DigitalSOW

28.11.2023 | Digital test field presented at the 6. meeting of the BinSmart supporting research group

On 28 November 2023, the BinSmart support research group met for the sixth time in Berlin. The joint event organised by the DST - Development Centre for Ship Technology, the Federation of German Inland Ports and the Association for European Inland Navigation and Waterways covered a wide range of topics, from current automation projects and demonstrators to projects for the decarbonisation of propulsion systems. Jürgen Alberding, Managing Director of Alberding GmbH, reported on current developments in the digital test field for automated and autonomous inland navigation on the Spree-Oder waterway (SOW). He presented the current results and challenges of the DigitalSOW research project and gave an outlook on how the vision of efficient city logistics via the waterway could be pursued even after the end of the project period. You can find the presentation here.

28.10.2023 | Expert exchanges from Berlin to Denver

Regional or international - in September and October 2023, the project partners of DigitalSOW and AutonomSOW II used a number of conference formats to present the progress of both research projects together and discuss it with experts. For example, Jürgen Alberding, Managing Director of Alberding GmbH, provided information about the projects and their connection with other waterway projects on the SOW at a BMDV event at BEHALA on September 2 in Berlin and at the 27th International Oder/Havel Colloquium on September 13 in Fürstenwalde. He and Lukas Hösch from the DLR's Institute of Communications and Navigation in Neustrelitz also presented key project results in specialist presentations at the Autonomous Inland & Short Sea Shipping Conference (AISS) on September 5 and 6 in Duisburg. Lukas Hösch and Stefan Gewies (also from the DLR's Institute of Communications and Navigation) also provided insights into the current state of research at the ION GNSS+ from September 11 to 15 in Denver/USA and at the IEEE ITSC from September 24 to 28 in Bilbao/Spain. In addition, Alberding GmbH and the Institute for Automation Technology at the University of Rostock presented the projects at the specialist conference "New Technologies and Test Fields for Waterways and Ports" on October 5 and 6 in Karlsruhe.

06.07.2023 | Project presentation at the UBA Freight Transport Colloquium

The Federal Environment Agency (UBA) is currently developing a vision for environmentally friendly freight transport and is developing concrete proposals for measures and instruments to implement it. In order to gain new perspectives on the future design of transport and to engage in discussion with experts, it regularly organizes freight transport colloquia . On 6 July 2023, Jürgen Alberding, consortium leader of DigitalSOW and managing director of Alberding GmbH, was a guest at the online colloquium. In his presentation, he reported on the current status and the biggest challenges in setting up the digital test field on the Spree-Oder-Waterway. "In order to be able to consider the requirements and needs of future users in the best possible way, we are, for example, looking for interested test field partners for transports on the waterway," Jürgen Alberding advertised. The presentation can be found here.

17.05.2023 | Successful presentation at transport logistic 2023

From 9 to 12 May 2023, the international logistics industry met at the transport logistic in Munich. Alberding GmbH was also there and, in its function as consortium leader, presented the research projects AutonomSOW II and DigitalSOW in live demonstrations at the trade fair booth as well as in exciting presentations at the joint booth of the Berlin-Brandenburg capital region and at the BÖB joint booth. The digitization projects on the Spree-Oder-Waterway met with lively interest and offered numerous points of contact for intensive professional exchange and many new contacts.

21.04.2023 | Visit us at transport logistic in Munich!

In its function as consortium leader, Alberding GmbH will present the research projects AutonomSOW II and DigitalSOW from 9 to 12 May 2023 at transport logistic - the world's leading trade fair for logistics, mobility, IT and supply chain management - at the exhibition centre in Munich. Visit us at the joint booth of the Berlin-Brandenburg capital region in hall B4, booth 317/418! Find out about our projects in exciting presentations as well:

„Information platform for connected transport processes on the waterway“
9 May 2023 | 2:15 to 2:45 pm | Joint booth of the Federal Association of Public Inland Ports | hall B3, booth 225/326
Detailed information: BÖB event programme

„Digitalisation projects on the Spree-Oder-Waterway (SOW)“
10 May 2023 | 10.00 bis 11.15 am | Berlin-Brandenburg joint booth | Series of expert presentations followed by a discussion on the topic of "Networked test fields for inland navigation in the capital region" | hall B4, booth 317/418
Detailed information: Webseite Cluster Transport, Mobility, Logistics

„Information platform for connected transport processes on the waterway“
11 May 2023 | 2:15 to 2:45 pm | Joint booth of the Federal Association of Public Inland Ports | hall B3, booth 225/326
Detailed information: BÖB event programme

We look forward to the exchange and exciting discussions with you!

If you are interested, we will be happy to send you a voucher. Send us an email with the subject transport logistic voucher to info@alberding.eu or send a request directly via our contact form.

All information about transport logistic 2023 can be found at here.

