Main areas of research

Applied Social Sciences and Non Profit Management (Research Center Linz)

This field aims to develop new concepts and differentiated services in the field of social work, in particular evaluation projects as well as the development of new methods and instruments for social work. There is an additional focus on the organisational and economic optimization of social and health services as well as the scientific accompaniment of the progressive implementation of effectiveness oriented administration.

Automated Control Engineering and Simulation (Research Center Wels)

Research in this area aims to develop practice relevant automatisation solutions for complex key technologies, for example in energy and production plants, buildings but also in transport and logistics. The modelling of mechatronics systems by simulation and the corresponding development of modern regulation and control strategies for industrial applications have priority.

Food Technology and Nutrition (Research Center Wels)

In the key field of bio-energy, the University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria researches the development of production processes for advanced bio-fuels (bio-ethanol from straw), and the optimization of biogas processes as well as developing integrated bio-refinery concepts. In the field of food technology, the focus is on the study of plant constituents and the effects on a molecular level. The goal is to develop so-called functional foods on the basis of these findings.

Accounting, Controlling and Financial Management (Research Center Steyr)

Forward-looking financial management is essential in order to ensure sustainable economic growth.  Research in the field of controlling focuses on the core topics of strategic planning, budgeting, reporting and performance measurement, cost management, capital budgeting. In the field of accounting, the focus is on the international financial reporting standards IFRS. Financial management includes perspectives from sustainability and risk management and researches new trends such as impact investing or crowdfunding. Financial leadership integrates the areas mentioned and highlights behavioural aspects such as dealing with irrationality when it comes to economic decision making and managing people. 

 

Digital Business (Research Center Steyr)

This area of research is concerned with the changes and resulting requirements in our “digital age” - issues which have emerged due to the wide use of the internet and other new technologies in business and society. The themes are, for instance, the development, adaptation and use of innovative business models, formulation of concepts and tools for B2B-integration as well as modifications concerning marketing (e.g. social media marketing) and the implementation of new technologies as innovative management tools.

Energy and the Environment (Research Center Wels)

Several research teams are dedicated to a broad subject area within the fields of eco-energy and environmental technology: solar power, hydrogen technology, energy efficient building, purification of emission gases, remnant recycling, environmental analysis and process engineering. More than 15 laboratories provide an excellent infrastructure with analysis appliances, pilot plants and simulation tools.

Fields of competence in Management (Research Center Steyr)

Alongside the three main areas of R&D at the School of Management, researchers focus on the following fields of competence:

Information and Communication Systems (Research Center Hagenberg)

Innovative information and communication systems for application in many different fields are researched and developed in Hagenberg. Smart environments and mobile enterprise systems integrate mobile communications, navigation, tracking and tracing and make it possible to develop applications for specific contexts. Embedded systems combine hardware and software to make up to the minute applications such as for example near field communication (NFC)-technology, which makes data transfer over short distances possible. Researchers also work on the development of IT-systems that are secure against malware and similar threats.

Innovation and Technology Management (Research Center Wels)

The focus of this interdisciplinary R&D subject is on the further development and application of methods and tools for boosting the performance of the early innovation phases at the front of innovation processes. In particular, the methods of rapid and virtual prototyping and state of the art infrastructure are used here.

Logistics Management and Corporate Networks - LOGISTIKUM (Research Center Steyr)

The Logistikum was established in 2006. As far as logistics management and corporate networks are concerned the Logistikum has become the biggest Austrian research and development institution over the years. According to the maxim “educate, research and apply” the Logistikum successfully bridges the gap between the scientific approach to logistics problems and the practical aspects of running a business. Therefore the overall research focus of the three competence sectors logistics management, supply chain management and traffic and transport logistics is to sustainably create, manage and optimize the intra as well as the inter-company exchange of both resources and information.

Materials and Production Engineering (Research Center Wels)

The optimized and material-specific processing of polymers and metals is central to this research area. In the field of plastics engineering the University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria places its focus on the tribological and rheological interactions in plastic processing plants and tools. In the field of metallurgy the improvement of the characteristics of tool steels and modern steels for lightweight construction form is the focus of R&D activities.

Measuring and Testing Technology (Research Center Wels)

The focus of this R&D area is on the non-destructive testing of materials and components. The processes, 3D x-ray computer tomography (CT) and active thermography play a central role here. They make it possible to recognize defects inside an object and to draw conclusions about a material’s properties. Two modern computerized tomography scanners with differing energy and resolution as well as the latest infrared technology are available at the University of Applied Sciences Austria Campus Wels.

Media and Knowledge Technologies (Research Center Hagenberg)

Researchers in this field work intensively on the development of natural interactive environments for human beings and computers, communication and perception processes, augmented and mixed reality, visualisation possibilities and the design of new media interfaces. Additionally, new learning and working environments as well as new didactic methods for tertiary education and organisational learning are realized.

Medical Technology (Research Center Linz)

Researchers in this field look into new and integrated technologies for medical appliances for diagnosis, rehabilitation and care. In the field of biomechanics, the focus is on subjects like the 3D motion measurement of the musculoskeletal system or the video based measurement of eye movements. In the field of biomedical microscopy, our state of the art infrastructure is used to develop new techniques and methods for concomitant, supportive diagnostics.

Production and Operations Management (Research Center Steyr)

This field of research refers to the efficient design and organization of production processes. It concerns, among other things, the possibility of reducing inventory and lead time as well as increasing service level. Different existing methods and newly developed concepts for production planning and control are compared and evaluated. The implementation of production plans on the operational level is influenced by work schedules, machine availability and variances in support processes. These effects have a negative impact on the logistical key figures such as inventory levels, production lead times, service level and the utilization of resources. The analyses of the relationship between external as well as internal effects of the production system and the logistical key figures contribute to the improvement of production systems. Mathematical and simulation analysis are applied to model the interaction between production planning and control, external as well as internal effects and the performance measurement system.

Quality of Life for the Elderly (Research Center Linz)

The ageing of the European population presents a central challenge for society. Researchers develop new service concepts to meet the challenge of the ensuing nursing and care needs. Innovative solutions in the fields of assistive technologies and information and communication technologies (especially e-health) from diagnostic, telemonitoring and prevention systems are being worked on. Know-how in the fields of social and health management from Campus Linz meets technical know-how in the fields of medical informatics and software engineering from Campus Hagenberg.

Software Technology and Applications (Research Center Hagenberg)

Researchers develop specialized algorithms for the analysis of complex data from a variety of application fields in economics and science. Heuristic processes and evolutionary algorithms are used, for example, to solve optimization problems in areas such as production planning. In bioinformatics and medical informatics, intelligent software systems are developed for the analysis of molecular biological data and for the simulation of biological processes.