REFORM Resource-Efficient Factory Of Recyclable Manufacturing composite Components

Summary

The overall goal of REFORM is to reduce the environmental footprint of composites use. Composites are in-demand as they can produce large weight-savings without compromising on product quality. However, methods of machining and assembly have been taken from traditional manufacturing processes and have not been optimised for composite production. The goals of REFORM are to reduce manufacturing scrap, waste and pollution and to develop methods to improve the recylability and reuse of composite components.

Specifically, REFORM will

Reduce scrap in the lay-up process through the use of laser templates or virtual / augmented reality
Reduce energy consumption during curing by using low thermal mass tooling and fixturing - Reduce waste in Abrasive Water-jet machining (AWJM) through process optimisation and water recovery
Reduce the number of parts by allowing large components to be built through the use of intelligent, lightweight fixturing
Develop methods of recycling CFRP using new low-temperature, low-pressure processes

REFORM (Resource-Efficient Factory Of Recyclable Manufacturing composite components) is a 4 year project funded by the European Union’s 7th Framework Factory of the Future Programme to develop the next generation of production technologies.

We will develop clean and resource-efficient technologies for the manufacture and disposal of composite material, looking at each individual production stage. Composites are popular as they allow component weight to be reduced without affecting part strength. In many applications, weight reductions leads to energy savings during the service-life of the product - there is an oft-quoted statistic that every kilogram of weight saved in the manufacture of a plane reduces emissions by 1 tonne of CO? per year. When calculating the environmental footprint of a component, it is important to investigate the entire life-cycle, including material extraction,manufacture, end-of-life disposal and whether or not the composite material can be recycled. This ensures that gains made in one area do not cause waste and inefficiency elsewhere.

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Web resources:	https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/283336
Start date:	01-12-2011
End date:	30-11-2015
Total budget - Public funding:	7 090 915,00 Euro - 4 999 995,00 Euro

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Original description

REFORM focuses on more resource-efficiency and cleaner manufacturing technologies for composite components to be exploited in different industrial sectors (e.g. Transport, Energy, Construction, ..). Fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) composites are becoming very popular as their use reduces weight and allow innovative designs for energy-saving products during service-life. Nevertheless, service-life does not represent the total solution. A total life cycle view must be taken including manufacturing and end of life reuse, recyclability and/or disposal.
The central idea of REFORM is to focus on the manufacturing processes of FRP components considering, with an holistic view, the whole manufacturing cycle.
The environmental friendly process technologies for Forming, Machining (cutting & trimming), Assembly and Recycling are specifically considered, as well methods to integrate the proposed technologies into the eco-factory of the future.
REFORM considers specific RTD and Demonstration activities capable to provide advances towards full green economically viable manufacturing.