Category Archives: Featured News

Altair, Startup India Announce Startup Challenge 2022 Winners

TROY, MI, Dec 1, 2023 – Altair, a global leader in computational science and artificial intelligence (AI), announced the results of its year-long Altair Startup Challenge 2022 (ASC2022), partnering with Startup India, an Indian government initiative whose objective is to build a strong, inclusive ecosystem for innovation and entrepreneurship in India. The ASC2022 focused on next-generation aerospace and defense system development and provided participating organizations access to high-end technology, mentorship, and expert support in their quest to develop innovative products.

The ASC2022 required startups to identify Altair technologies that would drive the design and engineering of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), wearable devices, robots, drones, remotely operated vehicles (ROVs), and satellite systems. Eleven companies were shortlisted from a pool of 74 applicants; Altair provided these startups with mentorship and free access to Altair technologies for more than six months. Winners were determined based on how well they applied Altair technologies and enhanced their products’ designs and potential business impact.

Of the shortlisted 11 finalists – Hyperspawn, Quarkifi, Truspectra India, Tryambh Innovations, Aero-insights, Nautical Wings, Sapeint Aerospace, Coratia Technologies, CTTD Epeace, Infinity Arsenal, and Aerogravity – seven of them presented their ideas, designs, and commercial plans on October 5, 2023, to a panel of judges chosen from DRDO, ISRO, and commercial organizations.

The following four organizations were declared winners:

  • Platinum Winner (₹2,50,000): Aerogravity, which develops drone port systems that facilitate autonomous landing and takeoff of industrial drones for surveillance, survey, and payload delivery applications.
  • Gold Winners (₹1,75,000 each): This category’s first winner was Hyperspawn, a robotics company that develops teleoperated humanoid robots that act as users’ physical avatar anywhere in the world. The second was Truspectra India, a start-up that aims to innovate and conduct research and development for new generation of mobile collaborative robots to create smart, flexible production systems for the future.
  • Bronze Winner (₹1,00,000): Quarkifi, which creates smart space automation with help of Internet of Things (IoT) technology and holds a patent for their innovative solution.

“Startups play a vital role in driving innovation and economic growth. Supporting startups is a way to encourage novel ideas and solutions that can benefit countless industries around the globe,” said Vishwanath Rao, managing director, Altair India and GCC countries. “We want to encourage startups that drive the creation of intellectual property in India, startups that create great technologies, and accelerate economic growth.”

“The application of technology to meet real-world challenges and finding answers through innovation is truly inspirational,” said Panduranga Rao, senior vice president of technical operations and strategic initiatives, Altair India. “Brilliant young minds are breaking barriers developing products that will revolutionize their industry. The quality of representation in the ASC2022 has been extraordinary and raises the bar for those to follow.”

“Our journey with Altair in the ASC2022 has been transformative. The ecosystem perfectly aligned with our engineering focus,” said Priyanshu Pareek, founder, Hyperspawn Robotics. “Altair’s tools and solutions, along with their invaluable mentoring and workshop sessions, helped us refine our advanced robotic systems. Altair’s industry outreach portal even opened doors for us to onboard like-minded talent. The ASC2022 was not just a competition, but rather a catalyst that helped us turn our vision into reality.”

“We were exposed to a vast database of training materials and software stacks that helped us to refine our solution and strengthen our overall value proposition,” said Anirban Bhattacharya, director, Quarkify. “Altair mentors promptly guided us, and we were given the resources to work on and refine our solutions. We thank all the mentors who worked tirelessly with the startups to make this program a launch pad for many sectors.”

Shankar Venugopal, vice president at M&M and one of the mentors at the ASC2022, mentioned at the occasion, said “Altair plays a very critical role in supporting the start-ups to undertake the proof of concept by providing them with software and technical expertise across product development stages to bring their ideas to life.”

The following organizations provided support for the ASC2022: Startup India, IITDelhi|FITT, Drone Federation of India, SAE India, IIT Bombay | SINE, IISc, AESI, IIT Madras Incubation Cell, Bhau Institute of Technology, STEP, and icreate.

Altair and Startup India have been hosting this challenge since 2019 with more than 500 startups applying over these years. Altair has mentored more than 50 startups in the process through technology and technical support, and with many of those now commercializing their solutions.

About Altair

Altair is a global leader in computational science and artificial intelligence (AI) that provides software and cloud solutions in simulation, high-performance computing (HPC), data analytics, and AI. Altair enables organizations across all industries to compete more effectively and drive smarter decisions in an increasingly connected world – all while creating a greener, more sustainable future.

For more information, visit www.altair.com.

About Startup India

Startup India is a flagship initiative of the Government of India, intended to build a strong ecosystem that is conducive for the growth of startup businesses, to drive sustainable economic growth, and generate large-scale employment opportunities. The Government through this initiative aims to empower Startups to grow through innovation and design.

