European grant for project around future-proof production lines

The European project SMARTHANDLE receives a grant from the HORIZON programme. The project is aimed at the realisation of future-proof production lines, focusing on the transport of products within production lines.

The European project involves three Dutch companies: STT Products, Demcon Industrial Systems Groningen and Menicon Netherlands. They are part of a group of 14 parties involved in the SMARTHANDLE project. These include companies, knowledge institutions as well as research organisations. From the Netherlands, the Technical University of Eindhoven is additionally involved in the project.

SMARTHANDLE aims to research and implement technologies that are part of future-proof production lines. To develop innovative ways of transporting - also called handling - products within these lines, the parties are working on three case studies.

One example is the 'contact reading case', in which DEMCON Industrial Systems, Menicon and STT Products work closely together. As a result, the parties involved each contribute their own knowledge. For instance, DEMCON focuses on software, digitisation and application of artificial intelligence (AI). STT Products focuses on the mechanical and electrical solution. Menicon contributes knowledge about the product and its quality requirements. The parties are also working on a planning and coordination mechanism for the successful roll-out of the solution in practice.

In addition, the parties also get access to expertise from other partners of the SMARTHANDLE project. The different cases exchange knowledge among themselves. The aim is to arrive together at generic building blocks that can be used in a variety of use cases.

The cost of the project is estimated at almost six million euros. The project is fully subsidised from the European Commission's Horizon Europe programme. This programme aims to increase Europe's competitiveness by stimulating science and innovation.

SMARTHANDLE is not the first project in which STT Products, Demcon Industrial Systems Groningen and Menicon Netherlands cooperate. Earlier, the parties joined forces in another grant project: AutomatIQ. This project started in 2021. AutomatIQ revolves around the development of a fully automated and future-proof production line for contact lenses. The advanced line will provide continuous feedback on current product, machine and production characteristics with a view to quality assurance.

The parties expect that the combination of an automated process and continuous quality control can yield major gains. For instance, the production capacity of the new line is expected to be three times higher than a traditional production line. This without using additional floor space or employing more staff.

The AutomatIQ project is also receiving funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and SNN. The parties see SMARTHANDLE as a follow-up to AutomatIQ, focusing on the handling and unloading of the fragile products produced by the line.

The SMARTHANDLE project started on 1 January 2023 and will run until the end of 2025. The following partners are involved in the project:

Author: Wouter Hoeffnagel
Photo: X3 via Pixabay