Secure funding now! The City of Aachen's EcoFonds is now open for applications. This funding program supports Aachen-based companies with financial grants for measures in the areas of energy efficiency, sustainable management, and renewable energies – both in the form of consulting and concrete investments. You can access the application portal directly here: https://serviceportal.aachen.de/suche/-/vr-bis-detail/dienstleistung/4456091/show Further information on the EcoFonds can be found here: https://www.aachen.de/wirtschaft-wissenschaft/unterstuetzung-fuer-unternehmen-und-start-ups/beratung-und-foerdermittel/#accordion-1-0 If you have any questions, please contact Pauline Andruschek: Pauline.Andruschek@Mail.Aachen.de 0241 432 7616 We look forward to having you join us – and of course, to your application!

Alternative mobility options in Aachen The city of Aachen, together with the Aachen Chamber of Industry and Commerce, has created a digital overview of sustainable mobility options. On the website www.aachen.de/gut-erreichbar, visitors can find information on parking garages, park-and-ride options, mobility apps and alternative means of transport. The aim is to enable a stress-free journey. There is also a digital flyer with important information that can be accessed via QR code.

Extended public transport operating data and bidirectional bus acceleration via WLAN The current priority of public transport in Aachen is achieved via analogue radio and fixed route points, which means that variable traffic conditions and construction sites are not sufficiently taken into account. In addition, drivers lack precise information on the optimal approach to traffic lights, which leads to unnecessary waiting times. A comprehensive quality analysis is also only possible to a limited extent due to incomplete operating data. The aim of the project is to achieve more efficient and flexible public transport priority through bidirectional WLAN communication. By providing drivers with traffic light switching times and speed profiles and collecting extended operating data, the attractiveness of public transport is increased. The data is also used for quality analyses and made available via a public platform. As part of the project, an existing test field in Aachen city centre is being technically upgraded. ASEAG test vehicles are being equipped with modern communication technology (802.11p / ETSI ITS G5), while a central server processes operating data and transmits relevant information to the Mobilithek. The data obtained are used to continuously optimize public transport priority.

The AixCAVE at the IT Center of RWTH Aachen University is a five-sided virtual reality installation for displaying immersive, virtual environments. It was set up and put into operation in August 2012 by Barco N.V. in collaboration with the Virtual Reality Group. With a floor area of more than 5 x 5 square meters and a height of over 3 meters, the system is not only one of the largest in the world, it also sets high standards in terms of projection quality: a combination of high-resolution projectors with high, uniform brightness, specially coated screens, a sophisticated mechanical design and active stereo technology creates a high degree of immersion and therefore presence in the virtual environment. The AixCAVE is used in particular by numerous institutes of RWTH Aachen University and their cooperation partners from industry and academia. The stereoscopic projection of the AixCAVE is generated using four digital projectors per side wall and eight projectors for the floor area. The arrangement of the projection surfaces enables a 360-degree all-round view, which creates an almost perfect immersion and still allows natural movements in the virtual environment. The 24 HD DLP projectors have a resolution of 1920 x 1200 pixels (combined, this means approximately 3840 x 2160 pixels per side wall and is therefore almost 4K) and therefore enable the reproduction of sharp, high-resolution images, which is particularly important for the interactive analysis of complex technical and physical processes. They are operated with a 24-node visualization cluster with 48 NVIDIA GPUs. Each node has two Intel Xeon Skylake CPUs (ten cores with 2.2 gigahertz) and 192 gigabytes of RAM. The nodes also have two NVIDIA Quadro P6000 (Pascal architecture) GPUs per slave node and one on the master node. Since 2015, an acoustic system has been put into operation in addition to the visualization, which is used for sound reinforcement of the user and enables a multimodal presentation of virtual environments. A total of 21 loudspeakers have been mounted on the ceiling for this purpose. Passive optimization of the room acoustics using large-area absorbers reduces the reverberation within the AixCAVE and shields additional sound from the outside area, e.g. to dampen fan noise from the projectors. Acoustic signals can be picked up at any time via 22 microphones embedded in the ceiling to enable communication or interaction. The operation and software expansion of the system is being implemented in collaboration with the Institute for Hearing Technology and Acoustics.

Their coatings offer strong barrier properties and are used in various industries such as food, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and chemicals. The EcoFonds enabled the creation of an environmental data toolkit, which can be used to record the environmental impact of critical processes and material flows. With the help of the environmental data kit, it was possible to demonstrate that the IonKraft coating process can significantly reduce the carbon footprint of packaging compared to existing solutions such as multi-material packaging.

Fecken-Kirfel is a family business from Aachen that is over 150 years old. With the help of competent engineering technology, Fecken-Kirfel offers cutting machines that are adapted to the respective needs of the customers and the constantly changing market conditions. The EcoFonds made it possible to replace outdated heating pumps with adjustable ones. Programmable thermostats were also installed. These measures have considerably reduced electricity consumption.

Hermetia Tech GmbH from Aachen develops and operates plants for the sustainable conversion of biowaste into high-quality insect protein using the black soldier fly. The company offers innovative solutions for waste recycling and contributes to reducing food waste and closing the protein gap in Europe. The EcoFunds received have made it possible to quantify the savings in greenhouse gases and other environmental benefits. These help companies to provide accurate information in their reporting.

BeeBag UG has dedicated itself to the task of designing natural and sustainable food packaging. With the help of upcycling, old hotel tablecloths can be turned into reusable food packaging in cooperation with Rurtalwerkstätten Lebenshilfe Düren GmbH. A beeswax coating ensures that the food stays fresh for longer. The EcoFonds enabled an analysis of the production structure to be carried out, which resulted in a better understanding of the company's resource consumption. This enables the customer to see transparently how resources are consumed per product and how many resources can be saved by using reusable alternatives.

Kochs. Küche BBQ Lifestyle is a brand in Aachen and the surrounding area. Since 1919, the family business has stood for first-class customer service and high quality. Today, the planning of individual kitchen and room solutions is just as much a part of the portfolio as the sale of special barbecues and outdoor kitchens. The range is accompanied by indoor and outdoor events at the company's headquarters at Grüner Weg 106 in Kwartier 106. With the support of the EcoFund, the company switched from vaporizer lamps to LEDs. This led to considerable energy savings.