R&D Projects

R&D Projects

The realization of innovative projects, R+D+I projects and activities for the promotion of R+D+I has been promoted within this area among the CETEM associates; those projects are focused on giving solutions to the main needs detected in the different technological and strategic areas of CETEM related to the furniture sector:
– Identification and characterisation of new materials of application in the sector, with focus on eco-innovation.
– Promotion of the incorporation of nanotechnology in the furniture sector.
– Promotion of the centre’s knowledge in textiles, identifying centres of excellence in this area and establishing mutually beneficial relationships.
– Support to companies of the habitat sector to improve their production processes through technological development and innovation projects, relying of industrial robotics and automation.
– Development of innovative products through technologies hitherto barely used in the sector, such as electronics and home automation.

In detail, the projects that have been launched during 2021 or that have continued to be implemented since the previous year, and which are not subject to any type of confidentiality contract, are:

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Sheld-On International projects
This project will create a science and technology network for relevant members from universities, research centres and industry to use the common tools and activities of the network to address the current ageing changes of the European population, thus helping reduce the usual redundancy in R&D+I efforts. The SHELD-ON project aims to enhance the exchange of knowledge and the development of a joint research agenda in terms of design and development of open multifunctional environments to meet the requirements of Europe’s ageing population and promote healthy ageing aspects.
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Allview International projects
A multiannual project funded by the European Commission through the ERASMUS+ initiative focused on creating a European dual VET network of Centres of Excellence in the field of Furniture and Wood.
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Essense International projects
The main aim of ESSENSE is to develop and implement a common curriculum and learning approach on BIM towards the design, construction and management of public and private environments for older adults that will meet the learning needs of Higher Education (HE) students. These will be relevant to the labour market and societal needs of an ageing society. This will address:
-BIM for smart housing and Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) principles and their interaction.
-The needs of the senior citizens and their caretakers.
-Technical and non-technical competences needed for an optimum implementation of BIM and AAL concepts, such as project management, innovation and collective competences.
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Under construction International projects
A project funded by the European Commission through the ERASMUS+ initiative with the aim of analysing the skills that make certain professionals successful in 7 jobs related to habitat, construction and industry 4.0 and of developing training material to teach based on these best practices.
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MAKING 4.0 International projects
Project financed by the European Union through the ERASMUS+ MUNDUS initiative whose objective is the development of a training course/master on industry4.0 in the wood sector for Malaysian Universities.
In addition to the 4 Malaysian universities and the Malaysian Timber Industry Council (METIB), the European partners are KIT, WULS, UPCT and CETEM.
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Tourings International projects
Project funded by the ERASMUS+ initiative from the European Commission aimed at developing a training course on Collaborative Robotics to promote its installation in the European Union. This course has different approaches: design and programming of the robotic cell, user-robot interaction and assembly line balancing.
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3D4EDERLY International projects
Project funded by the ERASMUS+ initiative from the European Commission focused on developing innovative ways of learning aimed at caregivers and people with Alzheimer or dementia using new technologies, such as 3D printing, to promote cognitive stimulation. Such technology may be useful for developing therapeutic methods.
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ACCESS3DP International projects
Project funded by the ERASMUS+ initiative from the European Commission aimed at fostering the artisan and creative sector with a training plan on 3DP and AIR (Industrial Automation and Robotics).
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Smart your home Electronics and home automation
A project funded by the European Union through the ERASMUS+ initiative to enable our elderly to develop home automation applications.
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Greener International projects
Project funded by the ERASMUS+ initiative from the European Commission mainly aimed at preparing both the companies and the public actors for a correct implementation of Green Public Procurement within Circular Economy principles.
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One Point International projects
CETEM will coordinate the content development activities and will prepare training content on specific topics, like 3d printing, Lean manufacturing, AR/VR. For O2, they will be involved in the research on best practices in online VET courses. They will contribute to the development of an ICT-tool/application repository plus a set of practical guidelines for trainers. Further, they will finalise content, translate it in Spanish and contribute to the content integration process as well as the testing and validation of the platform. Project financed by European Comission above Erasmus+ Programme.
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Desire International projects
Project funded by the ERASMUS+ initiative from the European Commission mainly aimed at providing tools and skills to apply Design for all or Universal Design methods (from the very design process) to professionals from building industry and furniture sector. This will allow the creation or adaptation of suitable housing for the elderly as a solution to provide them with well-being, comfort and autonomy at home.
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ENV CHANGE EU International projects
Project funded by the ERASMUS+ initiative from the European Commission aimed at strengthening the quality of start-up companies, young entrepreneurs and Vocational Training providers, as well as improving their professional development adopting or broadening the knowledge and skills in the field of Circular Economy involvement in modern business reality.
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SWING 2.0 International projects
Project funded by the ERASMUS+ initiative from the European Commission aimed at continuing the achievements by the successful SWING project, as well as at enabling the acquisition of sign language in various working environments with the purpose of integrating hearing-impaired people at different levels.
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U2 Materials
This project is aimed at developing eco-sustainable solutions for an efficient management of the resources used in the upholstered furniture industry.
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HORECOv-21 Electronics and home automation
Project funded by the Directorate-General for Innovation from CARM under the RIS3Mur Programme aimed at developing innovative actions for the hospitality industry to make hotels safer against virus transmission. This is a consortium project.
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eDRIVE Electronics and home automation
A project funded through the RETOS COLABORACIÓN initiative of the AGE consisting of the development of an innovative electric car that provides an unprecedented level of mobility and safety to disabled people with reduced mobility, at an affordable price far below current solutions. e2Drive will also develop an intelligent system for monitoring the state of health and level of alertness or fatigue by analysing driving and other variables such as vital signs.
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Ecoiot Electronics and home automation
A project funded through the RETOS COLABORACIÓN initiative of the AGE consisting of the development of an intelligent waste management system oriented to the hotel and catering sector based on IoT and machine learning with predictive capabilities, which will include a new design of containers and optimised planning and management of waste collection resources, as well as the ecological impact of the entire process as a result.
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Switch (CIEN) Electronics and home automation
A project funded by the CIEN call of MINECO, formed by a large consortium of organisations and research institutions that aims to develop electro-active optical devices with electrowetting technology (EW) for multisectoral applications. CETEM will participate in the application for the habitat sector.
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Bioemerger Materials
A project funded by the Regional Ministry of Employment, Universities, Enterprise and Environment within the research and innovation strategy for smart specialisation (RIS3MUR Strategy) whose aim is the development of biotechnological solutions for the eco-sustainable management of by-products and waste generated in the polyurethane foam industry.
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Ssaw International projects
A European project funded by the ERASMUS+ initiative aimed at the development of a sign glossary to indicate some 200 essential phrases related to Health at Work for workers to communicate in noisy environments.
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Ditrama International projects
The aim of this European project is to develop a training course to promote the digital transformation strategies of companies in the furniture sector, creating a new occupational profile, the Digital Transformation Manager.
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Insight International projects
The aim of this European project is to benchmark the activities of European clusters for the transformation of industry towards a smart industry.
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UP2B International projects
The aim of this European project is to improve future entry into the world of work from an early age (improving possible decision-making and prior knowledge).

