CELEX: 51988PC0385
Language: es
Date: 1988-07-25
Title: Propuesta de DECISION DEL CONSEJO por la que se adopta un programa especifico de investigación y desarrollo tecnológico para la Comunidad Económica Europea en el sector de las tecnologias de la fabricación industrial y en el de las aplicaciones de los materiales avanzados (BRITE/EURAM) (1989-1992) (presentada por la Comisión)

ARCHIVES HISTORIQUES
DE LA COMMISSION
COLLECTION RELIEE DES
DOCUMENTS "COM"
COM (88) 385
Vol. 1988/0139
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 ---pagebreak---        COMISION DE LAS COMUNIDADES EUROPEAS
                                                  COM(88 ) 385   final - SYN 142
                                                  Bruselas , 25 de julio de 1988
                                   Propuesta de
                               DECISION DEL CONSEJO
por la que se adopta un programa especifico de investigación y desarrollo
    tecnológico para la Comunidad Económica Europea en el sector de las
   tecnologías de la fabricación industrial y en el de las aplicaciones
                   de los materiales avanzados ( BRITE / EURAM )
                                    ( 1989-1992 )
                          ( presentada por la Comisión )
                              si           . .
 ---pagebreak---                                      INDICE
                                                               Página
SUMARIO                                                          1 ^
INTRODUCCIÓN                                                     3
OBJETIVOS                                                        3
JUSTIFICACIÓN DEL PROGRAMA                                       4
LOGROS DE LOS PRIMEROS PROGRAMAS BRITE Y EURAM                   8
CONTENIDO TÉCNICO DEL PROGRAMA                                  11
EJECUCIÓN DEL PROGRAMA                                          12
SELECCIÓN DE PROYECTOS                                          14
PROGRAMAS EUROPEOS AFINES                                       15
EVALUACIÓN DEL PROGRAMA                                         16
ANEXO A : ÁREAS TÉCNICAS DEL NUEVO PROGRAMA                     17
ANEXO B : DICTAMEN DEL CGC DE TECNOLOGÍAS INDUSTRIALES          31
ANEXO C : DICTAMEN DEL CGC DE MATERIAS PRIMAS Y OTRAS MATERIAS  32
PROPUESTA DE DECISIÓN DEL CONSEJO                               33
 ---pagebreak--- SUMARIO
La industria manufacturera que representa aproximadamente el 30% del PNB y que
da trabajo a unos 41 millones de personas es y seguirá siendo un elemento
esencial de la economía de la Comunidad . Existen , no obstante , signos de
debilidades estructurales en la capacidad de los fabricantes europeos para
responder a las demandas en aumento y cada vez más competitivas en unos
mercados más desarrollados .
Las razones de este programa se basan en primer lugar en la necesidad de dar
una respuesta positiva a la presión de la competencia mundial en el mercado de
los productos manufacturados y en el desarrollo de la tecnología de apoyo de
productos y procesos . En segungo lugar , la colaboración I + D , que tiende
puentes a nivel nacional y sectorial , es un medio eficaz de aprovechamiento de
recursos disponibles y un camino válido hacia el mercado interior .
El nuevo programa BRITE / EURAM integra las actividades anticipadas en las
acciones 3.1 y 3.2 del Programa marco de actividades de la Comunidad en el
ámbito de la investigación y desarrollo tecnológico ( 1987-1991 ). Cae bajo la
rúbrica de la modernización de sectores industriales y cubre las tecnologías
de fabricación y los materiales avanzados .           El programa se basa en la
experiencia y en los logros que ya están consiguiendo los programas BRITE y
EURAM .
Los signos alentadores del primer programa BRITE y el programa EURAM ,
confirmados por las juntas de evaluación de BRITE y EURAM , mostraron que los
programas ocupaban un lugar importante en la política científica y tecnológica
de la Comunidad . No sólo había un muy satisfactorio 80% de proyectos que
demostraban estar realizando grandes progresos , sino que se había añadido una
nueva e importante dimensión a través de la creación y consolidación de
alianzas industriales internacionales en I + D ,              ya través de lazos
transfronterizos entre industrias y universidades . Se descubrió también que
tos programas habían ayudado a las PYME a establecer lazos con grandes
compañías y universidades e igualmente a beneficiarse de los negocios
resultantes . También han participado por entero los Estados miembros más
pequeños y menos desarrollados .
El principal objetivo de este programa es realzar la situación competitiva en
los   mercados   mundiales   de   las  industrias   comunitarias  de   materiales  y
fabricación a través del apoyo de un programa de investigación y desarrollo
que proporcione la tecnología industrial y de materiales requerida por el
desarrollo de productos y procesos novedosos .
