The Institute of Production Engineering and Machine Tools (Institut für Fertigungstechnik und Werkzeugmaschinen, IFW) is one of the academic departments of the University of Hannover and among the well known research institutes of the Federal Republic of Germany in the field of production engineering. It has a strong reputation in the fields of production management and organisation, machining technology, machine tools, robotics and controls as well as technological information systems. Its activities are aimed at rationalise the manufacturing processes though a balance of fundamental and application oriented research works. The results of the institute’s efforts are accredited world-wide. The close co-operation of the institute with the industry accounts for the good insight of the problems and demands in production environments. Approximately 40 % of the yearly turnover of the IFW is achieved by means of projects which are directly financed by industrial partners, many of whom are SMEs. Beside these sort of projects and the basic research programs funded by the German Research Council (DFG), the IFW has been successfully involved in several European projects like Brite/Euram, Esprit and Copernicus. Related EU-funded projects are HIPARMS, EASYCON, BETTI, COCOS, TOPSYS, FLAMINGO, MAREA, EUROSHOE, AMADEUS, ECOWIRE and ENGY. The IFW employees around 65 research engineers, several technician, programmers, staff personnel as well as about 150 students working as part-time employees.

The Machining Team, managed by Ing. Mauro Comoglio, is the Fiat research group in the machining field. There are four main research branches: machine tool design, process design, development of material/coating for cutting tools, materials machinability. The team has worked on more than 30 European funded research projects (Alticut, Alumopla, Amadeus, Autofett, CD Treatments, CNC, Coming Dry, Dico, Dualco, Ecosystems, Engy, FGMSIATOOL, Incosynt, Mactest, MEA-PPNCD, Nacodry, Nanogrind, Sammi, Testify, Ulmat, Ultraflex), problem solving activities for Fiat Group and also for private customers external to Fiat Group. An Advanced Machining Laboratory is equipped with an advanced linear driven machine center (Renault Automation - Comau) for the development of high speed and dry machining of light alloys (titanium, aluminum and magnesium) and difficult to cut materials (innovative cast irons, superalloys, composite materials), and a CRF machine tool developed for the dies and moulds industry. The methodological approach is based on an integrated approach: on line wear/power/temperature monitoring, SEM/metallographic analysis of cutting tool and worked material, correlation between cutting tool properties/cutting performance, set up of cutting parameters and lubrication condition (oil, emulsion, MQL, dry), CAD/CAE/CAM design and FEM simulation/design, set up and testing of innovative cutting process.

INRIA (National Institute for Research in Computer Science and Control) is a French public-sector scientific and technological institute operating under the dual authority of the Ministry of Research and the Ministry of Industry. INRIA missions are "to undertake basic and applied research, to design experimental systems, to ensure technology and knowledge transfer, to organise international scientific exchanges, to carry out scientific assessments, and to contribute to standardisation".

The research carried out at INRIA brings together experts from the fields of computer science and applied mathematics covering the following areas: Networks and Systems; Software Engineering and Symbolic Computing; Man-Machine Interaction; Image Processing, Data Management, Knowledge Systems; Simulation and Optimisation of Complex Systems.

INRIA gathers in its premises around 2 100 persons including 1 600 scientists, many of which belong to partner organisations (CNRS, industrial labs, universities) and are assigned to work in common "projects". On INRIA budget, around 500 full-time equivalent R&D positions can be accounted for. A large number of INRIA senior researchers are involved in teaching and their PhD students (about 550) prepare their thesis within the different INRIA research projects (currently 74).

The Department of Mechanical, Aerospace and Manufacturing Engineering (MAME) at the Unversity of Manchester has 33 members of academic staff who are all active in research with an average annual journal publication record of 4 journal papers per staff per year. Most members are involved in research activities funded by national research councils, Europe, and industry. The Manufacturing Division of the MAME Department at THE Unversity of Manchester has advanced research facilities that are related to I*PROMS scope such as a manufacturing modelling and simulation facility that includes fuzzy logic control, SCADA Systems, and PLCs; a laser processing research centre (LPRC); CAD, CAE, CAM; Special manufacturing processes facility: EDM, ECM; Metrology facilities: CMM and two laser interferometers; nano-resolution sensors facility; Robotic and computer-integrated machine tools and manufacturing systems; CNCs with open architecture control research facility; instrumentation and precision engineering facility; workstations: UNIX and Parallel processing facility; materials analysis facility: creep and fatigue; and facilities for business and industry - conference suites with AVA technology and internet access. The Division is also in the process of acquiring a Mikron high speed machine and a Faro articulated arm for reverse engineering.