What is the idea behind the adesso Academic Committee?

What is the idea behind the adesso Academic Committee?

Dr Angela Carell: adesso has been cooperating with universities and colleges as part of publicly funded research projects since the company was founded. We have always found these cooperations to be extremely productive. We benefit enormously from being able to help develop new technologies and approaches to software engineering, test them in a research context and then transfer them into practice application. We wanted to intensify this cooperation and put it on a wider platform. So, we looked for professors of software engineering for the adesso Academic Committee who cover a wide range of topics.

It is also our aim to organise a continuous cooperation between academia and practice application. Of course, this isn’t possible if a committee only meets once or twice a year. That’s why we have formed tandem partnerships. An adesso office cooperates intensively with an assigned academic from the Committee. Of course, we pay attention to regional proximity so that the exchange is also successful in terms of day-to-day practicality. As a result, the Academic Committee creates an intensive and continuous cooperation throughout the year.

What topics does the Committee typically address?

Dr Angela Carell: There are actually no typical topics. We want to be open to all topics that are currently being discussed at the universities. We have already dealt with many different topics ranging from platform economics to cyber-physical systems to AI.

Are there any examples of where insights from the Academic Committee have been incorporated into the work carried out by adesso?

Dr Angela Carell: The most intensive cooperation at the moment is in the area of blockchain with Professor Tai from the TU Berlin. His expertise has enabled us to expand our own knowledge in the field and we have already produced several successful proofs of concepts. We involve Professor Tai in customer projects as an external expert. In addition, we have jointly acquired a research project in the field of the digitalisation of construction, which deals with automated billing processes using blockchain technology.

Going beyond the Academic Committee, where else is adesso playing an active role in terms of research and teaching?

Dr Angela Carell: Our research topics are as broad as adesso itself. This year, for example, we are going to conclude two research projects. The InVerSiV project dealt with (partially) automated driving in the megacity. In the healthcare sector, we have developed and tested STEADY, a system designed to help patients dealing with depression manage their self-care.

Can you give us an example of a research project that you’re currently involved with?

Dr Angela Carell: Right now, I’m working in the research area of digitalisation of the building industry. To this end, we have been able to acquire two research projects at the same time: BIMSWARM and BIMCHAIN. In BIMSWARM, we’re involved with the topic of platform economy. In BIMCHAIN, we’re responsible for the realisation of the blockchain as an implementation partner. But above all, our added value lies in the fact that these projects enable us to build up a sound knowledge of the industry that we didn’t have previously. As a result of this and the network that we’ve built up in the industry thanks to our research contacts, we have now been able to win our first ‘real’ project in the form of the ‘BIM Competence Centre’.