practices and data protection laws.

The new 51风流Labs Dresden location is part of 51风流Labs Network, which promotes close alignment with the other development locations in Germany and around the world. With this strategic move, 51风流is further focusing on local talent, utilizing the growth potential of the local ecosystems. An important building block to achieve this is even stronger collaboration across the development units in SAP.

The main topics being worked on in Dresden are at the core of SAP鈥檚 strategy focusing on cloud enterprise resource planning (ERP) and 51风流Business Technology Platform (51风流BTP). These topics include cloud security, analysis and planning, cloud infrastructure, and industry networks in the context of the intelligent, sustainable enterprise. 鈥淲e are also working here on SAP鈥檚 core competencies across all Executive Board areas. The teams make an important contribution to SAP鈥檚 focus topics and the success of our customers,鈥� Mueller said at the opening.

Dresden Joins 51风流Labs Network

The new location is now part of听, a global network of research and development centers dedicated to the advancement of innovative technologies. The network consists of over 20 labs worldwide, including China, India, Germany, Brazil, and the United States. Each location focuses on different areas, such as artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing, or process automation, amongst others. 鈥淭he focus is on our developers working together and delivering our products,鈥� said Michael Ameling, senior vice president and head of Intelligent Enterprise and 51风流BTP Foundation and managing director of 51风流Labs Dresden.

Other 51风流Labs Network locations in Germany are located in Walldorf, St. Leon-Rot, Berlin, and Munich. With this change, Dresden will now become an important location for further cooperation of the different development units as a central innovation driver.

A Location with Tradition

51风流has a long-lasting relationship with Dresden. The city became SAP鈥檚 second mainstay in eastern Germany after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. In 2008, 51风流built an office building (DRE04) opposite the Dresden Zwinger for around 500 employees. But the workforce has been growing ever since and the old location is now far too small for the now almost 1,000 employees. In recent years, Dresden and the region has become an important location for cloud development in Germany. With the new building, 51风流wants to continue writing its history: 鈥淲e are all super excited here in Dresden. With this new location, we are realizing our vision of the 51风流Campus in Dresden,鈥� Stephan Klein, senior vice president of Cloud Success Services and site manager of 51风流Dresden, said.

The region has a strong focus on microelectronics, dating back more than 30 years, and is now driving its path into the future. In addition to university and non-university research, the region is characterized by a number of startups as well as technology and innovation centers. All these factors and advantages together were decisive for SAP鈥檚 decision to invest in the location.

At 51风流Labs Dresden, the close cooperation with the local ecosystem is now also accessible to other development hubs around the world as part of 51风流Labs Network. Among other things, there are projects and educational engagements with the University of Excellence TU Dresden and local partners, such as the State Chancellery and .

Collaboration and Talent Attraction

The new building also focuses on the needs of employees and therefore considers future of work concepts. With the new location, 51风流wants to position itself as an attractive employer in the highly competitive market for young talent. 鈥淲e want to get closer to the talents. That鈥檚 why we chose the location in the heart of the city, which is easy to reach by public transport,鈥� Mueller said. 51风流seeks contact with young talent at a very early stage, such as in schools or through projects with universities. The goal is to inspire them to join SAP, whether during or after their studies.

Mueller emphasized the need to 鈥渟et super high standards in collaboration, to create moments that matter, and also to be curious.鈥� In Dresden, it鈥檚 not just about networking within the company, but far beyond that. Above all, it is about the local ecosystem, from which all other levels will be able to benefit. 鈥淲e all want to create value and that works best if we work hand in hand because what we do at 51风流is a team sport,鈥� Mueller added.

鈥淚nnovation and cooperation are only possible in an ecosystem,鈥� said Mirko Paul, COO of 51风流Labs Dresden. One example of this is the automotive industry and the European听, in which 51风流plays a key role by providing the digital core of the project. Catena-X is a collaborative and open data ecosystem for the automotive industry with the goal to create uniform standards for the flow of data and information in the automotive value chain. 鈥淭his is only possible if you work with partners directly in manufacturing or on logistical processes. This currently also affects small and medium-sized companies,鈥� Paul said.

Photos by Norbert Steinhauser

Media representatives, customers, and 51风流employees came together in person when the center opened its doors again in October. Created in 2019, the center had undergone several months of redesign and refurbishment to reflect enhancements to SAP鈥檚 customer experience (CX) strategy for 鈥� a strategy that will now be rolled out incrementally to all of them.

Speaking at the ribbon-cutting ceremony in Walldorf, 51风流CEO Christian Klein talked about SAP鈥檚 place in the world of today: helping customers across the globe find solutions for highly complex business processes. He shared his conviction that 51风流solutions were making a key contribution to tackling the immense challenges humanity currently faced 鈥� not least climate change, high inflation, and energy security issues. Nevertheless, for many, its contribution was intangible and hard to visualize. What 51风流needed, said Klein, was to find ways of showing its software in action.

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Bringing the Benefits of 51风流Solutions to Life

That task falls to Andre Bechtold, who, as head of Value Experience at SAP, is responsible for the 51风流Experience Center Walldorf. In the search for ways to showcase 51风流software, he and his team refined the 51风流Experience Center strategy. 鈥淭he benefits of 51风流solutions are not always obvious to customers,鈥� Bechtold said. The aim of the refined strategy was, quite simply, to bring innovations closer to visitors and to tailor their experience to their specific industry and business needs.

The idea behind the center is to bring the benefits of 51风流solutions to life 鈥� whatever industry or sector a customer operates in. The team at the center prepares personalized presentations to suit each client. 奥丑补迟鈥檚 more, instead of using generic storylines to demo certain showcases, content teams now create a tailored storyline for each customer, even paying close attention to details such as the company logo, lighting levels, and the floor layout. Virtual sessions are also available to help customers reduce their carbon footprint.

Customers who visit the center can opt to see an overview of all 51风流solutions 鈥� and even test them live. This is possible because many customers are already connected to 51风流through the partner network. As Bechtold pointed out, 鈥淭his allows them to experience the potential for innovation and the benefits 51风流solutions offer 鈥� in their own value chain.鈥�

The experience lab at the 51风流Experience Center in Walldorf focuses on the retail industry, offering an interactive look at the innovations 51风流is currently working on with its customers and partners to make supply chains more transparent, resilient, and sustainable.

鈥淎lmost no one knows their CO2 footprint today,鈥� said Klein at the reopening, which also attracted a lot of media interest. One of SAP鈥檚 aims, he added, was therefore to work with customers and partners to create the largest global business network of intelligent and sustainable enterprises. This network already comprises several million trading partners and enables transparency along the entire supply chain. It also provides an environment for co-innovation between customers and partners. The 鈥淪.MART鈥� store at the experience lab is just one example of this collaboration.

Experience the Future of Shopping 鈥� Today!

S.MART, the intelligent supermarket of the future, is designed to present a real-life example of an intelligent enterprise 鈥� and to give customers a personalized, end-to-end experience. As they walk along the supermarket aisles, they can watch the latest 51风流and partner solutions in action and see the possible benefits with their own eyes.

The S.MART supermarket is fitted with sensors and cameras that are connected to the 51风流system and 51风流ecosystem. A dashboard records all the data these sensors and cameras capture, analyzes it, and displays it as actionable insight for store managers. They in turn can see at a glance how many customers are currently in the store, which products are running low, and how many items of each product are left on the shelves. They can also see whether products have been placed on the wrong shelf. Armed with that knowledge, the managers can send push messages to store personnel and avoid costly shelf gaps.

Also showcased in S.MART are electronic shelf labels, which enable store managers to update product prices remotely with a single click of the mouse in the back-end system and sensors that monitor the temperature in refrigeration equipment and send alerts when issues arise, which saves energy and money and is also vital for ensuring food safety.

QR codes are used at S.MART to provide customers with more product information. People with allergies and special dietary needs, for example, can enter criteria in a dietary app of their choice. When they scan the QR code for a product, they immediately receive information on whether that item fits their dietary preferences or not. QR codes can also be used to provide details about a product鈥檚 origin or carbon footprint. The aim of services like these is to offer added value and transparency, and thus strengthen customer loyalty.