El programa contribuirá a la competiti vidad industrial estimulando la
cooperación a través de las fronteras en la investigación y orientación
industrial    en   una  fase    precompetitiva    entre   los  diferentes   sectores
industriales y entre la industria , los institutos de investigación y las
universidades , al tiempo que contribuirá a la realización del Mercado Común en
1992 . Se concederá una consideración especial a los proyectos que impliquen a
las PYME , a fin de garantizar su adecuada participación en el programa .
El nuevo programa no pretende sustituir la responsabilidad de la industria en
la conducción de la investigación y desarrollo adecuados en apoyo de_ sus
necesidades , sino que , al igual que los programas anteriores , desempeña un
papel catalizador al proporcionar los incentivos que fomenten el mejor uso de
los recursos disponibles de la Comunidad .
 ---pagebreak---                                           - 2 -
Como resultado del fomento por parte de la industria y de la experiencia de
anteriores programas , ahora se van a incluir las tecnologías de los materiales
de la fabricación en un programa único que cubra los siguientes campos :
- tecnologias de los materiales avanzados
- metodología de diseño y garantía de productos y procesos
- aplicación de las tecnologias de fabricación
- tecnologías de los procesos de fabricación
El programa cuadrienal , además de las contribuciones anticipadas a través de
los compromisos de los países de la AELC , ascenderá a unos 1.000 millones de
ECU en actividades . La Comisión contribuirá a ello con 439,5 millones de ECU .
Existirán cuatro formas distintas de apoyo .
La investigación industrial aplicada, con más del 90% del presupuesto , se
instrumentará mediante contratos de coste compartido , que supongan al menos la
participación de dos empresas industriales independientes . Los costes totales
de los proyectos deberían estar comprendidos entre 1 y 3 millones de ECU y
cubrir por lo menos diez años-hombre . La contribución de la Comunidad no
excederá del 50% de los costes totales , corriendo el resto a cargo de la
industria .
Se dispondrá hasta un 7% del presupuesto para investigación fundamental
orientada en campos de desarrollo de los materiales en que el progreso
industrial se vea obstaculizado por las debilidades en la ciencia básica . Para
garantizar una orientación realmente industrial para dicha actividad , que no
requiere un socio industrial ,       se exigirá la aprobación industrial por
particulares designados procedentes de la industria . Los proyectos , entre 0,4
y 1 millón de ECU , deben cubrir por lo menos diez años-hombre .
La Comisión   está introduciendo también un plan piloto de concesiones de
viabilidad cuyo objetivo es el de asistir a las PYME en el establecimiento de
la viabilidad de un mecanismo, proceso o concepto como medio de realzar su
naturaleza para encontrar un socio en una ulterior licitación para
investigación industrial aplicada . El objetivo de dichas concesiones es ayudar
a contrarrestar las dificultades concretas a que hacen frente las PYME . La
Comisión aportaría hasta el 75% del coste de la investigación , hasta un total
de 25.000 ECU ,   por una duración máxima de seis meses .     Esta actividad será
cofinanciada por la Task Forcé PYME .
Una pequeña proporción del presupuesto total del programa será dedicada a
actividades coordinadas .
Además , dentro de la investigación industrial aplicada se dará apoyo a
proyectos de demostración . Las modalidades de los mismos serán determinadas a
medida que los proyectos de los primeros programas BRITE y EURAM se acerquen a
su terminación .
En el primer pliego de información se anunciará un calendario de licitaciones .
Los temas prioritarios se revisarán anualmente para reflejar los requisitos
cambiantes de    la  industria . Con   las   licitaciones periódicas se pretende
solucionar los problemas y la incertidumbre que los posibles participantes han
experimentado a causa de los largos intervalos del programa anterior .
 ---pagebreak---                                              - 3 -
INTRODUCTION
In   its Communication of 28 September 1987                   the Commission presented its
initial ^omments on the programme to follow on from the first BRITE
Programme .
The new programme integrates the cost-shared actions foreseen in lines 3.1 and
3.2   of the Framework Programme for Community Activities in the Field of
Research and Technological Development 0 ( 1987-1991 ) covering manufacturing
technologies and advanced materials , ^o building on the achievements already
emerging in the first BRITE and EURAM programmes . Experience with managing
these two programmes together with the strong encouragement revealed in
consultations with industrialists and , in particular , the Industrial Research
and Development Advisory Committee ( IRDAC ) and the panels evaluating the first
BRITE and EURAM programmes underlines the inseparable links between materials
development , product design*and manufacturing technology . A single programme
will best serve the R&D needs of European industry .
