Industry 4.0 has encouraged a shift in the manufacturing paradigm from an era of mass-production to an era of mass-customization which requires the creation and industrial uptake of highly flexible, modular production lines.  

DIMOFAC is a smart manufacturing solution that will enable the modularity, adaptability, and responsiveness of a production line by the integration of reconfigurable Plug and Produce (PnP) modules in a Closed-Loop Lifecycle Management System. DIMOFAC proposes a novel methodology that combines Model-Based System Engineering (MBSE) and simulation to create a digital twin of the factory. This will allow early verification of product and process to ensure rapid reconfiguration and adaptions of the production line and thus, help achieve mass-customization.  

The goal of the project is to implement reconfigurable modules for joining of multi-material (metal/thermoplastic) components that will: 

-Reduce the time it takes to reconfigure the production lines by 15%. 

-Decrease the resources required for the production process by 10%. 

-Diminish the overall cost of production by 15%. 

The project is sponsored by the European Commission and is supported by a consortium of 30 European partners, with an overall budget of €19 million. ÉireComposites is 1 of 6 industrial pilot lines that will implement the solution and is focused on the joining of multi-material (metal/thermoplastic) aerospace components using an induction welding process.