Factory 2050 is the UK’s first fully reconfigurable collaborative research facility, dedicated to digital assembly and flexible component manufacturing.
Teams at Factory 2050 are working with manufacturing partners on projects spanning robotics and automation, digitally-assisted assembly and manufacturing informatics. This work will help to develop ways of meeting demand for high variation and mass customisation, making sense of big data, human-machine collaboration and looking at techniques for digitally-assisted assembly.
Factory 2050 is at the heart of the University of Sheffield’s Advanced Manufacturing Campus, and is situated on the site once occupied by Sheffield Airport. The building helps manufacturers to conduct research into flexible manufacturing processes for high-value components and one-off parts for customers from a wide range of sectors.
As part of his visit, The Duke of York was given a tour of the factory by Ben Morgan, head of the AMRC’s Integrated Manufacturing Group, which is based in Factory 2050. Mr Morgan demonstrated the work being done by the AMRC to enable robots to accurately machine holes in composite aircraft components – a project which has matured into a production system and is on track to save BAE Systems millions of pounds in capital and operational costs.
The Duke of York also saw how robots are being used for high-accuracy, flexible machining applications, and also had the opportunity to experience the latest cutting-edge mixed reality technologies being used to improve assembly, construction and manufacturing processes.
After the tour, The Duke of York unveiled a plaque commemorating the opening. The Royal Family are long-time supporters of the work of the AMRC. The Duke of York also opened the AMRC Rolls-Royce Factory of the Future in 2008 and the AMRC Training Centre in 2014.
AMRC www.amrc.co.uk