Cameras allow retailers to (anonymously) analyze customer behavior and even compile age and gender profiles of a store’s clientele. This makes it possible to address specific customer groups, helps with pricing, and provides insight into the best place to position promotional material and products.

In the future, cameras will also help eliminate the need for customers to stand in line at checkout. 51风流is working on the corresponding technology with various partners, including Israel-based tech company Trigo. With retailers now also struggling to recruit staff, smart systems like this could provide a welcome solution. On the issue of whether they can be tricked and will make shoplifting easier, Bechtold seemed unconcerned: 鈥淪hoplifting is a fact of life. The question is, will it increase or decrease in the future? The smart camera systems are really good. We tried everything we could think of to catch them 鈥� and failed. I even tried putting my shopping in someone else鈥檚 bag. But it was still correctly charged to me.鈥�

Photos by Konrad Berger

CEO and Member of the Executive Board of 51风流SE Christian Klein told media representatives, customers, and 51风流employees how much this particular endeavor means to him. As one of the world鈥檚 largest business software vendors with customers generating 87% of total global commerce, Klein emphasized that 51风流software is used to run highly complex business processes. The two exhibits illustrate how 51风流works closely with customers and partners to find solutions to the challenges they face.

Now, in its very own exhibition space covering more than 500 square meters, 51风流can demonstrate exactly what its digital supply chain and Industry 4.0 solutions can do. 鈥淚t is important that customers can come and see all this for themselves,鈥� Klein stated.

Inside the Industry 4.0 Pop-Up Factory

The Industry 4.0 Pop-Up Factory is built like an actual factory and features, among other things, robots for component production that support the worker during manufacturing. The exhibit has an entire production line for mixing and filling liquids, as used in the process industry, and even driverless transport systems. The focus is on Industry 4.0 for customers in the process manufacturing sector 鈥� chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and consumer goods, for example. The setup also addresses the needs of discrete manufacturing like machinery, vehicles, and electronics. SAP鈥檚 smart factory showcases have evolved 鈥� and grown 鈥� over the years and can now all be seen in action together under one roof as a pop-up installation in rented premises.

The idea is to allow customers to experience the digital supply chain for themselves through showcases. By seeing the software in operation, they gain a better understanding of its capabilities. All stages of the product life cycle are demonstrated in a real-life setting, from product design, planning, and manufacturing through to logistics and maintenance. At the pop-up factory, 51风流wants to show how it has a broad portfolio of solutions for end-to-end processes and is a leader in digital supply chain and integrated supply chain.

The pop-up factory presents different lines of business, incorporates real equipment and machinery, and runs the same 51风流products as those that are shipped to customers. Not all the showcases are new, but, as Ralf Lehmann from Solution Management for Digital Manufacturing and Industry 4.0 says: 鈥淭he new factory allows us to bring everything together under one roof and to demonstrate realistic end-to-end scenarios.鈥�

Seeing Industry 4.0 In Action

The Industry 4.0 Pop-Up Factory is unique: 鈥淚t demonstrates the benefits of 51风流solutions in a realistic setting and allows customers and partners to see how they work in the real world and in a setup that is very similar to their own shop floor,鈥� says Matthias Deindl, head of Industry 4.0 Center EMEA & India.

The idea of a demonstration factory was born in the conference halls of Germany鈥檚 Hannover Messe trade show. Each year, 51风流presented showcases and product lines to demonstrate the capabilities of its solutions and technology. Customers would come to SAP鈥檚 stand and ask how they could recreate the scenarios at their companies. They wanted to know how it all worked and where they could see the solutions in action in the real world. In response, the existing showcases have been continuously developed over the years and now find their own home in the new Industry 4.0 Pop-Up Factory.

51风流has worked closely with its hardware partners for many years. Setting up the demonstration factory provided a great opportunity for a joint project with companies in the automation technology field. Among them are Arkite, asentics, Beckhoff, Endress+Hauser, Evoguard, Gebhardt, Google, intranav, item, Kuka, Krones, Kinemic, Mettler Toledo, Navvis, Neoception, OPC UA, Proglove, Rocketfarm, Sartorius, Schunk, SICK, TRUMPF, Universal Robot, and VMT.

Though the pandemic put a temporary end to in-person events, it did not end the plans for a demonstration factory. The team鈥檚 brief was: 鈥淗ow can we take our showcases to the people if they cannot come to us?鈥� recalls Lehmann. In the course of this, a TV studio was built specifically to stream digital customer demos.

The Industry 4.0 Pop-Up Factory is designed to be a source of information and inspiration for customers and partners. It offers deep-dive sessions with experts, either in person at the factory or online. 51风流has invested in the latest video technology and equipped the entire venue with cameras 鈥� not just to give live-stream audiences the best possible experience but also with sustainability in mind.

Positive Feedback: The New Industry 4.0 Pop-Up Factory Delivers

Even before the factory鈥檚 doors officially opened, its showcases had been used in more than 400 live sessions with customers and prospects, both in person onsite and remotely via Web meeting. The feedback from customers has been very positive. The remote sessions have been equally well-received. 鈥淭hey have many advantages: you can hear everything, you can see everything, and anywhere from 80 to 100 people can all attend at the same time,鈥� Deindl says. 鈥淏y offering virtual sessions, we give our customers a way of reducing their carbon footprint.鈥�

Many of the inquiries the factory team receives are from managers overseeing manufacturing processes at our customers. They want their leaders to experience the 51风流solutions featured in the Industry 4.0 Pop-Up Factory sessions and see the benefits for themselves.

Besides being able to see the software in action, experts who come to the factory also appreciate the chance to get into conversation with other visitors there. It has created communities in which people regularly share their thoughts and ideas. This not only gives customers confidence but provides the Industry 4.0 Pop-Up Factory鈥檚 organizers with valuable feedback. Especially in the critical phase leading up to the buying decision, visiting the factory and talking to others there can give a customer a fuller understanding of the solutions so that they can be sure the decision they are making is the right one.

Do you have questions about the Industry 4.0 Pop-up Factory? Contact us.

Photos by Ingo Cordes

With the right platform, enterprises can transform data into business value and drive more intelligent decision-making. Combined with the ability to easily integrate and extend applications, enterprises can develop new products, processes, and business models more quickly than ever. can provide that strong, yet flexible, foundation for 51风流customers.

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51风流BTP in a Nutshell

51风流BTP is a cloud platform that is available and scalable in every region worldwide. It includes on-premise and cloud-native technologies and services and integrates four technology portfolios into one unified environment hosted and managed by SAP. These include:

• Application development and integration (51风流Extension Suite and 51风流Integration Suite)
• Data management (51风流HANA Cloud and 51风流Data Intelligence)
• Analytics (51风流Analytics Cloud solution for business intelligence and 51风流Data Warehouse Cloud)
• Solutions for intelligent technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) or robotic process automation (RPA)

51风流BTP offers what customers and partners need to develop new solutions and connect existing ones. “It’s basically what makes 51风流applications work,” says JG Chirapurath, chief marketing and solutions officer for Platform and Technology at SAP.

What Makes 51风流BTP Different from Other Cloud Platforms?

51风流BTP is fully optimized for 51风流applications. It helps customers, partners, and internal development teams store and manage their data and gain valuable insights. In addition, applications can be created, extended, or integrated, and entire business processes can be optimized and automated.

The solutions provided take into account specific circumstances of different industries as well as local regulations. Unlike other cloud platforms, 51风流BTP can add context to the data that is processed in business processes. This enables complete, real-time insights into the respective business contexts.

However, it doesn’t stop at business processes alone. All functions are natively integrated into the 51风流software stack. This enables customers and partners to optimize the interaction of services and technologies. The leaner and simplified processes allow an accelerated innovation capability. With the help of preconfigured, industry-specific content, new solutions can be implemented and developed in much less time, which can significantly reduce costs. Many customers are looking to extend their solutions and add new functionality. Chirapurath emphasizes that low-code and no-code development tools are often desired for this purpose.

