The 'i4ms' initiative aims to support 200 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) across Europe in harnessing ICTs to enhance their manufacturing capabilities and navigate the challenges of product development. It provides financial aid, access to new technology, and market opportunities, while also promoting a Digital Single Market strategy that improves cross-border access to digital goods and services. The initiative focuses on digital innovation hubs, leadership in digital platforms, bridging the digital skills gap, and adapting regulations to foster a competitive digital economy.

1. EUROPE'S FUTURE IS
DIGITAL
JAYESH C S PAI

2. ICT Innovation for Manufacturing
SMEs- I4MS
 7TH R&D FRAMEWORK PROGRAMME (FP7)
 AN INNOVATION INITIATIVE FOR THE MANUFACTURING SECTOR DESIGNED
TO HELP HIGH-TECH SMALL AND MEDIUM SIZE ENTERPRISES (SMES) EXPLOIT
THE POTENTIAL OF ICTS TO HELP GROW THEIR BUSINESSES.
 THE "I4MS" INITIATIVE WILL HELP 200 SMES ACROSS EUROPE, WHO ARE
EITHER ATTEMPTING TO REDUCE THE RISKS INVOLVED IN USING
ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY WHICH IS STILL IN ITS INFANCY, OR ARE TRYING
TO CROSS THE SO-CALLED "VALLEY OF DEATH" THAT SEPARATES THE
DEVELOPMENT OF AN INNOVATIVE PROTOTYPE FROM A SUCCESSFUL
PRODUCT IN THE MARKET.

3. I4MS is part of the PPP 'Factories of
the Future' (PPP FoF)
 SMES ACROSS EUROPE WILL BENEFIT IN THREE WAYS:
 1.DIRECT FINANCIAL SUPPORT TO IMPROVE THEIR
PRODUCTS OR MANUFACTURING PROCESSES
 2.ACQUISITION OF NEW TECHNOLOGIES AND
KNOWLEDGE
 3.ACCESS TO NEW MARKETS AND PARTNERS OUTSIDE
THEIR LOCAL ECOSYSTEM.
 TO STRENGTHEN INDUSTRY AND THE EU'S
MANUFACTURING SECTOR

5. Digital Single Market Strategy – 3
AREAS
 FIRST, PROVIDING BETTER ACCESS FOR CONSUMERS AND
BUSINESSES TO DIGITAL GOODS AND SERVICES:
 MAKING SURE THAT PEOPLE USE ONLINE SERVICES AND DIGITAL
GOODS ACROSS BORDERS AND
 THAT BUSINESSES FACE FEWER BARRIERS WHEN THEY SELL TO
OTHER EU COUNTRIES.
 INITIAL SET OF SMES IN I4MS ORIGINATES FROM 12 EU MEMBER
STATES (AUSTRIA, BELGIUM, CZECH REPUBLIC, FRANCE,
GERMANY, ITALY, LITHUANIA, THE NETHERLANDS, SLOVENIA,
SPAIN, SWEDEN AND THE UK) AND 5 ASSOCIATED COUNTRIES
(THE FORMER YUGOSLAV REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA, ISRAEL,
NORWAY, SWITZERLAND AND TURKEY).

6. Digital Single Market Strategy
 SECOND, SHAPING THE ENVIRONMENT FOR
DIGITAL NETWORKS AND SERVICES TO
FLOURISH:
 SETTING THE RIGHT RULES AND CONDITIONS
FOR THOSE IN THE MARKET, BOTH
TRADITIONAL AND NEWCOMERS.

7. Digital Single Market Strategy
 THIRD, CREATING A EUROPEAN DIGITAL ECONOMY
AND SOCIETY WITH LONG-TERM GROWTH POTENTIAL:
 A DIGITAL EUROPEAN MARKET WHICH ALLOWS NEW
BUSINESS MODELS TO FLOURISH, START-UPS TO GROW
AND INDUSTRY TO INNOVATE AND COMPETE ON A
GLOBAL SCALE.
 TO TACKLE THE MOST CHALLENGING ISSUES SUCH AS
DATA, SKILLS AND STANDARDS, FOR EUROPEAN
INDUSTRY AND CITIZENS TO MAKE THE MOST OF THE
DIGITAL ECONOMY.

