Network

The Fraunhofer ICT Group is the largest provider of applied research in the field of information and communications technologies in Europe.

The Fraunhofer ICT Group covers a broad spectrum of technological fields through its member institutes, from the basics to practical solutions in informatics, mathematics, as well as information and communications technology, and it offers assistance to national and international IT providers and IT users alike, particularly SMEs.

Understanding the complex interdependencies within systems of innovation is critical for business, government, science, and society to succeed. For this reason, it is important to recognize change as soon as it emerges in any sector, market or technology. Only by comprehending such change, can we actively influence its long-term economical, technological, societal, governmental, and cultural impact. As an expert partner that uniquely combines socioeconomic and sociotechnical research, the Fraunhofer Group for Innovation Research provides stakeholders with orientation, facilitates them in positioning themselves, and assists in shaping the future in the innovation system.

Material research within the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft covers the entire value chain, from the development of new materials and the enhancement of existing ones, to industrial-scale manufacturing technology, characterization of material properties and evaluation of material behavior when employed in components and systems.
The group concentrates its expertise primarily on fields of activity that are important to the national economy: energy, health, mobility, information and communication technology, construction and housing. It promotes the use of novel, customized materials and components as a means of implementing innovative systems.

The Fraunhofer Group for Microelectronics is a service provider for R&D in the areas of microelectronics and smart systems integration. It combines the expertise of 11 Fraunhofer Institutes (plus five guest institutes) with a total of more than 3,000 employees. The Fraunhofer Group for Microelectronics carries out internationally networked top research in microelectronics / nanoelectronics, as well as in microsystem and communication technology.

The AAL Alliance works on system solutions for ambient assisted living and personal health. AAL stands for intelligent environments which adapt autonomously, proactively, and context sensitively to the needs and aims of users in order to support them in their daily lives. Intelligent environments are designed to allow especially older, disabled, and care-dependent persons to live self-determined lives in a private setting.

The Alliance takes a holistic approach that integrates various technologies, applications, and user groups.

The Fraunhofer alliance offers food chain management servi-ces for industrial partners, small and medium sized enterprises, as well as institutional investors on a national, European and global level.

The goals of the co-operation are new approaches in food safety, microelectronics, and logistics, which can be easily integrated in the entire food chain to en-sure a high value added at low cost.

Unique opportunities for new competencies and research development on both a technological and application oriented level emerge due to synergy of the involved disciplines.  

The Institutes that make up the Fraunhofer Lightweight Design Alliance bring together expertise in a number of fields: materials and material composites, joining techniques and manufacturing processes for lightweight construction, numerical and experimental simulation, and evaluation of components and systems.

The simulation of products and processes today plays a decisive role in all phases of the product life cycle, from model-based materials development and simulation of manufacturing processes to operating characteristics and product placement on the market.

The object of the alliance is to address institute-overarching issues and to represent the interests of the member institutes as a central point of contact for public-sector and industrial customers. In particular, the pooling of expertise from the I&C sector with materials and components know-how as well as with surface technology and production engineering promises to yield innovative results.

The Fraunhofer Space Alliance is a group of 13 institutes that carries out collaborative research in the field of aeronautics technologies. By pooling different skills, this alliance offers customers a unique spectrum of R&D services ranging from the development of individual components and prototype validation, to the implementation of entire systems.

The Fraunhofer Transport Alliance develops adequate technical and conceptual solutions for the public and industry partners and puts these solutions into practice by means of transport-related research.

It creates a new choice in R&D in transport through the bundling of the existing potential and a broad system competency.

Due to their participation in international research programs member institutes have worldwide contacts with companies and research organizations involved in the fields of transportation engineering and management.

HTA – Heterogeneous Technology Alliance: Fraunhofer-Verbund Mikroelektronik, Centre Suisse d'Electronique et de Microtechnique (CSEM), Laboratoire d'Electronique et Technologie de l'Information (Leti) and VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland - Micro- and Nano Technologies

School of Engineering of Universidad de Navarra (Tecnun) and associated Research Center CEIT in San Sebastián, Spain

This group has been formed by Fraunhofer Institutes as a means of coordinating their research activities and defining common goals in the area of "Defense and Security".