Press Releases 2018

The Innovation Indicator 2018, compiled for the Federation of German Industries (BDI) by Fraunhofer ISI together with the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW), ranks Germany in fourth place as in 2017. However, the international innovation ranking indicates that the gap has lengthened to the leading countries of Singapore, Switzerland and Belgium. The openness indicator, which was determined for the first time, certifies that the German innovation system has the highest degree of openness among the world’s largest economies.

In its energy storage monitoring study 2018, Fraunhofer ISI examines which are the leading countries in battery technologies for electric mobility and which is the lead supplier and the lead market. The study shows that Germany must invest quickly and massively in production-related research and development and in developing human capital if it wants to play a role in the battery industry in the long term.

The German health care system is considered one of the best worldwide, but is also characterized by conflicts of interests and distribution that can hinder social innovations. To remove these obstacles, an evaluation tool has been developed at Fraunhofer ISI on behalf of the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, which exposes conflicting objectives and makes the often heterogeneous effects of innovations in the health system transparent and able to be discussed.

The number of electric vehicles is rising steadily. Because these are powered electrically, they have an impact on the entire electricity system and therefore on electricity prices as well. Fraunhofer ISI has calculated that, although investments in power grids will probably be needed, overall the electricity prices for households could fall if large numbers of electric vehicles drive on German roads.

In a new study, Fraunhofer ISI together with the IREES reviewed the evaluation framework for electricity access´ conditions in developing and emerging countries, which is applied for monitoring the attainment of the sustainable development goals of the United Nations. The developed approach includes the productive use of electricity, which plays a central role for economic development, as well as for the achievement of climate change goals.

How can road freight transport contribute to climate protection in the future? This question is addressed in a joint paper of Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research ISI, the Oeko-Institut and ifeu – Institute for Energy and Environmental Research Heidelberg.

How and where will we live, what will we eat in the future in an economy no longer based on fossil resources? Experts from industry and research discussed this with young people at the second BioKompass future dialog on 18 September in Senckenberg Natural History Museum in Frankfurt. The results were captured as BioKompass future visions that describe possible variants of daily life in a bioeconomy in 2040.

The Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research ISI has projected the nationwide electricity consumption in Germany for the years 2019 to 2023 within the scope of the EEG medium-term forecast, and analyzed the EEG surcharge payments. Working together with the House of Energy Markets and Finance at the University of Duisburg-Essen, Fraunhofer ISI identified a moderate rise in electricity self-sufficiency, among other things. The study on behalf of the German Transmission Network Operators is a key reference for the development of distributed electricity self-sufficiency in Germany.

The Fraunhofer ISI is expanding its management team with the appointment of Prof. Jakob Edler. As a professor of innovation policy and strategy he has in recent years led the prestigious Manchester Institute of Innovation Research. Prof. Edler will join Prof. Marion Weissenberger-Eibl and Prof. Mario Ragwitz on the Fraunhofer ISI management team, contributing his expertise in the governance and policy of international research and innovation initiatives.

Transporting more freight by rail is a critical factor in protecting the climate, but the volume of freight transported by rail is actually declining in the majority of EU countries. Fraunhofer ISI examined the political and economic changes needed to shift more freight onto rails.