Steel City

The »Steel City« is an interactive model depicting the modern and fully automated steelworks of the future. It consists of over 200 semi-transparent acrylic models placed on a custom shaped 24-square-metre LED wall, which serves as a projection screen for demonstrating various Industry 4.0 scenarios by literally making the »Steel City« glow: when selecting one of 12 different scenarios and use-cases at the terminals, users can trigger animated sequences which visualize the processes and workflows of the future steel plant in a firework of light and color. Steel is melted and processed, data packets buzz through the virtual lines, problems and solutions are displayed schematically and contextually and are projected through the acrylic models on top.

Sometimes discreet, sometimes spectacular, a combination of state-of-the-art technology, innovative interaction design and light are joined together, allowing visitors to linger in this magical moment while the expertise and competence of Primetals Technologies can still be felt throughout the whole digital installation.

Furthermore, the visual experience is extended by a dense and professional layer of information, accessed through one of the four screens that serve as interactive terminals. The tangible key to unlock the experience is the keen combination of a screen and a highly innovative rotary knob including a haptical feedback engine, which originally has been developed for the automotive industry. The complex topics of steel making are delivered accurately and on point for the expert visitors of the METEC 2019 and merge almost seamlessly with the corresponding animations on the Steel City.