#DiversityInScience - Women Revolutionize the Manufacturing Industry

A major asset of European industry amid global competition is outstanding quality. To remain competitive, costs must be cut while the principles of efficiency and sustainability in production are followed. To meet these demanding requirements, work of the very highest quality is necessary. PROFACTOR is carrying out research with industry and for industry into the technologies required to achieve high-quality production, as two researchers explain.

Daniela Kirchberger, a researcher in the field of machine vision, is coordinator of, among other things, the EU project “Zero Defect Manufacturing”:

“Manufacturing industry is undergoing major changes. New digital solutions are being introduced along the entire manufacturing chain to make production even more efficient. In this context, “Zero Defect Manufacturing” is a general concept that aims to ensure flawless products and processes in a variety of different production steps. Together with 30 European partners from science and industry we are working on a digital platform that offers industrial enterprises the instruments necessary for highly efficient and defect-free production – similar to an app store. Virtualization is being used to optimize production processes and systems still further and to increase efficiency by linking production steps. We are setting up a pilot line in the course of our international project in order to develop, test and demonstrate new approaches.”

The expert knowledge that comes from the innovation generator in production research is also being incorporated in medical engineering, where quality is particularly important.

As a specialist in ink jet printing, Dr Julia Kastner is participating in the EU project INKplant. The project aims to increase the use of new manufacturing techniques in medical engineering:

“One example is that, in future, bone replacements for jaw surgery could come from the 3D printer. This kind of 3D implant for augmentation of the jawbone would reduce patient stress enormously. Complicated cases currently often require surgery in which fragments of bone are taken from the thigh and grafted onto the jaw. The innovative implants represent a stress-free alternative. The EU project INKplant, which is headed by PROFACTOR, focuses on innovative organic materials that are made into absorbable implants using the very latest 3D printing methods. The objective is development of a patient-specific implant made of several materials and with the mechanical stability and surface characteristics required to speed up tissue regeneration.”

Photo 1: © UAR / photographer: Maria Kirchner

Portraits: © PROFACTOR GmbH