The EASA (European Aviation Safety Agency) organized an online workshop on 23 February 2022 to present iConspicuity. The iConspicuity roadmap, i.e. the further integrative approach with manned and unmanned air traffic, was also defined there.

What exactly is iConspicuity?

iConspicuity stands for increased conspicuity, which, translated into German, means increased conspicuousness. It refers to the state of being clearly recognizable and informed.

The iConspicuity includes the most important information for the pilot of the various drones. In addition to general flight information and information on the weather, this explicitly describes the position of other flying objects in the vicinity. This information provides the remote pilot with particularly good support before and during the flight.

Why is iConspicuity being introduced?

In the past 10 years, there have been many collisions and accidents in uncontrolled air traffic. These were mainly small flying objects, resulting in a tragic 137 fatalities (in the 2009-2019 recording period). In addition, a further 60 collisions were fatal.

In order to reduce these figures, pilots should be better informed in future. The iConspicuity is designed to help with this by enabling other flight participants to be recognized more clearly. The pilot is thus optimally prepared for the flight and possible dangerous situations in the vicinity. This enables much safer air traffic.

Who is affected by the new procedure?

EASA envisages general air traffic (GA community), helicopter traffic (rotorcraft community) and other users participating in previously uncontrolled traffic for the measures under the idea of "iConspicuity". Furthermore, from January 2023, all unmanned aircraft operating in U-Space are to be made electronically visible and supported by a U-Space Service Provider (USSP).

The Bremen-based IT service provider b.r.m. is preparing to become a USSP. The company is using its GDPR-compliant green IT data center for this purpose. In addition, employees Markus Rossol and Maximilian Strauß have specialized in the area of current and future drone traffic. They will be happy to answer any questions you may have.

The IHK Examination Board of the Bremen Chamber of Industry and Commerce sets the examinations in training and further education. But what exactly is it, what tasks do the examiners have and how do you become an examiner?

IHK Examination Board

The Chamber of Industry and Commerce for Bremen and Bremerhaven is responsible for the organization, supervision and assessment of final examinations in the training and further education of the Chamber of Industry and Commerce professions. This involves not only theoretical but also practical parts of the training, which must be completed both orally and in writing.

There are examination boards for the various training courses. The members of the IHK examination board are not members of the Chamber of Industry and Commerce. However, new members are sought not only as examiners, but also as additional experts or as replacements for examiners who are leaving.

Tasks of an auditor

The tasks of an examiner are carried out together with a team of vocational school teachers, employer and employee representatives. The tasks include creating, correcting and assessing examination tasks and papers. In addition, work samples, presentations and documentation are assessed.

How do you become an examiner on the IHK Examination Board?

In order to be considered for appointment to an examination board, a number of requirements must be met. Sufficient professional expertise and a pedagogical flair are fundamental for the examiner. A certain degree of judgment and a sense of responsibility should also be present. The examiner must not be older than 65 years of age, but should have a mature personality.

The owner and managing director of Bremen-based IT service provider b.r.m., Harald Rossol, has been appointed to the examination board by the Bremen Chamber of Commerce. With his excellent experience in this industry, Mr. Rossol will serve on the examination board for IT specialists for application development until August 2024.

The association for unmanned aerial systems, UAV DACH e.V., met at the AERO 2022 in Friedrichshafen. After the general meeting, we went to the Dornier Museum for a barbecue evening. There was time to exchange new ideas on unmanned aviation in a great atmosphere. b.r.m. was represented by Mr. Harald Rossol, Maximilian Strauß and Markus Rossol. We have captured a few impressions here. We would like to take this opportunity to draw your attention to the next major event organized by UAV DACH e.V. The European Drone Forum

With its associations and companies such as AVIASPACE BREMEN e.V., the state of Bremen is a world leader in aerospace. This is ensured by leading industrial companies and their suppliers, among others.

