The FibreChain project addresses manufacturers' growing need for innovative processes to optimize the production chain and reduce costs.

Lightweight, durable components are in high demand from manufacturers as they combine performance and high quality. Only highly specialized production chains currently supply multilayer components and lightweight 3D carbon fibre components. To this day, their use in the industrial world remains very limited, hence the reason for there being no integrated production chains capable of mass production. 

The aim of the FibreChain project, which means the integration of the process chain for the automated and flexible production of carbon fibre components, is to develop the first automated manufacturing system for mass production of high-performance, lightweight and recyclable carbon fibre components.

The project took shape thanks to an interdisciplinary consortium of 17 partners from 7 European countries, consisting of research institutes, such as the German Fraunhofer Institute, manufacturers, such as Nikon Metrology and Trumpf, and universities. The partners* have used their skills in various fields, such as engineering, manufacturing, laser measurements and control and simulation technologies, for the benefit of the project. Their main objective was to improve the manufacturing process of carbon fibre components, with the aim of reducing both production costs and manufacturing time, while creating a high-performance 3D fibre structure. 

Missler Software was tasked with piloting robots in order to control the production chain from the creation of the material, i.e. the laying of carbon fibre strips in the raw state, up to dimensional inspection, through the definition of machining and calculation phases.

The project received recognition for its three years of intensive development work last October when it was awarded the JEC Americas innovation award from the largest European components organization, JEC.  

 

*List of partners: Fraunhofer, University of Twente, University of the Czech Republic, TWI Ltd., AFPT, TenCate, Trumpf, Fiberdur, MX.CompoSYS, Toray CFE, Suprem, Strojirna TYC, Nikon Metrology, bf1 Systems, CTG, Precitec.  

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