Hitachi Vantara Announces Pentaho+ for GenAI

SANTA CLARA, CA, Dec 1, 2023 – Hitachi Vantara, the data storage, infrastructure, and hybrid cloud management subsidiary of Hitachi, Ltd., announced Pentaho+, an integrated platform from the Pentaho software business designed to help organizations connect, enrich, and transform operations with refined, reliable data necessary for AI and Generative AI (GenAI) accuracy. Automating the work of complex data management with powerful self-service and cloud-agnostic solutions, Pentaho+ helps improve data quality by allowing organizations to effectively oversee data from inception to deployment.

According to the Gartner Hype Cycle for Artificial Intelligence, 20231, “Generative AI has had an impact like no other technology in the past decade. The increased productivity for developers and knowledge workers, using systems like ChatGPT, is very real and has caused organizations and industries to rethink their business processes and the value of human resources.” Yet, Harvard Business Review found that “only 3% of companies’ data meets basic quality standards.2

Improving access to hybrid data distributed across on-premises and public cloud data centers, Pentaho+ connects unstructured, semi-structured and structured formats for a comprehensive view of data assets, providing confidence in mission-critical digital and operational insights amid a surge in generative AI.

“We believe in this age of AI and Machine Learning that if an enterprise isn’t data-fit, it will lose to one who is,” said Maggie Laird, global head of Pentaho Software at Hitachi Vantara. “With Pentaho+, we’re providing the groundwork for universal data intelligence, enabling leaders to provide clean, accurate data with certainty so they can leverage GenAI in ways that can truly impact their business strategy and bottom line.”

Unlocking Business Value with AI-ready Data

Pentaho+ delivers a flexible, modular platform connecting existing and evolving data environments without costly integration or coding. As needs expand, additional functional modules can be easily added. Initial features of Pentaho+ and updates to Pentaho functionality include:

  • Pentaho Data Integration and Analytics: Process batch and streaming data in real time using native containerization to support any deployment environment.  The new integrated platform can easily be hosted on any cloud provider platform, at the core and edge.
  • Pentaho Data Catalog: Pentaho Data Catalog helps discover, identify, categorize and classify data based on meaningful business context resulting in a trusted, data driven organization. An improved user interface leverages the best of Io-Tahoe and Waterline Data technology from previous acquisitions.
  • Pentaho Data Storage Optimizer: Gain more cost control of IT charge backs, performance, and risk of your data for your work processes. Data Storage Optimizer now works with all file systems and S3 containers in addition to Hadoop.

Plans to expand the Pentaho+ platform with additional capabilities for data mastering, data quality, and more can be expected in the coming months.

“With Pentaho, business intelligence, big data and data warehouse managers get the perfect platform for flexible data integration and data preparation as well as for analytics,” said Chris Keller, director of Big Data Analytics & IoT at ITNovum, the leading IT consultant/implementer for Business Open Source & Digital Transformation in Germany. “Thanks to its open architecture, the Pentaho+ Platform can be seamlessly integrated into any existing infrastructure working regardless of where data is located.”

Availability

Pentaho+ is available worldwide now from the Hitachi Digital Marketplace, its global partner network as well as the AWS and Azure marketplaces.

For more information, please visit https://www.hitachivantara.com/en-us/products/pentaho-plus-platform.html.

1 Gartner Hype Cycle for Artificial Intelligence, 2023
Harvard Business Review: Only 3% of Companies’ Data Meets Basic Quality Standards

About Hitachi Vantara

Hitachi Vantara is transforming the way data fuels innovation. A wholly owned subsidiary of Hitachi Ltd., Hitachi Vantara provides the data foundation the world’s leading innovators rely on. Through data storage, infrastructure systems, cloud management and digital expertise, the company helps customers build the foundation for sustainable business growth.

To learn more, visit www.hitachivantara.com.

About Hitachi, Ltd.

Hitachi drives Social Innovation Business, creating a sustainable society through the use of data and technology. They solve customers’ and society’s challenges with Lumada solutions leveraging IT, OT (Operational Technology) and products. Hitachi operates under the business structure of “Digital Systems & Services” – supporting their customers’ digital transformation; “Green Energy & Mobility” – contributing to a decarbonized society through energy and railway systems, and “Connective Industries” – connecting products through digital technology to provide solutions in various industries. Driven by Digital, Green, and Innovation, we aim for growth through co-creation with our customers. The company’s consolidated revenues for fiscal year 2022 (ended March 31, 2023) totaled 10,881.1 billion yen, with 696 consolidated subsidiaries and approximately 320,000 employees worldwide.

For more information on Hitachi, please visit the company’s website at www.hitachi.com.

Overhaul Enhances ‘IoT Assess and Deploy’ Service

AUSTIN, TX, Dec 1, 2023 – Overhaul, a software-based supply chain visibility, risk, compliance, and insurance solution for the world’s leading companies, announced significant enhancements to its pioneering IoT Assess and Deploy service today. Overhaul’s enhanced offering helps customers harness the power of IoT for their in-transit logistics needs and simplifies the complexities faced by heads of global supply chains and logistics directors.

IoT Assess and Deploy optimizes operations, protects shipments, and ensures stringent quality and compliance controls. The service, a fundamental pillar of Overhaul’s real-time visibility and risk management platform, brings in data from devices based on specific use cases across tried and tested range of products, including newly sourced IoT products previously unavailable to the general market.

