To manufacture COVID products
Alcoy campus researchers help companies and SMEs reconfigure their production lines in the manufacture of pandemic-related products
Managing the enormous amount of industrial data from devices in large companies or SMEs is a complex and costly process. The European i4Q project, funded by the Horizon 2020 program and in which the UPV participates, aims to provide a set of Reliable Industrial Data Services (RIDS) based on the Internet of Things (IoT).
Some of the i4Q solutions can be used by companies that need to perform a rapid reconfiguration of their production lines to, for example, manufacture products that have become in high demand due to the covid-19 pandemic, such as masks, PPE, gloves, etc. In fact, the i4Q RIDS is a set of 22 solutions, with which companies will be able to manage the huge amount of industrial data coming from interconnected factory devices, to support the online monitoring and control of manufacturing. Specifically, the i4Q Manufacturing Line ReconfigurationToolkit solution is a collection of optimization microservices that use optimization and simulation algorithms to evaluate different possible scenarios and propose changes to manufacturing lines.Its artificial intelligence learning algorithms develop strategies for machine parameter calibration and line reconfiguration in a short period of time (48 hours).
Alcoy campus researchers
On the part of the UPV, the research unit Collaboration and Interoperability in the Supply Chain participates in the project, made up of the Alcoy campus researchers Raúl Poler, Josefa Mula, Raquel Sanchis, Beatriz Andrés, Manuel Díaz-Madroñero, Eduardo Guzmán and Julio Cesar Serrano, and integrated in the Production Management and Engineering Research Center (CIGIP).
In addition, two researchers from the Vera campus (Raquel Fortuny and Miguel Ángel Mateo) from the R&D&I Digital Manufacturing and Logistics line, whose head is Ángel Ortiz, are also collaborating. Another partner in the project is the Instituto Tecnológico de Informática, a joint university institute UPV.
Raúl Poler, technical manager of the project, explains that i4Q RIDS guarantees “data reliability with functions grouped into five basic capabilities: detection, communication, IT infrastructure, storage and analysis/optimization”.
The i4Q RIDS includes simulation and optimization tools for manufacturing process qualification of manufacturing lines, quality diagnosis, reconfiguration and certification to ensure high manufacturing efficiency, “leading to an integrated approach to zero-defect manufacturing,” according to Raul Poler.
Also for SMEs
The industrial partners that make up the pilots are four large companies (Whirlpool, Biesse, Farplas and Fidia) and two SMEs (Factor and Riastone). Although it may seem that the project is aimed at large companies, one of i4Q’s objectives is to provide low-cost tools for SMEs to use.
Today, thanks to the increased use of sensors, actuators and instruments, European companies collect an enormous amount of data during manufacturing, which is invaluable for quality improvement. But, in turn, most factories are reluctant to analyze the data generated in the process on a daily basis, due to the complexity of current solutions that require extensive training and statistical and technological support, which SMEs do not have. This European project aims to reverse this situation.
Spin-off Exos solutions
Exos Solutions, the UPV spin-off that provides technological solutions to companies for decision making and improvement of process management in the area of operations (forecasting, planning, production, logistics, procurement, etc.) also participates in the project. Exos Solutions has a relevant role in the capture of requirements and functional specifications of industrial pilots. It also provides digital models and ontologies.
Link to the news: Investigadores del campus de Alcoy ayudan a empresas y pymes a reconfigurar sus líneas de producción en la fabricación de productos relacionados con la pandemia