31.03.2023 | Expert exchange in Karlsruhe and Hamburg

The project consortium of DigitalSOW regularly uses the opportunity for expert exchange with other research projects. In the first quarter of 2023, project manager Jürgen Alberding provided information on the project's status quo at the BAW colloquium "Digitalization in Inland Navigation - Challenges and Actual Developments" on March 1 in Karlsruhe and at the BinSmart meeting of the accompanying research group "The Future of Inland Navigation - Digitally and Logistically Integrated" on March 22 in Hamburg, among other events.

30.11.2022 | Survey to city logistics operators in Berlin-Brandenburg launched

Environmentally friendly transport of goods without traffic jams using small autonomously operating ship units on the waterways of the capital region - DigitalSOW wants to make it possible. For successful implementation of the project, interested city logistics companies are invited to participate. The DigitalSOW project team has developed a questionnaire in order to get a realistic picture of the status quo of city logistics in the metropolitan region of Berlin, to learn more about the needs of goods transport on the second-to-last mile and to acquire potential users.

Are you a city logistics expert and interested in advancing environmentally friendly transport? We look forward to your participation!
Until 31 December 2022 click here for the survey: https://survey.questionstar.com/d4b9beda

30.09.2022 | Successful trade fair appearance at the S.T.L. Kalkar

On 27 & 28 September 2022, the inland navigation branch met at the German-Dutch trade fair Shipping-Technics-Logistics-Kalkar. Alberding GmbH was on board with its own stand and presented the status quo of the research projects DigitalSOW and AutonomSOW II in its function as consortium leader. Intensive discussions with various industry players showed great interest in the research projects in the Berlin metropolitan region and generated a great benefit in regard to information for the further progress of the projects. The fair also offered the opportunity to exchange ideas with similarly positioned projects about the current challenges in inland navigation. It became clear that the majority of branch representatives are interested in the trend towards digitalisation, but that there are also sceptical voices with regard to the benefits.

29.09.2022 | Digital test field presented at LNBB autumn event

On 29 September 2022, the autumn event of the Berlin-Brandenburg Logistics Network took place at the HavelPort in Wustermark. In accordance with the event's focus on inland waterways this year, Tim Holzki, project engineer at Alberding GmbH, presented the digital test field Spree-Oder-Waterway. Afterwards, questions about the potential of waterway use for city logistics, possibilities of connecting with digital test fields in ports and the future of autonomous inland navigation were discussed.

01.09.2022 | DigitalSOW auf Shipping Technics Logistics in Kalkar

In its function as consortium leader, Alberding GmbH will present the BMDV-funded research projects DigitalSOW and AutonomSOW II at the German-Dutch trade fair Shipping-Technics-Logistics-Kalkar on 27 & 28 September 2022. While AutonomSOW II aims at plannable, interconnected transport operations on inland waterways, DigitalSOW is heading to automated, networked driving. Get all information about the current project status and visit us at our trade fair stand in hall D, booth 160! We are looking forward to a personal exchange with you.

When: 27 - 28 September 2022

Entry is free of charge!

You can find all information about the fair here.

29.06.2022 | Project presentation at RIS Week Berlin

On the the 29th of June 2022, around 90 European RIS experts were informed about local research projects on the digitalisation of the waterway in Berlin's Westhafen. Alberding GmbH also took the opportunity to present the DigitalSOW research project and its vision of automated and connected shipping on the Spree-Oder-Waterway (SOW). In addition, the participants had the opportunity to visit the A-SWARM prototype and the push boat ELEKTRA. The feedback from the participants was consistently positive. The exchange of information made it clear that the digitisation projects of the waterway in Germany, together with those in Belgium and the Netherlands, are at a high level.

28.06.2022 | DTW networking event in Berlin

On 28.06.2022, the federal ministry for digital and transport (BMDV) invited interested parties from research, business and politics to a networking event at the Allianz Forum in Berlin to provide insights into the research projects and preliminary results of the first funding guideline Digital Test Fields Waterways (DTW I). DigitalSOW was one of five selected projects that presented themselves on this day. Consortium leader Jürgen Alberding introduced the project and informed about the status quo of the project activities. In addition, the presentation focused on the biggest challenges and next steps. In 100-second pitches, other relevant digitisation projects in inland navigation were also presented, including AutonomSOW II, as well as the first funding decisions for DTW II were awarded by Federal Minister Dr Wissing. A small exhibition stand and the subsequent evening in the beer garden provided an opportunity for personal exchange and networking.

17.05.2022 | DigitalSOW at 7th Maritime 4.0 conference in Hamburg

Around 80 experts and decision-makers from the maritime industry met in Hamburg on 17 May 2022 to exchange views on current topics and developments in digitalisation. One focus was on the areas of autonomous shipping and digital test fields. Jürgen Alberding, Managing Director of Alberding GmbH and consortium leader of DigitalSOW, informed the audience about the vision, topics and challenges of the current research project in his technical presentation "Autonomous driving in digital test fields using the example of the Spree-Oder-Waterway". In the subsequent panel discussion, he emphasised that research projects should not only aim at trials of automated driving, manoeuvring and handling. Rather, it is important to integrate automated and networked driving into economically viable transport processes. To achieve this, a legally secure framework must be created and more money must be invested. A review of the event including the presentations can be found here.

