Digitalization as Enabler for Resource-efficient Surface Pre-treatment Processes - DiReST

Purpose and goal

The aim is to contribute to sustainable development of the manufacturing industry by use of digital tools for process control of surface treatment processes, that today are often done manually and with end result sometimes out of specification, even with correct process parameters. Process steps are also not always measured continuously or controlled at all. With digital tools for process control, the goal is increased sustainability and improved final quality in the manufacturing industry.

Expected effects and result

Reduce the gap between process control and end results by increased levels of digitalization and automated data analysis. This leads to optimizing and improving surface treatment processes and thereby achieving a more stable product quality, which in turn results in fewer discards, reduced use of chemicals, water, energy and thereby reduced environmental impact. Process flexibility can also be increased with the possibility of faster introduction of new surface treatments and materials.

Planned approach and implementation

The focus is to use digital tools and AI to identify and reduce the gap between process control and final results by identification and evaluation of new measurement techniques, development of a digital platform and methods for analyzing and handling data. This is a pre-study in close collaboration with industry that will identify data management methods, sensors and test some of them at lab scale to prepare for a larger project where the results can be realized and tested on a larger scale.