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Report

Teaser, summary, work performed and final results

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - TWIMP (Innovative Laser Solution for Cutting Welding TWIP steel with Improved Performance)

Teaser

Summary

Located in Scurzolengo, city with a high concentration of technology, robotics and automation companies, our company, ELETTROSYSTEM SAS, is an expert for designing and building high technology solutions through assembly and testing process machines. Currently, ELETTROSYSTEM is one of the leaders in automation technology, with 17 products sold last year regarding special assembly machines, testing benches and complete process automatic lines production, where we obtained â‚¬ 7.4 million turnover in the past year and we offer customized and dedicated solutions to our clients in most of the industrial fields, especially in automotive, aeronautical, energy and biomedical sectors. In addition, ELETTROSYSTEM has experienced an overall growth of 100 % in the last five years (from â‚¬ 3.7 million to â‚¬ 7.4 million turnover) thanks to the special relevance that our international expansion has starred, having presence in Germany, France, rest of Europe and North Africa, South America and Asia.

TWIMP, is the stand-alone equipment for a complete cutting and welding process for TWIP steel. Our product does not only meet the finishing requirements but also will solve the other two current problems:
-Cut and weld complex shapes (required for vehicleâ€™s structural parts) by using a fiber laser head combined with a robotic arm and a CNC controller, which allows the possibility of moving the source to a precise position.
-Reduce the total cost of the whole process by avoiding the use of filler material and making a final small and compact process machine (so power consumption will be reduced and no foundations would be required

In order to confirm the feasibility of our project, we, ELETTROSYSTEM, have carried out a 5-month study focusing our efforts on 3 main areas: technically, our team has further worked on the industrial prototype, focusing on its miniaturization, the cutting/welding of 3D complex shapes, the control software and dedicated user interface; commercially, we have identified, and studied in detail, our target markets in order to prepare our marketing strategy. And we have performed a Freedom-to-Operate analysis, which is required to check and validate the innovation of our product; lastly, we have prepared financial projections in order to evaluate the return on investment of the TWIMP project.

Work performed

We at Elettrosystem have been undertaking a Feasibility Study during the last 5 months, based on the original Work Plan proposed in the Phase 1 proposal, in order to analyse 3 key areas of our project.

On the technical side, based on our original TWIMP prototype, we have further studied and worked on the industrial prototype, focusing on its miniaturization, the cutting/welding of 3D complex shapes, the control software and dedicated user interface. We have carried on additional tests on the materials and performed complete analyses on the welded parts, to check that they comply 100% with the required specifications. We have also prepared a detailed Execution Plan for the project, covering tasks such as planning, budget, risk analysis and organization.

At a commercial level we have identified, and studied in detail, our target markets in order to prepare our marketing strategy. And we have performed a Freedom-to-Operate analysis, which is required to check and validate the innovation of our product. This analysis has confirmed the novelty of TWIMP and the absence of existing thread for its commercialization.

And lastly, we have prepared financial projections in order to evaluate the return on investment of the TWIMP project. Different sources of funding have been evaluated as well, leading to our decision to present a Horizon 2020 SME Instrument Phase 2 in June 2015.

Final results

TWIMP, cutting and welding process product for TWIP steel, will spread the use of this recent advanced material within the automotive industry through various manufacturers and OEMs, so they can reduce vehicleâ€™s consumption and pollutant gas emissions while, at the same time, they increase safety for drivers and reduce their own production costs. In addition, TWIMP project opens a window of opportunity to other transport industries that may benefit from its excellent properties such as aeronautical or rail transportation.