Over 50 fatal degenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, type II diabetes and many rare neurodegenerative diseases, are linked to protein misfolding and aggregation. These diseases affect more than half a billion people worldwide and claim 3.6 million lives each year, costing society around USD 3 billion a year. To date, there are no effective treatments that could halt or reverse the progressive degeneration. 

Amporin Pharmaceuticals aims to develop a new class of small molecule drugs that block and eliminate toxic soluble oligomers and pores in cell membranes. These toxic substances accumulate and destroy cells by making holes in the cell membranes, leading to loss of homeostasis and progressive degeneration. The company plans to develop and license the first effective, acute oral disease-modifying treatments for up to six major diseases, including Alzheimer's disease and type II diabetes, with an initial focus on Parkinson's disease and ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis).

Parkinson's alone affects around one million people in the US and around ten million people worldwide. The current global drug market for Parkinson's disease is approximately USD 6 billion per year, with a potential market of USD 15 billion per year for the first effective disease-modifying treatments.

The CHF 150,000 from Venture Kick will enable the company to establish its core activities and create a comprehensive in-vitro data package to validate and demonstrate the unique benefits of its technology to potential investors and licensing partners.

Amporin's founding team includes CEO Dr. Kelvin Stott, CSO Dr. Hervé Schaffhauser and CMO Prof. Daniel Umbricht, who each have more than 20 years of experience in CNS drug development and in leading research and development at several large pharmaceutical companies and biotech start-ups.

"Venture Kick has been instrumental in helping us build a world-class company with a world-changing technology," emphasizes Kelvin Stott, co-founder and CEO of Amporin Pharmaceuticals. "Without Venture Kick, we would not have had the opportunity to turn our potential into reality."

Source: www.venturekick.ch

AI-supported CAQ systems are becoming the key to increasing efficiency, precision and speed in 8D reports. Andreas Dangl, Managing Director of Fabasoft Approve, explains how this innovation makes problem solving and efficient product improvements even easier and what other benefits it offers.  

The 8D process is a team-oriented, product-related approach to solving problems that occur during production within a company or between suppliers and customers. In eight steps, it makes it possible to identify and permanently eliminate the causes of errors. While highly regulated processes require a great deal of expertise from quality managers, the AI-supported 8D method supplements the traditional process by using modern AI technologies, thus ensuring more efficient and precise results. The AI supports the process with suggestions - the final decisions are always made by humans. 

Some possible uses of AI in the 8D process are: 

• Risk assessment: AI analyzes past projects to assess risks and determine the need for an 8D process.
• Team building (D1): Based on previous projects, KI proposes the best qualified experts for the 8D process.
• Problem description (D2): AI automatically classifies defects and creates a detailed problem description.
• Immediate measures (D3): AI provides suggestions for immediate measures to limit the damage.
• Root cause analysis (D4): AI analyzes all production data to identify patterns and causes and suggests suitable analysis procedures.
• Corrective action planning (D5): AI predicts effective troubleshooting measures and supports planning.
• Introduction of corrective measures (D6): AI identifies potential problems and informs the implementation of corrective measures.
• Error prevention (D7): KI proposes preventive measures and supports the adaptation of the Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA).
• Problem-solving process completion (D8): AI derives findings from the measures that can be used for future projects.

The importance of an AI-supported CAQ system 

The 8D method shows its full potential when the associated data has been digitized by a cross-plant, AI-supported CAQ system such as Approve on Fabasoft PROCECO. Such a system digitizes quality-relevant processes along the entire value chain and enables the rapid integration of internal and external stakeholders such as suppliers or customers. This leads to fully automated, location-independent complaint management that fully exploits the benefits of AI and remains traceable at all times.

The key role of AI in quality management 

In today's digital world, quality management requires end-to-end processes that cover all steps from the initial inquiry to the final delivery and strive for seamless integration of all parties involved. An AI-supported computer-aided quality system makes it possible to significantly improve quality-relevant processes in the company, quickly rectify errors and permanently prevent them from recurring. 

Source: www.fabasoft.com

The SoSafe Human Risk Review annually analyzes the current cyber threat landscape in Europe and the security culture in companies. The report is based on responses from more than 1,250 security managers in Western Europe and 3.2 million data points from the SoSafe platform for security awareness and human risk management.