AVIASPACE BREMEN e.V. - an aviation cluster

AVIASPACE BREMEN e.V. is a network and representative for manufacturers of aerospace components. It has been commissioned by the Senator for Economics, Labor and Europe to implement aerospace strategies in the federal state of Bremen. The association's challenge is to strengthen and further develop the aerospace industry together with other important sectors such as the automotive industry and wind energy.

Main topics AVIASPACE BREMEN e.V.

However, the Bremen cluster has also addressed essential topics such as the formation of networks, technology transfer and economic growth. In addition, the association promotes young entrepreneurs and start-ups by clarifying the organizational and technical networking of end producers, suppliers or services. Furthermore, it provides access and contacts to scientific institutions at the various stages of the product cycle. This also applies to the competence areas of material development, high lift, construction, manufacturing technology, earth observation and robotics.

What does b.r.m. have to do with it?

Thanks to the new "Hatten-UAS" airfield for unmanned aerial systems at Oldenburg-Hatten EDWH airfield, b.r.m. has already prepared itself for future air traffic. In the course of this, the employees Markus Rossol and Maximilian Strauß have specialized in this as UAS Consultant and Senior Aerotechnical Consultant.

Bremen-based IT service provider b.r.m. is a new member of the association and is joining the cluster strategy. Networking is an important element in the development of new tasks and innovations.

It's easy to lose track of the different types of drones. Here are the three main categories.

To ensure sustainable logistics, emission-free solutions such as bike couriers must be found. These are being used more and more frequently in major cities due to the high volume of road traffic and for the sake of the environment.

For drone enthusiasts, the annual AERO in Friedrichshafen is the place to go.

Many companies and organizations had significant problems not only due to the coronavirus pandemic, but also in terms of IT security. 2021 was not a good year for IT security, as it revealed significant security gaps and cyber attacks on companies rose sharply, our 2021 review:

Development of cybercrime

In 2021, there was a significant increase in cyberattacks on companies and organizations. This trend has increased significantly since 2020. According to a study by the website Check Point Research, the number of cyberattacks on organizations of all kinds increased by 40%.

The pandemic created enormous time pressure for IT service providers due to the need to make work more flexible. In addition, hacker attacks occurred much more frequently and became increasingly sophisticated. Hackers were often faster than the defenses against them. One massive problem in IT security was the so-called zero day.

Zero-day gap as a major threat

IT systems are constantly evolving and software is therefore usually quickly outdated. New patches bring the devices up to date and close old security gaps.

However, this so-called zero-day included four security flaws in Microsoft Exchange servers, which were inadvertently implemented by the developers due to faulty programming code. This gave the hacker group Hafnium the opportunity to infiltrate and scan thousands of Exchange servers. However, as it has not yet been possible to clarify whether a backdoor was installed, the consequences for the future cannot yet be determined.

What can we learn from this?

You cannot prepare for a zero day, as they can occur anywhere and undetected. However, you can comply with data protection rules in accordance with the GDPR. There are two versions of this: privacy by design and privacy by default. The latter describes settings that are data protection-friendly by default. Privacy by design describes the data protection processes that are best complied with if they have already been technically integrated during development. A double locked door, so to speak.

However, this requires a reliable IT security policy. This relies not only on progressive technology, but also on an appropriate firewall. IT security is defined by continuous updates and qualitative combating of security gaps.

Review 2021: IT security is a very dominant topic in the IT industry and is associated with a constant striving for quality. In addition to process digitization, increasing the speed of data management and developing digital products is also a challenge for future IT.

Post-growth & green IT - b.r.m. in Thega's resource efficiency event series. As part of the "Resource Efficiency Qualification", Thega from Thuringia offers further training for consultants. This is carried out with the support of the Thuringian Ministry of the Environment's State Initiative for Resource Conservation. In what is now the third block of the series, practical examples will be discussed and we are particularly pleased that Mr. Harald Rossol will be able to present b.r.m. and the award-winning green IT data center.