The objectives and strategic goals set out below aref in keeping with the
thrust of the Framework Programme towards improving industrial performance
particularly in relation to the 'modernisation of industrial sectors' and
also 'towards a large market and an information and communication society *.
While the development of information technology will be excluded from the new
programme the application of IT will of course be encouraged . By strengthening
the scientific and technological basis of European industry and encouraging it
to become more competitive,, at                  international       level the aims expressed
in the Single European Act 0 are reflected . The Programme does not replace the
responsibility of industry to conduct adequate R&D in support of its needs but
it has a catalytic role in providing the incentive to encourage the best use
of the resources available in the Community . This applies particularly to the
established sectors of industry where the R&D base has to be seen as a more
important element of company strategy .
OBJECTIVES
The principal objective of the Programme is to help enhance the competitive
position of the Community 's manufacturing industries in world markets through
the   support      of   a    programme    of  research   and    development   to provide  the
industrial and materials technology base required' for strategic ,                 innovative
product and process development .
There are two subsidiary objectives .                 First ,    to encourage transfrontier
collaboration within the Community in strategic industrial research between
industrial companies and complementary centres of expertise in industry ,
research organisations , and universities .              Second , to encourage transfer of
   C0fl(°7 ) 307 FIMAL / 2
? OJ N°    L   83,25.3.1985 , p.      8
3 OJ N°    L  302 , 24 . 10 . 1987,p.   1
U OJ N°    L  159, 14.6.1986, p.      36
5 OJ N°    L  169,29.6.1987, p.       1
 ---pagebreak---                                         - 4 -
technology between sectors and particularly to those sectors , often with a
high predominance of SMEs , which are slow in exploiting new technologies to
improve their performance .
Strategie Goals
The main instrument for meeting the objectives will               be collaborative ,
transfrontier R & D able to provide the technological              tools for better
products and processes .      These will include the development and application of
new materials and engineering technologies and encouraging the wider
application of IT developed elsewhere . The tools will be aimed at meeting
strategic goals for improving the performance of manufacturing industries by :
- Developing        advanced materials and their processing for applications
    requiring improved physical and environmental behaviour , better performance
    repeatability and reliability, and cost effectiveness .
- Incorporation of best practice into design ( i.e. materials selection and
    design rules for manufacturing , assembly , reliability and maintenance ).
                                                              t
-    Reduction      of design to product       lead time ,  including   reducing the
    manufacturing lead time .
- Improving management of the manufacturing operation ,            including process
    control , product quality assurance and condition monitoring .
- Improving the cost effectiveness of manufacturing .
PROGRAMME JUSTIFICATION
The case for the programme is based, first , on the need for a positive
response to the pressure of world competition in the market place for
manufactured goods and in the supporting technology development of products
and processes .      Second , R & D collaboration , bridging national and sectoral
boundaries is an effective way of exploiting available resources and a
valuable route towards the internal market .
The challenge in the world market place
Manufacturing industry is and will remain an essential part of the Community 's
economy . It provides around 30% of GNP and accounts for 75% of the industrial
workforce of some 41 , 000 , 000 people .    In spite of a strongly positive balance
of trade in manufactured goods of 130% in 1985 , structural weaknesses have
developed over the years , in particular the capacity to respond to growing
demand in the more developed markets .
Within manufacturing industry there are sectors with a fast growing demand
 ( e.g. instruments , chemicals ) and sectors with a stagnating demand Ce.g .
clothing , textiles , motor vehicles ).            The common element is that the
performance of the European industries and those of the most developed
industrial countries will be less concentrated on maintaining or increasing
market share of the total market .        Instead they will seek to capture the top
end of the market by new or improved products often with a high technology
content in the product itself or its means of manufacture .                This trend
establishes technology as one of the crucial factors for the competitiveness
of manufacturing industry . Its effective use in both production equipment and
new products is a potential source of spectacular improvements in industrial
performance .       Technology can increase equipment availability , introduce
 ---pagebreak--- flexibility into the production process and so improve market adaptability .
It also makes possible smaller production runs and allows for reduction in
time for manufacture .     Here the appropriate application of IT systems is of
relevance to all manufacturing industries . More detailed examples showing
where technology could be exploited to enhance the economic performance are
included in the technical areas for the new programme in Annex A.
Increasingly the distinction between leading edge and mature industries will
disappear .    The potential for increasing productivity and flexibility is
greater in mature industries as is the incentive to employ new technology .
For the future the dividing line will be between those who make full use of
the available technology and those who do not , even within the same sector .
Already this 'denaturing' process is evident in established sectors such as
motor vehicles or clothing .
The development and adoption of new technologies is therefore crucial .
