Virtual lab 4 eco-design

Platform development; building a digital platform

WP1 focuses on developing a flexible digital platform as the core of a collaborative research infrastructure. The platform hosts diverse software packages and research tools and supports university staff, PhD candidates, postdocs and external partners. It enables seamless collaboration, knowledge exchange, and joint research projects, while providing efficient software management and shared use of academic licenses, addressing legal and licensing aspects to ensure broad usability across the research ecosystem.

WP2 & WP3 – Integrating software for a fully integrated digital platform

WP2 focuses on the installation, integration, and validation of complex commercial software from providers such as Hexagon, MSC, Siemens, and Dassault, combined with RUG-developed tools. The goal is to create a hybrid digital environment supporting both academic innovation and industrial applications, including interoperability via the VMAP standard. WP3 builds on this by integrating and calibrating open-source software such as the Max Planck DAMASK code, establishing a fully integrated workflow for multi-scale modeling, Digital Twins, and LCA. Together, WP2 and WP3 provide a stable, efficient digital infrastructure for simulation, modeling, and sustainable research.

WP4 Demonstrators with external partners for digitalization/sustainability

WP4 focuses on developing demonstrators in close collaboration with external partners. This includes a Digital Twin for multi-stage forming process simulations, a demonstrator for Digital Product Passports (DPPs), and the integration of LCA in the design and production cycle. External partners provide practical cases, support validation and optimization, and contribute to developing new demonstrators and use cases. WP4 translates the digital infrastructure into concrete applications, demonstrates how digitalization and sustainability combine, and strengthens collaboration between academia and industry.