Future Lab in Lingen
KRONE Validation Centre officially inaugurated

Lingen, 21 September 2021: Today, KRONE officially inaugurated the Future Lab validation centre at its Lingen site. Bernard Krone, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the KRONE Group, welcomed representatives of neighbouring companies on the Lingen Industrial Park and of the construction companies that built the validation centre as well as district administrator Marc-André Burgdorf, Lingen's Lord Mayor Dieter Krone and, of course, the approximately 30 staff members who work at the Future Lab: “After months of waiting, we are delighted to finally welcome you in person to the KRONE Future Lab. What we see here is absolutely state-of-the-art technology which allows us to put our farm machines and commercial vehicles and also supplier components through their paces before they are installed in a KRONE product. In order to optimise the quality of our products effectively, we need accurate and objective evidence of lifetime and functionality of a part or machine. As such, the validation centre also contributes significantly to customer satisfaction. In addition, its premises offer us excellent opportunities to explore new spheres such as autonomous driving.”
“The Future Lab houses three large-scale test stands, two stands for testing servo-hydraulic systems and one for measuring performance levels. In addition, we also have various test stands for a large variety of components and assemblies. Yet in addition to mechanical tests, we also test electronic systems and software applications both on the site and in fully automated test environments in the Future Lab.!
The Future Lab was planned with a focus on sustainability. For example, all the energy used for heating the 4,000 sqm building is generated from the waste heat of the test benches, and some of the electricity needed is supplied by solar panels that are designed to generate power solely for on-site use.
After the official blessing extended by woman minister Martina Korporal and chaplain Kristian Pohlmann in a small ceremony, the guests had the opportunity to walk through the Future Lab and look at the various halls and test stands. They were particularly impressed by the recently installed stand that simulates road conditions. This so-called X-Poster test bench allows KRONE to compress 1 million kilometres clocked by a commercial trailer to just a few weeks. The X-Poster and all test stands are powered by a hydraulic motor unit with a whopping 2 MW capacity.
Another test bench that was put into operation only recently is the one for testing transmission performances. Here, high-capacity gearboxes are subjected to lifespan tests before they are built into a KRONE BiG X forager, a BiG Pack baler or a Premos pellet harvester.
These indoor facilities are complemented by an approx. 1.1km outdoor test course that features inclines of 18% and 50% slope gradients. This test course is used for homologation tests, software application system tests and driving tests.
Built in just under a year and covering around 13 hectares in total, the KRONE Future Lab represents an investment of approximately €20 million by the KRONE Group.