“In our pursuit of ‘impartiality’ and ‘independence’ as cornerstones of our service, the offering is meticulously designed to offer unbiased, client-specific solutions,” said Karin Stevens, executive vice president and chief marketing officer at Overhaul. “These enhancements align perfectly with each client’s unique supply chain requirements, further cementing our role as a crucial partner in their operational success.”

The service has already yielded significant results in diverse operational environments. For a Fortune 50 company, the refined solution achieved an impressive average device performance of 99.9%. In the pharmaceutical sector, a Fortune 500 company experienced an 18% increase in device tracking compliance within a quarter, showcasing the system’s efficacy in stringent regulatory environments. These enhancements have resulted in a significant 34% annual reduction in the number of devices lost or not returned, demonstrating the service’s effectiveness and contributing to more sustainable practices within the global enterprise.

The service has also been instrumental in reducing lost device fees across all lanes by 17%, translating into considerable cost savings. Highlighting its financial impact, a global consumer electronics company reported a savings of $300,000 in costs associated with lost device fees, underscoring the tangible benefits of Overhaul’s refined IoT Assess and Deploy offering in operational and financial terms.

The service’s strategy to be data and device-agnostic positions Overhaul similarly to a Big 5 professional service firm. It independently audits and recommends devices that align with a company’s logistics strategy, incorporating a rigorous scoring system and regular reviews for device manufacturers. Overhaul’s end-to-end service now includes enhanced IoT research and qualification, seamless sourcing, fulfillment, deployment, and recycling of old devices, in line with circular economy principles. Furthermore, the established relationships with leading device manufacturers streamline the process for customers, saving significant research and sourcing time.

“Our enhanced IoT Assess and Deploy is a pivotal aspect of our ‘Different on Purpose’ positioning,” said Nicholas Heikkinen, VP of IoT at Overhaul. “It represents a strategic solution for companies leveraging our expertise, technologies, and global reach. The service can unlock tremendous IoT success and maximize data potential, offering tailored consulting, seamless device management, and strategic telematics integrations, all supported by our expert consultancy service.”

About Overhaul

Founded in 2016 and with offices around the world, Overhaul is the only device-agnostic supply chain visibility and risk management software company. As the global leader in in-transit supply chain risk management, Overhaul transforms real-time visibility into risk management, compliance, and insurance solutions for its partners. Its software-based approach offers high configurability and efficient time-to-value to supply-chain organizations without heavy tech. Overhaul is a trusted provider for Fortune 100 companies moving freight globally across industries, such as pharmaceutical and healthcare, technology, logistics, and food and beverage. Customers include Microsoft, Bristol Myers Squibb and many others.

For more information, visit over-haul.com.

LPP Partners with Centric Planning

CAMPBELL, CA, Dec 1, 2023 – Centric Software, the product lifecycle management (PLM) market leader, is pleased to announce that Polish fashion group LPP SA (LPP) has selected Centric Planning. Centric Software provides the most innovative enterprise solutions to plan, design, develop, source, price and sell products such as apparel, fashion, home, footwear, sporting goods, consumer electronics, cosmetics, food & beverage, and luxury to achieve strategic and operational digital transformation goals.

Based in Gdansk, Poland, LPP is an innovative, family-run business, one of the fastest-growing clothing companies in Central Europe which manages five recognisable fashion brands: Reserved, Cropp, House, Mohito and Sinsay. Catering to a number of different demographics, LPP designs, manufactures and distributes its collections across 39 countries over 3 continents through its ecommerce channels and vast distribution network of over 2,000 stores.

Operating for over 30 years, with noticeable growth since 2019, LPP continues to drive development forward with an intensive expansion throughout Europe. During that time LPP has noted over 60% dynamic growth and changed its business model towards omnichannel solutions in addition to significantly changing their development strategy, turning it towards the southern, central and western parts of the continent. Recognizing the need to further streamline their omnichannel planning in order to achieve their expansion strategy and drive future growth LPP, through their IT subsidiary Silky Coders, selected market-leading retail planning solution; Centric Planning.

“We were looking for a planning solution that could handle omnichannel effectively, with modern cloud-based technology and highly flexible configurability,” says Andrzej Kryżewski – data science director of Silky Coders. “We have decided to pursue a complete omnichannel strategy, investing in both bricks and mortar and e-commerce stores. Centric Planning is a perfect fit for our fast-growing omnichannel strategy. It is very intuitive to use and will help us to organize our data in a way that supports our dynamic growth.”

With Centric Planning in place, LPP expects to see substantial time savings.

“Centric Planning will enable us to have all of our data in one place, minimize errors and unify planning processes across our five brands,” says Kryżewski. “Our merchandisers will be able to spend time making strategic decisions rather than collecting data.”

“We are delighted to collaborate with LPP as they build a digital foundation for rapid omnichannel expansion,” says Chris Groves, CEO of Centric Software. “We look forward to working with the LPP team and Silky Coders as they implement Centric Planning to develop streamlined and efficient planning processes that will drive their growth strategy.”