8. IMPACT OF ICT ON THE INDUSTRIAL
FABRIC
 IS ALREADY ENORMOUS TODAY AND STILL FAR
FROM REACHING ITS LIMITS.
 HIGHER VALUE ADDED ORIGINATES IN THREE
DIMENSIONS AND IN PARTICULAR FROM THEIR
COMBINATION

9. IMPACT OF ICT ON THE INDUSTRIAL
FABRIC
 FIRST, INNOVATION IN "DIGITAL-INSIDE" PRODUCTS: OPPORTUNITIES ARISING
FROM EMBEDDING DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY IN ANY PRODUCT AND ARTEFACT
ARE ALMOST INFINITE.
 SECOND, A TRANSFORMATION IN PROCESSES – "SMART MANUFACTURING":
DIGITAL INNOVATION AFFECTS THE FULL PRODUCT LIFECYCLE "FROM CRADLE
TO GRAVE". IT RANGES FROM PRODUCT DESIGN AND SIMULATION TOOLS TO
AUTOMATION AND SHOP FLOOR CONTROLS AND FROM LOGISTICS AND
SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT DOWN TO PRODUCT TRACKING AND
RECYCLING.
 THIRD, THE USE OF DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES LEADS TO RADICAL AND
DISRUPTIVE CHANGES IN BUSINESS MODELS INCLUDING WELL-ESTABLISHED
INDUSTRIES SUCH AS AUTOMOTIVE, LIGHTING OR TEXTILES. THESE ARE CHANGES
THAT AFFECT THE WAY WE DO BUSINESS AND GENERATE VALUE IN THE FUTURE.

10. ACTION IN FOUR KEY AREAS
DIGITAL INNOVATION HUBS;
LEADERSHIP IN PLATFORMS FOR
DIGITAL INDUSTRY;
CLOSING THE DIGITAL SKILLS GAP;
AND
SMART REGULATION FOR SMART
INDUSTRY.

11. 1. DIGITAL INNOVATION HUBS
 TO FACILITATE ACCESS TO DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES FOR ANY INDUSTRY
IN EUROPE:
 TO EMPOWER ANY BUSINESS, WHEREVER IT IS LOCATED IN EUROPE,
AND ESPECIALLY SMES, TO MASTER ITS DIGITAL TRANSITION.
 EVERY INDUSTRY, LARGE OR SMALL, HIGH-TECH OR NON-TECH, MUST
HAVE A GOOD UNDERSTANDING OF THE DIGITAL OPPORTUNITIES AND
EASY ACCESS TO KNOWLEDGE AND TESTING FACILITIES IN LATEST
DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES.

13. 1. DIGITAL INNOVATION HUBS
 COMPETENCE CENTRES SUCH AS FRAUNHOFER IN GERMANY, TNOS IN THE
NETHERLANDS OR CATAPULTS IN THE UK WILL BE ESTABLISHED IN EVERY
REGION IN EUROPE ANDTHESE CENTRES WILL BE GIVEN SUFFICIENT MEANS
TO SERVE INDUSTRY WELL.
 THESE CENTRES WILL BE AT THE HEART OF DIGITAL INNOVATION HUBS IN
EVERY REGION OF EUROPE.
 THEY WOULD BE SPECIALISING TO RAPIDLY PROVIDE WORLD CLASS
EXPERTISE AND DIGITAL SKILLS FOR THEIR LOCAL AND REGIONAL
ECONOMY. THEY WOULD CONNECT WITH OTHER CENTRES TO SHARE
KNOWLEDGE AND COMPLEMENT THEIR EXPERTISE. IN THIS THE WAY, THEY
CAN HELP THEIR LOCAL INDUSTRIES COOPERATE WITH INNOVATORS,
INVESTORS AND CUSTOMERS ALL ACROSS EUROPE AND GLOBALLY.

