Industrial scenarios for connected factories (ConnectedFactories2)

The digitalisation of the manufacturing sector, which includes concepts such as cyber-physical systems (CPS), industrial internet and internet of things (IoT), connects people, machines and companies in an unprecedented way. Entire industries are undergoing profound changes, which is why it is also referred to as the fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0). A multitude of initiatives at regional, national and European level have been formed to deal with these changes. However, the connections between these initiatives are rather weak, and in consequence this fragmentation hinders the development of a common vision for Europe regarding the digitisation of manufacturing and its implementation.

The EU project ConnectedFactories2 aimed at de-fragmenting these existing initiatives and promoted the implementation of digital solutions in practice. It supported industrial consensus building both with suppliers and users across Europe regarding future factory automation systems built on CPS and the IoT with the help of scenario analysis. Furthermore, it assisted with the development of a pan-European platform and fostered collaboration of relevant initiatives on topics related to the digitalisation of the manufacturing sector.

As project partner, Steinbeis Europa Zentrum was responsible for the analysis of user needs and the support with the exploitation and dissemination of project results as well as the scenario analysis.

Further information:

• Project name Akronym: ConnectedFactories2
• Funding: European Commission, Horizon 2020
• Funding budget for all partners: 2 million EUR
• Participating countries: Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Great Britain, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Sweden, Spain
• Project duration: 12/2019 – 11/2022