54% of respondents rate the risk of cyberattacks having a significant negative impact on their company as high. Only 44 percent believe that cyberattacks are due to the human factor, while Forrester predicts that by 2024, 90 percent of all data breaches will involve the human factor. In addition, 3 out of 4 respondents (75 percent) state that employee satisfaction plays a central role in the company's cyber security.

"Organizations are facing a challenging cyber threat landscape. Cyber criminals are constantly developing new methods of attack, most of which target our human emotions. The current geopolitical instability creates new attack motives for criminals and state actors and results in a complex situation. The use of sophisticated AI-powered tools requires particular caution, and attacks are increasingly coming in unexpected forms. We must not underestimate the size and scale of these threats and must empower people to counter them. We can do this by understanding employees as the strongest and most versatile component of their security strategies - and helping them to activate them through holistic, behaviour-based approaches," says Dr Niklas Hellemann, psychologist and CEO of SoSafe.

What is behind the increasing cyber threats?

The Human Risk Review 2024 identifies three main causes of increasing vulnerability: new technologies, global instability and interconnectivity.

• 76% of security managers in the DACH region stated that the use of generative AI by cyber criminals is a cause for concern. According to 71% of respondents, deepfake technology in particular poses a risk to companies.

• Increasing global uncertainty is fuelling cybercrime: 73 percent of security officers believe that the geopolitical situation has increased the security risks to their organization.

• The digital world is becoming increasingly interconnected, which means that cyber criminals are increasingly intervening in networked systems such as supply chains. 74% of security experts stated that the security of supply chains has become an important issue for them.

People remain the decisive factor in cyber security

It's not just about AI - cybercriminals are using a mixture of new technologies and proven techniques.

Standard phishing emails, which have been around for decades, are still effective. At the start of a cybersecurity training session, SoSafe found that 37 percent of people click on malicious links, with 38 percent of them continuing to interact with them after that click, for example by filling out forms and sharing personal information. Content related to authority, pressure or fear, as well as trust, has the highest click-through rates. The most successful subject line of simulated phishing emails was "Payroll error"; it plays on triggering pressure and fear and achieved a click-through rate of 62 percent.

The five most common types of attack cited by companies are phishing, malware, DDoS, ransomware and social engineering attacks that go beyond phishing and vishing. Interestingly, attacks such as malware and ransomware also usually (in 80 percent of cases) start with phishing or other types of human manipulation.

Attacks are increasingly occurring through multiple channels. This year, SoSafe has measured QR codes, supply chains or third-party vendors and physical security breaches as growing threat vectors used by cybercriminals. Email remains the most popular channel for phishing attacks, with dominance trending downwards (from 61% to 51% from 2022 to 2023) as diversification takes place.

"Cybercriminals will always focus on what works. It's usually a mix of tried-and-tested and novel methods that they use to try to accelerate, personalize and expand their attacks," says Andrew Rose, Chief Security Officer at SoSafe. He emphasizes the relevance of good awareness training: "Employees need to learn a mix of strong fundamentals that will still be valid as threats evolve. But they also need a kind of 'intuition' for security threats that helps them to recognize new, constantly changing attacks and react accordingly."

DACH companies deprioritize cyber security despite risk awareness

Although strong technical security measures are essential, they alone do not protect against the tactics of modern cyber criminals. As many as 87 percent of security officers see the establishment of a holistic security culture in the company - with the involvement of their employees - as a clear priority.

Nearly all organizations (99 percent of respondents) indicated that senior executives and the board of directors are involved in cybersecurity management and decision-making. At the same time, less than half of respondents in the DACH region (43 percent) stated that the focus on cybersecurity is increasing on the part of senior management. This compares to 73 percent in the UK and 66 percent in Spain. A fifth in the DACH region said that the focus is waning; for 10 percent of respondents in the DACH region, cybersecurity is not yet a company priority at all.

At the same time, more than half of respondents (53 percent) stated that their cybersecurity budget had increased in the last two years, with the majority (47 percent) responding to the current threat situation and 40 percent to specific security incidents or breaches.

