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PALFINGER ORGANIZED AUSTRIAS
LARGEST DIGITALIZATION HACKATHON
On 4th and 5th March 2017, the PALFINGER
Group hosted Austria’s largest hackathon.
More than 100 participants, grouped in 24
teams, competed for the chance to further
develop their ideas together with PALFINGER.
“The event was a huge success,” related Martin
Zehnder, PALFINGER AG’s Chief Operating
Officer in charge of digitalization. “Even though
the participants were fully focused on both
days, there was an amicable and cheerful
atmosphere. I am delighted with the concepts
that the participants have developed and
particularly impressed by the fact that they
were ready for presentation after only two
days.”
“Hackathon” is a portmanteau of the words
“hack” and “marathon” and describes a
forum for the joint development of innovative
concepts for hardware and software. The
PALFINGER hackathon, which was organized
in cooperation with the IT consulting firm Tieto,
took place in Vienna at the headquarters of
Microsoft Austria.
With more than 100 participants, this
hackathon was the largest to be held in Austria
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Oil & Gas Leaders • June 2017
to date – and its magnitude was also quite
impressive on an international scale. The
participants came from all over Austria and
also included teams from abroad. They were
free to present their ideas either in German or
English. While some participants had already
registered as teams, individual applicants
formed their teams on site. The hackathon
was attended by students from universities
of technology, universities of economics and
business, and universities of applied sciences,
as well as by young start- ups. During the two-
day event, support was provided by around
30 coaches, representing various areas of
the PALFINGER and Tieto companies, who
provided information and shared practical tips
with the participants.
PALFINGER HAD CHALLENGED THE
PARTICIPANTS TO COME UP WITH IDEAS
FOR FOUR SUBJECT AREAS:
• Virtual reality, augmented reality, mixed reality
• Semi-automated loading and unloading
• Digital assistance systems
• PALFINGER as a service