Consortium

Eurecat  Eurecat is the leading Technology Centre of Catalonia. It provides the industrial and business sector with differential technology and advanced expertise, offers solutions to their innovation needs and boosts their competitiveness in a fast-paced environment. The Metallic and Ceramics Materials Technology Unit, involved in the project,  focuses on the development and characterization of metallic and ceramics material solutions, in order to obtain lightweight materials, resistant, sustainable and able to overcome mechanical and functional requirements. Eurecat is the coordinator of the project, leading the development and performing innovative characterization methodologies, implement fracture-mechanics based properties in FE modelling and defining and configuring the testbed services and deployment.

COMTES FHT – COMTES FHT is a Czech research institute established in 2000 specialized in the field of research and development of steels and metallic materials. COMTES FHT, through its Department of Mechanical Testing and Thermophysical Measurement, will contribute to the optimization of Micro-Tensile tests (M-TT), the development of advanced tests to improve FLC with non-linear strain bath and performance of component dynamic testing of crash-resistance tests.

Fraunhofer IWU Fraunhofer Institute for Machine Tools and Forming Industry (IWU) is a leading institute within Fraunhofer applied research organisation working on the development of efficient value chain processes in the machine tool, vehicle and component production sector. The institute is in charge of developing a testing machine to perform reliable FLC-characterization and optimizing an advanced 3MA system for non-destructive quality inspection of components.

Lulea University of Technology – Lulea University of Technology is one of Sweden’s leading technical universities with 1,600 employees and 15,000 students. The division of Mechanics of Solid Materials, mainly oriented towards the areas of material modelling, nonlinear dynamics and fracture mechanics, contributes to the project characterizing the materials involved in forming operations and crash situations for later use in finite element modelling.

University of Pisa – The University of Pisa is a public institution boasting twenty departments with high level research centres in a variety of sectors. The Department of Civil and Industrial Engineering participates in the project optimizing an innovative automatic ball indentation tests (BIT) to quantify and monitor hydrogen embrittlement of sheet metals before and after cold and hot stamping processes and will develop a FEM model to simulate the potential risk of H delayed fracture during forming processes.

Applus+ Laboratories – Applus+ Laboratories specialises in developing technical solutions to enhance product competitiveness and foster innovation. Applus+ testing expertise and network of leading, renowned laboratories makes us best placed to support customers through the whole product value chain, offering testing, product development, quality control and certification services. Applus+ Laboratories participates in this project providing its experience in Product Certification and Quality Control. Applus+ Laboratories will help the FormPlanet laboratory network to ensure high quality test data defining an exhaustive laboratory quality audit. Futhermore, Applus+ will help to define a Product Certification scheme for Form Planet customers by exploiting the acquired test data.

Granta Design – Granta Design is an SME spun out from the University of Cambridge producing and selling software and materials data to enable others to manage materials information and education. In FormPlanet project, Granta Design will stablish a central materials and process information database and support the development of a scalable business model.

Letomec srl  – Letomec srl is a spin-off company of the University of Pisa working in the field of design and analysis of components, systems and mechanical plants. The spin-off counts with large expertise in the selection and validation of constructive solutions and materials, solving failure analysis and predict damages affecting structures that may appear during manufacturing or service life. During the project, Letomec will optimise an industrial on-line diffusible H measurement test to detect H-delayed fractures from steel production, through forming up to part assembling.

Spanish Association for Standardisation (UNE) – The Spanish Association for Standardization, UNE, is a non-profit-making, private, independent and multisector organization that helps to improve the quality and competitiveness of companies. Representing the European CEN/CENELEC and the international ISO/IEC for the development of technical standards, UNE advises, manages and develops all activities related to standardization.

Aludium – Aludium is a leading supplier of aluminium solutions for the industrial, distribution and automotive markets in Europe. Together with its research centre CINDAL, Aludium will contribute to the project with its high expertise in aluminium production, functionalization and characterisation, validating and adjusting microstructural studies, mechanical and formability tests.

APT – APT Group designs, manufactures and markets automation, presses, tools and complete production lines for the sheet metal and tube forming industry. As a leading supplier of advanced sheet metal forming technologies, APT will validate the novel characterisation tests in a high strength Aluminium sheet metal component formed though hot forming for automotive applications.

ARANIA – ARANIA is the biggest cold rolled manufacturer in Southern Europe, counting with extensive experience in daily steel characterization and alloyed and micro-alloyed cold-rolled low and high carbon steel strips and stripping processes. ARANIA validates the novel characterization tests to predict material behaviour, using them for the optimisation of high strength cold rolled steels for fine blanking applications.

Arcelor Mittal Maizieres Research – ArcelorMittal Maizieres Research is the biggest research center of the ArcelorMittal steel manufacturing group. Dedicated to R&D on steel the center participates to the project through its Automotive Product Center, in charge of validating the novel techniques to product crash behaviour in AHSS grades for automotive parts.

Arçelik – Arçelik is a multinational company specialised in the home appliances sector with over 1,300 R&D employees and 18 different production facilities in seven countries. Arçelik is responsible for improving, developing and designing new washing machine products with new features and fascia lift up. The company will act as a demonstrator of the advanced characterisation technologies for the lightweighting of components and prediction of material behaviour.

Centro Riserche (CRF) – The Centro Riserche has the mission to develop and transfer innovative products, processes and methodologies to improve the competitiveness of the Fiat Chrysler Automobiles Group. During the project, CRF will study the implementation in real production plant control of H content in raw and stamped components and make measurements in parts with different materials and thickness.

Estamp – Estamp is a global leader with 35 years of experience in developing and producing parts based on metal stampings for thermal, thermo-acoustic and electromagnetic pioneer insulation solutions that help automakers build successful brands and make life more comfortable in a cleaner environment. Estamp is a global player with local presence covering the auto industry’s three main markets: Europe, Asia and North America.

Lamera – Lamera is a research-intensive company producing the sandwich material Hybrix^TM with deep knowledge on material properties, process & manufacturing technologies. Lamera is in charge of validating models developed in the project for multi-layer sheet metals in order to improve the design features of the components, predict instabilities/failure and formability of thin formable sandwich materials.