Dr. Niklas Hellemann is convinced that a holistic safety culture can only be strengthened by focusing on the company's employees: "We have worked with thousands of companies over several years and put the focus on people. One thing has been confirmed time and again: A behavioral approach to sustainable human risk mitigation and employee empowerment works. In just one year, our customers have increased reporting rates by up to 147%, which is a clear sign of an established proactive safety culture. 

Source: www.sosafe-awareness.com

The employees at Babtec's Friedrichshafen site are primarily involved in the further development of software solutions that support companies in meeting the requirements of integrated management systems and quality management. The Wuppertal-based company has been able to recruit an experienced and well-coordinated team in the city on Lake Constance. Roman Malytskyy, Head of Software Development, is delighted with the new addition: "We have many exciting, but also challenging tasks ahead of us in the further development of our software - it is great for the entire team to receive competent support."

Friedrichshafen is Babtec's sixth German location out of a total of nine offices in Europe. The company also has rooms available there for direct exchange with local companies. In addition, Babtec wants to offer specialists from the region new career prospects in the IT sector. Founded in 1994 in Solingen, the software manufacturer has committed itself to Germany as a business location and its efficiency with the establishment of the new Friedrichshafen office, which is also reflected in the international demand for its products and services: Companies from 34 countries now use software solutions from Babtec to optimize their quality.

Source: www.babtec.de

With a value-added share of around one percent of global GDP and an annual market volume of more than 800 billion US dollars, aviation is a key driver of international trade and tourism, which historically accounts for more than 5 percent of economic output in Austria. Following the pandemic-related slump in air travel, spending on air travel is approaching pre-pandemic levels again, reaching 0.8% of global GDP in 2023 (compared to around 1% before Covid). Demand has recovered significantly, particularly for vacation travel, which rose sharply in 2021 and 2022.

According to the new Kearney aviation study of 35 major airlines, global available seat kilometers (ASK) rose to 95% of the pre-pandemic level in 2023. Low-cost carriers (LCCs) in particular benefited significantly more from this than legacy carriers (such as Lufthansa, Austrian or KLM). "In Europe, the recovery was uneven, with LCCs such as Wizz Air and Ryanair rapidly expanding their ASK after the pandemic. In contrast, traditional airlines such as Lufthansa, Swiss, Austrian and Air France/KLM had and still have greater difficulties in regaining their pre-pandemic status," says Philipp Bensel, Partner at Kearney. In 2023, Swiss Airlines is slightly behind the pre-pandemic production of 2019 with 13 %. The competition, such as Air France/KLM and British Airways, recorded a decline of around 10 %. In contrast, low-cost airlines such as Wizz Air recorded an increase in available seat kilometers (ASK) of over 17 % compared to 2019.

The 5 key factors in the aviation industry

Kearney's aviation experts have identified several key factors that will have a significant impact on the renewed increase in supply in the various regions:

Purchasing power: Business travel is only recovering slowly. New guidelines, which recommend or in some cases even prescribe train travel instead of flights, and changes in business practices such as the increase in online meetings, are having an impact on shorter distances in particular. However, a slowdown is also expected in the tourism segment in the medium term. This and customers' decreasing willingness to pay will ultimately lead to prices falling.

Crew on board: There is currently still a shortage of crew members - especially pilots and flight attendants. Some lost their jobs during the pandemic and do not want to return. According to estimates, there could be a shortage of almost 80,000 pilots in global aviation by 2032. However, training new staff is time-consuming and the availability of training pilots and operating capacity is limited. LCCs, on the other hand, especially in the USA, have recovered better as they have had to make fewer redundancies. As a result, traditional airlines are now actively recruiting pilots from LCCs and offering higher salaries. However, these are likely to rise further due to hard-won wage settlements. For example, the salaries of Austrian's cabin crew will increase by an average of around 20% by 2026.

Airport staff: In 2022 and 2023, many European airports had difficulties coping with traffic peaks, particularly during the summer season and vacation periods, due to a lack of staff. This in turn forced airlines to reduce their flight frequencies in order to cushion potential delays. One of the notable exceptions was Madrid Airport, which was able to maintain its workforce during the pandemic thanks to government support. The rapid increase in operations there therefore went smoothly and also contributed to Iberia's effective recovery.