14. 2. LEADERSHIP IN PLATFORMS FOR
DIGITAL INDUSTRY
 THE OBJECTIVE IS TO ENSURE THE AVAILABILITY OF STATE-OF-THE-ART
OPEN AND INTEROPERABLE PLATFORMS THAT ANY BUSINESS CAN USE TO
MAKE ITS PRODUCTS, PROCESSES OR SERVICES READY FOR THE DIGITAL
AGE.
 THEIR DEVELOPMENT WILL REQUIRE COLLABORATION BETWEEN ACTORS
ACROSS VALUE CHAINS, INCLUDING USERS AND THE SUPPLY INDUSTRY.
 IT IS ESSENTIAL TO HAVE COMMON STANDARDS AND INTEROPERABLE
SOLUTIONS THROUGHOUT THE PRODUCTS AND SERVICES LIFE CYCLES.
 THE "DATA ECONOMY" SHOULD NOT DEVELOP IN LOCKED
ENVIRONMENTS AND PLATFORMS.

15. 2. LEADERSHIP IN PLATFORMS FOR
DIGITAL INDUSTRY
 IN ADDITION TO A REGULATORY ENVIRONMENT CONDUCIVE
TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF PLATFORMS, STRENGTHENING
RESEARCH AND INNOVATION IN THIS FIELD
 PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS (PPP) FOR RESEARCH AND
INNOVATION ON THE NEXT GENERATION OF DIGITAL
PLATFORMS.
 ECSEL JOINT TECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE (JTI) AS WELL AS
PARTNERSHIPS IN FACTORIES OF THE FUTURE, AND BIG DATA.

16. 3. FILL THE DIGITAL SKILLS GAP
 PREPARE WORKFORCE FOR CHANGE:
 THERE IS A CLEAR NEED FOR PROMOTING DIGITAL SKILLS AT
ALL LEVELS, FOR RE-SKILLING, AND FOR LIFELONG LEARNING
ACROSS EUROPE AND ITS REGIONS.
 DIGITAL SKILLS WILL THEREFORE NEED TO BE AN INTEGRAL
PART OF FUTURE EDUCATION CURRICULA WHILE TRAINING A
SIGNIFICANT PART OF CURRENT WORK FORCE MUST BE A
PRIORITY.

17. 4. ENSURE THAT EXISTING AND NEW
REGULATION IS FIT FOR PURPOSE IN
THE DIGITAL WORLD
 SMART REGULATION FOR SMART INDUSTRY.
 THE AVAILABILITY AND USE OF BIG DATA IS CRUCIAL FOR MAINTAINING THE
EU'S COMPETITIVENESS.
 NEW DIGITAL BUSINESS MODELS ARE CHALLENGING EXISTING REGULATORY
SYSTEMS WORLDWIDE, REQUIRING A NEW WAY OF POLICY-MAKING.
 THIS INCLUDES FOR EXAMPLE THE LIABILITY OF SYSTEMS AS THEY BECOME
MORE AUTONOMOUS, SAFETY AND SECURITY WITH THE INCREASING
INTERACTION BETWEEN SMART DEVICES SUCH AS ROBOTS AND HUMANS,
AND THE PROTECTION OF MASSIVE AMOUNTS OF DATA GENERATED BY
DIGITAL MANUFACTURING.

18. Digital Agenda
 IT TARGETS SUPPLIERS AND USERS OF ICT
SOLUTIONS AND COVERS INNOVATION IN FOUR
AREAS:
 1.ADVANCED ROBOT SOLUTIONS,
 2.HIGH PERFORMANCE CLOUD-BASED
SIMULATION SERVICES,
 3.INTELLIGENT SENSOR-BASED EQUIPMENT AND
 4.INNOVATIVE LASER APPLICATIONS.

