Aim and goal

The purposse of the project is to ensure that the manufacturing and processing industry in Sweden can take advantage of the rapid advances in informationtechnology and IoT and ensure faster adaptation through digitization. In the project, we will define, develop and verify solutions that can reduce unplanned downtime, improve human communication in a production environment, and demonstrate how financial benefits from investments for IoT-based maintenance can be calculated.

Challenge

Previous studies show inefficiencies due to lack of communication, information management, collection and transmission, and inadequate use of modern technology in the operators, maintenance staff and suppliers' working methods.

Solution

In order to reduce unplanned downtime, we investigate how direct access to information (for operators and service technicians) can affects the outcome. We also investigate how new use of ICT can improve human communication in a production environment and are going to develop a basis for calculations showing possible financial benefits from investments for IoT based maintenance, where the work is performed by technicians.

The project will utilize technology from three different areas: consumer and gaming industries (e.g. Hololens from Microsoft), from data science (e.g. analytics for decision support), and from new knowledge and technology within communication science (e.g. social media, Youtube channels, expert forums).

Effect

The project contributes to the global sustainability goal "Sustainable Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure" by working for inclusive industrialization, contributing with knowledge that can improves production, service and maintenance, and enhances corporate understanding of digital technology opportunities.

The project investigated the role of financing for SMEs transitioning to circular business models - as obstacles and opportunities - and also mapped out how the financial sector looks at circular business models in terms of risk assessment, valuation, return requirements and long-term perspective.

We did this in collaboration with manufacturing companies and banks. The method was mainly interviews with manufacturing and selling SMEs, and with a number of banks, in Sweden and Europe. We also mapped how financing is generally solved in manufacturing industry today. Overall, this resulted in a number of case studies on the challenges of manufacturing companies, as well as an overview of the banks' views on financing circular business models, from which we can understand new opportunities, constraints and roles for the financial sector as a whole.

From the perspective of both the financial and manufacturing sectors, there are great benefits and potential business opportunities in creating innovative solutions for the needs arising from the new business models in the manufacturing industry. Both sectors are in a disruptive era when old ways of earning money and valuing assets and risks are challenged by new business logic and new technologies that involve new forms of development, production, delivery, payment, etc.

This project generated new innovative knowledge about financing and its role as a facilitator in corporate transition to a more circular economy and real resource effectiveness.