RIB Software : Future-oriented research project of RIB SE, Stuttgart. Digital city planning in the industry 4.0 era

13.04.2017 - Corporate News

Stuttgart, 13 April 2017. The city of Heidelberg and RIB SE, Stuttgart with its 100%-subsidiary iTWOcity AG, signed a co-operation agreement on 12 April 2017 in a technology partnership for the world's first IT research project for the completely virtual planning of a whole district. The aim is to model the results of the planning phase of the International Building Exhibition (IBA) and the urban guidelines in the innovative 5D BIM End to End software technology iTWO 4.0 across the entire process. Based on the experiences of our customers with individual construction projects, we expect advantages of at least 30%, based on the total financing volume for the entire project.

Model-based planning and building is aimed at reducing unnecessary expenses and focussing on the diverse design-models of the city planners and their virtual evaluation to the elaboration of the needs of the future inhabitants of this district. Thanks to the close cooperation between RIB iTWOcity AG, the management team of the International Building Exhibition around Prof. Michael Braum and the innovative and sustained orientation of the City of Heidelberg, this demonstration project of RIB Software SE will be a significant impetus for expanding the cloud-based iTWO 4.0 technology-modules such as smart city functions, energy and material flows, integrated transport and mobility concepts, virtual modeling of the inhabitants behavior, micro- and macromobility and other modules.

In the iTWOcity project in Heidelberg, RIB SE sees the world's first IT standard-model-project in urban development, which is setting the world standard, and is thus continuing to pursue the goal of transforming the construction industry into one of the most modern industry sectors. The entire functionality of the iTWO platform technology is here tested and optimized in an urbanized format. Data is collected and intelligently integrated into future product development. As a result, RIB is on the important road to support the future mega-construction-projects as a global technology partner and thus expanding this business field internationally.

Modern workplaces, affordable houses in an appealing, sensitive, smart networked urban concept, will be created transparently and comprehensibly, taking into account the general public. The city of Heidelberg gets -in addition to the historic old town, the castle and the constantly renewed university- another internationally visible highlight.

'I am very pleased that we have found a strong and renowned partner with RIB. Their technique allows us to compare town-planning designs with different depths of detail - and at the same time visualize the different designs in models. This will allow us to build more cost-effectively and to discuss planning options in public,' says Lord Mayor Prof. Würzner.

'Patrick-Henry-Village has the potential to create a sensation as a model for a city quarter of the future. This is what our technology is all about. With iTWOcity, we are launching the world's first IT research project in Heidelberg for the complete virtual planning of an entire district,' explains Prof. Dr. Schuhmacher, Executive Board Member of iTWOcity AG.