About LPP Group

LPP is a Polish family business and one of the fastest growing clothing companies in the region of Central Europe. For 30 years, it has been successfully operating in Poland and abroad, offering its collections in such prestigious capitals as London, Helsinki or Bukarest. LPP manages five fashion brands: Reserved, Cropp, House, Mohito, and Sinsay, whose offer is available today in stationary and online stores in nearly 40 markets worldwide. The company has a chain of over 2000 stores with the total area of 1.8 million m2 and distributes clothing and accessories to 3 continents every year.

For more information, visit www.lpp.com.

About Centric Software

From its headquarters in Silicon Valley, Centric Software provides a concept to customer solution experience for consumer goods such as fashion, outdoor, luxury, multi-category retail, grocery, food & beverage, cosmetics & personal care and consumer electronics to plan, design, develop, source, buy, make, price, allocate, sell and replenish products.

Centric Software’s flagship solution Centric PLM brings cost savings and efficiency by optimizing product execution from ideation to development, sourcing and manufacture. Centric Planning is an innovative, cloud-native, augmented-intelligence solution delivering end-to-end planning capabilities to maximize retail and wholesale business performance. Centric Pricing & Inventory leverages AI to drive margin and revenue improvement by influencing demand via price and inventory optimization from pre-season to in-season to season completion. Centric Market Intelligence is an AI-driven, market insight platform for data-informed decision-making on competitor offers and pricing as well as consumer trends and buying behavior. Centric Visual Boards pivot actionable data in a visual-first orientation to ensure robust, consumer-right assortments and product offers.

Centric Software has the highest user adoption rate, customer satisfaction rate and fastest time to value in the industry. Centric Software has received multiple industry awards and recognition appears regularly in world-leading analyst reports and research.

Centric Software is a subsidiary of Dassault Systèmes, the world leader in 3D design software, 3D digital mock-up and PLM solutions.

For more information, visit www.centricsoftware.com.

Coreform Cubit v2023.11 Released for CAD

OREM, UT, Nov 30, 2023 – Coreform LLC, developer of next-generation CAE, announces a historic release of Coreform Cubit that enables neutronics on CAD.

Recent investment in both nuclear fusion and fission companies has increased, and these industries require more efficient, robust workflows to develop and test reactor designs. Until now, a favored workflow by leading researchers has been to run neutronics calculations directly on CAD geometry or on a simulation mesh instead of reconstructing the design in the painstaking process of constructive solid geometry (CSG) creation, which has traditionally been the required geometry for neutronics in leading codes such as MCNP or OpenMC.

image from Coreform website

Coreform announces the release of Coreform Cubit 2023.11, providing advanced meshing for challenging workflows, which has workflows that enable neutronics on CAD for the first time in any commercial software package based on the DAGMC workflow developed by Dr. Paul Wilson’s team at the University of Wisconsin as a long-time Cubit plugin. The newly integrated functionality enables a seamless workflow to prepare CAD geometry for a number of neutronics codes, including MCNP and OpenMC.

“This integration will significantly improve neutronics simulation workflows for OpenMC and MCNP users,” notes Matthew Sederberg, chief strategy officer at Coreform. “We are pleased to be able to offer these enhancements to our customers.”

Enhancements include an exporter to the DAGMC radiation transport code, improvements to the ABAQUS export to support the MCNP radiation transport code, as well as an MCNP importer that reconstructs MCNP models within Coreform Cubit. A new coarse trimesher setting was added to support producing meshes for radiation transport codes used within the nuclear energy industry.

“Our team has worked hard to provide this new functionality for the nuclear energy community, and we feel energized by the positive responses we have received,” said Michael A. Scott, CEO. “Coreform is committed to further innovation on behalf of clean nuclear energy.”

Coreform has released an instructional webinar on the new neutronics simulation functionality. A link to that webinar, complete release notes, and the Coreform Cubit 2023.11 download are all available at www.coreform.com.

About Coreform LLC 

Coreform develops next-generation computer-aided engineering software. Coreform’s founders are authorities in isogeometric analysis and are widely cited researchers. The Coreform IGA solver is based on smooth CAD spline geometry, offering greater accuracy than the faceted meshes used in legacy CAE software. Coreform is also the exclusive commercial distributor of the Cubit meshing software. Coreform was founded in 2014 and is headquartered in Utah, USA.

SprutCAM Tech Enhances Online Libraries

SprutCAM Tech announces the addition of dozens of new industrial robot models, hundreds of pre-designed kinematics and post processors for CNC machines, and an extensive collection of ready-to-use CAM projects.

The software ecosystem surrounding SprutCAM X, a CAD/CAM system for the next generation makers, and SprutCAM X Robot, an all-in-one offline programming system, has expanded to include three online libraries – the Robot Components Library, CNC Machine Digital Twins Library, and Project Library.

SprutCAM Tech continuously updates these online libraries with new content, enhances their functionality, and improves integration with other software products. The aim is to simplify user navigation in the realm of modern equipment and expedite the learning and implementation process of CAD/CAM/OLP systems. Collectively, these three online libraries serve as a virtual reference portal for industrial robot programmers and CNC machine operators.

