Contact

DKE  German Commission for Electrical, Electronic & Information Technologies of DIN and VDE
Merianstraße 28
63069 Offenbach am Main
Germany

Phone: +49 69 6308-0
Fax: +49 69 6308-9863
E-Mail: dke@vde.com

Standardization 2020 programme

The digital transformation of standardization

Whether retailers, telecommunications providers, media or industrial companies: Institutions and companies worldwide and across all industries are undergoing a digital transformation process.

This process is also taking place in standardization. Both the information technology possibilities and the expectations of experts and users are changing.

The Standardization 2020 programme pursued the goal of making electrotechnical standardization future-proof in the digital transformation. Standardization processes have been made more digital through the introduction of new software. New product developments should make it easier to access the content of standards.

The programme was successfully completed following the development and implementation of various projects (see below). Standardization 2020 laid the foundation for a more far-reaching digital strategy.

Goals and motivation

  • Establish innovative standardization.
  • Rethink and adapt processes that affect the technical infrastructure and the organization of standardization from a digital perspective. The aim here is to test and introduce new technical infrastructures and technologies, to make processes more efficient and digital, and to make the organization as a whole more efficient and collaborative.
  • Develop new products and services in the standardization environment.
  • Make standardization results available to experts and users in a user-friendly, fast and high-quality manner.

Results

  • IEC General Meeting 2016 in Frankfurt with a Re-Invention Laboratory to initiate an international discussion on the future of standardization
  • Demo projects at the IEC General Meeting 2016 on the projects:
    - Online Standardization
    - Digital twin - machine-readable standard
    - Using virtual reality for committee meetings
  • Conception and publication of a standards information app (VDE VERLAG)
  • Optimization of DKE internal processes as an organizational prerequisite for the introduction of an XML-based content management system, centralization of the final preparation of documents
  • Introduction of a translation memory-based translation management system:
    1. In a proof-of-concept, more than 300 translation projects were carried out and evaluated with various translation service providers working with translation memory systems.
    2. After a successful proof-of-concept, the system was introduced for productive operation. Currently, about 70% of the translation is done with the new Translation Memory System (TMS).
    3. The TMS was connected to the content management system (CMS):
  • Introduction of a Content Management System
    1. Selection of a system provider for the introduction of an XML-based content management system
    2. Joint introduction and adaptation of the system for standardization
    3. Basis for the current development of new products for the norm users

Projects in the standardization 2020 programme

Digitaler Zwilling - Icon weiß auf blau

Digital Twin

The VDE DKE Digital Twin project carries the developments of Industry 4.0 and digitalization into standardization. For example, conformity to standards can be pre-checked using the digital model of a real product – its digital twin. To this end, machine-readable standards will facilitate the early and cost-effective identification of conformity problems, reveal causes for revision at an early stage and save time during testing.

Digitaler Zwilling - Icon weiß auf blau

The VDE DKE Digital Twin project carries the developments of Industry 4.0 and digitalization into standardization. For example, conformity to standards can be pre-checked using the digital model of a real product – its digital twin. To this end, machine-readable standards will facilitate the early and cost-effective identification of conformity problems, reveal causes for revision at an early stage and save time during testing.

Motivation

As part of the advancing digitalization of industry, products now increasingly have virtual versions of themselves that accompany them throughout their entire life cycle. This allows potential benefits such as predictive maintenance to be exploited during the utilization phase. Even during the development phase of a product, the engineering data can be checked continuously against simulation data based on expectations or experience from the real-time operating data of comparable products, as well as against the applicable standards and other regulations (e.g. ordinances).

Until now, the standards have not been machine-compatible, i.e. people must read them, understand them and enter them into development environments and (requirements) management systems. If the standards also have digital twins, the latest versions of these could be made directly available to the systems.

For this purpose, a format must be defined that reproduces all normative content, such as the requirements and recommendations, but also the significance of formulas and tables, precisely and unambiguously. Existing standards must be checked for their suitability for digital representation; new standards should now be created with machine comprehensibility taken into account. It is particularly important to support the intensification of interdisciplinary cooperation between IT experts, requirements managers and testing institutes.

Results

In a first step, DKE has developed the first part of the vision in cooperation with industry partners. It is involving a broad range of stakeholders – including (trade) visitors and experts from the fields of industry and politics – at prestigious events with the help of a demonstrator that is constantly being refined:

  • Hanover Fair 2016, 2017, 2018
  • CEBIT 2018 in Hanover
  • G20 Digital Ministers' Conference 2017 in Düsseldorf
  • IEC General Meeting 2016 in Frankfurt am Main
  • ISO General Assembly 2017 in Berlin
  • DKE Innovation Campus 2017 and 2018 in Hanau
  • VDE Tec Summit 2018 in Berlin

Following the collection of challenges and feedback from various stakeholders, the focus is now shifting to the preparation of the first machine-readable standard.

