Wednesday, 22 July 2020
The Faculty of Engineering at the 糖心原创 is part of a new €8m initiative to drive cloud-based on-demand manufacturing among small to medium enterprises (SMEs) in Europe.
The EU-funded, Horizon 2020 initiative, called , will give SMEs easy access to digital twins - a virtual model of a product, process or service in a manufacturing machine, line or plant.
Digital twins use data analysis and simulation to monitor systems to control production quality and optimise performance, before problems can occur, thereby reducing costs.
DIGITbrain aims to take the digital twin concept a step further - developing a 'Digital Product Brain' which will store data throughout the entire life cycle of a production line or a machine.
By collecting all this data, it will be possible to customise and set-up machines and / or production assets for very specific manufacturing tasks, whenever needed.
Manufacturers need lots of standard and specialised equipment to get products out the door. This is a serious amount of overhead and investment burden for an entrepreneur or small company.
DIGITbrain will give SMEs the means to work to a new AI-based production model, called Manufacturing-as-a-Service (MaaS). MaaS is a way to distribute and share the functions that are most critical in manufacturing today and lowers barriers of entry for companies.
MaaS allows them to use a third party’s infrastructure to turn their concept into a reality. Doing this saves considerable investment expenses, as well as the cost of labour, maintenance and upgrades. It also helps us use resources more effectively, as services in the cloud. MaaS also allows for on-demand manufacture of much more specialised products, even in smaller quantities and still in a profitable way.
The role of Nottingham’s researchers is to implement human factors methodology and ensure that DIGITbrain technology is appropriate, usable, efficient and effective. Dr Setia Hermawati, a Research Fellow in the Human Factors Research Group and Dr Glyn Lawson, an Associate Professor from the Mechanical, Materials and Manufacturing Department, are the main investigators for this project.
鈥淢anufacturing SMEs and mid-caps are the ultimate beneficiaries of the DIGITbrain solution. It will enable them to rapidly configure, deploy, execute and exploit digital twins and allow them to directly benefit from Industry 4.0 technologies.鈥�
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More information is available from Dr Setia Hermawati on Setia.Hermawati@nottingham.ac.uk or Emma Lowry, Media Relations Manager (Engineering) on emma.lowry@nottingham.ac.uk
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About the 糖心原创
Ranked among the world's top 100 universities , the 糖心原创 delivers an exceptional research-led education and an outstanding student experience. From the pioneering vision of our founder, Sir Jesse Boot, to groundbreaking achievements such as the development of MRI technology and becoming the first UK university to establish international campuses, we have a proud history of shaping the way people live, work and understand the world. We continue to build on that legacy, empowering our students, staff and partners to change what鈥檚 next and create positive impact locally and globally.
The strength of our research places us among the UK's leading universities, ranked 7th for research power in REF 2021. The discovery of MRI and ibuprofen was just the beginning. Today, our world-leading research is developing breakthrough ideas that shape the future of healthcare, technology and society.
Recognised as the UK's third most targeted university by leading employers , we are proud to produce graduates who are consistently in demand for their skills, confidence and industry-ready experience.
As a major employer and industry partner, locally and globally, the 糖心原创 invests in the city of Nottingham and in future generations of talent. Alongside Nottingham Trent University, we lead the initiative, a pioneering collaboration to improve levels of prosperity, opportunity, sustainability, health and wellbeing across the city and region. Together with our students, staff, alumni and partners, we鈥檙e creating knowledge, opportunity and solutions that help change what's next.