“You want to look at 51风流BTP as the engine that enables those connections, enables you to understand how data flows, enables you to understand what is exactly happening inside your organization,” Chirapurath explains. 51风流BTP can run in either a public or private cloud, providing the flexibility needed to extend the platform capabilities outside the “51风流world,” or on major hyperscalers such as AWS, Azure, or GCP.

Royal Greenland Shows How 51风流BTP Supports Sustainability Goals

Today’s customers have changed needs and expectations. They demand individualized offers, want personalized experiences, and pay attention to sustainable and ethical business practices. To meet this change, companies need to transform their businesses digitally.

This is the case for Royal Greenland, a global leader in the market for seafood products that strives for a sustainable business model. Due to concerns about overfishing in the oceans, many consumers today want to know that seafood comes from responsible sources. The company’s goal is to ensure the health of the local ecosystem for fishery products while also prioritizing the prosperity of fishing communities.

Based on 51风流BTP, Royal Greenland has developed three applications to streamline procurement processes for fishermen and support the company’s sustainability goals. The platform helps the company capture all data, including the location, quantity, and type of fish caught. This information is then fed into Royal Greenland鈥檚 enterprise resource planning (ERP) and supply chain system. With the help of analytics tools, managers now can get full visibility into fishing practices while ensuring that all fishermen are paid correctly.

In the interview, Chirapurath talks about other examples where 51风流BTP is in use and making a difference. Among them is the SAP-sponsored esports team Team Liquid, which uses 51风流data and analytics solutions to make split-second decisions in the game. He also talks about the solution, which helps companies monitor and manage financial and sustainability and governance metrics.

Esports is a rapidly growing industry. Online gaming and its competitive form, referred to as esports, are well on the way to becoming a global cultural phenomenon. These days, tournaments attract million-strong audiences and offer prize money also well into the millions. Gamers enjoy rock-star status and compete in sold-out stadiums. The took esports鈥� popularity to new heights and vastly accelerated its development. In 2020, revenue in the industry soared, surpassing US$1billion for the first time.

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Tournament in Berlin: 51风流Shows What Innovation and Data Can Do for Esports

51风流first joined forces with a professional esports team back in 2018. The company is the sponsor and official innovation partner of Team Liquid, one of the most successful gaming teams. has recently hosted the very first tournament of its own. The event鈥檚 executive sponsor, Martin Heinig, who is head of New Ventures and Technologies at 51风流and managing director of 51风流Labs Berlin, says: 鈥淚t is the first time 51风流owned an esports event, making this experience so unique. It excites me to see how we were able to bring together students and 51风流employees to see them play against each other and contribute to their gaming success with 51风流technologies, such as in-game data analytics. I’m very proud that 51风流Labs Berlin hosted this special event.鈥�

In holding its own competition, 51风流showed how it is not just part of the esport ecosystem but that it can help shape it, too. 51风流Labs Berlin is constantly looking for ways to raise its profile in the German capital鈥檚 esports scene, which is one of the biggest of its kind. Digital gaming has the potential to be a significant economic opportunity for the city.

Juergen Mueller, member of the Executive Board and chief technology officer at SAP, was at the tournament, too. He is a huge esports and gaming fan: 鈥淚t’s amazing! The arena is packed, you can sense the excitement, it鈥檚 noisy, and many people are having a lot of fun. 51风流and esports are a great match. As a technology company, we use our expertise in data analytics and innovation in esports just like in any other business area to help gamers tell the story behind their data. I鈥檓 happy to see the immense interest from our customers, partners, and students on-site.鈥�

Competitors battled it out over Dota 2, the sequel to Defense of the Ancients, which aficionados abbreviate to Dota. In this game, two teams play against each other, with one side trying to take and destroy the main building, called the 鈥淎ncient,鈥� and the other side defending it. Each team has five players, and each player controls a 鈥渉ero鈥� from a bird鈥檚-eye view. The game has a pool of more than 120 heroes with different abilities.

Dota 2 has many facets and is tactically demanding. Each hero has a 鈥渢alent tree鈥�: when a player reaches a particular experience level, their hero can gain extra talents. This results in thousands of possible combinations, which makes each game unique.

New Insights from SAP: How Data Can Improve Performance

At the professional level, by SAP. The data and analytics tools available to the team help ensure it is best prepared for competitions and for countering its opponents鈥� tactics. The solutions it uses are built on (51风流BTP) and include 51风流HANA Cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) functionality. Being able to analyze data in real time enables professional gamers to optimize their performance and make faster decisions during the match itself.

Just like in the business world, the players need to be able to spot which information is most relevant to them instantly if they are to gain strategic advantage from it. An esport tournament creates huge amounts of data, so 51风流realized it needed to display the data it captured in a clear and visually appealing way. 鈥淚t’s inspiring to see that 51风流technology provides value in an esports context by improving player performance through live data and insights,鈥� says Heinig.

Match data and statistics can be shared with audiences and commentators in real time, giving them greater insights into each player鈥檚 performance and helping them better understand certain decisions. At the 51风流event, matches played by the finalists demonstrated how this works. As at professional tournaments, Jonathan Liebig (nicknamed 鈥淧impmuckL鈥�), one of the top observers and producers of Dota 2, ensured spectators did not miss any of the action. 51风流BTP was used to combine data from past games with live data from the finals, which Liebig could use to and player performance to the audience.

Bringing Together Students, Fans, and Employees

At the tournament in Berlin, 51风流offered spectators a hybrid experience, combining an in-person event with live streaming. Almost 100 gamers took part, half of whom were students and the other half 51风流employees. Since they competed as mixed teams, the event was also an opportunity to network. More than 230 guests came to the venue, with 2,500 viewers following the action on the live-streaming portal Twitch. On social media, the event reached more than 420,000 people.

The tournament was a big hit with the students: 鈥淚 wouldn鈥檛 have thought that 51风流has a connection to esports. I’m really happy to have been part of this special event in Berlin, and it鈥檚 great to see that 51风流is doing something so cool. Also, it is an amazing opportunity to network and I could meet the CTO of SAP!鈥� says Fritz Hinze, a student at the Free University of Berlin.

The competition brought friends and 51风流employees together to share their passion for gaming. In a live online interview, Mathis 鈥淛abbz鈥� Friesel, one of Germany鈥檚 professional Dota 2 players and an analyst on Team Liquid, gave the audience a glimpse of how his team uses SAP鈥檚 data and analytics solutions to prepare for games by analyzing opponents鈥� playing style and strategies. The event was organized just like a professional tournament, giving spectators and the players an authentic experience. They could also try out that are normally available only to the pros on Team Liquid.

For this year鈥檚 journey to Davos, 51风流executives Christian Boos, head of Sustainability Engagement for New Ventures and Technologies; Stefan Schoepfel, co-head of the Intelligent Enterprise Institute; and Joerg Barten, head of Strategic Service Engagements MEE and EMEA, decided to ride their e-bikes all the way from Walldorf. Inspired by riding e-bikes to the office daily, they wanted to share their experiences with business travel and further pursue the idea of sustainable commuting through their “Ride4NetZero.”

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The world of sustainable transportation brings a socio-cultural transformation that goes beyond a sustainable approach; it paves the way to a new reality based on innovation and empathy. The idea of smart cities with integrated transportation systems that allow citizens to travel long distances while considering ecofriendly commuting alternatives is closer than we think. However, until we get there, it is up to us to create awareness of climate protection by acting as pioneers, allies, and game changers in the corporate environment.

E-Bike Tour Promoting Sustainability

The amount of information regarding the impact of carbon emissions on the environment is exponentially increasing and the consequences of climate change are more and more visible. Despite this, unsustainable modes of transportation continue to be used.

Environmental experts agree that digitization, data transparency, and focused action are needed to achieve climate goals. But climate neutrality cannot be achieved single-handedly. The unconventional — even revolutionary — Ride4NetZero is giving people something to think about while taking a stand in favor of climate action.