17.02.2022 | DigitalSOW in Fraunhofer Transport Digital Session

On 17th February 2022, experts from the Federal association of public inland ports (Bundesverband Öffentlicher Binnenhäfen e. V. - BÖB), the Port of Duisburg and Fraunhofer institutes discussed digitalisation options for inland ports. The Fraunhofer Transport Alliance had invited the participants to the online event. In his keynote speech, BÖB managing director Marcel Lohbeck once again emphasised the necessity of digitalisation in inland ports and presented current research projects that are already working on innovative solutions. Among them were the current joint projects DigitalSOW and AutonomSOW II, which aim to make transport processes on waterways even more effective. You can find out more about the Fraunhofer Transport Alliance and the Fraunhofer Transport Digital Session "Digitalisation options for inland ports" on 17.02.2022 here.

24.11.2021 | DigitalSOW in the expert talk "Real labs for the new mobility"

Real laboratories and test fields are becoming increasingly important for modern mobility solutions. At the 12th "Mobility management of tomorrow" conference of the Berlin-Brandenburg Transport, Mobility and Logistics Cluster, the DLR Institute of Transportation Systems and Berlin Partner for Business and Technology on 24 November 2021, representatives from business, science and administration presented successful regional approaches and then discussed challenges that still need to be overcome. Jürgen Alberding, managing director of Alberding GmbH, reported on the DigitalSOW research project and the joint goal of the partners to establish and operate a digital test field for automated and connected shipping on the Spree-Oder-Waterway.

18.11.2021 | DigitalSOW at DigiShip of GEOkomm

Jürgen Alberding, managing director of Alberding GmbH and consortium leader of DigitalSOW, presented the project on 18th November 2021 in an online event of the cooperation network DigiShip of GEOkomm. DigiShip has set itself the task of promoting digital technologies for inland navigation and strengthening network stability in the entire waterway system.

13.10.2021 | DigitalSOW in the 1st coordination workshop

As part of the BMVI funding guideline "Investments for the development of digital test fields on federal waterways", a first coordination workshop took place on 13th October 2021. The aim of the online event was to get to know the different projects and project partners as well as to identify synergies and make them usable. As the second largest project in this funding call, DigitalSOW makes an important contribution to testing new transport concepts and technologies in the field of automated or autonomous inland navigation. Jürgen Alberding, managing director of Alberding GmbH and consortium leader of the research project, presented the various research topics and their challenges to the participants. You can find the presentation here.

11.10.2021 | DigitalSOW at ITS World Congress 2021

Under the motto "Experience Future Mobility Now", experts from the mobility, logistics and IT sectors as well as representatives from politics and associations met at the ITS World Congress in Hamburg from 11th to 15th October 2021. 400 exhibitors from all over the world presented ideas and solutions for intelligent traffic and transport systems. Over 13,000 guests came to the world's largest industry meeting - more participants than ever before in the 35-year history of the ITS World Congress. Alberding GmbH was also present as an exhibitor. Managing director Jürgen Alberding, in his function as consortium leader, presented the DigitalSOW research project, which was launched in the summer, at the Berlin-Brandenburg federal state joint stand and in the parallel supporting programme on the Germany stage. You can find the presentation here.

28.09.2021 | More than 90 participants at the kick-off event

With a joint kick-off event on the 28th of September 2021 at the Aerospace Centre in Wildau, the DigitalSOW research project was officially launched. More than 90 participants had the opportunity to get a compact overview of the motivation and goals of the new research project as well as the synergies with other research projects on the Spree-Oder-Waterway on site and via the livestream.

You can find the detailed press release here.

The YouTube video can be accessed here.

07.09.2021 | Invitation to the kick-off event

The project partners are preparing an official kick-off event for the start of the project. On the 28th of September 2021, you will have the opportunity to get a compact overview of the motivation and goals of the new research project as well as the synergies with other research projects on the Spree-Oder-Waterway.

Join us live on site or participate online.

Date: 28.09.2021 from 10:00 a.m. to approx. 1:30 p.m.
Place: Aerospace centre ZLR III, hall, Schmiedestraße 2B, 15745 Wildau

You can find the programme here.

20.08.2021 | 4.2 million euros of federal funding received

In the summer of 2021, six partners from industry and science received the funding notification from the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure for the construction and operation of a digital test field on the Spree-Oder-Waterway (SOW). Over the next two years, concepts, algorithms and technologies for automated and connected driving will be investigated, developed and tested in the "DigitalSOW" project. The full press release on the project launch can be found here.

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