However , the challenge of new technology goes far beyond sectoral definitions ;
it concerns the competitiveness of European industry as a whole - its very
ability to exploit new opportunities .
                                                             /
To assess the state of Community industry and the means of improving the
Community 's technological competitiveness , the innovation process can be
broken down into
- the création of new technologies .
- their use in the production process and
- their implementation in products .
The création of new technologies
Trends in the funding of research give rise to concern underpinning the need
for an increased level and synergy of R & D activity in Europe .          The funds
devoted to R & D activities for the EEC ’(70 bi llion ECU ) were , in 1986 , only
about 60 % of that of the US .       As the annual increase was about 4 % in both
cases this difference is unlikely to change rapidly .          In contrast , white
Japanese R & D expenditure is 30 % below that of Europe its growth rate , 9 % ,
is twice as high .     Looking at research expenditure as a percentage of gross
domestic product , this rate reached 2,8 % in Japan and US in 1985 .        Only FRG
approached this level , which together with France and UK at 2,3 % exceeded the
Community average of about 2 % .      A further impediment to     European industry
benefitting from applied research and technology          transfer comes from the
lower industrial contribution in the distribution of R & D between industry
and the public sector within Europe .
A  quantitative    comparison   identifies   an overall  weakness   in- the   R &  0
potential of the entire Community .       It , of course , neglects the effect of
twelve components between which there is little synergy .       The European effort
tends to cover the whole range of R & D activity from basic to industrial
prototypes .   Japan and the US concentrate much more on R & D with a view to
later industrial use .     This difference in strategies means that the Community
lags behind in crucial enabling areas such as new materials and production
technologies , in addition to the microelectronics based technologies .
Technology in the production process .
In production technology the Community is beginning to catch up with the use
of advanced computer aided techniques and equipment after a slow start and
here the advanced IT developed in the ESPRIT programme is of major importance .
 ---pagebreak---                                       - 6 -
Hut improvements are needed concerning the reliability and predictability of
machine behaviour as enterprises become more dependent on expensive machinery .
Recognising the characteristics of Community industry consisting of few large
and many medium sized and small enterprises , there is a particular need to
reduce , the complexity and cost of new production technologies and systems .
However , the evidence from the first BRITE and EURAM programmes confirms that
in the Community industry there is a greater confidence that it is capable ,
particularly when assisted by universities and research institutes , of
mounting a realistic challenge to the market performance of the major
industrial competitors .
Technology in products .
Exploiting new technology in products is essential whether directly as in the
use of new materials or indirectly through improved design , reliability ,
servicing or marketing .     Here the Community industry has generally been less
successful than its competitors ,      particularly from the Far East .      In fast
moving advanced technology markets the Community industry has often retreated
into   established   production    of   engineered   commodities    such  as   colour
televisions without an equivalent activity in R&D - so ^ leading to losses in
industrial employment . Because of the government support in the US and Japan ,
the Community lags behind in the engineering aspects - performance and methods
of component manufacture of new materials .       Failure to exploit new materials
to improve product performance ,- durability and reliability bars the Community
from competing in rapidly expanding and traditional markets .
The programme aims to reduce the constraints and limitations at each of these
levels and help to provide European industry with the necessary enabling
technologies which demand an intersectorial and interdisciplinary approach .
Collaboration across frontiers and sectors
The importance of collaboration can also be demonstrated through the structure
of European industry . Individual sectors of industry are not islands but are
dependent on others .    For example , to be competitive established sectors must
incorporate the products of the high technology sectors ,                  including
microelectronics and information processing ,         for which they are a very
important market , into their products , processes and business systems .           A
similar dependence extends to the service sector as much of its activity is
geared to manufacturing .
Unfortunately , the supply chain in Europe is often fragmented compared to that
of its major industrial competitors .       Japan has a relatively small number of
giant financial holding companies while the US has economy of scale .              In
Europe a very varied market is met by a large number of suppliers who in turn
are customers for many suppliers of components ,      processes and services .    Too
often there is poor communication between functions - design , engineering ,
manufacturing , purchasing , marketing - both within and between companies .
This    situation  slows   down   the   rate   of  innovation   and   its  effective
implementation .     It  is desirable    for  both customers and suppliers      to be
working together to ensure that resources are directed to RXD which will bring
the maximum benefits . Alnost always supply chains involve firms of all sizes ,
so that attention has to be given to ensure that technology based SMEs can
also benefit , recognising their particular problems ,      such as a lack of human
and financial resources to plan and implement change .       Indeed , in almost all
sectors industrial success will often he largely influenced by performance of
SISFs in the role of suppliers of materials , components or services .
