Sustainable manufacturing

By prioritising the development of sustainable solutions, with the goal of enhancing environmental, social and governance (ESG) operation of Australian manufacturing, Research Program 1 will focus on topics such as material and energy efficiency, material recycling and on-demand production across the whole additive manufacturing (AM) value chain. By harnessing the capabilities of AM, partners of AMCRC can anticipate a reduction in their environmental and CO2 footprint, improving resource efficiency, and economically viability of business outcomes.

Research activities

Evaluating the environmental, sustainable, and economic impacts of integrating additive manufacturing (AM) into industry, leveraging Industry 4.0 frameworks to optimise manufacturing efficiency

Methodology

Perform thorough evaluations encompassing life cycle assessments and cost-benefit analyses, utilising cyber-physical systems, IoT, big data analytics and AI to optimise the sustainable value chain in AM applications

Industry’s role

Provide access to cost data, production workflows, and supply chain information for sustainability assessments and economic modelling, while offering insights into current manufacturing practices and opportunities for integrating Industry 4.0 technologies with AM. Crucially, facilitate access to production data and facilities for implementation and testing

Universities’ role

Undertake independent analyses to assess the long-term environmental and economic impacts of AM adoption, considering factors such as material usage, energy consumption and waste generation, while researching the convergence of AM and Industry 4.0 to enhance operations through data-driven decision-making and connectivity. Further focus is on developing algorithms and frameworks to optimise AM processes and integrate them with smart factory systems