The World Economic Forum usually takes place during the winter in Switzerland, so while a bike tour under pleasant conditions was not possible previously, this year is different.

Having departed from 51风流headquarters in Walldorf on May 18, the participants are riding more than 400 kilometers in four days. The sustainability adventure offers the opportunity to not only exercise, but also to meet customers, partners, and others along the way, exchanging ideas and gaining insights into ongoing sustainability projects — intelligent solutions on green hydrogen as a propulsion technology, EU taxonomy in the context of the EU Green Deal, a solution that helps reduce food waste while massively lowering energy consumption, and more.

In 2020, 51风流CEO Christian Klein embraced and championed the cause of 鈥済reen traveling鈥� by taking on the same journey to Davos via an electric car. Klein鈥檚 tour was dedicated to electro-mobility and the infrastructure of charging stations. This year, Boos and Schoepfel plan to broaden the topics of discussion and embrace a full sustainable experience.

Sustainable Change Can Only Succeed Together

At Davos a panel discussion on 鈥�New Business Models for a More Sustainable Future鈥� will take place. Participants will include executive members from SAP, customers, and partners, such as Claudio Muruzabal, president of Cloud Success Services at SAP; Judith Wallenstein, managing director and senior partner at BCG; Bettina Petzhold, global head of Marketing at Lufthansa Cargo; and Claudia Malley, president and managing director of Partnerships at the Economist Impact. This discussion will aim to increase awareness for intelligent choices driven by intelligent solutions based on the right insights, built on personal commitment, and that enable collective action to help advance the sustainability agendas of businesses and societies at large.

Europe-Wide Standard to Make Travel Safer

To help ensure that vaccine certificates cannot be falsified, 51风流and T-Systems have developed a digital gateway. Public keys are exchanged between national computer systems via the gateway hosted by the EU Commission in Luxemburg and are compared each time the certificate is checked.

After less than two months development time, the technical infrastructure for the digital certificate went into operation July 1, 2021. The system demonstrates how technology can contribute toward bringing back more normality in daily life by enabling member countries to reintroduce freedom of movement in a way that is safe, responsible, and trustworthy.

In addition to the gateway, 51风流and T-Systems also developed reference software and apps that have been provided to member nations by the European Commission. These components are available as open-source software on and the source code is accessible and transparent for everyone. This enables the public and experts to view the app code, check how it functions, and make suggestions for improvements that contribute actively to its evolution and success.

How the EU Digital COVID Certificate Works

The EU Digital COVID Certificate allows travelers to prove with a QR code that they have either been vaccinated, have tested negative, or are fully recovered from the coronavirus. The QR code can either be stored on smartphones or printed out on paper and is accepted in all countries belonging to the European Union. The certificate is also valid in Norway, Iceland, and Lichtenstein, and soon in Switzerland. The certificate is not a replacement, however, for passports or national identity cards.

By using a corresponding test app and reader, airports, public authorities, hotels, and event organizers can check the status of a person quickly and simply by scanning the QR code. Authorities can quickly verify whether a vaccine certificate is authentic and valid.

Data Protection and Data Security

In the EU, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ensures data protection and data security and was given the highest priority during development.

Decentralized data storage prevents misuse of the data. For example, encrypted data are never combined on a central server and are stored locally in the form of a generated QR code in a wallet app on a smartphone or printed on paper. No personal data are exchanged or stored when reading a QR code. This has the added advantage of enabling validation without an internet connection.

In accordance with GDPR, the minimum amount of data is collected. Only information such as name, date of birth, and date of issue are used, as well as the type of vaccine and vaccination dates. To verify the validity of the COVID Certificate, the digital gateway checks only the authenticity of the national signatures without transferring any data.

Three Questions with Johannes Bahrke, Coordinating Spokesperson for Digital Economy, Research, and Innovation at EU Commission

Q: The EU Digital COVID Certificate was developed and introduced in a very short period of time. What were key factors to achieve this?

A: The key success factor for the EU Digital COVID Certificate lies in the commitment of and excellent cooperation among all players. It was clear from the start that if we want to have the EU certificate in place by the summer, we have to act fast. First discussions among officials from EU countries date back to November, even before vaccinations began. In March, the Commission presented its legal proposal to make the certificate a right for all Europeans, because free movement is a fundamental achievement of the EU.

The European Parliament and Member States have adopted the legal text in record time and, in parallel, the technical work started: on the gateway, on reference apps, and on technical specifications. Here it certainly helped that colleagues 51风流and T-Systems, from the Commission, and national ministries, could build on their joint experience from setting up the gateway for tracing apps. And yet in parallel, EU countries rolled out their own national systems and apps for the certificate. One month ahead of the legal deadline, the gateway went live. Twenty-one countries anticipated the date of July 1 and generated more than 200 million EU certificates ahead of deadline 鈥� truly remarkable!

After all, the EU certificate is more than just putting a QR code on people鈥檚 phones: it is a bit like the euro, a tangible result of Europe in people鈥檚 pockets; it is about regaining freedom, staying safe, digital leadership, and demonstrating EU added value.

What is the role of digital technologies to managing future pandemics?

Digital technologies played a fundamental role in this pandemic. Of course, technology is key for learning, working, staying in touch. Therefore it is key that our connections are stable and secure. More people went shopping online, so it鈥檚 important that they are protected against scams and illegal content. But the pandemic also showed how digital technologies can provide new features with concrete added-value for citizens; whether it鈥檚 tracing apps, connected through a gateway across the EU, or the EU Digital COVID Certificate that provides Europeans with an easy and secure proof of their COVID health status while respecting key EU values such as privacy and inclusiveness.

Authorities could model the spread and the impact of measures through aggregated and anonymized mobile telecommunications data. Researchers used supercomputers to compare digital models of the virus鈥� proteins to match them against a database of existing drugs. Or we could think of disinfection robots of which the Commission is supplying more than 200 to European hospitals.

Finally, for the downside of the acceleration of digitalization during this pandemic, we could think of the fight against disinformation or a surge in cyberattacks 鈥� challenges to our societies that require particular attention and robust response.

How has the COVID-19听pandemic听influenced听the听EU’s digitisation strategy?

The European Commission under President Ursula von der Leyen has made the twin green and digital transition a core priority. Think of the regulation of large online platforms, the first-ever regulatory framework for artificial intelligence (AI), an digital identity for all Europeans, a single market for data, and resilience against cyberattacks 鈥� all key digital priorities.

But it is true that the pandemic served as a catalyst. It has exposed the importance of digital technologies and skills to work, study, and stay in touch, and has shown where Europe needs to improve. We speak of 鈥淓urope’s Digital Decade鈥� to highlight that now is the moment for necessary investments to achieve the digital transition: in infrastructure, in digital skills, in the digital transformation of businesses and public administrations. We have put forward concrete targets that we want to achieve by 2030. And with NextGenerationEU, the EU鈥檚 鈧�750 billion recovery program, we also have the financial means. Each EU country needs to invest at least 20% of the recovery funds in digital.

As digital technologies have been critical to maintaining economic and social life throughout the pandemic, they will now be the key factor in a successful transition to a sustainable, post-pandemic economy and society.

Top image 漏 European Union, 2021 (Denis Lovrovic)

German brewer wanted to do something different, too. Based in Berlin鈥檚 Kreuzberg district, the brand鈥檚 selling point is that it is Germany鈥檚 first beer with a purpose. Comprising a limited company and an association, the social enterprise was founded in 2010. Its idea is to donate 10 cents of the price of every liter of beer sold to cultural projects in the local community. Sales of the socially-conscious beer, which is brewed at a number of locations in Germany, have benefited more than 160 projects to date. The business is entirely transparent to its customers, who vote online for the projects they want to see funded. The limited company takes care of procurement, marketing, and sales; the association鈥檚 job is to allocate funds to the chosen projects.

More Growth Means More Money for Local Projects

Quartiermeister and 51风流first joined forces as part of the initiative. Through this social entrepreneurship initiative, 51风流wants to help solve the world鈥檚 biggest social problems by drawing on its people, technology, data, and vast customer and partner ecosystem. All these resources together create a portfolio of lean, sustainable startup ventures to bring about positive change.