 ---pagebreak--- The commercial development of tools - the products and processes - is the
primary responsibility of those companies able to exploit the commercial
benefits they bring . This development process is more likely to be successful
if companies have access to preparatory or pre-compet i t i ve research and
development at the leading edge .     There are considerable resources available
in the Community which should be used to best effect .      The catalytic role of
Community programmes can provide the incentive for this collaboration to take
place .
Pre-competitive R&D - applied research not leading directly to commercially
exploitable results - is an essential enabling instrument for competitiveness
but may be too wide in application , of too long a time scale , or too risky to
make it acceptable for funding by single companies , particularly SMEs . It is
exactly in this field where existing resources in Europe are not exploited to
a sufficient level .
Additional and external funding will make it possible to provide , at the
European level , the linkages which enable the complementary expertise of those
in industry and research organisations to work together and so specify , manage
and implement the work required .      The Commission support will enable those
able to make a worthwhile contribution to the task in hand to participate
towards the internal market .
Towards the internal market
The challenges within the programme fall squarely within the scope of the
Framework Programme .   Only by working together across national boundaries can
Europe  look to a future where the strength of the Far East and the US
manufacturing base can be challenged on a broad front .       Working together in
R&D will lead to companies seeing mutual benefits for their future in
continuing collaboration in R&D and possibly extending this to marketing ,
manufacturing and training .      Collaboration also provides opportunities for
bringing application expertise to new sectors through demonstrations of
technology or transfer of human expertise . In a more direct response to the
challenge of the single integrated market foreseen for 1992 , the involvement
of partners from several countries will be a valuable step in the
harmonisation of manufacturing practices .     This convergence of practices will
encourage the quest for standards .      One of the outcomes of the BRITE / EURAM
programme will hopefully be an enriched range of European standards produced
under the aegis of CEN and CENELEC .          Standardisation at European level
contributes , on one side , to break down the technical barriers to trade within
the Community and , on the other side , it enhances the competitiveness of
European industry in its home market . The inclusion of work in support of the
standards making activity should not be a definitive selection criteria for
the programme .   However , encouragement will be given to projects which aim to
exploit a potential market opportunity arising from advancing the development
of new standards or other codes of practice , including those which might be
associated with environmental or safety considerations . The European dimension
realised through the transfrontier collaboration ensures complementarity with
nationally supported initiatives .
An integrated Community is also better served when its technical expertise is
available to reach out across national boundaries .    Community support can also
result , because of the structure of the market place or high cost of R&D ,    in
work which is unlikely to be funded by one company or one country ,       thereby
making more efficient use of resources for research ,      more efficient use of
capital equipment or the generation of a critical mass of expertise .
 ---pagebreak---                                     - 8 -
ACHIEVEMENTS OF THE FIRST BRITE AND . EURAM PROGRAMMES
The programme builds on the encouraging signs which have already emerged
within BRITE and EURAM and recognised by their evaluation panels .     Though the
first research work funded under the BRITE programme did not start until early
1986 and , in the case of EURAM, not until late 1987 , encouraging progress has
already been made with most of the projects underway in the process of
fulfilling their objectives .    The BRITE Evaluation Panel judged that a very
satisfactory 80% of projects were progressing well .         BRITE had helped to
consolidate industrial transborder alliances and to create new ones .         The
Panel considered that BRITE had benefitted SMEs , both by being involved in
research and from the resulting commercial opportunities .        The smaller and
less developed Member States had participated fully . Important results are
appearing which could not have happened without an enabling instrument for
transboundary collaborative research .    Examples are given at the end of this
section .
In the first BRITE and EURAM programmes more than 1200 proposals were received
involving almost 5000 individual partners .         130 experts from different
industrial sectors , universities and research institutes from all Member
States were involved in the technical and economical evaluation , and assessing
the potential   industrial impact of the proposals .        These experts worked
together in groups in Brussels under the chairmanship of Commission officials
not belonging to the staff of the programmes .
About 300 projects are now being supported .      Within BRITE , of the projects
being supported 60% of partners are from industry ,            21% from research
institutions and 19% from universities .            There was significant SME
participation amounting to about 35% of the industrial partners .       The major
difference in EURAM was that somewhat less , 44% of partners ,           are from
industry , the major part being from universities and research institutes . In
both cases there was an encouraging level of collaboration between
universities and . industry .   Both programmes included projects with a high
materials element integrating problems of*design and production .     Recognising
that in many cases no clear distinction can or should be made between a
programme with objectives relating to materials applications and production
technology , underlines the need for a single programme to follow on from the
first BRITE and EURAM .
