SHOP4CF

SHOP4CF (Smart Human Oriented Platform for Connected Factories) is an EU-funded project within the eighth framework program Horizon 2020 that aims to create an unique infrastructure for the convenient deployment of human-centric industrial applications. In the project, 20 partners create a platform providing human-centric modular components for the process automation industry that can be deployed with minimal effort for the end user. In this context, the prevailing terminology in SHOP4CF is as follows:

• Marketplace: Hosting modular components and providing information regarding pilots, license models (there are free and commercial components).
• Architecture: Ensuring coherence and interoperability of the SHOP4CF components. The architecture provides a common template for concrete systems designed for pilots, open-call projects, etc.
• Components: Components can be seen as sub solutions to confined tasks. For instance, a pilot comprising a work cell usually consists of several components each providing a specific functionality. The general interfaces of the components targeted in SHOP4CF are supposed to ensure convenient integration and cross-industry usability.
• Pilots: Use cases that comprise a set of components.

Consortium

The SHOP4CF project allocates part of the project budget for Financial Support to Third Parties (FSTP) to be selected via open calls. Five open calls are foreseen in the runtime of the project: Three Pilot Establishment calls and two Pilot Extension calls with the total budget of €600,000 for each call. It is intended to select and fund six pilots per call, with a maximum budget of €100,000 lump sum per pilot.

First Open Call: Pilot Establishment Instrument 1

SHOP4CF OFFERS €600,000 FOR INNOVATIVE MANUFACTURING PROJECTS

The way we, humans, manufacture things has seen a series of drastic changes over the past few hundred years. Think of the steam engine, electricity, conveyor belt, factory automation; the newer methods, processes, tools, and power sources have been disrupting the older ones since the Middle Ages — and continue to do so to this day.

Are you a manufacturing company? Wouldn't it be great if you could get the support you need to implement new effective ways of manufacturing with robots on your production floor? The European-funded programme SHOP4CF offers just that — in addition to €100,000 in equity-free funding. The call for applications has just launched and will stay open until August 2021.

In addition to the funding, SHOP4CF will assign two experts from the consortium to each winning project. Those will check in with the project teams regularly, provide support and advice on implementation of the modules, and continuously evaluate the results. The winning teams will also be able to participate in training sessions focused on technological and business aspects of innovation, as well as get tailored mentoring on SME finances and budgeting.

With the work on the platform well underway, SHOP4CF is now looking for tandems of system integrators and manufacturing companies (at least one of which has to be an SME) to run pilots by combining modular SHOP4CF components. The time frame of the pilots is eight months, thus it has to be possible to complete the integration within this period. The successful applicants will receive €100,000 in equity-free funding to integrate pre-existing components developed by the SHOP4CF consortium as well as new ones, developed by the applicants themselves.

The sweet spot for SHOP4CF are manufacturing environments where human labour can be both automated and enhanced by machines. The framework and the components already developed by the consortium allow to improve people's working conditions by automating monotonous and/or hard physical work, as well as increasing human productivity through smart assistance.

The range of software components developed by the consortium members covers a broad range of issues, from robotic navigation and safety planning to AR and VR applications for worker training and remote troubleshooting. There are also modules for better wireless networking, process optimisation, task management, anomaly detection, and much more.

Do you have a project that fits the description? Please check out the open call details here and apply on the open call website to receive €100,000 in equity-free funding together with support from a group of researchers and practitioners with unparalleled experience in manufacturing. Applications are open until August 3, 2021.

Got questions? In the following weeks, the team at SHOP4CF will be organizing a series of information sessions to explain the open call process in depth. Follow them on social media (Twitter/LinkedIn), subscribe to the newsletter and join the community to keep up with the latest news!

Dr.-Ing. Noah Klarmann

Research Associate

Address: Institut für Informatik IV, Schleißheimer Str. 90a

85748 Garching b. München, Germany

Phone: +49 (0)89 289-17629

Fax: +49 (0)89 289-18107

Office: HB 2.02.18

noah.klarmann@tum.de

Learn more about SHOP4CF on https://shop4cf.eu/.