Maintenance staff: In both the USA and Europe, redundancies, early retirement schemes and reduced training measures during the pandemic have led to shortages of maintenance staff, resulting in increased maintenance backlogs and longer aircraft turnaround times. This is exacerbated by the increasingly ageing fleet of many airlines, particularly in Europe, as the aircraft ordered are not arriving as planned.

Aircraft manufacturer backlog: Reduced orders due to the economic situation and production losses during the Covid pandemic, as well as the rapid growth in demand after it ended, have led to delays in the delivery of new aircraft, which is hampering airlines' capacity to meet rising passenger demand and retire old aircraft. Global aircraft orders rose to an unprecedented 16,000 per year by the end of 2023 - a new high, exceeding the previous peak by over 800 aircraft. In their plans for 2023, manufacturers assumed a regeneration rate of only 80 percent and are now unable to keep up with the rapid pace.

In order to cope with the increasing demand for long-haul flights, airlines are putting aircraft that have already been decommissioned back into service, extending leasing contracts, optimizing their fleets and negotiating delivery deadlines with manufacturers. Lufthansa, for example, has reactivated its previously decommissioned Airbus A380 fleet at considerable expense. However, the new aircraft are still urgently needed by the airlines, as they consume less fuel, thus contributing to climate targets and should boost ticket sales with their more modern equipment. There are some initial rays of hope, as the delivery of the first B787 at Austrian in May shows.

Strategies for the future

How can airlines define a consistent overall strategy in this mixed situation between rising costs due to ramp-up problems and falling revenues, and where can they find innovative solutions that strengthen resilience and enable sustainable growth? Kearney sees the following potential for the industry:

• Exploring alternative strategies for aircraft procurement:

Alternative strategies are needed to overcome the shortage of new aircraft. Economically viable maintenance checks will sustainably extend the service life of existing aircraft. In addition, the balance between agility and the cost of upgrading aircraft is key. In addition, increasing the productivity of the current fleet or strategic agreements with wet lease companies can also be effective approaches to increase availability, but also to reduce costs or make them more flexible.

• Increase in crew productivity:

An increase in crew productivity and the associated cost reduction potential can be achieved through improved data transparency, adapted control processes and the initiation of new tools for process automation and optimization. In addition, unfavorable long-term working arrangements must be identified and renegotiated.

• Introduction of scenario-based planning:

Scenario-based planning helps to better predict and manage future uncertainties and potential bottlenecks. In addition to revenue planning that takes account of changing demand, this ideally also includes fleet planning that takes into account the limited availability of new aircraft and - last but not least - personnel planning that focuses on critical areas such as airline and airport ground staff and is more strongly oriented towards seasonal fluctuations.

All strategies will make a decisive contribution to cushioning cost increases and thus continuing to be able to offer affordable ticket prices for customers.

Source: www.kearney.ch

It is never too late for a project audit: even at the end of a software project, it can be used to evaluate the results. If the worst comes to the worst, improvement measures can then be introduced.

Software implementations are associated with a variety of challenges that can jeopardize the project. Complex requirements, changing business processes, scarce resources and technical difficulties are just some of the hurdles that need to be overcome.

A project can go awry for a variety of reasons, be it inadequate planning, unforeseen risks, lack of resources or ineffective project management. Common problems also include changing requirements, lack of stakeholder support, human factors such as conflict and communication issues, and quality control problems. Facing one or more of these challenges can jeopardize the success of the project, for example because the content objectives are not fully achieved or the project takes longer and costs more than planned.

The advantages of a project audit:

A project audit can serve both as an early warning system to ensure that an ongoing project is still on track and as a lifeline for projects that are already experiencing problems. In both cases, it offers the opportunity to ensure project success, minimize risks and ensure the quality of work, be it in the planning, implementation or recovery of projects.

A well-planned and experience-based project audit results in a range of added values that have an impact on success:

Quality assurance: A project audit evaluates the quality of the results and processes and thus shows whether the project is on track to achieve the defined goals.

Budget and cost control: The audit reviews the budget utilization and cost management of the project. This ensures that the financial investment is managed effectively and that there are no unexpected cost overruns.

Content control: The audit reviews the achievement of objectives in terms of content and thus places budget and cost control in an assessable context.

Methodical control: The audit reviews the use and application of methods and tools.

