Large engineering structures like turbines, bridges or industrial machinery are still manufactured by traditional processes such as forging, casting or by machining from solid blocks. These processes do not allow local control of material properties to achieve a specific function like anti-corrosion or hardness. To meet the functional specifications, engineers must operate within a limited range of design options, with high “buy-to-fly” ratios and long lead times. Unlike any other metal AM technology, wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) produces fully dense metallic structures with no porosity. WAAM is also unbeatable in terms of production times, making it uniquely suited for large and functionally demanding engineering structures. In Grade2XL, we will demonstrate the potential of multi-material wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) for large scale structures. The high printing rate of WAAM, combined with the ability to control material properties down to the nanoscale, will allow us to build strong and durable engineering structures. Grade2XL will deliver multi-material products of superior quality and performance, cut lead times by up to 96% and enable massive cost savings for the maritime and energy industry, as well as for industrial machinery. These outputs will rapidly roll out to other sectors with similar key performance indicators and become an attractive investment opportunity for SMEs. This project will strengthen Europe’s capacity to drive manufacturing innovation globally and withstand growing competition from Asia.

DENiM develops an interoperable digital intelligence platform enabling a collaborative approach to industrial energy management. DENiM provides an integrated toolchain to provision advanced digital services including secure edge connectivity leveraging IoT, data analytics, digital twin, energy modelling and automation culminating in the delivery of continuous energy impact assessment, together with energy control and optimisation across existing production facilities, processes and machines. DENiM identifies skills gaps and develops training to build competences to support energy sustainability in smart manufacturing processes through the seamless integration of digital technologies, education and training activities. In view of considering the human factor, DENiM will consider existing and future regulations from a data protection, legal, ethical and energy policy perspectives, which informs the DENiM technological developments and pilot site interventions. In essence, DENiM accelerates energy efficiency transformation in manufacturing systems by enabling the right information and right technology to be available at the right time and in the right form, made accessible to the right people, empowering smart energy efficient decision-making within factories and across entire value chains. DENiM leverages the concept of process integration, taking a holistic approach to energy efficient manufacturing systems management and considers the interactions between the business, technology, infrastructure, and the workforce through the use of engineered systems that integrate both operational technologies and information technologies to accurately identify and map energy flows across the complete manufacturing value chain facilitating the integration of energy efficiency into existing business processes through digitalisation. This will result in a significant reduction of energy across diverse industrial sectors with substantial cost savings derived from optimised operation