The BaSys 4.0 project, carried out by Bosch Rexroth AG from 1 July 2016 to 30 June 2019, was funded by the German Ministry of Education and Research under grant 01IS16022D. Its main objective was to assess and improve the operational suitability—or “Readiness”—of industrial production systems. Within this context, Bosch Rexroth led Focus Theme 5, “Betriebliche Eignung – Readiness,” and produced two key deliverables: a Feedback Concept (Deliverable 5.1) and a set of recommendations for operational suitability (Deliverable 5.2). The Feedback Concept establishes a systematic method for translating the requirements of demonstrator applications into actionable tasks, while the recommendations provide a framework for technology‑level maturity assessment.
The technical work was organised around three parallel Platform Challenges—plant‑level, device‑level, and demonstrator/application studies—each subdivided into work packages that were tackled iteratively. Six six‑month iterations were executed, allowing agile experimentation and continuous integration of lessons learned into subsequent cycles. Five cross‑cutting focus topics guided the overall coordination, ensuring that structural, functional, and non‑functional requirements were addressed early and consistently.
Two demonstrators were deployed at the Homburg plant to validate the concepts under real industrial conditions. The Plug‑and‑Produce demonstrator shows how new manufacturing equipment (machines, tools, devices) can be integrated into existing production flows with minimal engineering effort and configuration overhead. By automating the integration and parameterisation process, the demonstrator reduces the time and cost required to add new product variants or to re‑configure existing lines. The Dynamic Takt demonstrator, on the other hand, continuously evaluates all influencing factors of the production process and computes an optimal takt in real time. This capability enables the plant to adapt instantly to changes in demand, machine availability, or material supply, thereby improving throughput and reducing idle time.
Although the report does not provide explicit numerical performance figures, the demonstrators are described as achieving real‑time optimisation of workflows and a significant reduction in engineering and configuration effort. The project’s methodology—combining agile iteration, demonstrator‑based validation, and a maturity assessment framework—provides a repeatable approach for other manufacturers to assess and enhance their production readiness.
Collaboration extended beyond Bosch Rexroth to other stakeholders involved in the BaSys 4.0 consortium, although specific partner organisations are not listed in the report. The project’s structure, with its clear division of focus themes, platform challenges, and demonstrator studies, facilitated coordinated effort across these partners. The German Ministry of Education and Research’s support underlines the project’s alignment with national priorities for flexible, digitally enabled production systems that strengthen the competitiveness of German manufacturing. The outcomes of BaSys 4.0, particularly the Plug‑and‑Produce and Dynamic Takt demonstrators, demonstrate how modern information and communication technologies can be harnessed to create adaptive production environments that respond swiftly to external influences, thereby contributing to the long‑term sustainability of industrial sites in Germany.