On 27.08.2025, the first SCALE-MX workshop for SMEs "Getting data, using AI: How to stay competitive through data ecosystems" at the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI) Kaiserslautern. SCALE-MX, represented by the consortium partners WIK and DIHK Service GmbH, organized the event together with the Mittelstand-Digital Zentrum (MDZ) Kaiserslautern and the SmartFactory KL technology initiative and the SmartFactory KL technology initiative.

The aim of the workshop was to provide participants with a basic understanding of industrial data ecosystems and their added value. To this end, our consortium partner, WIK, gave a practical introduction to the basics of data room technology and data economics.

In his keynote speech "How companies can remain competitive through data ecosystems and implement AI solutions", Stephan Hamm from SmartFactory KL provided insights into the industry of the future with the help of artificial intelligence. Using the example of a demonstrator, the Phuket production island, SmartFactory showed how the "digital twin" as a central element enables adaptive, flexible and efficient production, in this case the production of a truck.

WIK then presented the requirements and concrete first steps for connecting to a data room for companies in a clear presentation and discussed these with the workshop participants.

In the group work that followed, two groups went into more detail on the basics, benefits and challenges of the Manufacturing-X topics of "sustainability" and "digital twin", with company-specific experiences and challenges also being discussed.

At the end, the checklist "Is my company fit for data ecosystems?" developed by SCALE-MX was presented and discussed. The checklist provides companies with a structured overview of the degree of digitization of their data and the precautions that need to be taken before connecting to a data room.