Vertical factories are considered a key to space-efficient and sustainable production concepts. Together with Fraunhofer Austria, visTable® shows how to master complex planning through systematic analysis, evaluation, and strategic validation.
Fraunhofer Austria supports industrial companies in developing future-ready factory concepts. Across numerous projects, a clear trend has emerged: production space is becoming more limited, while the complexity of sustainability targets and factory layouts is increasing. As a result, the vertical factory is moving into focus as a viable solution. This is exactly where the collaboration with visTable® comes into play.
visTable® is the established tool at Fraunhofer Austria for intuitive layout planning and material flow modeling. ‘It facilitates the rapid creation and comparison of variants, providing a solid basis for early planning decisions,’ explains Nikolaus Kremslehner, Project Manager for Factory Planning at Fraunhofer Austria. ‘We deliberately leverage these advantages as a starting point for further in-depth analysis.’
Browser-based extension
Based on this foundation, we developed the Factory Beaver – a browser-based extension tool that integrates directly with layouts created in visTable®. The name says it all: much like its industrious namesake, the Factory Beaver intelligently connects existing structures, thinks across multiple levels, and creates robust, sustainable manufacturing solutions.
“The Factory Beaver enables factory variants to be created and compared quickly, providing reliable foundations for early planning decisions,” explains Nikolaus Kremslehner, Project Manager for Factory Planning at Fraunhofer Austria.
Automatically Visualize Vertical Material Flows across Multiple Levels
The Factory Beaver deliberately extends classic layout planning where conventional tools reach their limits. Vertical material flows across multiple levels are calculated and visualized automatically. Simultaneously, a wide range of additional KPIs is evaluated – spanning adaptability to shifting ecological and social impact factors, as well as construction and conversion costs. The result is a holistic assessment that goes far beyond mere material flow costs.
Users Are Enabled to Enrich Layouts with Custom Data
A significant added value lies in the modular and flexible approach: users are enabled to independently enrich their layouts with custom data and define the KPIs most relevant to their strategic goals. At the touch of a button, variants are compared, and strengths and weaknesses are made transparent – ideal for interactive workshops and substantiated decision-making.
From a visTable® perspective, this project clearly demonstrates how our software serves as a robust foundation for innovative extensions. In synergy with Fraunhofer Austria’s ‘Factory Beaver,’ visTable® evolves into a central cornerstone for the planning and evaluation of modern, sustainable, and vertical factories.
Would you like to find out what a vertical factory could look like for your production? Feel free to get in touch with our partner:
Dipl.-Ing. Nikolaus Kremslehner
Fraunhofer Austria Research GmbH
Theresianumgasse 7
1040 Wien, Österreich
Mobil +43 676 888 61 685