All hand s on deck

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Sunrise International projects
The aim of SUnRISE is to develop training contents and a virtual simulation tool that helps vocational students to get an insight into the furniture industry. The aim of SUnRISE is to train students technically and motivate them to work in this specific sector.
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Phara-On International projects
The overall objective of the Pharaon project (European H2020 project) is to support the ageing population in Europe by integrating digital services, devices and tools into easily deployable open platforms that contribute to dignified, independent and secure ageing. The project will use a range of digital tools which include connected devices (e.g. IoT), artificial intelligence, robotics, cloud computing and advanced smart wearable devices, big data and intelligent analytics that will be integrated to provide personalised optimised healthcare services.
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Virtualife International projects
The overall technical aim of this project (funded by the CDTI) is the design and development of a solution for the exploitation of Big Data and VR/AR technologies in cardiac navigators. The aim of this technology is to make the most of the information provided by current navigators, and its purpose is the creation of VirtuaLife, an important evolution of navigators, capable of processing all the signals generated by the catheters and representing them on a 3D+t surface, i.e. on a spatial-temporal surface, obtaining precise electro-anatomical maps in real time.
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GIST International projects
This Project is aimed at developing innovative training materials to provide core competences to companies and thus achieve the “bionic company” status through three aspects: firstly, technical competences related to the Essential Enabling Technologies of Industry 4.0; secondly, soft and transversal competences that foster creativity, innovation and communication, and finally, open leadership competences with commitment to the company (results), the employees (fostering talent) and society (for a better world).
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Ganymed International projects
GANYMED will develop contents for teachers aimed at education adapted to older adults in the field of communication and digital media using the methods of Geragogy (Science of education in old age). Materials and didactic concepts are conceived to enable teachers to fine-tune the dynamic content and potential of digital media and communication to older people on a well-founded basis, thus enabling the 70+ generation to participate in digitisation.
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Bracket Materials
A project funded by the European Union through the ERASMUS+ initiative with the aim of producing online training material in line with three of the KETs proposed by the European Commission (nanotechnology, biotechnology and advanced materials) in order to guide students and workers towards innovation and competitiveness in emerging technological areas.
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Making 4.0 International projects
A project funded by the European Unión through the ERASMUS+ MUNDUS initiative whose aim is to develop a training course/master’s degree on Industry 4.0 in the wood sector for Malaysian universities.
In addition to the 4 Malaysian universities and the Malaysian Timber Industry council (METIB), the European partners are KIT, WULS, UPCT and CETEM.
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In4wood International projects
A project funded by the ERASMUS+ call of the European Commission, formed by a large consortium of companies and research organisations with the objective of developing a training course foe CEOs of the furniture industry on topics related to Industry 4.0. The consortium is made up of 13 partners from 5 countries (UK, Spain, Germany, Italy and Belgium).
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IM Future International projects
A project funded by the ERASMUS+ call of the European Commission, formed by a large consortium of organisations and research institutions with the aim of developing the training content and the e-learning platform of an International Master’s Degree in Furniture.
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Suportability International projects
A project funded by the ERASMUS+ call of the European Commission, formed by a large consortium of organisations and research institutions whose aim Is the figure of the mentor for people with disabilities working in companies, as well as to build information that may be relevant for employers.
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Aurea4Rural International projects
The development of an augmented reality tool and a training plan to foster the use of augmented reality in the rural tourism sector.
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Furn360 International projects
The development of a training plan to implement circular economy principles in traditional business models in the furniture sector.
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3D4Kids International projects
The aim of the project is to develop a software application and a database containing a series of 3D design kits that can be sent to a 3D printer. With those kits, aimed at secondary school students, pupils will carry out practical exercises in different subjects: Mathematics, Biology, Art, Design, Music, etc. in which, for instance, they could print molecules, animal skulls, simple musical instruments, design prototypes, etc.). The application should also allow the student to configure some designs and modify them. I believe that this would increase students’ interest in 3D printing technologies and would serve to capture the attention of students in the various subjects in which it is used. It should be done in such a way that no CAD knowledge is required by the schools and it should be visually attractive and simple.
