EADS opens Innovation@Work technology laboratory

The European aerospace giant EADS has formally opened a high technology demonstration laboratory at its Ottobrunn, Germany facility, providing a showcase for the company’s research and development in areas of security, mobility, the environment, and maintenance.

The laboratory was unveiled by Jean Botti, Chief Technical Officer of EADS, in the presence of German Minister of State Siegfried Schneider, head of the Bavarian State Chancellery.

Innovation@Work contains permanent exhibitions as well as displays that will regularly change. It features a demonstration laboratory where scientists, customers, government officials, company employees and other visitors will be informed about the latest developments from EADS.

“Setting up this demonstration laboratory underlines the importance of Ottobrunn as a research location for Bavaria, and highlights its importance within EADS Innovation Works – which is our company’s global research and technology network,” Botti said.

“The committed men and women in research, the long and growing tradition of innovation from Ottobrunn and the numerous contacts with scientific institutions in the region and throughout the world are a significant asset for us.”

“The new EADS demonstration laboratory stands for research and innovation at the Ottobrunn site, underscoring the significance of Bavaria as a leading location of the aerospace industry in Germany,” said Minister of State Siegfried Schneider.

Technologies currently displayed in the demonstration laboratory include ceramic nozzles for space industry propulsion systems; rugged carbon fibre components for aircraft structures; and a typical future jetliner cabin with innovative applications such as infrared communications links for in-flight entertainment systems that reduce the amount of wiring required on aircraft.

Also shown is a mobile biosensor from EADS Innovation Works, which is capable of identifying hazardous substances in drinking water within minutes. This is a significant improvement over other systems that take up to two days for water samples to be analysed in a laboratory.

Another research topic covered is EADS’ focus on eco-friendly fuel sources for aviation, which includes extracting fuel from microalgae that need only sunlight, water and CO2 to reproduce rapidly generating at least 30 times more plant matter than oilseed rape, for example.

EADS Innovation Works is the EADS Group’s global research and technology network. In addition to primary locations at Munich/Ottobrunn and Paris/Suresnes, it also has branches in Getafe, Spain; Newport, UK; Toulouse and Nantes, France; Hamburg, Germany; Singapore; Bangalore, India and Moscow, Russia. Altogether, the EADS Innovation Works international network employs more than 600 people.