Digital Factory

Computer development has given rise to new digital technologies that facilitate data exchange and traceability, as well as the integration of powerful calculation modules.

With the aim of reducing costs and continuously improving productivity, digital technologies are becoming more and more widespread throughout the company. For more than three decades, design offices have been developing products using Computer-Aided Design (CAD) tools and producing digital mock-ups. The drawing board has given way to new methods designed to ensure continuity in the digital chain, thereby improving lead times. Computerized solutions can now be used to validate the mechanical behavior of products. These digital models are gradually complementing physical prototypes, enabling us to explore a wider range of possible solutions.

Collaborative working and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) systems have taken us a step further, erasing the boundaries of the company's information system. These technologies, which are still in their infancy among small and medium-sized businesses, enable people to work remotely on the co-design of a product.

Today, designing the production system as early as possible in the product life cycle, without waiting for final validation of the prototype, has become a major preoccupation, enabling the best decisions to be made at the right time. New challenges need to be met, such as :

• digitization of the production system;

• design flexibility in the face of product uncertainties;

• managing the increased exchange of information between the various players involved in the system development project.

The Digital Factory was born of this need.

The Digital Factory is a technology designed primarily for industries with relatively complex manufacturing processes. This technology is therefore aimed above all at :

• automotive industry;

• aeronautics ;

• electrical and electronics industry;

• machine, equipment and plant construction.