Case Study
//When Machines Become Walkable.
Client: BAADER · Industry: Food Processing Technology · Lübeck, Germany · Founded 1919
//The Starting Point.
In 2017, BAADER needed to present a poultry processing line at IPPE in Atlanta — seven machines that would appear one by one on the showroom floor, then function as a synchronized chain. Real footage was out of the question: safety risks and time constraints made video production impossible.
The plan was classic path tracing — photorealistic, but at ~15 minutes per frame. A speed test in Unreal Engine changed direction: the machines suddenly existed in real-time 3D. The step from animation to walkable application was only a matter of decision.
What if your clients could not just watch — but walk through?
Path-traced rendering — ~15 min. per frame
First Prototype
This is what the first VR application looked like during development. BAADER's reaction to this early stage: We're showing this at IPPE in Atlanta.
First VR prototype in Unreal Engine
//The Result: IPPE 2018.
The IPPE is the world's largest trade show for meat and poultry processing. Larger companies were also experimenting with VR there — but what they showed were 360° videos: pre-rendered panoramas with no interaction, no depth, no real engagement. Nice to look at, quickly forgotten.
The BAADER booth was different. Here, visitors could stand inside the machines: observe mechanics, adjust speeds, remove safety covers and inspect maintenance access — in real time, fully interactive, without any risk. Not passive watching — active experience.
BAADER wasn't the biggest at the show — but the booth became the talk of the entire IPPE.
33
Machines total
synchronized across 4 applications
4
Applications in one year
VR · Touchscreen · Poultry · Fish
3
International trade shows
IPPE Atlanta · Seafood Expo Global · Maastricht
IPPE 2018 Atlanta — visitors and decision-makers on the VR experience
"We were all impressed with the level of detail and quality with the movement and how real it looked. There's a huge potential for this type of technology in our business."
Trade show visitor · IPPE Atlanta
"When you bring a new technology along, you never know what the reaction might be. We all put a lot of money into these shows, and you want to make sure you deliver a good message. The combination worked really well."
BAADER Management · IPPE Atlanta
//Four Applications. One Year.
01
Poultry Line — 7 Machines
Fully walkable processing line. Premiere: IPPE 2018, Atlanta.
02
White Fish Line — ~12 Machines
Extended interaction: open, stop, clean. Seafood Expo Global, Brussels.
03
Compact Plant — 14 Machines
Virtual tablet navigation with teleportation. Maastricht.
04
Touchscreen Adaptation
Same depth, without VR hardware. For showrooms and trade show booths.
33 machines · 4 applications · 3 international trade shows · 1 year
Compact Plant — virtual tablet as navigation system
//The Value for BAADER.
BAADER's systems process food — they cannot be shown running at a trade show. VR made the impossible visible:
- Access — visitors stand inside running machines, without risk
- Understanding — adjust speeds in real time, follow mechanics in detail
- Transparency — remove safety covers, simulate maintenance procedures
- Scalability — one system deployed across three trade shows in four variants
//International Trade Shows.
After the success at IPPE, BAADER deployed the VR applications at further industry events:
- Seafood Expo Global, Brüssel — White Fish Line for the fish processing industry. Here, the Russian Deputy Minister of Agriculture Ilya Shestakov tested the system
- Maastricht — Compact Plant with 14 machines for poultry processing
Seafood Expo Global, Brussels — BAADER management on VR and Industry 4.0
"For us, it's an absolute success story. We truly invested in this technology to later use it in our internal processes — to accelerate product development. But it's also a great tool for conducting customer trainings and showing customers how to work as effectively as possible with the machines."
BAADER Management · Seafood Expo Global, Brussels
In Brussels, the digitalization booth was presented separately for the first time. From industry professionals to the Russian Deputy Minister of Agriculture Ilya Shestakov: everyone wanted to step inside the machine that didn't physically exist.
//Backstory.
The collaboration with BAADER began in 2016 — with a problem only 3D could solve: an animation of the Waterjet Cutting system. High-pressure water jets impossible to film with real cameras. Too fast, too risky, too wet.
The animation showed the precise cutting process in detail for the first time — a communication tool that physically could not exist. It laid the foundation for everything that followed.
Waterjet Cutting — 3D simulation of an unfilmable process
Project Overview
Client
BAADER, Lübeck
Period
2016 — 2018
Technology
Unreal Engine · CAD-Import · HTC Vive
Services
VR Applications · Real-time Animation · Touchscreen Adaptation · 3D Animation · UX Design
Scope
4 VR applications · 33 machines
Trade Shows
IPPE Atlanta · Seafood Expo Global · Maastricht
Why only now?
This project dates back to 2016–2018. Multiple NDAs protected BAADER's competitive advantage — and rightly so. What was created here didn't exist in this industry. The secrecy was part of the value.
We treat every project as confidential — until the client decides it can be shown. This isn't portfolio filler. It's a story that can finally be told.
Services: VR Applications · Real-time Animation · Unreal Engine · Touchscreen Adaptation · 3D Animation · CAD Import · UX Design · Trade Show Presentation
//Similar Project?
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