Institute for Plastics Processing at RWTH Aachen University to build "Smart Factory"

 

 

The Institute for Plastics Processing (IKV) in Industry and Craft at RWTH Aachen University (Aachen, Germany) has received approval to build a new research and development center at its Melaten campus.

The Plastics Innovation Centre 4.0 (PIC 4.0) is expected to open by 2022, and will be a completely interconnected, 4,205-square-meter R&D environment with a value of €19.5 million. Funding is being provided by the state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the European Regional Development Fund (EDRF).

The project will begin with preparatory research and development work to interconnect the existing research infrastructure and covering the complete documentation for the building-up of a Smart Factory. The accompanying development of learning and teaching concepts will ensure the transfer of research results into university teaching and industrial practice, and enabling future skilled workers to become qualified in the field of Plastics Industry 4.0, and thus increase the economic strength of the industry of the State of NRW.

Throughout the project, the scientists involved will devise solutions on comprehensive process data acquisition and processing along complex value chains in plastics processing. Through digital engineering, the development of the plastic part and the process technology will be simulated virtually with uninterrupted simulation chains. In addition, the integrated research infrastructure will also be a testing environment for future developments within the Cluster of Excellence “Internet of Production” of RWTH Aachen University. 

The construction work for the PIC 4.0 project on the IKV site at Seffenter Weg will help IKV aims to bring all the fields of IKV research together on one site.