​Our 14th newsletter from Research Area 1 and 3 is now available for you to read!

​Page 4: Workshop in Åndalsnes 04

Page 7: Research Area 1: Work package 1.1 

Page 11: Research Area 1: Work package 1.2 

Page 13: Research Area 1: Work package 1.3 

Page 15: Research Area 3: PhD and WP news 

We updated the white paper on May 25th, 2022. The primary sections that have been revised are the methods and additive manufacturing. The latter has been updated in collaboration with SINTEF Industry.

About the white paper
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Manufacturing in the 21st century has been characterized as a complex and dynamic sociotechnical system (ManuFUTURE, 2019). The industry is currently being challenged by accelerated technological change, pressures, and regulations regarding reduction of its environmental footprint, novel knowledge demands, a turbulent economic landscape, and a pandemic creating a demanding and unforeseen context.

For manufacturers to make sense of ongoing changes and how to position themselves within this changing landscape, it is useful to start with developing a knowledge basis on the most pertinent trends. This is the departure for this white paper, which aims to provide an overview of some of the key technological, environmental, social, and economic trends that are both challenging and providing opportunities for the Norwegian manufacturing industry.

Note that the paper does not provide an exhaustive analysis and discussion of the different trends. Rather, based on a review of existing reports and academic literature and experience from contemporary research on the development of the Norwegian manufacturing industry, we have identified a selection of trends. In section 2, we present and briefly reflect on these trends individually.

The trends are presented in the following sequence:

1. Environmental trends
2. Technological Trends
3. Social Trends
4. Economical Trends

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In section 3 we briefly discuss the interconnections between the trends and how recent challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic influence them, before providing some final remarks.

Page 1:
- About RA 2

Page 1-2:
- PhD news​

Page 2:
- Loading and unloading of hanging trolleys

Page 3:
- 3D vision-based CAD registration and burr detection
- Hapro, glue dispensing: SFI case

Page 4:
- Plastic 3D print (Robotized Additive Manufacturing)
- Kongsberg Maritime, mobile assembly – SFI case

Our society is facing a number of crises simultaneously: global warming, Covid19-pandemic, lack of food, lack of energy, war in Europe and geopolitical instability.

We are usually talking about how the manufacturing industry will handle external challenges, but perhaps we should rather focus on the role of the manufacturing industry in the society to be more robust for coping with such crisis on top of each other? The manufacturing industry is a key enabler for sustainable development with respect to environment, society and economy, and this industry is an important part of our common emergency preparedness.

Our best robustness for the future is a society that is prepared for facing a large variety of challenges. In this context, it is vital for Norway to maintain, and further develop, high quality in research, manufacturing and innovation. Governmental cofounding of R&D is one of the most effective efforts build national robustness for facing challenges to come.

Collaborative research, as all partners in SFI Manufacturing have joined in on, have contributed to our most powerful tool to build robustness for the future: knowledge. This annual report gives an overview of the contribution from the centre last year, and I hope you will read this report being motivated to seek possibilities to utilise this knowledge for a common sustainable development.
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- Lars Stenerud, CEO Plasto AS
Chair of the board, SFI Manufacturing

You can find the PDF here.

Page 1:
Disputation of Eirik B. H. Korsen

Page 1-2:
Our first physical workshop in two years

Page 3:
Trends influencing Norwegian manufacturing industry the next decade

Page 4:
Tentative workshop plan for 2022

Page 5:
New project: ALuGreen

Page 6-7:
Report from RA1: WP1.1 + WP1.2

Welding robots are the "cousins" of 3D printers and can create machine parts on-site, when they are needed. 

You can read the full text in Norwegian, published in Gemini and Dagens Næringsliv.

This article was written by:

• Geir Langelandsvik, doctoral fellow (SINTEF).
• Linn Danielsen Evjemo, doctoral fellow (NTNU/SFI Manufacturing).

Tina Bergh has submitted the following academic thesis as part of the doctoral work at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU): Electron microscopy of intermetallic phases in aluminium-steel joints
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Tina has been part of Research Area 1 - Multi-Material Products and Processes.

She will hold a trial lecture May 28 at 10:15, and the public defence of the thesis will begin at 13:15. The lecture and defence are open for digital participation at: https://s.ntnu.no/Trial_lecture_Tina_Bergh and https://s.ntnu.no/PhD_defence_Tina_Bergh. 

​The doctoral work has been carried out at the Department of Physics, where Associate Professor Per Erik Vullum has been the candidate’s supervisor. Professor Randi Holmestad, Department of Physics, NTNU and Associate Professor Ida Westermann, Department of Materials Science, NTNU have been the candidate’s co-supervisors.

​Introduction by Lars Stenerud, Chair of the Board.

– To say that 2020 has been an odd year for SFI Manufacturing must be the most cliché term used in the Corona-period. However, 2020 has been a challenging and different year for our centre and the partners of the centre.

Knowledge and skills are resources that we rely on when we meet extraordinary situations. All the involved partners in SFI Manufacturing have utilised this during 2020. Some have experienced a total marked collapse for their product, while others have experienced considerable marked increase. In common, all have had to deal with the challenging situation to maintain a safe work environment within changing regulations and advises, and regional differences. All this have required use of cross-disciplinary knowledge and skills. Perhaps the very cross-disciplinary nature of manufacturing has been an extra asset for us during this situation?

The academic partners have also faced a challenging situation with limited access to laboratory facilities, a volatile market and the challenging organisational issues regarding infection control at work facilities. In particular, I will use the opportunity to express my recognition of the work of PhD and post doc candidates that have been able to maintain progress in their work and develop new knowledge within manufacturing.

In these trying times, it is essential to use our resources within R&D to be well prepared for the opportunities that most likely will appear at the other end of this challenging period.

The workshop we had with ISAB in December gave us a perspective on our work from outside of the SFI. As well as receiving good reviews, the recommendations from ISAB emphasize our scope of further research. 
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On April 6, 2021, Amalie Østhassel will start as a new PhD student at SFI Manufacturing. She has recently been working as a trainee in the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). Her PhD is being undertaken on behalf of NTNU.

​We welcome Amalie and look forward to the collaboration!

The SFI Manufacturing Annual Report 2019 is now available.

During 2019 SFI Manufacturing has passed the midway review with good results. An independent evaluation of the centre's innovation potential has been presented as well. In this annual report both results will be presented, and I would like to focus on the innovation potential during this introduction.

During the development of the centre's concept, the partners agreed upon the importance of an efficient system for the creation of spin-off projects on higher Technology Readiness Levels (TRL). A system that would focus on the innovation activities of the industry partners, rather than the centre's activities itself.

SFI Manufacturing focuses on TRL 1 to 3, but several research results have been developed during, or contributed to, innovation projects on TRL 4 to 7. During the period of 2016 to 2018, 21 innovation projects connected to the centre were started.

Impello Management has conducted an independent evaluation of SFI Manufacturing's innovation potential and its spin-off projects. This evaluation concluded with a potential economic impact of more than 20 billion NOK over a 10-year period.

A contribution to this is the investment in SFI Manufacturing and the associated spin-off projects, where the partners invest approximately 460 million NOK and the Norwegian Research Council 340 million NOK. If the projects succeed, the return on investment is regarded to be very good.  

• Read the Annual Report 2019 here
• Download the report as PDF-file here​

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