The aim of LEVIS Project would be to develop a new manufacturing route able to fill the current industrial gap present in mass production automotive applications. By adopting an eco- and circular design concept from the design phase to the end-of-life stage, LEVIS project will develop, verify and demonstrate lightweight structural parts in electrical vehicles. Enhanced sustainability, improved raw material use-, energy- and cost efficiency, reduced weight yet high structural integrity and reliability are expected to be achieved. LEVIS envisages the use of multi-material solutions based on fibre reinforced thermoplast. LEVIS aims at the development of structural parts in automotive using thermoplastic based CFRP/metal hybrid materials integrated with SHM system in order to achieve a significant weight reduction while keeping the mechanical in-service performance of the targeted parts. For that, new sustainable materials, suitable manufacturing/assembly procedures, advanced simulation methodologies/workflows and innovative sensing/monitoring technologies will be developed, implemented and validated. Recyclable resins, bio-resourced CF and recycled CF will be developed and used for these parts for enhanced sustainability. The feasibility and scale-up capability of production of these lightweight materials and structural parts will be verified and demonstrated. A circular-design approach will be used for constructing the structural parts in order to maximise their service-life and enable easy, effective and efficient dismantling and reuse of the components (both CFRP- and metal-) in the parts as well as recovery of resins and fibres with sufficient quality for second-life use.

Optimised energy management and use (OPTEMUS) represents an opportunity for overcoming one of the biggest barriers towards large scale adoption of electric and plug-in hybrid cars: range limitation due to limited storage capacity of electric batteries. The OPTEMUS project proposes to tackle this bottleneck by leveraging low energy consumption and energy harvesting through a holistic vehicle-occupant-centred approach, considering space, cost and complexity requirements. Specifically, OPTEMUS intends to develop a number of innovative core technologies (Integrated thermal management system comprising the compact refrigeration unit and the compact HVAC unit, battery housing and insulation as thermal and electric energy storage, thermal energy management control unit, regenerative shock absorbers) and complementary technologies (localised conditioning, comprising the smart seat with implemented TED and the smart cover panels, PV panels) combined with intelligent controls (eco-driving and eco-routing strategies, predictive cabin preconditioning strategy with min. energy consumption, electric management strategy). The combined virtual and real-life prototyping and performance assessment in a state of the art, on-the-market A-segment electric vehicle (Fiat 500e) of this package of technologies will allow demonstrating a minimum of 32% of energy consumption reduction for component cooling and 60% for passenger comfort, as well as an additional 15% being available for traction, leading to an increase of the driving range in extreme weather conditions of at least 44 km (38%) in a hot ambient (+35ºC and 40% rH) and 63 km (70%) in a cold ambient (-10ºC and 90% rH).

Nowadays, European manufacturing enterprises are facing a number of challenges in a turbulent globalized market facing unprecedented and abrupt changes in market demands, an ever-increasing number of product variants and smaller lot sizes, intensifying the worldwide competition and causing a continuous pressure on production costs, product quality and production efficiency. Therefore, novel product development strategies for ensuring and optimising the manufacturing of new products or variants in low-volume production systems must be implemented. PIONEER aims the development of an open innovation platform and interoperable digital pipeline for addressing a design-by-simulation optimisation framework. For that, PIONEER implements inline feedforward control strategies for enhancing the efficiency of the industrial systems in high-mix/low-volume production schemes, based on the connection between materials modelling and materials characterisation, simulation-based digital twins and data-driven models, updated through distributed production data from embedded IoT edge devices and product quality. PIONEER is built over five pillars for development a common methodology deployed in two demonstrators by involving multidisciplinary optimisation for ensuring certified path planning strategies for the manufacturing of topology optimised structural elements through Wire-Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM) in construction i.e., low-volume production schemes, as well as for ensuring an efficient design and manufacturing strategy for the manufacturing of Carbon Fibre Sheet Moulding Compound (CF-SMC) components in automotive i.e., high-mix production schemes. PIONEER is built on the knowledge and results gained in i) previous H2020 EU projects; ii) associations i.e. EMMC ASBL, IOF, VMAP Standard Community, IDTA; and iii) commercial products from project partners.