Risk minimization: The audit identifies and evaluates risks in connection with the project. By addressing risks at an early stage, the audit helps to prevent potential problems that could have a negative impact on the success of the project.

Punctual completion: The audit reviews the project schedule and milestones. This ensures that the project progresses according to the agreed schedule and is completed on time.

Effective communication: The audit evaluates communication within the project team and with stakeholders. Effective communication ensures that those involved are informed about the progress of the project, changes and any problems that arise and are given the opportunity to respond at an early stage.

Employee satisfaction: A well-executed audit leads to improved project performance, fewer interruptions and better overall project management. This contributes to a smoother experience for stakeholders and increases satisfaction with the project outcome.

Transparency: The audit process creates transparency about the status of the project, challenges and opportunities for improvement. This transparency promotes trust between the project team, the various stakeholders and the service providers.

Lessons Learned: The audit process captures and documents lessons learned from the project. This information can be used to improve future projects to ensure that similar problems are avoided, benefiting both the team and the organization.

Clear accountability: The audit holds the project team and stakeholders accountable for their roles and responsibilities. This ensures that everyone involved in the project is committed to the success of the project.

Continuous improvement: The audit identifies areas for improvement in project processes, management practices and results. This enables the organization to improve its capabilities for future projects.

A project audit is not a luxury, but an essential investment for companies that want to put their software projects on the road to success. From clearly defining requirements to mitigating risk and monitoring implementation, a project audit offers a range of benefits that can make the difference between a successful project and a failure.

With the help of a project audit, companies can identify potential stumbling blocks at an early stage, implement effective solutions and ensure that their software projects achieve their goals. Investing in a project audit therefore not only pays off in terms of time and cost savings, but also through sustainable business success and a stronger competitive position.

It is also crucial for companies that software projects are not only completed, but also successfully implemented. A project audit serves as a key tool to ensure that companies stay on track and achieve their goals safely.

Source: www.trovarit.com

In the independent study "Private/Hybrid Cloud - Data Center Services 2024", the market research company ISG examined the Swiss data center market. All service providers were assessed in terms of their competitiveness and the attractiveness of their portfolio in a multi-stage survey. Green clearly prevailed over all other providers and achieved the top position for data center services for the fifth time in a row.

Outstanding customer orientation

In this year's study, Green scored points for its customer focus, which gave it a further edge over the other providers. The decisive factors were the speed and quality of implementation of customer projects, the degree of innovation of services and operational excellence. "The results of the study confirm that we impress with innovation and quality and are rated highly thanks to our customer focus," explains Roger Süess, CEO of Green.

Forward-looking in an agile market

The authors of the study also praised Green's continuous development. "Green is proactively creating additional capacity, has perfected its design in terms of energy efficiency, is excellently positioned in the market and is investing in new services, for example in the area of connectivity," explains Wolfgang Heinhaus, lead author of the study at ISG. The results show that Green is continuously delivering top performance.

Green currently has four locations and will continue to expand its capacities. Two new high-performance data centers will be available as early as 2026.

Source: www.green.ch

At an average of over 2 million euros (2.2 million US dollars), healthcare companies had to dig much deeper into their pockets in 2023 to become operational again. In 2021, 1.1 million euros (1.27 million US dollars) was still sufficient. This means that recovery costs have almost doubled in the space of two years. This shows that attacks are increasingly being carried out "professionally" and that facilities are not sufficiently prepared. It is therefore only a matter of time before a cyber attack paralyzes a healthcare facility and, in addition to the potential inability to operate, also results in immensely high costs. The worst could be prevented with just these six tips.

1. Risk assessment and management

A thorough risk assessment can help identify vulnerabilities in healthcare IT systems. The assessment must consider all potential points of attack for ransomware, including employee devices, monitoring devices, remote access systems and third-party services.

2. Employee training and awareness programs

The Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report (DBIR) found that 68 percent of data breaches involved human error, including social engineering. Time and time again, experts warn that hackers use the stolen identities of employees to launch attacks on hospital IT departments. Awareness programs can help to sensitize employees.

3. Comprehensive plans for data backup and disaster recovery

Disaster preparedness is essential for recovering from a ransomware attack or cyberattack. Guides with a "step-by-step guide to creating a disaster recovery plan" can help prepare for the worst-case scenario.

