“We’ll also be cooperating closely in the future.” – Interview

Dr. Kerscher, in July 2018 you put Fraunhofer EZRT’s RoboCT system into operation at the Research and Innovation Centre (FIZ) in Munich, at the interface between development and production. How exactly are you benefiting from RoboCT?

As of now, this new technology enables us to make X-ray and CT scans from the sections of a complete car body or even of a whole vehicle. This means we can carry out scans at selected joints and junctures, for example, and analyze them in detail. Previously, we had to dismantle the car body into individual components in order to expose the relevant sections for a stationary CT. The advantage of the nondestructive testing is the comparatively high speed with which we can scan our vehicles. On top of this, it lets us keep the car body and subsequently use it for further tests and investigations. Furthermore, the system allows us to respond flexibly to issues in the various development phases of a vehicle and to use nondestructive testing for individual tests. When investigating vehicle structures as part of crash testing, we’re now also able to X-ray individual sections in detail. Currently we’re exploring application of the technology in further areas of vehicle development and production.

What does the cooperation between the BMW Group and Fraunhofer EZRT look like at an everyday level?

In the area of computed tomography, we’ve built up a stable and efficient working collaboration with Fraunhofer EZRT over the past few years. We’ll also be cooperating closely in the future, and among other goals we’ll be pushing forward with the further development of the technology in relation to the automation of processes.

Dr. Kerscher, thank you very much for your time.