A characteristic of the previous BRITE and EURAM programmes was the large
number of very good projects which were not supported because of budget
limitations .   In fact only about 1 in 4 of good projects was supported .    The
scale of the opportunities lost among those whose projects were rejected in
the earlier programmes makes a strong case for the substantially larger budget
for the new programme , an argument endorsed by the BRITE Evaluation Panel .
The programmes have helped to remove the bias against technical collaboration
in Europe and so will help in the realisation of the single market . The level
of interest will increase and this was underlined by the BRITE Technological
Days held in December 1987 which attracted more than 1000 delegates .
To achieve a better balance between the available funds and the number of good
projects submitted , the information pack will seek to give a more precise
definition of the projects which will be supported .       This will put greater
emphasis on the evaluation criteria and more closely define the priority
themes .    The introduction of an annual call for proposals should also help .
As before , the project selection will be undertaken by independent experts
familiar with the needs of industry , drawn from industry itself , but also
including experts from universities and research institutes . The fairness and
 ---pagebreak--- efficiency of this process was seen as a particular feature of the programme .
Careful consideration will be given to the improvements recommended by the
BRITE Evaluation Panel .
An important feature of the first BRITE programme was- the 'expression of
interest' mechanism operated by the Commission which allowed those interested
in forming partnerships to be put into touch with one another .         Even when a
project did not emerge productive introductions often resulted .       This process
was supported by the contact points in each Member State who provided a source
of information close to intending partners . With EURAM advanced materials
networks organised with the European Materials Research Society ( EMRS ) and in
conjunction with industries and universities has provided a valuable
co-ordination    for  work  in  11  different   specialised   fields  of  materials
research .    The new integrated programme will build on the successful features
of the first BRITE and EURAM programmes , taking account of the comments from
their Programme Evaluation Panels .
Results from the first BRITE and EURAM programmes .
The following examples illustrate edrly achievements alnd targets from the
earlier programmes .
European mould makers are often SMEs and face a challenge not only from their
major customers , such as the car industry , which requires its suppliers to be
equipped with CADCAM but also from the strong competition arising outside the
Community .    The objective is to shorten the whole process of mould design and
manufacture , which now is typically six months .       Success would increase the
competitiveness of the mould maker through shorter delivery times , and by
allowing smaller batch sizes or more complex parts to be produced from the
moulds .    The aim is to produce moulds with little or no reworking while
currently moulds may have to be modified 5 to 10 times .          In the consortium
seven enterprises , ranging from very small to very large , and two research
organisations are involved .     The first part of the project investigating the
weaknesses of existing approaches has already led to useful developments in
mould design .
The man-made fibre industry is anticipating even fiercer competition from
competitors outside Europe where developments in higher speed meltspinning
have been identified . For this reason major man-made fibre producers in three
Community countries , a specialised equipment maker together with two research
institutes , have come together to improve the technology for the melt spinning
of continuous synthetic yarn . This project aims at improving the productivity
and reducing the manufacturing costs of melt spinning of nylon and polyester
by increasing the collection speeds from typically 6 km per minute up to 10 km
per minute . Key requirements are to ensure zero defect operation and delivery
of yarns of the required quality . This project could lead to a cost reduction
of up to 10% in the final product . Preliminary results indicate that this aim
is feasible .
The most expensive part in the clothing production process is the assembly of
cut parts .     It accounts for roughly 50% of the production costs , of which
about 80% is the handling of the parts and only 20% the actual sewing process .
A clothing manufacturer , a machine manufacturer and a robot producer from two
Community countries have come together to develop a flexible system which is
capable of receiving stacks of cut parts , typically of between 50 and 200
nieces , removing a single component from each stack and then carrying out
several stages of sequential assembly automatically . The system is limited to
operations that start and finish flat .       Final assembly will continue to be
 ---pagebreak---                                       - 10 -
manual .    As most of the handling is 2-dimensional , there is scope for cost
reductions in the production process of up to 25% , while maintaining and even
increasing the flexibility and the quality .        Considerable progress has been
made towards the objective of a full-scale laboratory prototype assembly
system .     This laboratory prototype could be the basis - for the first fully
automated flexible clothing assembly cell in Europe .
Dyeing of fabrics is one of the most important steps in the manufacturing
process of textiles .      About 80% of the fabrics are dyed in continuous line .
Currently about 5% of material is waste because of variations in shade and
colour . Two textile producers , an equipment company and a research laboratory
from three Community countries are collaborating in a project to study the
parameters of continuous dyeing and to develop on-line sensors and real time
control mechanisms that will give consistency and shade repeatability . A
feasibility study has shown that it could be possible to control the key
process parameters to give consistent shade and colour across the width and
along the length of the fabric .        A successful outcome could lead to price
reductions of up to 20% , which would place the European textile industry in a
stronger position in an increasingly competitive world market .
