The Institute for Aircraft Production Technology (IFPT) at Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH) was founded in 2010 and has been conducting application-oriented research in the field of production automation ever since. There are currently over 20 employees working in this field, who have access to over 450 square meters of hall and laboratory space with robotics and sensor technology equipment.

At the TUHH, the IFPT is one of the four institutes with a clear focus on the aviation sector and is an essential part of the research focus (FSP) on aviation technology. It is also involved in the FSP Maritime Systems and is in charge of the FSP for digital production and MRO through its spokesperson role. The IFPT is also on the founding board of the Scientific Society for Assembly, Handling and Industrial Robotics (WGMHI), in which 20 research institutions from German-speaking countries exchange expertise and coordinate their research and teaching.

One result of this cooperation is the MHI specialist colloquium, which has been held annually since 2016 under the leadership of the IFPT, among others. In addition, the institute is involved in the planning of the VDI industrial robotics conference of the “International Symposium on Robotics” and the “International Workshop on Aircraft System Technologies”.

The teaching focuses on production automation for mechanical engineers. The institute cooperates in joint projects with large aviation companies from production and MRO such as Airbus, Diehl and Lufthansa Technik, but also with SMEs from this sector. Equally important is the collaboration with industrial automation technology suppliers in the areas of robotics, sensors, programming/simulation and system integration. There is also intensive exchange with other university institutions, the Fraunhofer Society, the DLR and the Center for Applied Aviation Research. The form of cooperation ranges from the joint supervision of student work, to industrial R&D commissioned work, to multi-year funded SME and large collaborative projects.

If you are interested in working together, you will find a more detailed description of our interests and competencies as well as IFPT contact details on these pages.