News

Within the demo-case “Polymers based functional products” of ESM pilot, a specific use-case devoted to smart plastics has been defined and studied for several years. The scope is the integration of functions and added-value products combining electronic, light, and/or sensing features into polymeric components that are in high demand and rapid development for several markets and applications.

The “Smart Plastics Hub” project has been designed within this frame by involving 6 partners: Polymeris (Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes), Eurecat (Catalonia), AFIL (Lombardia), Fraunhofer IPA (Baden-Wurttemberg), Polymer Science Park (East Netherlands) and Fraunhofer IWU (Saxony).

The project aims to establish an online platform, through which an interregional network of high-level experts will offer advisory, advertising, and support services in the field of smart polymer materials to companies and technology providers. The approach is to provide a multi-technology integrated network with different regional capacities/interests and pilot infrastructures. It will also include the upgrades of the equipments of each partner in order to scale- up the services and to increase the available capacities for smart plastics design and manufacturing.

5 main levels of services are foreseen to be proposed by the platform:

• Product design engineering based on smart plastics technologies (Proofs of concept)
• Prototyping of products
• Diagnostics for production solutions
• Demonstration of production solutions
• Partnerships with solution providers