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Measuring the Quality of Cooperation in Interdisciplinary Research Clusters

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Automation, Communication and Cybernetics in Science and Engineering 2015/2016

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Abstract

Research in the challenging field of industrial engineering and engineering management often needs the expertise from more than one discipline. Therefore interdisciplinary research has taken on continuously greater significance. Over the last years various research clusters – such as cluster of excellence – were initiated in the course of the German excellence initiative. Thereby researchers with different disciplinary backgrounds are brought together, to investigate research questions with societal and economical relevance. These new research clusters cause various challenges, especially on communication, because communication is one decisive factor of success in interdisciplinary cooperation. Approaches to investigate communication, performance and interdisciplinarity within these clusters are compared and a communication oriented measurement approach is explained. Especially the operationalization and validation of the indicator communication, giving conclusions onto the quality of cooperation, is depicted as well as measures to react on.

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Acknowledgments

This research has been funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) as part of the Clusters of Excellences Integrative Production Technology for High-Wage Countries and Tailor-Made Fuels from Biomass at RWTH Aachen University.

Additionally, the work was supported by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) under Grant 01HH11088 and was cofinanced by the European Social Funds (ESF).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. IMA/ZLW & IfU, RWTH Aachen University, Dennewartstr. 27, 52068, Aachen, Germany

    Stefan Schröder, Markus Kowalski, Claudia Jooß, René Vossen, Anja Richert & Sabina Jeschke

Authors
  1. Stefan Schröder
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  2. Markus Kowalski
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  3. Claudia Jooß
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  4. René Vossen
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  5. Anja Richert
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  6. Sabina Jeschke
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Stefan Schröder .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. IMA/ZLW, RWTH Aachen Univ IMA/ZLW, Aachen, Germany

    Sabina Jeschke

  2. Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, IMA/ZLW & IfU - RWTH Aachen Univers Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Aachen, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany

    Ingrid Isenhardt

  3. Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, IMA/ZLW & IfU - RWTH Aachen Univers Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Aachen, Germany

    Frank Hees

  4. Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, IMA/ZLW & IfU - RWTH Aachen Univers Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Aachen, Germany

    Klaus Henning

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Schröder, S., Kowalski, M., Jooß, C., Vossen, R., Richert, A., Jeschke, S. (2016). Measuring the Quality of Cooperation in Interdisciplinary Research Clusters. In: Jeschke, S., Isenhardt, I., Hees, F., Henning, K. (eds) Automation, Communication and Cybernetics in Science and Engineering 2015/2016. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-42620-4_13

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