4. Improve network security (incl. IoT cybersecurity)

Advanced network protection measures are more important than ever. The NIST Cybersecurity Framework provides quick-start guides, resources and templates to help organizations implement effective solutions. These should include both intrusion detection systems (IDS) and endpoint protection platforms that can detect and respond to threats in real time.

5. Planning and implementation of worst-case scenarios

It is advisable to develop a response plan for critical incidents that is specifically tailored to the healthcare sector. This plan must include clear roles, responsibilities, response procedures and communication strategies.

6. Use of a standardized data backup platform

As data can be spread across different facilities, storage media and applications, a unified backup solution can mitigate the impact of a cyberattack. Using solutions that increase IT resilience by simplifying processes across all storage platforms - local, virtual or in the cloud - are the most effective.

Basically, it is better to start than to wait until everything is perfect. Above all, however, it is important to raise awareness among employees, because unfortunately their careless handling of digital information and data is one of the most common reasons why hackers achieve their goals. 

Source: www.arcserve.com

Silvio Hutterli elected as new member of the Board of Directors and Chairman of the Audit Committee

Dr. Silvio Hutterli has been a partner at the law firm schochauer AG since 2019. He has an impressive career in various areas and functions in the financial sector. In the course of these many years of activity, Dr. Silvio Hutterli has acquired proven knowledge in risk management, finance as well as in the legal-regulatory environment in the financial sector, compliance and corporate governance. With his wealth of experience, he ideally supports the strategic orientation of Bank Cler. 

Resignation of Cornelia Gehrig from the Board of Directors

Cornelia Gehrig stepped down from the Board of Directors at the end of June 2024. She would like to focus primarily on international industrial mandates. Cornelia Gehrig has been a member of the Board of Directors since March 2021. She was also Chair of the Audit Committee and a member of the Risk Committee. Bank Cler would like to thank Cornelia Gehrig for her extremely valuable contribution to the Bank's top management body. 

Maya Salzmann and Prof. Dr. Dr. Christian Wunderlin are not standing for re-election

Maya Salzmann and Prof. Dr. Dr. Christian Wunderlin will not be standing for re-election to the Board of Directors at the next Annual General Meeting in 2025. Maya Salzmann has been a member of the Board of Directors and a member of the Audit Committee since June 2019. Prof. Dr. Dr. Christian Wunderlin has been a member of the Board of Directors since April 2015 and Chairman of the Risk Committee since April 2017. He is stepping down after 10 years in office.

Source: www.cler.ch

In contrast to conventional lithium-ion batteries, which are limited by slow charging times and temperature sensitivity, BTRY uses an innovative solid-state technology. This is based on stacking thin-film cells using a semiconductor manufacturing process, which is a highly precise and solvent-free process. The resulting batteries not only offer fast charging times and high reliability at extreme temperatures, but also significantly improve economic efficiency and environmental compatibility.

BTRY initially plans to enter the IoT market, where demand for batteries for remote sensors is growing strongly, driven by Industry 4.0 technologies. This market is expected to reach a volume of USD 240 million by 2030. In the long term, the company also plans to enter the high-end medical and consumer electronics market, which is expected to exceed a volume of USD 2 billion by 2030.

The investment of 150,000 Swiss francs by Venture Kick will be used to demonstrate scalability through production on pilot lines, further improve the product offering and accelerate the market launch. This will strengthen the basis for a planned seed financing round in the third quarter of 2025.

CEO Dr. Moritz Futscher and CTO Dr. Abdessalem Aribia founded BTRY together with Dr. Yaroslav Romanyuk as scientific advisor in 2023 as a spin-off of Empa and ETH Zurich.

"Venture Kick has been with us from the very beginning," says Moritz Futscher, CEO of BTRY. "This support has been crucial for our growth and has helped us to grow from a scientific project to a successful company. We look forward to continuing this collaboration."

Source: www.venturekick.ch / www.btry.ch

"System downtimes due to crashes between tools, workpieces and other machine tool components can quickly cost several thousand euros," says Rotoclear Managing Director Florian Friedrich. "But such a crash does not always cause immediate damage: so-called soft collisions lead to long-term inaccuracies during machining and thus reduce the quality of the finished workpieces." Tool wear also increases, which in turn leads to more frequent maintenance intervals and higher maintenance costs. Many companies have already specialized in reducing these sources of error and optimizing the processes within CNC machines, for example by equipping the system with complex sensor technology and equipping the spindle with special protection systems.

