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Next step Gaia-X: OHB companies involved in project on the digital transformation of the aerospace industry

Gaia-X, the European project to build a secure, powerful and trustworthy data infrastructure, reaches the space community in Bremen: COOPERANTS ("Collaborative Processes and Services for Aeronautics and Space") will lay the foundations for future secure data exchange in aerospace programs, and OHB System AG, OHB Infosys and OHB Digital Services are three subsidiaries of the listed aerospace and Technology Group OHB SE involved in the recently launched project. The aim of COOPERANTS is to accelerate the digitization of processes and procedures in the aerospace industry. The project is funded by the Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection (BMWK) and has a total volume of over 20 million euros.

The digital transformation is causing the products and working methods of the aerospace industry to change more and more. This opens up a multitude of new opportunities for all parties involved, but new challenges also arise in the course of the transformation. As a rule, information is already exchanged digitally, but mostly in the form of electronic documents and not as data that can be directly processed in the respective digital infrastructures of the actors involved, on which it is also possible to work together. However, the transition to digital processes and data exchange using a cloud solution requires the compatibility of the data generated and required by the various actors. Currently, this often fails due to the complexity and heterogeneity of the systems used by the actors involved. The goal of COOPERANTS is to analyze exactly these problems and to develop novel solutions based on the principles of Gaia-X. Gaia-X is a digital ecosystem that is currently being built up at European level by representatives from business, science and politics. The ultimate goal of Gaia-X is to create a decentralized, networked and secure European data infrastructure in which data and services can be made available, shared and used openly and transparently.

COOPERANTS is managed by a consortium of twelve actors from seven different federal states. The consortium is led by the German Aerospace Center (DLR). OHB System AG, OHB Infosys and OHB Digital Services represent the interests of the space industry in the project and bring in the perspective of an industrial end user of cloud solutions. The focus is on the work packages "Governance", "Data Spaces" and "Advanced Smart Services".

"Gaia-X's goal is to build a secure and trustworthy European data infrastructure, and we at OHB are part of it! Gaia-X forms the foundation for COOPERANTS, and at COOPERANTS the name says it all: today we are laying the foundation for us to be able to realize large space projects together in larger consortia and teams tomorrow," says Pascal Vermeer, coordinator of COOPERANTS activities at OHB. "This fits perfectly into our OHB digital strategy, but also fits in with Bremen as a space location, as we traditionally work very closely and across companies in projects in the "City of Space"."

Dr. Markus Junginger, CIO of the OHB Group, adds: "The German aerospace industry faces strong international competition – not only innovative products but also innovative processes will determine future competitiveness. With its tools and processes, COOPERANTS makes an essential contribution to enabling partners in future projects to work together faster, more transparently and more efficiently over the entire life cycle of a project or product."

The official starting signal for COOPERANTS was given on 11 February, the project duration is almost three years.