EVOLUTE project lead-partner WFG welcomed 7 visiting organizations, as well as cluster organizations, from Italy, Spain, Poland, Czech Republic and UK to attend the 3-day-ClusterXchange. The exchange, which took place in Heilbronn and Frankfurt (Germany), was held last June from the 27th to the 29th.

🔵The keyword for the three days has been hydrogen! Indeed, the mission aimed at understanding the opportunities this new technology offers in the automotive field. For the duration of the exchange, the participants had the unparalleled chance to engage with local companies, visit the national center for aerospace, and be captivated by the Baden-Württemberg's welcoming environment.

Day 1: Hydrogen Day & Iinovis visit

The first day started with the participation to the local Hydrogen Day. The session was all about solutions and practical applications to meet the current challenges using green hydrogen. Visitors could also exchange insightful ideas and perspectives with regional companies at the B2B marketplace. The site visit to Iinovis to see a hydrogen test bench and exchange thoughts with the local company was another highlight of the day. Thanks to the evening hike, hosts could taste typical wines and delicacies immersed in the peaceful nature surrounding Heilbronn’s hills 🍇🍷.

Day 2: DLR & Halmosi visit

On the second day, participants had the unique opportunity to visit DLR in Lampoldshausen, the German Aerospace Center 🚀, which conducts research and development activities in the fields of aeronautics, space, energy, transport, security and digitalization. This was followed by a site visit to Halmosi, a local company producing special machine and plant construction for manufacturers of mechanical components and process engineering systems. The evening was spent at the networking BBQ, hosted by WFG, which saw the participation of many local companies, as well as Hydrogen Roadshow participants.

Day 3: Stellantis - Opel plant visit & experts talk

The third day the group visited one of the industry players in the automotive sector, which uncovered the hydrogen strategy adopted and explained how they welcomed this paradigm shift as an opportunity. The Stellantis - Opel plant 🚗 in Rüsselsheim opened up its doors to one of its plants and guests could give an exclusive peek at its production system.

This business mission created the opportunity for knowledge exchange and strengthening the link between companies and clusters. Thanks to everyone who joined the exchange, Evolute partners are looking forward to the next one!

About EVOLUTE

EVOLUTE builds high performance clusters in the Automotive and Land Machinery Industry by strengthening the skills and deepening the know-how of 6 clusters in Europe. Cluster managers explore current market trends to gain a comprehensive vision of the future and develop encompassing individual strategies for further cluster excellence development. The project also endorse cross-cluster learning experiences and networking activities to explore collaborative business opportunities and synergies, both among clusters and public authorities in charge of cluster policies. In addition, partners support the implementation of the ClusterXChange scheme to facilitate international, sector, and cross-sector cooperation between clusters, SME and large organizations. The aim is to help companies and employees to be prepared for future challenges and foster innovation for world class products and services.

Project duration: 01.02.2022 - 31.01.2024

Evolute project was funded by the European Union’s COSME Programme. The content of this article represents the views of the authors only and is their sole responsibility. It cannot be considered to reflect the views of the European Commission and/or the Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (EASME) or any other body of the European Union. The European Commission and the Agency do not accept any responsibility for use that may be made of the information it contains.