The eFactory project The eFactory project realises a federated smart factory ecosystem by primarily interlinking 4 smart factory platforms, from the FoF-11-2016 cluster, through an open and interoperable Data Spine.

The federation of the 4 base platforms is complemented by industrial platforms, collaboration tools and smart factory systems, specifically selected to support connected factories in lot-size-one manufacturing. The federated eFactory platform delivers enhances value and reduces the barrier to innovation by providing seamless access to services and solutions that are currently dispersed.

In parallel the platform provides the necessary infrastructure, tools and support for novel service creation and validations by third parties. Further, by fostering healthy competition in the smart factory ecosystem, the eFactory platform will ensure that the needs of the evolving smart manufacturing industry are met for the long term.

The eFactory federation is offered to the manufacturing and logistic companies as an open platform; to utilise the offered functionality, experiment with innovation approaches and develop custom solutions based on specific needs. The project demonstrates the power of federation through 3 embedded large scale pilots focusing on lot-size-one manufacturing and sustainable value networks in diverse sectors, while a cross sectorial circular economy pilot is also incorporated.

The results of the pilots are openly made available as lessons learned and best practices. The creation of the European smart factory ecosystem is supported by offering interested companies technical and financial support. A dedicated budget is allocated to offer financial support to companies who are interested in using the eFactory platform to enhance their businesses.

The project is primarily composed of SMEs who have the agility to quickly react and adopt innovative solutions, while experience and market reach of big players such as Airbus and Siemens is also leveraged.