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The heads of the CDU, CSU and SPD political parties unveiled their coalition agreement on Wednesday, April 9, 2025. With an eye to the German science, research and innovation system, the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft believes the agreement contains important measures that can help bolster Germany’s innovative strength and competitiveness. The President of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, Holger Hanselka, welcomes key points of the agreement, which is to be approved in the weeks to come.

Every year, some 5.6 million metric tons of plastic packaging winds up in household waste in Germany after being used just once. So far, less than a third of it can be recycled. Working in partnership with Hochschule Bremen — City University of Applied Sciences, the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Advanced Materials IFAM aims to transform this waste into high-quality 3D-printed products.

One attack, many responses — organizations use various solutions to ward off online attacks. The playbooks that outline countermeasures also vary in their specifics. In the CyberGuard project, Fraunhofer researchers are working on standardized playbooks to help companies optimize their security strategies and align them with each other. The playbooks are generated by large language models and support the automation of IT security.

Researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for High-Speed Dynamics, Ernst-Mach-Institut, EMI have developed a technology that makes it possible to reclaim continuous carbon fibers from composite materials — without diminishing material quality. High-power lasers are used for local degradation of the matrix of multi-layered fiber-reinforced plastics at high temperatures. This method offers not only ecological benefits but also considerable economic potential.

Nuclear fusion is a source of great hope for future energy security, with this field being explored in research reactors around the world. Accurately detecting their performance requires measurement systems that supply valid data even under extreme conditions. And the centerpiece of those systems are the bolometers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Microengineering and Microsystems IMM. Experts from the institute will be presenting their sophisticated sensors at the joint Fraunhofer booth (Hall 2, Booth B24) at this year’s Hannover Messe trade show from March 31 to April 4.

As part of a Fraunhofer flagship project, researchers are developing a digital ecosystem that collects data along the entire value chain for raw materials — with the goal of ensuring a sustainable and resilient supply. This makes it possible to reuse and recycle materials energy-efficiently and with as little loss as possible. At the Hannover Messe 2025, the research team will be presenting a demonstrator that showcases the many different options offered by this ecosystem.

To survive in global competition over the long term, companies have to be efficient, cost-effective and use resources wisely in their production operations. AI-based monitoring and control of production based on ECC4P offers medium-sized businesses customized solutions with comprehensive data security from a single source. The research team will be presenting their solutions at the joint Fraunhofer booth at this year’s Hannover Messe trade show.

In a landmark collaboration underscoring 60 years of diplomatic relations between Israel and Germany, the Israel Innovation Authority and Germany's Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der angewandten Forschung e.V. have signed a joint declaration to advance technological innovation. This partnership aims to foster cooperation in key technological sectors, promoting joint research and development initiatives that will benefit both nations.

To unlock the potential of digital solutions for uses in healthcare, the solutions need to be suitable for real-world practice and fit seamlessly into existing processes and workflows. That is the only way they can ease the burden on healthcare workers. At the same time, the field needs trustworthy AI systems that ensure secure exchanges of sensitive health data — across different sectors, without data protection and privacy risks and with full control for patients. Eight Fraunhofer institutes will be jointly presenting solutions to these challenges at the DMEA 2025 trade show, held in Berlin from April 8 to 10, 2025. The researchers will be present at Booth D-109 in Hall 2.2, where they will use exhibits and demonstrators to provide exciting glimpses of the health IT of the future and will also be available to talk with attendees.

The Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft will be represented at the world’s largest industrial trade show with a joint booth (March 31–April 4, Hall 2, Booth B24). Fraunhofer institutes, groups and alliances will be showcasing 38 exhibits featuring technological highlights from the fields of production, energy, artificial intelligence, and digital transformation. The exhibits all reflect Fraunhofer's mission — to promote applied and demand-driven innovations that support the competitiveness of the industrial and business sectors.