Large scale production of mixed material products
| Reference number | |
| Coordinator | Swerea IVF AB - Swerea IVF Stockholm |
| Funding from Vinnova | SEK 5 600 000 |
| Project duration | September 2013 - October 2016 |
| Status | Completed |
| Venture | The strategic innovation programme for Production2030 |
Purpose and goal
The project intended to evaluate how the production system is affected by introduction of mixed material products in production and compare options. The project has contributed significantly to 11 scientific articles and 5 student essays on how the production system must be adapted to new materials. Two virtual environments were introduced: a production system demonstrator for studies of product/process redesign associated with introduction of new materials, and a test environment where behavior of different materials and joints in heat treatment / drying oven can be simulated.
Expected results and effects
The academic partners reached scientific progress and gained valuable knowledge. The academy has gained ability to support Swedish industry in future introduction of new materials. The industrial implementation of brownfield / mixed-model-lines were found to be more difficult than expected, and thus most research solutions has not been implemented industrially yet. One project result is a request for further development of e.g. new high strength steel, rather than development of materials which are more difficult to handle in the joining, heat treatment and recovery processes.
Planned approach and implementation
The project early suffered major changes where one industrial party had to change its case studies considerably. Also the other industrial partners reduced the level of ambition during the project due to greater difficulties in changing the existing product development and production systems than expected. The industrial case studies have nevertheless been useful for analysis and development of industry related research. The academic work has proceeded at a rapid pace, especially during the last year. One of the articles deals with change management in research projects.