"However, these approaches are complex, expensive and ignore a bigger problem," explains Friedrich. "Because the inside of many machine tools such as machining centers is a kind of black box." Flying metal chips not only obstruct the view of the tool and workpiece. They also become dangerous projectiles that can cause considerable damage inside the machine. Splashing coolants and lubricants also cloud conventional machine windows and prevent a clear view of the processes inside the machine. Many companies therefore equip the cabins of their CNC machines with special rotating viewing windows. This functional principle, which originally comes from the shipping industry, enables a view from the outside of the processes taking place inside. However, the quality of the optical error analysis depends largely on the competence and experience of the machine operator and can only be carried out in real time.

Camera system can be mounted on the moving headstock for the first time

To remedy this and generate new potential for process optimization, Rotoclear has developed a special camera system that can withstand the harsh conditions inside CNC machines while delivering sharp images up to a resolution of 4K. "The biggest challenge here is the constant splashing around of cooling lubricant and oil, which destroys conventional recording devices and even supposedly robust action cameras within a few days to hours," explains Friedrich. The actual special feature is therefore not so much the robust design, which offers little surface area for attack and hardly any room for the formation of chip nests, but above all the rapidly rotating viewing window made of shatterproof glass, which is located in front of the lens. The manufacturer is thus making use of an established concept: The centrifugal force created by the rotation throws drops as well as solid foreign bodies outwards, so that the lens remains permanently free and clean.

With up to two camera heads per control unit, several viewing angles can be recorded simultaneously in picture-in-picture mode: in Top View from the ceiling, in Side View from the wall and even from the perspective of the tool, the so-called Tool View. This is because the Rotoclear C2 camera head can be mounted directly on the headstock in the immediate vicinity of the tool. For this purpose, its design has been specially adapted to the accelerations that occur there, which generate gyroscopic forces in conjunction with the rotating disk. It also has an integrated position sensor that compensates for the movements on the tool head. "This gives machine operators - and anyone else who is interested - the opportunity to observe machining processes in large booths or deep cavities in the workpiece at close range," adds Friedrich.

High-resolution image data enables detailed fault analysis

The digital image data from the tool cabin is transmitted to the control unit with a resolution of up to 4K at 30 fps. From there, it can be streamed live via HDMI, TCP/IP or RSTP and stored in a clearly arranged media gallery. Access is possible from any location via the Internet protocol, so that even employees working from home can take a critical look at the machine interior and contribute directly to optimizing the machining processes if required. "If you want to improve the processes within your own CNC systems, you should first make sure that you have the necessary visual information as a basis for error analysis," summarizes Friedrich. "The Rotoclear C2 provides this valuable data reliably, in high resolution and even from completely new perspectives thanks to its mounting on the tool spindle."

Source: www.rotoclear.com

The balanced consideration of social, ecological and economic factors in decision-making processes has been anchored in APG|SGA's corporate mission statement for decades. The "EcoEntreprise Sustainable Development - Social Responsibility" certificate makes it clear to the public and, in particular, to players in the partner and advertising market that the certified APG|SGA operates a comprehensive sustainability and risk management system. The national EcoEntreprise label has been the Swiss reference certification in the area of sustainable development and social responsibility since 2013. The program is based on a comprehensive assessment checklist and certification, which is awarded as part of an independent audit. Various criteria such as environmental awareness, social solidarity and community relations as well as economic performance are taken into account.

Markus Ehrle, CEO of APG|SGA, says: "We are proud that we were able to achieve EcoEntreprise certification at the first attempt with a very good result. This confirms that APG|SGA has been operating a results-oriented sustainability management system for years and is strongly committed to continuous improvement."

Andres Trautmann, Head of Sustainability at APG|SGA, explains: "The certification is very valuable for APG|SGA. For this purpose, we examined our entire sustainability strategy and its implementation in everyday life in all areas of the company in detail with an interdisciplinary working group. This process confirmed that we are operating at a very high level. At the same time, we were able to identify a number of opportunities for improvement, some of which have already been introduced."

Source: www.apgsga.ch