AACOMA | Accelerate Advanced COmposite MAnufacturing

New materials such as composites can make their way to a wide array of sectors. The Interreg project AACOMA will support advanced composite manufacturing in close cooperation with companies and research institutes.

Context

Composites were mainly developed in the past for the Aeronautic sector because of combined lightweight and exceptional mechanical properties. The technical progress made in material design and advanced manufacturing processes (Industry 4.0) opens the way for their use in many other sectors. For SMEs targeting innovative and competitive products, the use of composites is an opportunity to innovate. Applications can be found in various industrial sectors as in automotive, transport, machine building and construction.

However, implementing a disruptive technology by introducing advanced manufacturing techniques in SME's is mostly of high risk for them. Acquiring knowledge in advanced material and process technologies, realizing demonstrators and testing them are essential steps to be evaluated before deciding investments in new production lines. Prospecting advanced manufacturing, needs skilled and experienced human resources not ever available in SMEs

On the other hand, in the EMR regions, multiple technologic platforms exist in universities and research centers but (1) their visibility for SMEs across the borders is limited, (2) their expertise and their technology offer is not obvious and (3) their interactivity with companies needs to be accelerated.

Goals

The AACoMa project addresses the acceleration of advanced manufacturing of composite materials by making the demonstration of advanced composite manufacturing in close interactivity with companies. New Materials and advanced process technologies like additive manufacturing, robotics, virtual engineering, virtual reality and artificial intelligence will be addressed to prove the feasibility of enhancing materials, manufacturing quality and productivity.

Approach

• Communication activities will be set in place by the project partners to address managers of manufacturing SMEs by roadshows and training workshop to sensitize them to the thematic of advanced manufacturing of composites and for analysing specific needs in various sectors.
• Co-creation activities will be organized in an advisory committee composed of companies members for discussing technical challenges and defining demonstrators.
• Making the proof of concepts by the demonstration of selected advanced manufacturing scenarios for typical applications followed by a dissemination of the results (TRL 5-6).
• Evaluation of learned lessons for future technology roadmaps and initiating follow up projects to push implementations of advanced technologies in SME from EMR with durable effects:
• Cost-effective materials and semi-finished products for selected applications (automotive, machine building, construction, etc.) are being developed.
• A network is built up along the entire value chain with companies and institutes recorded in a database
• The border area EMR will be built up as a hot spot for new composites

Reference

EMR120

Project partners

The project will be supported by a partnership of universities and research centers from EMR regions, namely:

• Centexbel(B)  
• Flanders Make(B)
• Sirris (B)
• Universiteit van Luik(B)
• Aachen-Maastricht Institute (NL)
• Fontys University (NL)
• AMAC (Advanced Materials Advisory&Consultancy) (D)