Fraunhofer Cluster of Excellence Cognitive Internet Technologies CCITIDS@BKM: Supply-chain transparency in the automobile industry through collaborative data use
In the case of car manufacturers, bottlenecks occurring at a supplier or pre-supplier can have severe planning and ultimately economic consequences. However, suppliers are unwilling to share information about a looming capacity bottleneck with the manufacturer as they fear disadvantages in prices negotiations, for example. The Fraunhofer CCIT project IDS@BKM eliminates existing constraints in demand and capacity management (DCM) to the mutual benefit of both parties.
IDS@BKM creates a trusting environment in which information worthy of protection can be confidently exchanged. This ensures that the information transmitted is not misused by the recipient at any time, or that legal action can be taken in the case of infringement. These mechanisms for building up trust are a central basic prerequisite for companies to declare that they are willing to divulge sensitive information. At any time, the user can determine which data will be shared and with which usage conditions, and can be confident that the usage conditions will be observed.
Interface based on the International Data Spaces architecture
In the project IDS@BKM, the Fraunhofer CCIT, under the leadership of the Fraunhofer Institute for Software and Systems Engineering ISST and in close cooperation with project partners at Volkswagen AG and thyssenkrupp Presta Ilsenburg GmbH, is developing the entire software-based infrastructure – from design right through to implementation. For this, the partners use the reference architecture of International Data Spaces (IDS). With this architecture, a prototype interface is created between operational systems at both companies that guarantees data exchange while preserving data sovereignty.
This permits improved control of the entire value chain as an increased degree of transparency is created for the legally independent companies involved. The carmaker is informed early on about potential bottlenecks and the supplier about demand and consumption. Cooperative collaboration forms the cornerstone of modern supply chain management.