Network-based Digital Manufacturing Environment

A major international (regional) joint research project was started in December 2006 between Wuhan University of Technology (WHUT), China and the Manufacturing Engineering Centre (MEC) at Cardiff University, UK. The title of this three years joint research project is “Research on New Theory and New Technology for Network-based Digital Manufacturing Environment”. This project is coordinated by the principal investigator Professor Zhou Zude, the President of WHUT. The research team in Cardiff University is led by Professor D T Pham, the Director of the MEC.

Network-based Digital Manufacturing Environment A major international (regional) joint research project was started in December 2006 between Wuhan University of Technology (WHUT), China and the Manufacturing Engineering Centre (MEC) at Cardiff University, UK. The title of this three years joint research project is “Research on New Theory and New Technology for Network-based Digital Manufacturing Environment”. This project is coordinated by the principal investigator Professor Zhou Zude, the President of WHUT. The research team in Cardiff University is led by Professor D T Pham, the Director of the MEC.

The 2008 Manufacturing in FP7 Conference on the 16th and 17th January has built upon the success of its predecessor in 2007. The conference was attended by some 130 delegates and provided in-depth information about the manufacturing topics addressed in both Theme 3 (ICT) and Theme 4 (NMP) of the European Union's 7th Framework Programme (FP7).

Speakers at the conference included key and influential people from within the European Commission NMP, ICT programmes and the Manufuture community. In addition to these speakers there were experts in proposal preparation and evaluation giving insights into what makes a successful project proposal. Plus representatives of European SMEs and new EU member states providing their perspectives on the FP7 programme.

On the 8th November the Manufacturing Engineering Centre (co-ordinator of the I*PROMS Network) at Cardiff University was visited by the European Commissioner for Science and Research, Dr Janez Potočnik who is responsible for the Research Directorate-General. During his visit, Commissioner Potočnik was shown round the work of the MEC, and was given a short presentation on the I*PROMS network.

During the tour Commissioner Potočnik was shown the hi-tech facilities of the MEC including the micro-manufacturing laboratories, rapid prototyping facilities and the metrology lab where the I*PROMS supported Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) is located.

The Intelligent Manufacturing Systems (IMS) Event on Strategies for Global Manufacturing will be held in Swiss Federal University of Technology (ETH) Zürich, Switzerland on 15-16 November 2007.

IMS 2008

The event aims to facilitate discussion amongst European experts on global manufacturing R&D and in particular on the new strategy of the Intelligent Manufacturing Systems (IMS) initiative.

Parallel Sessions:

Session 1: Sustainable Manufacturing chaired by Dimitris Kiritsis, EPFL, Lausanne