Eureka Cluster E!4456 "Manufuture Industry"

Manufuture Industry (MF.IND) is an industry-driven European Programme for co-operative Research, Development and  Innovation for Advanced Production Systems.

MF.IND is an EUREKA Cluster (E! 4456) labelled on June 4th 2008 by EUREKA High Level Group during Slovenian Chair.

The main goal of MF.IND is to promote innovation and provide new technologies to European Industry, enabling the development of Next Generation Factories capable to be competitive and sustainable,with a leading role in  the global market.

Manufuture Initiative, fosters and supports the transformation of European Manufacturing Industry into a High Adding Value (HAV) and Knowledge-based (K-b) Industry, aiming at global market leadership, through HAV K-based products / services, processes and business models.

The strategies envisaged are the following:
• Competition and Customisation, with high priority and immediate implementation,
• Leadership in technologies aimed at high priority medium-term deployment and
• Emerging Globalisation, focusing on the long-term and creating enabling technologies with the potential to accelerate innovation in emerging industrial sectors.

The Eureka Cluster MF.IND has been conceived in accordance with the new EUREKA strategy : i.e. “EUREKA should act as a facilitator for the implementation of Strategic Research Agendas (SRAs) of European Technology Platforms (ETP). It aims at responding to the European strategic need of pursuing CSM, by implementing Strategic Intelligence developed by MANUFUTURE and its further developments.

Eureka Cluster MF.IND:
• addresses the development and implementation of the new paradigm: Competitive Sustainable Manufacturing (CSM)
• refers to the emerging strategic “Factories of the Future” (FoF) concepts conceived by Manufuture and, recently, adopted and fostered by the European Recovery Plan
• focuses on the development of the HAV, K-based European Production Systems and their subsystems and components, necessary for of implementation of the new FoF.

MF.IND involves 29 founding partners from 10 European countries, Microelectronica S.A. being the only Romanian SME member.

Activities

• Setting up networks of high tech EU Technology Providers (i.e. machine tools, controls and automation, CAD-CAM, MES-PDM, ERP, inbound logistics) as well as of new companies (like system integrators)
• Integrating them with advanced Products Producers, within domains ranging from traditional, to specialised suppliers, scale intensive, science based products
• To carry out RTD&I actions along the roadmap towards future European Production Systems.

Focus
In line with the ManuFuture ETP  strategy  that “EUREKA should act as a facilitator for the implementation of Strategic Research Agendas of European Technology Platforms”,  MF.IND has been set up as a Pilot Initiative focusing  on European Production Systems as a High Added Value and Knowledge Based:

• Product to be sold globally by European companies
• Process and Enabling Technology, contributing to the shift of European Manufacturing “fabric” to Competitive and Sustanaible Manufacturing.

The “MANUFUTURE Industry” Eureka Cluster will co-operate, within  ERA, with:

• EU FP7, particularly NMP and ICT programmes
• Umbrellas and Eureka Clusters
• EU MANUFUTURE Platform & National MANUFUTURE Platforms
• Regional initiatives for manufacturing systems innovation
• International manufacturing innovation programmes & associations, like IMS and CIRP.

Estimated budget (total costs of RTD&I projects planned): 400 Meuro

Programme Duration: 5 years

Start Date: July 2008

End date: June 2013