A Learning Factory Implementation with Industry, Teaching and Research Perspectives

In the last decade, Industry 4.0 has resulted in widespread change in how manufacturing operates and, as a consequence, the skills set that a graduating engineer is required to display. This rapid change has resulted in challenges for educational institutions at third level as mechanical and manufac...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Procedia computer science Vol. 253; pp. 1093 - 1102
Main Authors: Quinn, William, Ahearn, Aaron, Buckley, Killian, Casotti, Alberto, Ozturk, Cemalettin
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier B.V 2025
Subjects:
Digital Twin
Distributed Wireless Networked Control Systems
Energy Efficient Manufacturing
Learning Factory
Distributed Wireless Networked Control Systems
Energy Efficient Manufacturing
Learning Factory
Digital Twin
ISSN:1877-0509, 1877-0509
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:In the last decade, Industry 4.0 has resulted in widespread change in how manufacturing operates and, as a consequence, the skills set that a graduating engineer is required to display. This rapid change has resulted in challenges for educational institutions at third level as mechanical and manufacturing engineering has now become a interdisciplinary profession requiring not only traditional skills but also skills in information technology, computer science, among others. The challenge in an educational setting is to develop a space where various disciplines can work together, both educators and students in an industrially relevant space. For this reason, a learning factory has been developed in the Munster Technological University with that purpose in mind. Following up on previous work, this paper presents achievements in educational, industrial interaction and research projects. The learning factory has permitted the development of masters level modules, provide training for local industry and also research in the area of machine learning, digital twin, and autonomous flexible manufacturing systems, projects which are summarised in this paper. The paper ends with a discussion of the future direction of the learning factory with the objective of sustainable growth.
ISSN:1877-0509
1877-0509
DOI:10.1016/j.procs.2025.01.171