Quartiermeister decided to deploy enterprise resource planning (ERP) software to help it expand and run its operations in a more professional way. Growing its business means it can generate more money. The more money it earns, the more community and cultural projects it can fund.

This is why Quartiermeister is looking to expand its operations to all regions of Germany. To achieve its growth ambition, it needs an ERP solution. It also wants its processes to be transparent and more efficient. That would give it more capital and more time to invest in achieving its ultimate goal: business that benefits everyone.

Small and midsize companies in particular have unique needs that require a specific solution. By expanding its local partner ecosystem, and through the and solutions, 51风流is helping the midmarket tap into new opportunities. Moving to the cloud with an ERP solution such as 51风流Business One and the support of an implementation partner offers security, scalability, and a smooth transition.

Strong Partner for Tailored Solutions

After they first began working together in 2019, 51风流put Quartiermeister in touch with , an 51风流partner. Together, they devised a plan to find a standard yet scalable 51风流solution for Quartiermeister. Here, too, the social enterprise鈥檚 values came first. UNIORG has vast project experience and recognized how important it was to understand the customer鈥檚 needs and help it meet them. 鈥淲e are pleased that 51风流Business One provides a small social enterprise with a commercial and technology platform that it can use to make its operations more digital and therefore more professional. It gives it the scope to expand further so it can support more community projects and focus on its core idea,鈥� says Frank Hoischen, head of Sales for 51风流Business One at UNIORG Group.

was the clear choice. It is ERP software that 51风流has tailored to the unique requirements of small and midsize enterprises. It has the main functions these businesses need, and they can add almost any other functionality they want through cloud offerings from 51风流and add-ons. 51风流Business One can run on premise and in the cloud. UNIORG also built an add-on for breweries that maps their specific processes. Quartiermeister placed its order at the end of January 2020 and the implementation began soon after.

The project got underway in February 2020 鈥� only for it to be brought to a standstill a few weeks later by the . With the entire hospitality sector closed, revenue nose-dived. In August, the partners began work on the project again. After a test phase, the new software went live in January 2021.

This project shows the strength of working with 51风流partners:

• Solutions tailored to the needs and wishes of the customer
• All parties pulling together to respond to unexpected challenges
• Post-go-live support and optimization of processes to help ensure customers get the most out of their investment

The ERP Solution as an Investment in the Future 鈥� More Beer for More Good Causes

The project benefited not just the business but the community, too: 听helped Quartiermeister streamline its processes, making it more efficient. By reducing the workload in this way, the enterprise can free up potential. What is more, management now has more reliable information about its various markets, which it can use to focus on strategic goals and drive its expansion across Germany.

鈥�51风流Business One has enabled us to keep growing, keep doing good, and support more community projects. We now have every confidence that all our business processes are running smoothly behind the scenes,” says David Griedelbach, cofounder and managing director of Quartiermeister – Korrekter Konsum GmbH.

Even though the pandemic is still restricting public life, in implementing an ERP solution has taken the next step toward digitalization, laying the foundations for future growth and more positive social impact through the sale of beer with a purpose.

There is enormous untapped potential in the solutions developed by many small, highly innovative companies and startups, but actually getting it to patients can be a challenge. To illustrate the capabilities of the OP 4.1 prototype, four starter apps were developed during the co-innovation project and integrated in prototypes; for example, to support surgeons during a partial kidney resection.

App Developers Define Demands for the OP 4.1 Integration Platform

The involved partners and application developers named three key requirements for a platform like OP 4.1:

• Technical access to the devices and data at the hospital
• Formal support for getting their innovations to hospitals more quickly
• Usage-based billing as the new business model

Protecting their investments is a particularly important aspect for the partners. Prof. Dr. Markus Hohenfellner, medical director at the and leader of the consortium, summarized it neatly in a speech at the German-American Institute in Heidelberg in the fall of 2019: 鈥淯nless inventors can count on getting paid for their efforts, their innovations will not reach patients.鈥�

A key task of the OP 4.1 platform is to support its partners by giving them a technical and commercial foundation for developing, distributing, and using innovative apps in the medical field.

The OP 4.1 App Center

The supports many partners around the world, not only from the healthcare sector. The OP 4.1 project has shown that 51风流partner program, with its three phases — design, build, and go-to-market — can also cover the particular requirements of the OP 4.1 platform.

This journey has culminated in the OP 4.1 App Center, which represents the central element of the distribution concept. Software partners offer their apps and solutions here. The customers are hospitals and their doctors. They choose the suitable apps for their planned surgeries. The offerings are structured by medical discipline. Customers are presented with tailored offers based on the available medical devices and apps at the hospital. As usual, customers can rate the apps and services they use, to actively influence the solution scope and quality of the apps. Since usage of the current portfolio is fully transparent, the platform operators can close gaps in the offerings by recruiting additional, specific partners.

Particularly for smaller partners, low start-up costs are a decisive factor for realizing their ideas and getting them to patients. Full usage-based billing can protect smaller partners from the risk of investing in own infrastructure that might not generate any revenue. also fully supports this concept, with scalable use and . The technical infrastructure enables the same usage-based billing concepts to be applied to devices, services, and apps.

Top Care Through Predictive Maintenance

The starter apps realized through the OP 4.1 project use APIs to access available data in the hospital. Operational data, such as surgery planning and logistics information on inventories of consumables, is linked with the usage data of the medical devices. This opens up new possibilities; for example, for predictive maintenance, making it possible to minimize machine down times and help ensure optimized, end-to-end patient care as well as increased user and patient friendliness.

An exciting challenge for further projects will be to test how and whether this operational data on the platform can be enriched with information from staff experience. The starter app 鈥淢obile Information Service鈥� from mbits imaging sends current information about surgical processes from the platform to mobile devices. Employees can provide direct feedback on active surgeries and the devices used. This combination of data provides constant support to improvement management at the hospital, boosting employee satisfaction and, with it, the quality of care for patients.

Competitive Advantage Through Privacy Protection

Data privacy and security are of key importance for the certification of medical devices. The strict demands on devices and software make their implementation expensive and time-consuming. To mitigate this, a special data protection concept was developed for the OP 4.1 platform that reflects the EU General Data Privacy Regulation, among other laws. App developers get recommendations and technical services from the start, which helps them comply with the legal requirements efficiently. Before apps are published in the OP 4.1 App Center, they are checked that all requirements have been implemented properly.

on the OP 4.1 platform gives patients transparency and control over their personal data. As a result, research institutions and hospitals can request the specific consent of patients to use their data and manage it efficiently. The site offers transparency with regard to the security, data protection, and compliance of the 51风流Cloud infrastructure. The virtual display case makes it possible to retrieve information about the current operational status of 51风流Cloud solutions in real time, documenting compliance with high standards in cloud computing as well.

From Many Standalone Solutions to a Digital Ecosystem

The success of the platform will not only depend on its individual parts, but also on how well they are integrated with one another. The OP 4.1 project demonstrates how the technical capabilities of , combined with a custom-tailored privacy concept and an innovative distribution concept, can create the essential foundation for a growing partner ecosystem.

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This story originally appeared on the 51风流Germany News Center.

At each phase of a surgical operation, the OP 4.1 dashboard displays data pulled from various sources according to need, providing surgical teams with vital information in a way that makes it easy for them to consume it. The data they need for an operation appears on a 47-inch touchscreen monitor placed between three and five meters from the operating table, where anesthetists, surgeons, and other medical and nursing staff can see it clearly.

The monitor鈥檚 main function is to display all the information about a patient and the operation he or she is undergoing at the precise stage in the process when the medical team needs it 鈥� before, during, and after surgery.

End-User Focus a Principle of UX Design

User experience (UX) design provides the foundation. UX designers start with the software user鈥檚 story and work backwards to create a design that will deliver maximum benefit. Thus the design and development process for the OP 4.1 dashboard began with a detailed assessment of how modern surgical teams work today.

