European Commission is Funding Research on Mini Factories for Customized, Decentral Production

As part of the Factories of the Future Call, the European Commission is focusing on mini factories for customized products using local flexible production.

This is a topic that I have researched for a very long time, staring with a large research cluster during my old times at TU Munich (here some old paper: http://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/3-540-27367-0_27), and continuing with more recent research.

So it is very interesting that the EU Commission now also is taking up this topic and proactively is asking for proposals. In their call, they formulate future needs as follows:

Advanced production equipment and innovative systems are needed to enable ultra-fast and cost effective manufacturing of fully customised products on the spot and exactly at the required time. Innovative production solutions must be developed to bring manufacturing operations closer in time and space to the final customer. In addition, new factory concepts need to be developed like on-site factories or factories-in-a container, which provide instant manufacturing and customisation services in retail environments.

Those mini-factories, addressing adaptation to customer needs at or near the point of sales or use, will be characterised by fast ramp-up, small footprint and reusability, and will be easy to handle and to set-up. Those production systems should also include related new technologies for supply chain management, product distribution and direct end-user interaction.

 

The call expects project results to have the following impacts:

• Increased ability to rapidly follow the market dynamics by means of fast production and delivery of personalised final products.
• Reduction of the time to market by 50%.
• Cost reduction (around 30%) by decreasing lead times in product and process development.
• Set-up and ramp-up time reduction (around 30%) for new processes and plant designs of the mini-factories.

This is a really interesting field, and if anyone is searching for a scientific partner from a business school eager to join a consortium, please let us know :-)