                                                              (
Welding takes up 20 - 30% of production time in European shipyards .           While
about 80% of welds are made in Japanese yards with automatic or semi-automatic
devices , about 80% of welds in Europe are still made manually . To improve the
European technological capability a shipyard , a supplier of welding equipment ,
a paint producer , two welding research organisations and a shipbuilding
research organisation , sponsored by shipyards , have joined together to achieve
a large-scale shift to mechanised welding processes .           The aim is a simple
automation of the welding of sub-components and the application of welding
robots , within the context of the shipbuilding industry . The welding problems
posed by the primer of the steel are also being studied in order to reduce the
influence of the prefabrication primer on mechanized , automated and robotic
welding . First results have led to data which could serve to define normalized
fume boxes .     Considerable progress towards automated welding has already been
made .
Laser technology will be used as a tool to cut and to identify defects in
natural   materials .       This project ,   involving industries and research
organisations from two Community countries , aims at the reduction of material
waste and an increase in productivity rates for industries based on the use
and transformation of indigenous materials such as cork , leather , wood and
marble . The major objectives of research are to define the laser cutting
process and parameters for each material , especially for cork and marble where
laser cutting is a promising technique , and to develop methods for defect
identification by size , shope and colour .      Cutting speed should be increased
by up to 35% for leather and 50% for cork using laser , compared to manual
cutting .     It is estimated that such developments could lead to the waste of
material being reduced by 40% .      These important economic benefits explain the
high interest from industries which are generally SMEs .
In   the  field of    materials research ,    a variety of projects     address the
substitution of strategic materials with more available and versatile
materials leading to products with enhanced physical or mechanical properties .
The degree of dependency of important European industries on metals such as
chromium , cobalt , tungsten or some rare earth metals , supplied mainly from
outside the Community , can be reduced by substitution . For example , bringing
 tonether partners with expertise in metallurgy , process engineering , design
and magnetic theory has enabled a new and more efficient production process
 for nannetic powder material of the new alloy iron , neodymyum and boron to be
 ---pagebreak---                                      - 11
developed for the manufacture of high energy permanent magnets .          In another
example , hard particles and ceramic whiskers introduced into white cast iron
powder produced a new hard metal powder replacing more expensive and alloyed
steels .     Similarly , in electrical contact and switching materials , a new
silver alloy with a drastically reduced silver content was found and is now
patented and in commercial production .
The stimulation of cooperation in European manufacturing industry is , in many
sectors , breaking new ground and providing mutual help which ultimately must
result in a stronger position in the market place .
THE TECHNICAL CONTENT OF THE PROGRAMME
With a limited budget , less than    4 % of industrial R & D spending by Community
Governments , the programme must     focus on the R&D most likely to be effective
in meeting those goals which are     most critical to securing the competitiveness
of the Community 's manufacturing     industry , in the medium term , that is 5-10
years hence .
The technical areas for the programme have been selected after an extended
process of consultation .      In addition to a postal enquiry sent to some 1,000
companies across the Community , this involved inputs from many individuals ,
professional and trade associations from a wide range of manufacturing sectors
together with the industrial technologies and advanced materials working
groups of the Industrial Research and Development Advisory Committee ( IRDAC ).
The Member     States   were  consulted   through  the  appropriate  Management  and
Co-ordination Advisory Committees ( CGC ).
The technical areas shown in greater detail in Annex A cover :
- Advanced Materials Technologies - the development of advanced materials and
   their processing for industrial use .
- Design Methodology and Assurance of Products and Processes v- engineering
   technologies        for product design , means of manufacture and assurance ,
   together with            design and assurance of manufacturing processes .
- Application of Manufacturing Technologies - identification and addressing
   the needs of manufacturing industry and particularly the less advanced
   sectors , many of which have a major part made up of SMEs .
- Technologies for Manufacturing Processes - new and improved manufacturing
   techniques for more effective production .
In these areas there is a strong need for collaborative research , bringing
together partners drawn from suppliers of materials or components , users
( including where appropriate the end user ), the suppliers of expertise and
equipment for use in design , control ,           testing and systems integration ,
together with the research organisations and universities .                There are
opportunities for firms of all sizes .
BRITE / EURAM in a Global Industriai R&D Context
Consultations with industry have confirmed the requirement for a better
awareness of emerging technological development as an important element of the
technology strategy of industrial companies both large and small and , at the
same time , for reinforcing the market pull of the BRITE / EURAM Programme as
 ---pagebreak---                                      - 12 -
recommended by the BRITE Evaluation Panel .      The Commission will take further
initiatives , such as workshops , in consultation with IRDAC and the CGC . The
aim will be to bring together the global science and technological trends with
the planning needs of individual companies recognising this cannot be limited
to a single sector but must also involve related sectors which are major
customers and existing or potential suppliers of materials ,          equipment and
expertise .