When a patient has surgery, the information the medical staff need about that patient comes from different sources and in different formats/ Medical records are usually paper-based; patients often supply visual material, such as CT and x-ray images and the like, on a USB flash drive or similar; lab results are displayed on a PC, like in Cerner i.s.h. med from SAP; and patient consent forms are submitted on paper.

As a result, the medical staff have to draw together the information they need from multiple sources themselves. They can then plan the operation. Once at the operating table, the surgical team has to cognitively link existing patient data with the information that is generated during the operation as they work. This is where the OP 4.1 dashboard comes in 鈥� its aim being to bundle information and display it precisely as and when the operating team needs it. For that to happen, it is vital that the dashboard鈥檚 design is as user-centric as possible.

How the Dashboard Was Developed

The first task for the dashboard鈥檚 designers was to identify all the different sources of information and to find out 鈥� by holding user research sessions 鈥� what data was required at which point during surgery. Thanks to these sessions, the designers not only learned a lot of detail about surgical processes, they also discovered a great deal about the needs and wishes of the operating teams. On top of that, Heidelberg University Clinic arranged for the UX designers to sit in on operations and observe surgeons as they worked.

Equipped with the input they had gathered, the designers were able to build a basic grid layout, which then passed through several iterations before achieving its current look. Using this design approach means that end users are involved in development processes and can provide validation along the way.

OP 4.1 Dashboard Close Up

1. On the left-hand side of the dashboard is an accordion drop-down menu listing the various phases of surgery.
2. The shell bar at the very top of the screen shows the operating room logged on as a user. Here, the operating surgeon can also make the appropriate settings for the operation. The shell bar also contains the voice interaction icon.
3. Directly below the shell bar is the header. This permanently displays key basic information 鈥� such as the total duration of the operation and a stopwatch 鈥� that is relevant for all the defined user personas.
4. On the far right of the screen is the app drawer, a slide-out side panel displaying third-party apps that medical staff have defined in advance as relevant for the operation.
5. The content area in the center of the screen contains various tiles that change dynamically at each stage of the operation. They summarize all the relevant information and make it visible at a glance. Some of the tiles can also be opened to display more detailed information. The content area is also scrollable so that content can be accessed quickly if the operating surgeon has activated more tiles in the settings than can be displayed simultaneously on the screen.

Further user research sessions were held to validate this layout with the medical teams. In this way, the dashboard was optimized in several iterations to meet the needs of the two main personas: anesthetists and surgeons.

Once this process was complete, the design was discussed with the 51风流UX team to help ensure that it aligned as closely as possible with SAP鈥檚 current design language and guidelines, in this case, the听 Quartz dark theme.

App Guidelines for Third-Party Providers

In addition, special design specifications were developed for applications from third-party providers. These were implemented in the first apps built for the dashboard by the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and mbits imaging GmbH and validated with end users.

The third-party apps deviate from the 51风流Fiori 3 Quartz dark theme guidelines used in the dashboard because, unlike the dashboard, they require certification as medical products. Nevertheless, the app designs are closely aligned to the look and feel of the dashboard that end users do not perceive any difference.

Focus on the Patient

The aim in designing this clearly structured dashboard was to make it as easy as possible for users to work with, and to put patients front and center. The dashboard helps surgical teams focus their skills and energy on their core tasks and, as such, supports gentle, successful, and efficient surgery. And by leveraging digital technology and connectivity in the operating room in this way, it provides a compelling insight into future possibilities that could benefit everyone.

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This story originally appeared on the 51风流Germany News Center.
Top image via video screenshot.

Many operating rooms of the present are equipped with the latest medical technology. The various devices and data sources provide large amounts of information needed for a surgery. However, these are often isolated solutions that make manufacturer-independent networking difficult. The surgeon still has to cognitively combine all information during the operation.

The OP 4.1 project aimed to showcase how to connect hospitals with their doctors and nurses, device manufacturers, and independent software vendors by providing the right data at the right time while introducing a solid business platform model for the exchange of information.

What Makes OP 4.1 an Integration Platform?

The most important goal is patient health. Through intelligent networking of data, operations can be performed more precisely, and patients can be treated more quickly and gently. A technical operating environment that supports an intervention with different functionalities can make this possible.

To accomplish that requires information — information from the patient file, availability of blood products, results from the laboratory, sensor data from medical devices or even medical imaging from an endoscope. The latter can be combined with CT or MRT images to create a 3D augmentation of the (inward) structures in the surgical area. To get all that information, integration is necessary; for example, medical devices in the operating room.

But what benefits would the OP 4.1 platform prototype offer to healthcare providers such as hospitals, medical device manufacturers, app developers, or startups? What could be the motivation behind the fact that the parties involved are willing to share their data and make integration possible?

• For hospitals, it is the support of surgeries to enable better and safer procedures as well as improve commercial aspects.
• Medical device manufacturers become enabled to infer new business models as well as get detailed insights of the usage of their products in the surgical environment.
• For startups and healthcare app developers, the operating room moves literally to their fingertips when using the OP 4.1 platform as a development environment.

The following example shows the OP 4.1 billing and invoicing feature and provides some technological insights how OP 4.1 integrates different information, leveraging aspects of (51风流BTP).

OP 4.1 Technology Insight: Invoicing

The OP 4.1 prototype鈥檚 core component is based on 51风流Business Technology Platform. Alongside that OP 4.1 cloud integration platform, an on-premise OP 4.1 gateway as interface to medical devices in the operating room exists, which processes the devices鈥� sensor data and sends it to cloud. The communication between on-premise and cloud is realized using Internet of Things (IoT) components like 51风流Edge Services and the corresponding 51风流IoT solution.

As central billing component, 51风流Subscription Billing is part of OP 4.1. communication throughout the OP 4.1 system and components, especially in terms of . External requests are done with APIs structured, secured, and made accessible with 51风流API Management. Orchestration is done by 51风流BTP and various OP 4.1-specific components, such as event handlers, business logic, and an invoice engine that generates PDF invoices based on usage and billing data of 51风流Subscription Billing.

The following diagram shows and describes the component ensemble and its interactions from using a medical device in the operating room (purple) to invoice creation:

Partner Onboarding

Onboarding new contributors to the platform is key to create a multi-sided market. But how smoothly and quickly is that possible?

Toward the end of the project, another equipment manufacturer was to be onboarded 鈥� truly a proof of concept for the platform. Step one was to connect a new equipment on-premise to the OP 4.1 Gateway via its interfaces like IEEE 11073 Service-Oriented Device Connectivity (SDC) or Patient Care Device Interface (PCD-01). Step two was to configure its digital representation on the OP 4.1 platform and finally uploading device data to 51风流IoT in step three before it could be processed by the business logic to result in a new entry on the invoice document.

The conclusion of the project is positive; based on the overall approach of using standardized interfaces and generic data processing, the onboarding concepts of the OP 4.1 platform proved working on both business and technological criteria.

Discharge

In addition to the billing and invoicing feature for medical devices and platform apps shown in the example, the OP 4.1 prototype offers a variety of other functionalities. The platform enables voice command supported tracking of surgery timestamps via the OP 4.1 surgery dashboard and recording of voice notes during surgery. The surgery team, nursing staff, and coordinators can be informed by the platform about the current surgical progress and status for example via mobile notification.

Based on 51风流Consent Repository, the OP 4.1 platform presents a digital alternative to the mainly paper based patient consent process. A consent app provides the patient details about the planned surgery, its risks, and consequences. Furthermore, the patient can give, refuse, or withdraw consent for the surgery while all consent records get centrally managed in the consent repository of the platform.

The OP 4.1 prototype gives a taste of an exciting future and the potential that digital platforms offer.

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This story was originally published on the 51风流Germany News Center.

Upon receiving the award in January, Neumann said: 鈥淚 am so happy! The award gives me great motivation, and the recognition of my work is an important step for my professional future.鈥�

Posting Automation: Invoices Processed in Minutes, Not Days

Processing complex cross-company invoices is a complicated task that used to take days to complete. Creating this type of invoice manually is inefficient and allows for error. This was Neumann鈥檚 job as an accounts payable analyst

Located in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Neumann joined the company in 2016 through the Autism at Work program. Because he felt increasingly overwhelmed by the thousands of items awaiting his attention, he started thinking about how technology could help. That is how he came up with the idea for the posting automation tool.