Robot Components Library

The Robot Components Library can be accessed from the SprutCAM Tech website or from MachineMaker, an application for creating digital twins of industrial robots and CNC machines in SprutCAM X and SprutCAM X Robot. Using the Robot Components Library on the company’s website, users can both search for a robot by model or manufacturer (this is useful for those who already have a robot and are testing the capabilities of SprutCAM X Robot), as well as use filters to match it with the required parameters (this is useful for those who are just selecting a robot for a task). And then with the help of MachineMaker they can transfer the selected robot to SprutCAM X Robot for programming.

New Additions to the Robot Components Library:

  1. Over the last year, approximately 100 new industrial robot models and components have been added, bringing the library’s total to 768 items.
  2. The list of supported manufacturers has expanded to include 57 brands.
  3. 3D robot models created in MachineMaker are now visible on the website, facilitating easier navigation through the extensive library. This allows users to comprehend the robot’s kinematics and pre-estimate its axis limits.
  4. Descriptions of robots and their main applications (types of machining) have been included.
  5. The library now encompasses robot cells, both completely from single manufacturers and assembled from components from multiple manufacturers.

CNC Machine Digital Twins Library

The CNC Machine Digital Twins Library, featuring kinematics and post processors for nearly 700 models of CNC machines, has been available for users to explore since November 2023. Similar to the Robot Components Library, users can search the library by machine name and apply various filters. The library’s purpose is to ensure that the SprutCAM X CAD/CAM system supports the CNC machine in the user’s shop, and that a post processor is available for the equipment. Unlike the open access to the Robot Components Library, access to post processors and kinematics in the CNC Machines Digital Twins Library is available upon request only.

Project Library

SprutCAM X and SprutCAM X Robot boast rich functionality, offering about 50 different operations with various machining strategies. SprutCAM Tech aims to make exploring SprutCAM X fast and straightforward. The newly launched Project Library, introduced with the release of SprutCAM X and SprutCAM X Robot version 17 in September 2023, allows SprutCAM X users and partners to share reference projects. These projects facilitate quick learning of previously unused operations in SprutCAM X and SprutCAM X Robot, and help users find the right machining strategy for new complex parts on different machines with various tools. In the past 2.5 months, the Project Library has already accumulated 340 open reference projects. Currently, users can access the Project Library only from SprutCAM X and SprutCAM X Robot systems.

SprutCAM Tech’s plans include expanding cooperation with equipment manufacturers, further enriching online libraries, facilitating a seamless transition from viewing equipment models on the website to projects in SprutCAM X and SprutCAM X Robot, and ultimately unifying all online resources and software products into a single information space for robot programmers and CNC machine operators.

For more information, visit SprutCAM website.

Gilmour Space Selects EOS for Additive Manufacturing

GOLD COAST, Australia, Nov 30, 2023 – Australian launch services company, Gilmour Space Technologies, has selected EOS to be its additive manufacturing (AM) partner as it transitions from research and development (R&D) and prototyping, to launch and manufacturing.

Representatives from Gilmour Space, EOS Asia Pacific and Additive Australia

The Queensland-based company is months away from attempting Australia’s first sovereign orbital launch from the Bowen Orbital Spaceport in the state’s north, and plans to increase its launch cadence in the coming years.

This project is part of the Australian Space Manufacturing Network, which is supported by funding from the Australian Government under the Modern Manufacturing Strategy.

David Doyle, program manager for Launch Vehicles at Gilmour Space, said: “We are excited to work with EOS and Additive Australia to enhance the in-house manufacturing capability for our Australian-made orbital launch vehicles and satellites.”

Terrance Oh, senior vice president, EOS Asia Pacific, said: “It is really quite amazing to see the rapid innovation from organizations like Gilmour Space. Metal additive manufacturing allows for generative design and fast production, and now we are seeing the rules for developing space launch vehicles rewritten. We are thrilled to play a part of Gilmour Space’s ride to deliver satellites to low Earth Orbit.”

Kevin Hazlehurst, director at Additive Australia, said: “Through our partnership with EOS we are proud to have worked with the Gilmour Space team to establish their metal AM facility, and we look forward to supporting them in their transition from prototyping to manufacturing.”

About Gilmour Space

Gilmour Space Technologies is a leading Australian space company developing Eris orbital launch vehicles and G-Sat microsatellite platforms; and launching from the Bowen Orbital Spaceport in north Queensland. Commercial operations begin in 2024.

About Additive Australia

Additive Australia are the authorized sales and service partner of EOS in Australia and New Zealand. Their specialist team provide customers with complete advice and support to ensure that informed decisions are made and that the capabilities of the technology are fully leveraged.

About EOS

EOS provides responsible manufacturing solutions via industrial 3D printing technology to manufacturers around the world. Connecting high quality production efficiency with its pioneering innovation and sustainable practices, the independent company formed in 1989 will shape the future of manufacturing. Powered by its platform-driven digital value network of machines and a holistic portfolio of services, materials and processes, EOS is deeply committed to fulfilling its customers’ needs and acting responsibly for their planet.

