Great products on show at DDW, but what do they all mean for the world around us with its rapid pace of change? This question will be running through the minds of DDW visitors, believes Lucas Asselbergs (Project leader of Drivers of Change) and he sees the Drivers of Change exhibition as providing an answer.

“The range of things we can use data to manipulate is ever increasing in fields like healthcare, self-guiding mobility and photonics. The scale we are doing this at is so small it's out of sight so the trick for us is to show it in some way. We are already approaching the limits of, say, sustainability, and at TU/e we are working on solutions we can put forward. That's what we'll be showing. So what we'll be explaining about photonics, for example, is that in future it will provide an energy-friendly way of assisting in the field of electronics, and we'll be using film footage to convey our message.”

Strijp-T

The Drivers of Change exhibition can be seen at a new location, machine hall T-Q6 at Strijp-T. In the knowledge that this is not yet a DDW hotspot, a lot of effort has gone into creating an eye-catcher that has the added benefit of reducing the distance for pedestrians to a couple of hundred meters. “Over the section of the ring road named Beukenlaan a temporary bridge will be built. You can already see it from the Klok building,” says project coordinator Jeannette Schoumacher.

Asselbergs lists advantages over the Klok building, where from 2014 until last year TU/e hosted the Mind the Step exhibition in collaboration with 4TU. “We have a lot more space at Strijp-T. It is a light-filled, sleekly designed building. It's a space that offers the peace and quiet to tell a story well. You can see more than just the shoulders of the person in front of you. For exhibitors this creates networking opportunities, and visitors can ask their questions. The exhibition has been designed in such a way that anyone, including ordinary Eindhoven residents, can grasp the essence without having a science degree.”

Free

“Another major advantage is that people without an unlimited access ticket can get in; the exhibition is absolutely free. So now schools have the chance to pay us a visit. And, lastly, this huge space means we can now show all the research projects that are relevant. Last year we had four themes and robotics, for example, didn't fit in. Now we can add it.” The same applies to the artificial womb, which has undergone further development since the symposium in April, an intelligent rollator, a futuristic heating boiler, new construction materials such as fungi, and a great deal more.

From the roof terrace of building Q6, the Klok building can be seen. Here, as in previous years, the Design United exhibition will be held. This showcases the work of the four TUs produced on their industrial design programs. Wageningen is exhibiting a wearable dress made of plastic soup.