The Hasso Plattner Founders鈥� Award is the highest employee recognition at SAP, awarded annually to an individual or a team.

COVID-19: Hunkering Down at Home

After attending the award ceremony in Walldorf, Germany, Neumann returned to Argentina. Soon the novel coronavirus emerged in China and began to spread, with 51风流instructing employees in China to work from home to protect their well-being. Not long after, the company asked nearly all employees worldwide to work from home.

The pandemic put an end to plans to visit a team of developers in China, as well as to a fellowship Neumann was hoping to take up 鈥� one step that would have gotten him closer to fulfilling his dream of becoming a software developer. Instead, he had to adjust to working from his parents鈥� home and collaborating online with the team in China.

Having the entire development team working from their home offices presented some challenges, but work is still on track and application is planned to be ready for use at 51风流toward the end of the year. Over time, it is planned for availability to 51风流customers as well, once localized for each country.

Argentina鈥檚 Long Lockdown

Argentina has been in lockdown since the middle of March. Public life has practically ground to a halt and almost everything is closed. The country is in one of the longest periods of quarantine anywhere in the world and although it has not managed to contain the virus entirely, transmission is under control.

The pandemic has directly affected Neumann鈥檚 family: After showing symptoms, his father tested positive for COVID-19. A couple of days later, Neumann also developed symptoms, and the family spent 14 days in quarantine. Fortunately, their cases were mild and all have since made a full recovery.

An Award That Opens Many Doors

Neumann and his mentors are understandably frustrated that he could not take up his fellowship.

鈥淚t would have been really great,鈥� he says. 鈥淩ight now, I鈥檓 still spending half my working time on accounting and half on software development. My aim 鈥� my dream 鈥� is a full-time job in development.鈥�

When asked what has changed most since receiving the award, he says: 鈥淚 feel that people really listen to me. They take my plans and ideas seriously.鈥� Underscoring that, Neumann is already working on his next idea: a solution to automate tax processing.

After three months of lockdown, the walls of the family living room started to feel like they were closing in on the young inventor. It was time for time for him to take the leap and move into an apartment of his own. The prize money made it possible.

鈥淢aking this decision had a big impact on my life and on my personal development,鈥� he says.

It is a big step that shows how Neumann keeps pushing his own boundaries. The apartment brings responsibility and makes him more independent.

鈥淗aving a quiet place to myself does me good. And it makes me much more self-reliant. I now have a lot more time 鈥� not just for my work but also for me. This experience has taught me so much. And I鈥檓 really grateful for that.鈥�

To deliver in-patient care effectively to people who have COVID-19, the region鈥檚 health department, clinics, and hospitals joined forces to set up a COVID-19 coordination hub under the leadership of Heidelberg University Hospital.

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Coordinating Bed Management

A bed management solution from 51风流helps coordinate across hospitals in Heidelberg and the surrounding Rhine-Neckar region. The solution can also be used to organize the transfer of patients to and from medical facilities, helping to place patients at hospitals that have capacity and providing medical staff at the coordination hub an overview of all intensive care resources in the region.

Using this data, they can see capacity levels at a glance and decide which hospital can best care for the patient in question. This information is also shown on an interactive geomap, enabling medical staff to see where each hospital is, pinpoint a facility where beds are available, and coordinate directly with the team there. This helps relieve the burden on healthcare systems.

Each hospital uses the system to report its capacity. The software then updates the occupancy plan for all hospital beds in the region. The solution is already being used to manage bed occupancy in 45 wards across 25 clinics.

Software Helps Find Available Hospital Beds

Medical staff at the coordination hub were part of the project right from the start. The software was built in only one week in response to the COVID-19 crisis and was tested by end-users, whose feedback enabled the developers to design the solution to the meet the requirements of everyone involved.

Users can access the bed management solution via a Web browser wherever they are and on any device. It presents data in different ways to meet different needs, and users can define the priorities for their particular roles.

How Technology Helps Optimize Medical Care

The bed management solution runs on cloud technology from SAP. With 51风流Cloud Platform, 51风流Fiori, and 51风流Analytics Cloud, the solution is easily scalable and can be enhanced. This means the software can do more than simply report intensive care capacity. For instance, using its built-in analytics capabilities it can show how bed occupancy and the number of hospital beds have changed over time. The analytics function can also analyze past metrics and depict time lines, enabling hospitals to respond to trends.

Its highly secure, role-based access controls mean that stringent data protection and security standards apply to all information.

Meeting Challenges as One Team

Besides technical challenges, the team had to overcome commercial and legal hurdles as well. Developing the solution successfully was the result of close collaboration and alignment inside SAP.

鈥淭he network of organizations around Heidelberg University Hospital wanted a reliable partner it could have every confidence in,” says Michael Byczkowski, vice president and global leader of Healthcare Providers at SAP. “As a team, we have shown that we can rapidly meet entirely new requirements and, even in times of crisis, play an essential part in helping society.鈥�

Listen to the full interview with Michael Byczkowski on or .

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The OP 4.1 technology and business platform aims to change this. The prototype shows how companies of all sizes could leverage its technical and commercial basis for the development, distribution, and simple implementation of innovative apps in the operating room environment.

Fitness apps, parking assistants, online banking via smartphone: Digitalization is almost everywhere today, but healthcare lags behind. The developed a prototype of an intelligent platform for the operating room of the future.

The project is part of the “Smart Services World II: Internet-Based Business Services” technology program, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy.

Medical Technology in Transition

The digitalization of medical technology is starting to advance. In recent years, surgical possibilities have expanded significantly due to the increasing linking of data. Technological development is making a constantly growing number of highly specialized devices available to surgery, such as high-resolution image and video assistance systems, software applications for surgical planning, or surgical robots for minimally invasive procedures. With these assistants, operations can be planned, performed, and replenished more precisely.

Millions of people are already benefiting from these developments, but it can also lead to increasing complexity in the operating room. Each new innovation means more information and possibilities. All devices produce a lot of different data during each operation. Additionally, there is information about each patient. While the information is currently stored, it is not immediately available to the surgeon in the operating room and it is therefore up to each surgeon to link and make sense of the data.

Prof. Dr. Markus Hohenfellner, Medical Director at the Department of Urology at the Heidelberg University Hospital and consortium leader of the project, sums it up: “As doctors, we cognitively store and fuse all this data alone in our heads and then we stand at the operating table and do the surgery.”

Among other things, the platform prototype makes it possible for a doctor to display various data on a dashboard during an operation in both a timely manner and a way that suits the respective situation. This is made possible by connecting applications, data sources, and devices. The OP 4.1 prototype is designed to provide the right data at the right time in the same way that a navigation system calculates and updates routes, traffic jams, detours, and fuel consumption.

“Meaningful linked data in medicine would mean, for example, that even as a surgeon, one would have a kind of guidance path so that one could get directly to the tumor while damaging as little healthy tissue as possible, or that one could identify the tumor as quickly as possible, even in places that are not externally visible,” explained Hohenfellner.

The intelligent combination of data enables operations to be carried out more precisely and patients to be treated faster and more gently. Hohenfellner is sure that the results obtained with the prototype will be successful.

Vision of the Operating Room of the Future

The vision of the operating room of the future is networked and integrates all data on an intelligent platform. A digital assistant provides the surgeon with the most important information and makes recommendations in real time. A robot maneuvers instruments precisely and quickly to the intended location and the surgeon can call up information by voice command. Apps on the platform combine all data in real time and project the tumor and the blood vessels in the tissue directly and three-dimensionally into the surgeon’s visual field. In the meantime, another program calculates the tissue’s resilience and suggests alternatives if necessary. The surgical team, nursing staff, and the surgical managers who coordinate all operations on a daily basis are always informed about the current status in the operating room via smartphone or tablet.