For more information, visit website.

IBM Advances Geospatial AI to Address Climate Challenges

YORKTOWN HEIGHTS, NY, Nov 30, 2023 – IBM today announced new efforts that apply its geospatial AI technologies, including IBM’s geospatial foundation model developed in collaboration with NASA, to climate efforts including analysis of urban heat islands in the United Arab Emirates (UAE); reforestation across Kenya; and climate resiliency in the United Kingdom (UK).

IBM continues to advance its AI model strategy in part through the creation, training, fine-tuning and open-sourcing of foundation models – models that can be used for different tasks and apply information from one situation to another – designed for domains beyond natural language, including geospatial applications.

These models, which are trained on geospatial information such as satellite images, present a unique opportunity to address climate change because unlike traditional AI models tailored for specialized tasks, geospatial foundation models – encompassing satellite and weather data – create knowledge representations from petabytes and exabytes of climate-relevant data that can facilitate accelerated and streamlined discovery of environmental insights and solutions. These models can also be fine-tuned and applied across a multitude of areas driving or revealing climate change, from flood detection to fire scars.

“Climate change is a real and pressing issue that we must find new ways to address as quickly and efficiently as possible, including through today’s most advanced AI technologies,” said Alessandro Curioni, IBM fellow and vice president, Accelerated Discovery at IBM. “AI foundation models utilizing geospatial data can be a game-changer because they allow us to better understand, prepare and address the many climate-related events effecting the health of our planet in a manner and speed never before seen. We are hopeful these technologies can help accelerate the rate at which we derive and apply solutions for a safer and healthier planet for future generations.”

Analyzing urban heat islands in the UAE

By the end of this century, many cities will likely experience disruptive and excessive heat waves if GHG emissions continue at high levels. To develop sustainable and equitable plans to keep cities habitable, the rising heat levels must be accurately mapped and addressed.

IBM and the Mohamed Bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI) are pioneering an attempt to apply foundation models to the mapping of urban heat islands – areas with significantly higher temperatures compared to surrounding locations. This innovative research specifically applies a fine-tuned version of IBM’s geospatial foundation model to understand the urban environment in Abu Dhabi and how the underlying landscape in the UAE impacts the formation of urban heat islands.

To date, the model has informed efforts that have succeeded in a reduction of heat island effects in the region by more than 3oC (5.4 F)1. Going forward, the model is expected to continue to provide unique insights that inform the development of urban design strategies designed to help reduce urban heat stress in changing climates.

Professor Tim Baldwin, MBZUAI Acting Provost, said: “Our collaboration with IBM marks a groundbreaking effort to utilize foundational AI models in analyzing and identifying solutions to urban heat islands for Abu Dhabi and parts of the UAE, a region which is particularly affected by climate change. This research underscores the vital role of AI in tackling global issues, emphasizing the urgency of continued exploration and innovation. By harnessing the power of AI, we are not merely addressing challenges; we are proactively shaping solutions for a sustainable future. In a world confronted by unprecedented challenges, MBZUAI stands at the forefront of pioneering research in AI, recognizing the transformative power it holds.”

Advancing reforestation and water sustainability in Kenya

In December 2022, President of Kenya H.E. D.R William Ruto unveiled the National Tree Growing and Restoration Campaign designed to plant 15 billion trees across Kenya by 2032, including in areas of critically affected water towers – forested landscapes that retain water and source many rivers throughout Kenya. While water towers account for about three quarters of the nation’s water resources, deforestation is contributing to increasing water scarcity in these regions.

IBM and the Kenyan government’s office of the Special Envoy for Climate Change Ali Mohamed have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to support the National Tree Growing and Restoration Campaign through a new “adopt-a-water-tower” initiative. The effort will be fueled by a new digital platform that leverages IBM’s geospatial foundation model to enable users to track and visualize tree planting and tree growing activities in specific water tower areas. Local developers can also create fine-tuned models combining the IBM geospatial model with their own localized information to monitor forest restoration and measure above-ground biomass such as sequestered carbon, ultimately mobilizing on-the-ground efforts to plant more trees across Kenya’s water tower regions.

The President’s Spokesperson, Mr. Hussein Mohamed, MBS, said: “We recognize that technology plays a pivotal role in unlocking our full potential, optimizing resource utilization, and seizing opportunities. It serves as a means to ensure that we harness our resources most effectively to drive our grassroots-driven economic transformation agenda. Through our partnership with IBM, we have the capability of harnessing the power of artificial intelligence and geospatial data to advance our climate ambitions. These ambitions include planting 15 billion trees, rejuvenating our vital water towers, fostering increased collaboration with the private sector to promote a just energy transition for communities around our forests. Simultaneously, this collaboration will enhance our capacity to equitably participate in the carbon economy. The potential of this collaboration extends beyond our borders and has the capacity to be replicated in other nations seeking to enhance their forest cover while also improving the economic and health well-being of their communities.”

