As EDAG aeromotive GmbH celebrates its tenth anniversary, it looks back on a great many successfully completed projects for the aerospace industry. This long-standing expertise means that the aeromotive specialists are always familiar with the latest developments in the sector. As part of the EDAG Group, the world's largest independent engineering service provider in the vehicle and production plant development sectors, the company can use synergies promising substantial benefits to the customer: The transfer of innovative automotive technologies to the aviation industry helps to meet the high quality requirements for developments in the aerospace industry.
One example of how future-oriented methods can be linked across different industries is model-based testing (MBT). This means the use of models for the automated generation of test cases and test case descriptions. The system independently evaluates possible test scenarios - depending on the previously defined factors. The simplified manageability in the generation of the test cases makes the the test process more cost-effective and the test quality less dependent on specific individuals. One thing that all model-based testing methods have in common is the derivation of test cases from a graphical presentation of the test idea: the test model. The representations of the scenarios being tested are entirely in graphical form – in an activity diagram using UML (Unified Modeling Language). From this, the system generates executable test cases, in this way representing an additional element for a fully automated test process.
"The aviation industry is a pioneer, and often the first to use innovative technologies," explains Ralf Rudolf, CEO of EDAG aeromotive GmbH. "Due to the great complexity of the end product, however, the development cycles are longer than they are in the automotive industry. Automated software testing now makes a significant contribution to increasing efficiency, as capacities are freed up and the pace of development is increased. EDAG aeromotive GmbH takes on various tasks in this process, including the creation and maintenance of complete test procedures (including test documentation), but also the performance of manual, semi-automated and fully automated test procedures. This expertise in the field of test automation is also integrated into the maintenance and modernization of scripted and GUI-based test procedures. By means of efficient regression testing and extensive bug tracking and reporting, EDAG aeromotive GmbH supports its customers in assuring the quality of the software tool.
What once began as a small division is now a separate company with almost 50 employees: EDAG aeromotive GmbH, an EDAG Group subsidiary, has been developing engineering solutions for the fields of aerospace and defense for a decade now. The Ingolstadt-based company's success story began in 2011: Originally a department for aerospace technology under the umbrella of the former BFFT Gesellschaft für Fahrzeugtechnik mbH, a handful of experts began working in this segment with the aim of taking innovative vehicle technologies and transferring them to the aerospace industry. Due to the fact that they possessed the ability to meet the high quality standards in aerospace engineering from the very outset, the department recorded steady growth until, in 2013, an independent company – BFFT aeromotive GmbH – was founded. In 2013, the company's founding year, it was named a StratX 2020 Supplier by customer and partner Airbus Defence & Space. This trust is the basis of the company's positive development.
Since 2014, BFFT aeromotive GmbH has been part of the EDAG Group. The change of name reinforces the fact that EDAG aeromotive GmbH belongs to the EDAG Group. Since March 2020, the Competence Center for Aerospace und Defense Technology at EDAG Engineering GmbH has been operating under the name EDAG aeromotive. As an integral part of the world's largest independent engineering service provider in vehicle and production plant development, EDAG aeromotive GmbH, along with its customers and partners, now has access to EDAG's global network. As long-standing experts in the field of aerospace & defense technology, EDAG aeromotive GmbH is always at the cutting edge of the latest developments in the industry. Our experts recognize new trends in software and hardware development in the aviation industry at an early stage, and, by quickly analyzing current market developments and developing market-ready solutions, transform the resulting opportunities into competitive advantages for our customers. EDAG aeromotive GmbH also supports its customers in the production, validation and development of system environments for testing, analysis and evaluation applications.