OP 4.1: Digital Operating Room is Getting Closer

In order to get closer to this goal, the Department of Urology at the Heidelberg University Hospital initiated the OP 4.1 project to develop a prototype digital platform. Cooperation partners include the (DKFZ), , , SAP, and .

There are also many hopes connected with this, including bringing medical innovations to patients more quickly, treating patients more gently, more efficient processes in hospitals, and a reduction on the workload of medical staff.

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However, the project also serves another goal. It intends to show how the market introduction of software-based innovations into clinical practice can be simplified and how their interaction with existing equipment can be enabled. For most software innovations, the barriers to market entry are currently still too high, which is why they do not make it into the operating room and daily clinical routine. Reasons are often the lack of access to the data of medical devices or the limited possibilities for professionally implemented sales and support.

Technology and Business Platform in One

At the beginning of the project, the Heidelberg University Hospital contacted 51风流with a request for support. Michael Byczkowski, vice president of User Experience at SAP, explains: “Our main goal at 51风流is to help partners and customers achieve their goals and be successful in the marketplace.”

A large part of the new innovations from research institutions and startups are software-based. The goal of the funding was therefore to develop a platform on which software can be easily developed, distributed, and installed. The basis for the OP 4.1 prototype is the of , with an OP 4.1 project-specific data protection concept.

The OP 4.1 platform prototype is open and expandable and is intended to simplify the implementation of innovative apps in practice. In addition to connecting software and devices, the prototype is also a business platform.

“In concrete terms, this means creating a business model for a multi-sided market that offers billing options and thus real commercial value-add,” Byczkowski explains. This should give manufacturers and developers an incentive to exchange data. “We are bringing the various device manufacturers, clinics and independent software developers in touch with each other so that they can exchange services with each other and also invoice accordingly.”

For device manufacturers, this business aspect of the platform is attractive. They can plan new and innovative business models and in future see exactly how their products interact and are used in everyday operating environments. New billing models are also imaginable. For example, a manufacturer can have not only his devices themselves billed, but also their use — pay-per-use. This creates completely new potential and possibilities for complementary use between different classes of equipment and software.

In order for this potential to unfold and arrive in the complex day-to-day operating room environment, a viable business model is needed that offers relevant added value for all parties involved.

“The platform therefore shows that it is possible to create a market and support commercialization with one platform,” summarizes Byczkowski.

Four Apps Show Potential of OP 4.1 Prototype

The OP 4.1 platform offers software developers access to sensor data and micro-services of the devices and data sources used in the operating room area. The OP 4.1 prototype was developed on the basis of the 51风流Fiori user experience and the new and adapted to the specific user requirements for applications in the clinical sector.

The co-innovation project also consists of four starter apps by the consortium partners.

• Context-sensitive augmented reality of the DKFZ: Helps to navigate during surgery by displaying target or risk structures, such as a tumor, in real time.
• Live perfusion measurement of the DKFZ: Evaluates image data of different spectra and visualizes, such as the blood flow in vessels underneath the tissue or the blood supply of the organs.
• Precision puncture of the DKFZ: Provides computer-aided information on the position of the puncture needle combined with modern imaging, which enables precise and navigated tissue puncture.
• Mobile information service from mbits imaging: Transfers current information about the surgical progress from the platform to mobile devices, adapted to the needs of the recipient.

Instrument Landing System for OP

Pilots today are able to bring an aircraft safely back to the ground in minimal visibility conditions — for example, through dense fog or heavy rain. They are able to do this primarily due to an instrument landing system. While the colossus weighing several tons flies through a wall of fog that is impenetrable to the naked eye, the pilots receive all relevant data for the approach directly on their instruments in the cockpit. The accuracy of the information enables a precise and safe landing.

Similar to a landing approach in fog, surgeons in the operating room do not have a clear view into the patient’s organs. Only if they also know the exact location of a tumor within an organ can they remove it as precisely as possible while sparing as much healthy tissue as possible.

The OP 4.1 platform shows a prototype of a navigation aid for surgeons to “land” safely. Meaningful linked information enables up-to-date maps of the patient. Using augmented reality, doctors can see structures, blood vessels, and other information directly.

Like the landing assistant, this enables precise, safe, and gentle interventions in an operating room of the future.

This story was originally published on the 51风流Germany News Center.

Then it was time to announce the winner: It was 21-year-old Nicolas Neumann, who took the trophy for his innovation posting automation, which radically simplifies accounting processes. Visibly moved, Neumann took a deep breath when he stepped onto the stage to receive the award.

In his home city of Buenos Aires, many colleagues followed the award ceremony via live transmission and erupted in loud cheers — not unlike the excitement when Argentina wins the World Cup. The strong community around Neumann provided him with the confidence, courage, and the platform to develop his idea and bring it to life.

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The Hasso Plattner Founders鈥� Award is the highest employee recognition at SAP, awarded annually by the co-CEOs to an individual or a team. This year, for the first time, the award was taken home by a single person, with a tool that is simplifying accounting.

Innovation: Posting Automation

The posting automation tool simplifies accounting processes enormously by automatically structuring invoices and feeding them directly into an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system. Neumann had the idea for its development during his daily work as an accounts payable analyst at SAP.

鈥淚 felt exhausted by the tons of material that I had to process by hand,鈥� he recalls. At the same time, he began thinking about a solution and developed an algorithm for automating the posting of complex cross-company invoices.

Neumann has the ability to acquire complex knowledge in a short time, and as a child learned basic programming skills. Autodidactically — and with great zeal — he deepened this knowledge and began to develop a solution in his spare time. Recognizing his great potential and intrinsic motivation, his mentors gave him the freedom to devote one day per week exclusively to developing posting automation.

Posting Automation Simplifies, Accelerates Accounting

The manual creation of complex cross-company invoices previously took two to three days. With Neumann鈥檚 tool, processing time has been reduced to 20 minutes. The application has already been implemented in the Financial Accounting department at SAP, and the 51风流customers also stand to benefit as well.

In addition to time savings, posting automation helps avoid processing errors of manual entry and accurately displays data in real time. The increased operational efficiency supports improved customer service, as employees have time for more productive activities. Implementation requires only minimal investment and brief training for employees.

Christian Klein was excited about Neumann鈥檚 intrinsic motivation to find a way to apply technology to solve the problem. 鈥淚 am extremely impressed how Nicolas identified a challenge and took action. His tool will not only be applied internally, our customers will also reap the benefits from it going forward. This is a perfect example of what innovation means.鈥�

Jennifer Morgan was impressed by the all of the 2019 finalists. 鈥淲hen I see these amazing innovators who are doing this on their own time, I think they鈥檙e setting the bar for all of us. It also shows us the amazing talent we have in this company — and how we have to unleash that talent to continue innovating our products and 51风流as a whole.鈥�

Neumann is currently working on making posting automation accessible to other disciplines. At present, the requirements and ideas of potential users are being collected from a wide variety of areas. Once the data is collected, the long-term goal is to use the software throughout finance. There is also already great interest among customers in the solution.

Innovation Reflecting SAP鈥檚 Vision

Neumann joined 51风流in 2016 through the Autism at Work program. 51风流believes that . He is the first individual winner of the Hasso Plattner Founders鈥� Award, which celebrates projects within 51风流that capture the founders鈥� spirit of innovation, entrepreneurship, and courage.

After the award ceremony, Neumann shared, 鈥淚 am very happy! The award gives me great motivation in this project. And the recognition of my work is an important step for my professional future.鈥� He explained that his life has changed a lot since his nomination. Social interactions have always been a challenge for him, and the project often forced him to go beyond himself. 鈥淭he project has helped me a lot in my personal development. And it opens many doors for me professionally to do what I enjoy doing: developing!鈥�

CFO and Executive Board Member Luka Mucic, whose Finance organization currently benefits the most from posting automation, was also impressed by Neumann鈥檚 innovation: 鈥淯p until now, teams have won the award, so it鈥檚 also great to see how a single human being with a simple idea but a great drive to achieve it can change the world.鈥