Elevating climate resiliency across the United Kingdom

In 2021, IBM and the Science and Technology Facilities Council’s (STFC) Hartree Centre collaborated to explore the application of next-generation technologies including AI from IBM to address climate risk and resiliency across the UK.

Now, IBM, STFC and Royal HaskoningDHV, a global consulting engineering company, have collaborated to establish a new service, leveraging IBM’s geospatial AI tools, that seeks to automate and scale climate risk assessment processes for organizations. The service’s first use case will focus on the aviation sector, in which IBM’s geospatial AI will assess impacts weather-related issues, including:

  • Short-term impact of extreme weather on aviation operations.
  • Long-term impact of climate change on future airport operations and infrastructure.

In addition, IBM and STFC Hartree Centre, through the Hartree National Centre for Digital Innovation, are advancing a new area of research with Dark Matter Labs and Lucidminds, as part of their TreesAI project. The research project will apply IBM geospatial AI technologies to their Green Urban Scenarios (GUS) model to map urban locations where trees can be planted to help alleviate the risk of surface water flooding. The effort will eventually inform an end-to-end digital planning platform for urban planners, project developers and green urban investors across the UK.

Kate Royse, director at STFC’s Hartree Centre, said: “There has never been a more important time to prepare for the challenges posed by climate change, both from an industrial and societal perspective. Here at STFC’s Hartree Centre we’re excited to be working with IBM and Royal HaskoningDHV, using advanced AI technologies to help the aviation industry prepare for climate risks, and become more resilient against the effects of extreme weather. Equally, our collaboration with IBM and Dark Matter Labs on the TreesAI project through our HNCDI programme will enable smarter decisions based on accurately predicting and managing flood risk, which is critical to all future city planning. Advanced AI technologies are key driver in enabling us to build a more resilient world against the adverse impacts of climate change.”

Djeevan Schiferli, climate intelligence business strategist, Royal HaskoningDHV said: “Operational and strategic planners in every company require a clear understanding of how weather and climate-related incidents affect their business operations. By harnessing AI and geospatial data, we will super charge our climate risk assessments on a global scale.”

Chloe Treger, TreesAI UK Lead, said: “Over 300,000 properties are at risk of surface-water flooding. Without action, this figure is set to almost double by 2055 due to climate change and urbanisation. Through our collaboration with IBM and STFC, we have been able to observe how trees contribute to reducing surface water flooding risks across the city under different scenarios, using GUS. This has enabled us and our partners to make the business case for tree planting and maintenance. After a successful pilot in Glasgow, we are now looking for further locations to embed this powerful data-enabled decision-making tool.”

Extending NASA collaboration to apply generative AI to weather

Beyond their initial commitment to build and deploy a geospatial foundation model, IBM and NASA have also announced work on a new, separate AI foundation model for weather and climate. By applying AI technology from IBM, the model aims to improve the accuracy, speed and affordability of weather forecasting and other climate applications. Sample applications of the model not only include forecasting, but also super-resolution downscaling, identifying conditions conducive to wildfires, and predicting meteorological phenomena. IBM researchers will work alongside NASA domain experts to train and validate the model.

IBM at COP28

These latest efforts and IBM’s role at COP28 builds on the company’s long history of action, research, and advocacy around the environment. IBM issued its first environmental policy more than 50 years ago, in 1971, and published a formal position on climate change in 2007. IBM is also a founding member of the United Nations Environment Programme’s Science-Policy-Business Forum on the Environment and the Climate Leadership Council, and supports communities vulnerable to climate change and other environmental issues through initiatives like the IBM Sustainability Accelerator.

To follow IBM at COP28, please visit: https://www.ibm.com/events/unfccc-cop

About IBM

IBM is a leading provider of global hybrid cloud and AI, and consulting expertise. We help clients in more than 175 countries capitalize on insights from their data, streamline business processes, reduce costs, and gain the competitive edge in their industries. Thousands of government and corporate entities in critical infrastructure areas such as financial services, telecommunications and healthcare rely on IBM’s hybrid cloud platform and Red Hat OpenShift to affect their digital transformations quickly, efficiently, and securely. IBM’s breakthrough innovations in AI, quantum computing, industry-specific cloud solutions and consulting deliver open and flexible options to our clients. All of this is backed by IBM’s long-standing commitment to trust, transparency, responsibility, inclusivity, and service.

1 https://ai4good.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/FE2022-Urban-Forests-for-Carbon-Sequestration-and-Heat-Island.pdf

MachineWorks Releases Polygonica v3.3

MachineWorks Ltd. has announced the availability of Polygonica 3.3, a substantial upgrade from previous versions.

Polygonica is a component software library for working with polygon meshes that helps companies in a range of industrial markets solve complex 2D and 3D geometrical problems.

1D medial skeleton rendered inside a polygon mesh model.

The main functions of Polygonica include mesh healing, Booleans, offsetting, remeshing, simplification, shrinkwrap, surface and feature detection and point-cloud manipulation and meshing.