19. 1. INDUSTRIAL ROBOTICS SYSTEMS
FOR SMES
 WELL-ESTABLISHED INDUSTRIAL ROBOTICS PLATFORMS ARE TARGETED
TOWARDS LARGE INDUSTRIAL MANUFACTURERS (E.G. AUTOMOTIVE)
ONLY AND ARE COMPLEX AND COSTLY IN SET-UP AND MAINTENANCE.
 TO BRING THE BENEFITS OF ROBOTICS ALSO TO SME AND MID CAP
MANUFACTURERS THE I4MS EXPERIMENTS MOTIVATES LEADING
SUPPLIERS OF INDUSTRIAL ROBOTICS PLATFORMS AND SYSTEM
INTEGRATORS TO DEVELOP IN COLLABORATION WITH SME END USERS
A LIGHT-WEIGHT AND MODULAR ROBOTICS SOLUTION.
 TO ENSURE THAT IT IS SUITABLE TO SME AND MIDCAP MANUFACTURERS
THE SOLUTION IS VALIDATED IN AN INDUSTRIAL ENVIRONMENT.

20. 2. HPC CLOUD-BASED SIMULATION
SERVICES
 DESIGNING HIGH TECH PRODUCTS SUCH AS AIRCRAFT WINGS OR TURBINES INVOLVE
SIMULATIONS THAT REQUIRE KNOWLEDGE OF MODELLING AND SIMULATION
TECHNOLOGIES IN COMBINATION WITH HIGH POWER COMPUTING (HPC)RESOURCES.
 TO HAVE AND MAINTAIN AN HPC DATA CENTRE WITH A MAINFRAME COMPUTER IS
NOT AFFORDABLE FOR SMES. EUROPE HAS A GOOD COVERAGE OF HPC CENTRES
WHICH HAVE THE COMPUTING POWER REQUIRED FOR COMPLEX SIMULATIONS.
 HOWEVER, ACCESS TO THOSE HPC FACILITIES NEEDS SPECIALISED KNOWLEDGE AND
SOFTWARE. EXPERIMENTS FUNDED BY THE INITIATIVE BRING HPC CENTRES,
INDEPENDENT SPECIALISED SOFTWARE VENDORS (ISV), SIMULATION EXPERTS AND
MANUFACTURING SMES TOGETHER TO ESTABLISH AN AFFORDABLE PAY PER-USE
CLOUD-BASED HPC SIMULATION SERVICE FOR THE SMES.
 THIS ULTIMATELY ENABLES SMES TO DESIGN HIGH TECH PRODUCTS AND ULTIMATELY
BOOSTS THEIR BUSINESS.

21. 3. SMART SENSOR SYSTEMS FOR
HIGH PRECISION PRODUCTION
 THE MANUFACTURING OF MEDIUM TO LARGE PIECES REQUIRES
A HIGH LEVEL OF PRECISION WHICH IS NOWADAYS OFTEN
OBTAINED BY TIME CONSUMING AND COSTLY TRIAL AND ERROR
LOOPS.
 THE I4MS EXPERIMENTS DEVELOP IN CLOSE COLLABORATION
BETWEEN SME TECHNOLOGY PROVIDERS AND SENSOR SYSTEM
OEMS ON THE ONE HAND AND MANUFACTURERS ON THE OTHER
HAND SMART SENSOR SYSTEMS THAT ALLOW FOR PRECISE
PRODUCTION AT REDUCED TIME AND COST.

22. 4. ADVANCED LASER BASED
EQUIPMENT ASSESSMENT
 Laser technology has scientifically strongly advanced in the last years.
However, this new knowledge has only rarely been applied industrially
facilitating more sophisticated and cost efficient production processes.
 The I4MS experiments transfer knowledge of research institutions into new
laser based products of SMEs and assess their applicability in the
production contexts of potential end user customers.
 The two fold effect is that SMEs now can offer leading edge laser
equipment products for industrial manufacturing that are already verified
by end-users.
 This ultimately extends their customer base and enables increased
revenues.