Qualification for resource efficiency through the Thega

SMEs can receive funding for resource efficiency measures through the Thuringian GREEN Invest funding program. The consultancy itself is also supported. Thega's series of events focuses on the continuous training of experts in the field of resource efficiency. In particular, the methods and instruments for analyzing and increasing resource efficiency in production processes are addressed. Theory and practice will be discussed over a total of 6 days. On 27.04.2022, various practical examples of resource efficiency will be presented, including b.r.m.'s green IT data center.

Energy and resource efficiency in data centers - Green IT

The environment and IT must not and should not be thought of separately. The energy costs of IT systems are still not recorded separately and therefore cannot be optimized.

The focus of new IT systems is on energy efficiency while maintaining high quality and security. We have developed a cost-effective operating concept that can save more than 60% energy - using standard market software and server components.

b.r.m. is a pioneer in green IT and helped develop the 'Blue Angel' certificate for energy-efficient data centers in collaboration with the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety and the German Federal Environment Agency. Our energy-efficient data center has been certified for quality, environment and occupational safety with its integrated management system according to 'ecostep' since 2005. In the same breath, the association blühfläche.de e.V. should also be mentioned, which is committed to the preservation and development of flowering areas and strips in northern Germany.

Post-growth leads to sustainable companies

These and other companies are synonymous with the efficient use of resources and their careful handling under the term post-growth. The fact that post-growth & green IT is also represented by b.r.m. at the Thega series of events on resource efficiency is naturally a particular pleasure for us. The basic idea behind the alternative economic model "post-growth economy" is that the economy should also function without growth. The current competition in the economy, which is all about faster, higher and further, is depleting natural resources.

As early as 1972, the Club of Rome warned of the consequences of unchecked economic growth. The path to post-growth can begin with small steps. For example, reducing output can lead to an improvement in quality. Certain products and services should be offered less, but in higher quality. 

This topic was also recently discussed in Impulse magazine, in whose article. b.r.m. is also cited as an example. Interested readers can find these articles here.

Local partner in Bremen - the Havana Lounge

Every successful company in the modern digitalized world is networked. This not only applies to networking within a company through IT infrastructure or networking across the globe through remote work. Networking with competent suppliers and manufacturers is also important.

As an IT service provider in Bremen, b.r.m. therefore relies on the leading representatives of the respective industry in all areas in order to be able to meet all the challenges of today and tomorrow.

One of these partners is the Havana Lounge right in the heart of Bremen. Harald Rossol from b.r.m. is a long-standing member. In our short blog post, we provide an overview of our partner.

What is the Havana Lounge?

The Havanna Lounge Bremen is a business and social club that opened its doors in the Hanseatic city back in 2001. With over 800 members, and rising, the Havanna Lounge is one of the largest private social clubs. Managing Director Olaf Janotta describes the philosophy on the Havanna Lounge website as follows:

"The activities of the Havana Lounge are intended to support exchange and contact between members. This should lead to new developments for Bremen and the northwest, with the aim of positively influencing our region."

What is club life like at the Havana Lounge in Bremen?

Club life at the Havana Lounge impresses with its versatility. With over 100 events a year, there is something for everyone, and it doesn't just start with an annual reception at New Year. A variety of lectures and meet-ups on a wide range of social and economic topics invite you to get involved in areas that were previously "under" your own radar. In addition to the organized events, the premises are also open for company events.

The in-house kitchen with top chefs, combined with discreet service, ensures that every wish is catered for. Local patriots and Werder fans have their own VIP lounge in the Weser Stadium.

In addition, members of the Havana Lounge Bremen have access to the largest club network in the world, the International Associate Clubs (IAC), and thus access to well over 200 partner clubs worldwide.

b.r.m. is happy to have the Havanna Lounge as a partner in Bremen and the Christmas party will also be celebrated in the club in the traditional way. The next Havanna Lounge magazine will be published for members next May, and b.r.m. will of course be featured on page 1.

Interested readers can of course take a closer look at the Havana Lounge website.