The Agrupacíon Empresarial para el Desarrollo de Técnicas de la Fabricacíon Aeronautica Avanzada (Industrial partnership for Development Of Advanced Aerospace Manufacturing Techniques) - AIE, is a group of companies in partnership with the University of Basque Country (UPV/EHU) at the Aeronautics Advanced Manufacturing Center (CFAA).
Two main companies are in the consortium: ITP Aero, part of Rolls&Royce group, making engines for large aircrafts, and now involved in future Ultrafan® geared motors. The other company is Danobat and its technological centre Ideko. Ideko is in addition a partner of CFAA in the recently created AIMS unit (artificial intelligent manufacturing for sustainability).
The collaborators in AIE collaborate in a variety of research projects, working in multidisciplinary teams. The number of scientific productions on one hand, and the aiming at real industrial objectives on the other, is a combination and successful achievement of the ecosystem (AIE- Companies- CFAA).
Depending on the post-doc selected research line, projects can be executed either at the common facilities of CFAA, in Ideko, or in other partner companies of AIE belonging to the machine tool sector (e.g. Ibarmia, ONA, Renishaw, Sariki, etc).
In addition, in 2021, a new unit concerning Artificial Engineering In Manufacturing (AIMS) was launched, and works as a cooperative space and meeting point for data researchers and manufacturing engineers from all over the world. AIMS has a pilot line with cutting-edge technologies connected to 5G.
Machines tool industry is a key industrial driver in Europe and for this reason many of these companies are involved in AIE. The final paradigm to achieve in the machine tool sector is the autonomous machine tool “transformer”, 5G-connected with an integrated sensors system for human safety.