"Technological progress is an important lever for more climate protection," was the key statement made by Dr. Jan Mrosik, new Chairman of the ZVEI Automation Association, in front of the assembled trade press in Nuremberg at SPS 2019. The climate target of reducing_{CO2 emissions} by 80% by 2050 compared to 1990 can be achieved - with greater efforts even up to 95%. This is proven by the climate path study published by the BDI, in which the ZVEI participated. Mrosik comments: "Industry has already achieved what other sectors still have to do: decoupling growth and energy consumption." Between 2005 and 2016, gross value added increased by almost a fifth, while electricity consumption fell in the same period. This ratio will continue to improve in favor of electricity productivity. "We can see that the efficiency potential has not yet been exhausted and that modern automation technology opens up further opportunities," says Mrosik.

One example of the sustainable use of resources is the digital nameplate, which the ZVEI is presenting for the first time at SPS 2019. As a sub-model of the Industry 4.0 administration shell (AAS), it offers numerous advantages. "Not only can specific device information be retrieved digitally, in multiple languages and always up to date, but in the future also that of entire machines," explains Gunther Koschnick, Managing Director of the ZVEI Automation Association, adding: "This eliminates the need for traditional paper documentation - which is a huge relief for the environment."

According to Koschnick, the DC industry research project supported by the ZVEI, which was completed in September after three years of research work, also demonstrates high savings potential - up to 10% on average: "A DC-based smart grid in industrial production is significantly more energy-efficient than an AC-based energy supply. It also offers greater energy flexibility and a systemic view that goes beyond the individual product." The ZVEI is therefore currently working with partners in the follow-up project DC2 to research the DC power supply in an entire production hall.

5G - a new export hit?

Another topic at the ZVEI press conference was the new 5G mobile communications standard. Following the conclusion of the frequency auction in spring and the announcement of the award conditions by the Federal Network Agency, it is now time to test 5G. "2020 will be a year of testing and will prove that local 5G campus networks lead to increases in productivity and efficiency," the association's managing director is convinced. In conjunction with Industry 4.0 applications, this could lead to a new export hit. In the ZVEI 5G-ACIA working group, 56 internationally active companies are now working together to ensure that 5G is industrially viable worldwide right from the start.

Last but not least, the ZVEI gave a brief outline of the current economic situation in Nuremberg. Mrosik commented: "The situation has changed for us automation specialists. A year ago, we were still reporting procurement problems for raw materials and preliminary work in the same place. We are no longer worried about this today." After price-adjusted automation production in Germany had grown by an average of 2.1% per year since 2008, it fell by 6.4% between January and September 2019 compared to the same period in the previous year. "We don't expect this trend to reverse any time soon," states Mrosik, but nevertheless tries to spread cautious optimism despite all the well-known uncertainties on the global market: "The long-term development trends - in particular the requirements for effective climate protection and advancing digitalization - are still intact for automation."