Feature: Medical


The ultimate aim is to develop a high- performance culture in the project-specific teams, based on trust, error tolerance and results, enabling a high-performance capability


All in one boat In total seven companies and organisations were involved in the collaborative development of the connector: Secunet Security Networks acted as the security specialist with the appropriate market access, and S.I.E Solutions as a system integrator and expert for the development and assembly of the hardware system, based on a customised hardware platform from embedded computer manufacturer Congatec. eHealth Experts contributed its extensive health IT experience, whilst Arvato Systems provided VPN access. Also involved in this high-security project were the German Federal Office for Information Security (Bundesamt für Sicherheit in der Informationstechnik, BSI) and Gematik, which operates the telematics infrastructure.


Pulling in the same direction It’s easy to understand that such a complex project can only be managed if everyone pulls together. As a rule, embedded hardware


suppliers have little to do with the requirements of the BSI and Gematik, since the required certificates must be obtained only by the companies that bring the product to market. Yet at the same time, suppliers are the ones who provide the essential foundation for the final hardware. Consequently, to be able to implement projects quickly, it’s necessary to get a powerful embedded supplier to join the ecosystem. S.I.E Solutions, the company commissioned by Secunet, has proved an extremely competent system integrator and expert


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for the development and assembly of the hardware system. It carried full responsibility for the development of all standard and safety-compliant hardware, including the production- ready mechanical system design and application-specific motherboard with secure BIOS. Today, S.I.E also takes care of


system assembly and the entire supply chain management. S.I.E left the customisation of the board to the embedded computing manufacturer Congatec, which was integrated into the collaborative process from the very beginning, so that all participating companies succeeded in joining forces to form an extremely powerful ecosystem for the digitalisation of the healthcare sector.


Faster goal achievement Te collaboration was successful from the beginning: Within a week, code was tested on the hardware platform proposed for the application. As a result, Secunet’s soſtware developers were able to test their solutions directly on the hardware which was used in the final product. A rapid prototyping of the final layout was then completed within four months and, with only minor revisions, brought to production in less than a year. What made the project special was the


intense collaboration and communication over a long period, and the close, usually weekly, coordination. When problems arose, they were solved


quickly and effectively via so-called expert calls in which all the companies in the development chain participated. Te communication matrix was designed to cross company boundaries. Tis also applied to reviews, where in each case the development chain was involved via this matrix – effectively saving redesign loops. Setting a very clear objective also proved very helpful in creating a high-performance climate: On day X, a finished product had to be approved and market-ready. All participants understood this big picture and what had to be achieved. Agile adjustments and changes were implemented where necessary.


Figure 1: The Secunet connector was developed on the basis of an embedded computing board from Congatec


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