Headline improvements in Polygonica 3.3 include:

  • Adjust vertices during remeshing to lie on a mathematical CAD surface
  • Edge blending and chamfering
  • Shelling ( Hollowing with selected face removal )
  • Z Compensation for 3D printing
  • 1D medial guided skeleton
  • New option for healing of complex self-intersecting support structures
  • New point cloud registration options
    • Point cloud to mesh registration and alignment
    • General point set to point set registration
    • Sparse point set registration
  • Closing a mesh using a reference mesh
  • Gap thickness and protrusion (height) analysis
  • Support for feature detection of fillets and chamfers
  • Scaling of deformation compensation
  • Tangential extension of poly-curves
  • Option to use surface detection in 3D medial axis computation
  • Tolerance-based pruning option in 2D medial axis creation
  • Miscellaneous Changes
    • Enhanced error reporting
    • Tolerance option for self-intersection query
    • Conversion of imprinted curves to normal curves
    • Suppress selection region joining across sharp edges
    • Improved query APIs for vertex attributes and face vertices

About MachineWorks Ltd

MachineWorks Ltd has been providing advanced 3D software engines to manufacturers and engineering software developers since 1994.

MachineWorks is the toolkit for CNC simulation and verification and is supplied embedded within a wide range of brands from major machine tools and CNC controller manufacturers and CAM software vendors. With over fifty major OEM licensees, Polygonica is the engine for polygon-mesh modeling and is widely used in a range of markets, including CAD, CAM, CAE, and AM, along with medical, dental, EDA, metrology, AEC, construction, mining, and other large capital asset industries.

Companies who integrate MachineWorks’ components into their software solutions include Dassault Systemes, Autodesk, Hexagon MI, ANSYS, Synopsys, AECOM, 3D Systems, Stratasys, OpenMind, CAMBRIO, Xometry, Desktop Metal, Nexa3D, Heidenhain, Okuma, DMG Mori, HCL, SolidCAM, Convergent Science, SimScale, Topsolid, ZWSoft, Diota, CASTOR, CADS Additive, Intech Additive Solutions, and Go2CAM.

For more information, visit www.machineworks.com and www.polygonica.com.

Rohde & Schwarz Launches R&S NRP170TWG(N) Thermal Power Sensor

Rohde & Schwarz is launching the new R&S NRP170TWG(N) thermal power sensor for precise power level measurements in the D-band. It is the only RF power sensor on the market that offers full traceability to national metrology institutes (NMI) in the frequency range from 110 GHz to 170 GHz, an important prerequisite for commercializing the frequency band.

The new R&S NRP170TWG(N) enables precise power measurements in the D-band.

The R&S NRP170TWG(N) hardware is designed to reduce measurement noise and drift, while remaining very accurate and easy to use. The sensors are fully calibrated plug & play devices that can be easily integrated into any measurement setup with a USB or LAN connection. The new R&S NRP170TWG(N) sensors from Rohde & Schwarz are used in general R&D for 6G mobile communications, novel sub-THz communications, sensing and future automotive radar applications. Accuracy is vital to such complex wideband measurements and the sensors are fully calibrated for long-term stability and can compensate for environmental temperature influences within the specified operating range from 0°C to + 50°C. R&S NRP170TWG(N) sensors have a dynamic range of –35 dBm to +20 dBm and up to 500 measurements per second, making them extremely fast with outstanding performance and the only NMI-traceable RF power sensors for the D-band.

Ease of use

All Rohde & Schwarz power sensors are easy to use and stable with excellent connectivity, letting researchers, developers and production engineers focus on more challenging tasks. R&S NRP170TWG(N) sensors provide stable power readouts even at levels below -20 dBm, have no drift and are resilient to external temperature changes and out-of-band signals (such as far infrared (FIR). Fast measurement speeds and easy digital access to data output are very important in mass production facilities. The R&S NRP170TWG(N) can be connected via USB or LAN and operated with standard SCPI protocols. The new sensors perfectly complement other D-band test solutions from Rohde & Schwarz.

NMI traceability

When developing the R&S NRP170TWG(N) sensors, Rohde & Schwarz collaborated with Germany’s national metrology institute: the Physikalisch-Technische-Bundesanstalt (PTB) and other NMIs as part of a European Union project to establish traceability up to 170 GHz. Previously, NMI traceability was only possible up to 110 GHz. NMI traceability is a prerequisite for commercial and industrial utilization of a frequency band. Defined power levels need to be maintained throughout a frequency range. RF power is traced to a DC power reference and compared by different national metrology institutes.

About Rohde & Schwarz

Rohde & Schwarz is striving for a safer and connected world with its Test & Measurement, Technology Systems and Networks & Cybersecurity Divisions. For 90 years, the global technology group has pushed technical boundaries with developments in cutting-edge technologies. The company’s leading-edge products and solutions empower industrial, regulatory and government customers to attain technological and digital sovereignty. The privately owned, Munich based company can act independently, long-term and sustainably. Rohde & Schwarz generated net revenue of EUR 2.78 billion in the 2022/2023 fiscal year (July to June). On June 30, 2023, Rohde & Schwarz had around 13,800 employees worldwide.

For more information, visit website.