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3D+VET International projects
The implementation of 3D printing as a teaching method in VET.
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Swing International projects
A project funded by the European Commission through the ERASMUS+ initiative consisting of the creation of a video dictionary between different languages and sign languages that will be integrated into an app to be used in different work environments.
Partners:
1. CETEM – Spain
2. CEIPES – Italy
3. FEDERSID – Italy (Coordinator)
4. ILI (Univ. Nuremberg) – Germany
5. Munkakor Alapitvany – Hungary
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Et4innovation Materials
The development of an open, online training material to improve their knowledge of Environmental Technology Verification (ETV), enabling them to differentiate themselves from other companies by obtaining Environmental Technology Verification of their products.
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Skills4Succesion International projects
The development of innovative training material to foster family succession in SMEs.
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Ditrama International projects
The aim of this European project is to develop a training course to promote the digital transformation strategies of companies in the furniture sector, creating a new occupational profile, the Digital Transformation Manager.
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All hands on deck International projects
The aim of this European project is to develop a repository of documentation for woodworkers, a training course aimed at providing a new professional outlet for the long-term unemployed in the furniture industry and a training course for mentors.
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Agromat Materials
The main objective of the GROMAT project is to give new value to the by-products of the agri-food industry for their implementation in the manufacture of materials for the furniture sector.
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SART – Sistema Automático Rellenado Process technology
The main aim of the SART (Sistema Automático de Remallado de Tapas) project is to develop a robotic cell to automate the process of overlocking mattress covers.
This process joins the several layers of the cover and trims the excess edges to obtain the exact size required and leaving the cover closed and ready for the next process in the assembly line.
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Hidropu Materials
The overall technical aim of this project is to carry out industrial research in order to establish the relationship between the chemistry of hydrophilic foams and the synthesis process in their structure and final properties that will determine their future use in different application fields: substrate for dressings in the medical sector, substrate for hydroponic cultivation, substrate for the release of active substances in cosmetics, etc.
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ELIOTH Electronics and home automation

The overall objective is to develop an IoT electronic platform that simplifies the work of furniture companies to incorporate smart IoT functionalities.

ELIOTH will contemplate the possibilities offered by the use of Artificial Intelligence or more specifically Machine Learning (Artificial Intelligence techniques) in the habitat.

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VAC-3D Process technology

The main objective of the project is to develop a 3D vision module, hitherto non-existent among developers close to the furniture sector and from which numerous production processes could be exploited.

The potential of the new module will be based on its own development and its full integration with robotic cells which, commanded by a control module, will receive the trajectories automatically generated thanks to the precise information received from the 3D vision module.

Another objective of the project is to create a collaborative system for the automation of the process of placing non-woven fabrics on the base of upholstered elements that will serve as a demonstrator of the potential and usability of 3D artificial vision technology developed specifically for furniture production processes.

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Remix-TAT Product engineering
The overall aim of this project is to research augmented reality techniques and technologies to obtain a first general development of mixed-immersive reality aimed at the contract segment of the habitat sector, which will serve as a starting point for the deployment of this technology to the bulk of companies in the sector.
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Matcomp Materials
The main objective of the project is to carry out a research aimed at the development of more sustainable composite materials for their application in products of the habitat sector (furniture, cladding, doors, etc.). For this purpose, principles of sustainable chemistry and circular economy will be applied through the creation of industrial symbiosis between traditional sectors with a wide presence in the Region of Murcia; the food and the habitat sector.
More specifically, the technological challenges pursued by the MATCOMP project are the reduction of use of raw materials of considerable toxicity, which are usually present in conventional adhesive resins used as a binding agent in the process of obtaining composite materials, and the revaluation of waste from different industrial sectors such as grape stalks from the wine industry and flexible polyurethane foams from mattresses that have completed their life cycle.
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Greenskills International projects
A multiannual project funded by the European Commission through the ERASMUS+ initiative focused on identifying training needs in environmental competences, as well as developing a curriculum for construction workers and electricians.