Recent developments

  • Existing standardization rules are being reviewed with regard to computational linguistics requirements, and any required adaptations are being addressed at the relevant points;
  • A checklist for formulating requirements in standards is being drawn up;
  • The demonstrator for the use of machine-readable standards with the aid of augmented reality is being refined.
Contact
Damian Czarny

Online Standardization

There are many process steps and media discontinuities in the current system for drafting standards. Documents are repeatedly sent, processed and forwarded by e-mail. Comment tables are created, sent, consolidated, re-sent, discussed and incorporated into other documents. The many process steps cause long processing and waiting periods. Is this the future of standardization?

There are many process steps and media discontinuities in the current system for drafting standards. Documents are repeatedly sent, processed and forwarded by e-mail. Comment tables are created, sent, consolidated, re-sent, discussed and incorporated into other documents. The many process steps cause long processing and waiting periods. Is this the future of standardization?

Motivation

Our goal is to create a system which results in faster standard production, continuous improvement of content, as well as national and international collaboration between experts. 

Standards should in future be written and commented on collaboratively – online. This will make the creation process simpler, faster and easier for everyone involved to use. This optimization will make it possible to develop and publish standards in a shorter space of time.

Results

In the pilot project, various committees worked on different documents. This work provided the basis for adding further detail and improvements to the list of requirements. Functions which are important for standardization were identified. The project and the findings were also presented at the IEC General Meeting 2016 and discussed with the IEC community.

The experts involved in the pilot project particularly appreciated the possibility of working jointly on documents, of viewing any changes, and the many opportunities for comments and discussion.

Recent developments

The latest findings are currently being introduced into European and international working groups, which should help speed up the roll-out.

Contact
Johannes Stein

Content Management System

We are changing the production of standards over to XML (Extensible Markup Language). This enables experts and standards users to use the content flexibly and with no media discontinuity. A prerequisite for the switchover is the introduction of an XML-based content management system.

We are changing the production of standards over to XML (Extensible Markup Language). This enables experts and standards users to use the content flexibly and with no media discontinuity. A prerequisite for the switchover is the introduction of an XML-based content management system.

Motivation

The aim is to establish a digital process with no media discontinuity for the creation and publication of standards and documents. The structured representation in XML allows format-independent editing of standard content and thus direct use in various new publication channels. The content is stored in modularized form in a content management system; it can then be enriched with specific metadata. This will enable new ways of presenting standards in the future, and give rise to new products and services for the users of standards.

Results

  • Specification of a target process for using a CMS
  • Selection of a CMS system provider

Recent developments

In 2017, the system was specified and implemented for use in standardization. Training and functional tests were carried out on a test system. First in the Production department, later also in DKE Technology.

Productive work began at the start of 2018; all processes are gradually being switched over to the new system.

Contact
Andrea Titt

Translation Management

We translate international and European standards from English into German for users of standards in Germany. In the translation management project, we use a database that stores translated and approved texts in both languages so that the content can be reused in similar or different contexts. This raises the efficiency of our extensive translation projects. The quality of the texts is improved through the use of consistent terminology.

We translate international and European standards from English into German for users of standards in Germany. In the translation management project, we use a database that stores translated and approved texts in both languages so that the content can be reused in similar or different contexts. This raises the efficiency of our extensive translation projects. The quality of the texts is improved through the use of consistent terminology.

Motivation

An important and labour-intensive standardization step in Germany is translating the English content prior to its publication as a German standard.

A translation management system is used which stores translated content in translation memories and then automatically retrieves it when the content is reused. This reduces the translation effort involved in cases where documents are re-used, e.g. from draft to finished standard, or when revising standards.

The aim is also to improve the quality of translation.

Results

Within the project the DKE collaborates with translation service providers that use a so-called translation management system (TMS), overseen by the DKE. The resulting translation memory compares sentences and sentence segments with existing and previously translated content.

Recent developments

  • Better TMS integration;
  • Further optimization of process flows;
  • Connection to the Content Management System already selected.
Contact
Martina Rischer

On the way to digital standardization

Kompass Digital Transformation
Sashkin - adobe.stock.com

In addition to politics, science and business, the digital transformation is also a forward-looking factor in standardization: digital norms are an essential part of its strategy for the future.

The DKE Standardization 2020 programme initiated at the IEC General Meeting in 2016 attracted worldwide attention. The results of this successful programme have been incorporated into the DKE digital strategy.

The vision: In order for norms to increasingly shape digital processes, norm contents must be machine-usable and interpretable. With the IDiS initiative - the network group for digital transformation at DKE - DKE is making a significant contribution to advancing the digitization of standardization and preparing the way for digital norms.

DKE digitalization of standards