The “Masterclass AI”, our AI Navigator, is up and running and has begun.
12 member companies are taking part and their AI managers met on February 17, 2026 for the first workshop in presence in our port room.
After starting our AI journey last year and taking a closer look at AI projects already implemented and planned at individual member companies, 12 member companies are now embarking on specific tasks that will be reflected on in the group and implemented in a joint exchange of experiences. Our AI Navigator is scientifically supported and managed by the Institute for Production Systems (IPS) at the Technical University of Dortmund. Dr. Marius Syberg and Lukas Schulte took part in this workshop.
The first workshop was all about theory and basics.
AI as a structural topic includes many dimensions and we were given a comprehensive overview of where the technology is already being used, who uses AI applications, which problems are suitable for AI solutions in the first place, how Large Language Models (LLM) work in principle, which other AI processes can be used and why AI projects fail at different stages of development due to various challenges.
In addition, the importance of data and its quality, the roles and responsibilities that exist in the company for AI projects, the general acceptance of AI applications and the legal and governance aspects that need to be taken into account.
The first workshop was an afternoon full of knowledge, questions and discussions.
For the next workshops, all participants must define an individual task or question. The respective projects are then presented to the group, reflected on and considered together.
The result of our AI Navigator will be a practical guide developed by the IPS on the basis of all the workshops. This guide is intended to support those responsible for AI in our member companies in making a structured decision for an AI application and introducing it successfully in individual steps.
