Event Recap: Siemens Empowers Education and Startups at Realize LIVE Americas 2023
This June, Siemens Digital Industries Software hosted its annual flagship event for innovation and collaboration, Realize LIVE Americas in Las Vegas. Over 1,100 customers participated in 250 sessions throughout the event. The Siemens Empower Education and Startups (SEES) team was present at Realize LIVE showcasing firsthand how to empower education and startups with resources and technology needed to bridge the gap between industry and academia.
Read on to learn more about everything the SEES team was up to during Realize LIVE including the first-ever Student Sustainability Design Hack Challenge, Siemens Xcelerator for Startups, the Innovation Hub, and Digital Badging. Check out the Realize LIVE recap video here.
Student Sustainability Design Hack
This year, the SEES team organized the first 48-hour Student Sustainability Design Hack Challenge sponsored by KYBURZ Switzerland AG, an innovative and sustainability-focused electric vehicle company. Students were tasked with optimizing the design of a chassis component for sustainability and manufacturability. During the challenge, the students used Siemens NX software, which is included in the Siemens Xcelerator business platform of software, hardware, and services.
Four teams participated in the hack; the Sustainable Spartans and the Super Spartans teams from Michigan State University, Team Seneca from Seneca Polytechnic College and Team UCI from University of California – Irvine. The teams from Michigan State and Seneca College also had faculty members attend Realize LIVE on-site for support.
All the student teams did a fantastic job utilizing Siemens NX in their designs. They were able to showcase their skills and received guidance from recent college graduates participating in the Genesis Program. The winner of the hack was the Super Spartans team from Michigan State (pictured below). The Super Spartans won a variety of prizes, including a Design Hack Champion digital badge, an Oculus Quest headset and the opportunity to implement their design with Siemens and KYBURZ.
Siemens Xcelerator for Startups: A solution for every startup
The cutting-edge Siemens Xcelerator for Startups program equips startups with tools and resources that help them shift from digitalization to realization. With access to Siemens tools such as Solid Edge for Startups, the PADS Pro Startup Program, the Mendix ISV Startup Program and more, Siemens offers a unique solution for every startup.
Realize LIVE Americas participants were able to learn more about the Siemens Xcelerator for Startups from representatives in the SEES and Design Hack spaces. Retrocausal, a graduate of the Siemens Frontier Program and current Dynamo partner, hosted a booth at Realize LIVE Solution Center. Retrocausal is the industry leader in intelligence augmentation systems that help manufacturing workers improve daily processes and efficiency. Their mission is to empower low-skilled workers to take on higher-skilled work. Retrocausal utilizes Siemens Opcenter and Process Simulate to help their clients streamline manual assembly processes. Retrocausal was able to demonstrate this solution for attendees in real-time at Realize LIVE.
Retrocausal was just one of the many partners at Realize LIVE sharing how Siemens technology improved their workplace experiences. To learn more about the offerings available with Siemens Xcelerator for Startups, check out our blog.
Innovation Hub: Share your experience
The SEES Team participated in the Innovation Hub at Realize LIVE, a space that offered clients, partners and customers the opportunity to share their thoughts and experience with Siemens products, services and digital experiences. Participants took 15-20 minutes to answer questions about specific research goals for Siemens. We had the opportunity to learn more from our customers about their experiences with the hiring process and hiring retention. Participants in the manufacturing space shared their challenges in hiring talent with a specific skill set. However, they were excited to learn about the Siemens Digital Badge program and that they can utilize LinkedIn to find individuals with specific badges.
Digital Badging: Showcase your knowledge
Siemens’ digital badges are part of a larger micro-credentialing ecosystem that serves as digital proof of a learning outcome or experience, or a representation of the attainment of a certification. Earners can display, access or verify their badges entirely online, and then share their digital badge on social media to amplify their personal brand.
The SEES team has created digital badges for Siemens sponsored learning, higher ed courses, and online Coursera learning. Our Siemens Empowers Education digital badges are powered by Credly, which can be used by employers to find potential talent and match skills with job requirements.
At Realize LIVE, the SEES team participated in the event scavenger hunt. Attendees earned points by using LinkedIn to find talent with Siemens digital badges. They visited the Siemens Software Credly Collection, selected a Siemens Empowers Education Badge and searched for the badge (using quotation marks) in LinkedIn. This allowed attendees to see who earned the badge and who shared their accomplishments on the platform.
Learn More
The Realize LIVE excitement isn’t over yet. Join us in Munich, Germany from July 10 – 12, 2023 for Realize LIVE Europe and virtually on July 19, 2023 for Realize LIVE Japan. And a special thank you to KYBURZ Switzerland AG for sponsoring the Student Sustainability Design Hack. To learn more about all that the SEES team is doing to empower educators, students and startups and support the next generation of digital talent, check out the Academic and Startups blog and podcast, Innovation in the Classroom.