PROGRAMME IMPLEMENTATION
In line with its overall objectives ,          the programme will be open to
enterprises from all sectors of industry and research organisations , including
universities , within the Community and EFTA countries .         Projects involving
partners from EFTA countries will be welcomed where their participation can
contribute to the competitiveness of manufacturing industry as a whole .         The
projects must fulfill the normal eligibility criteria with the EFTA partner
being additional to the required type and number of partners from the
Community .     There will not be any financial contribution from Community
towards the participation costs of partners from EFTA countries who will be
required to contribute to the programme overheads .         /
Within the Programme there will be four separate forms of support .              The
Industrial Applied Research will be the principal action with more than 90% of
the budget .    There will also be Focussed Fundamental Research with up to 7 %
of the budget - that is one fifth of the budget for the work on materials ,
together with Feasibility Awards for SMEs and support for Co-ordinated
Activities with approximately 0.5% and 1.5% , respectively of the programme
budget .
To ensure the objectivity of the selection procedure and the selection
criteria ,   the details will be established in advance taking the advice of the
CGC .
Budget and Staff
The   indicative  allocation of   funds  between  the different    technical themes
given below reflects the experience of the first BRITE and EURAM programmes ,
together with a grouping of the sub themes in such a way that the main themes
for the manufacturing elements of the programme are evenly balanced .       The size
of allocation to the materials theme also reflects the balance of funding
foreseen in the Framework Programme for this subject .        The actual allocation
will be determined in conjunction with the CGC taking account of the response
to the calls for proposals .
                                                    %
Advanced materials applications                     30
Design and assurance of products                    21
manufacturing systems                               21
Technologies for manufacturing processes            21
Administration                                        2.5
Personnel                                             4.5
                                                   100.0
 ---pagebreak--- The total budget for the execution of the programme will amount to 439.5 mio
ECU including expenditure on staff whose costs will not exceed 4.5 % of the
Community contribution .
In managing the programme , the Commission will increasingly seek the help of
external experts in the technical monitoring of projects in order to ensure
the necessary technical expertise . The BRITE evaluation panel has also made a
similar recommendation .
Industrial Applied Research
The principal form of support for industrial applied research of a
pre-competitive character wilt be through cost shared action .        The conditions
for participation will be that in each project there will be at least 50%
financing from industrial partners and at least two independent industrial
enterprises from different Member States per project .        To be classified as an
independent enterprise , research organisations should normally receive the
industrial 50% in direct payments from nominated companies involved in
steering the project . Recognising the important role of SMEs in developing the
manufacturing base of the Community and the merits of their participation in
the programme , the Commission is considering , in conjunction with IRDAC , how
best research organisations can act within the programme as a focus for
meeting the R°D needs of SMEs . Projects should include at least 10 man years
of activity , the realistic minimum for an effective collaborative project , and
the total project costs should fall in the range 1-3 mio ECU . Subsidiaries of
multinational companies based outside the Community may participate if the R&D
and exploitation takes place within the Community .
Focussed Fundamental Research
In some areas of materials development industrial progress is hindered by
weaknesses    in  basic  science .      These  areas   will  be  identified   in  the
Information Pack for each call for proposals .. Transfrontier co-operation would
be reouired but there will not be a requirement for partners to include an
independent industrial enterprise .      However , to ensure the industrial focus ,
there will be a requirement for industrial endorsement by nominated
individuals from at least two independent industrial enterprises .               Each
individual will be required to commit at least two days per year in steering
the project .    Projects should include at least 10 man years of activity and
fall in the range of 0.4 to 1 mio ECU total project costs .
Feasibility Awards for SMEs
The Commission will introduce a pilot scheme of Feasibility Awards aimed at
assisting SHEs establish the feasibility of a device , process or' concept as a
moans of enhancing their stature in finding a partner in a subsequent call for
proposals under the shared cost action . The Commission will support up to 75%
( maximum 25000 ECU ) of the cost of research lasting up to six months .         High
standards of evaluation will ensure that the awards are highly competitive and
recognised as prestigous .         This scheme will be co-financed by the Task
Force SHE .
Co-ordinated Activities
I r\ cases where work , supported by national funds or entirely privately funded
is already going on , the Commission 's role may be limited to simply organising
the co-ordination of the work and the Community funding confined to covering
the cost of such co-ordination activities .      However , in certain cases where it
 ---pagebreak---                                         - 14 -
is clear that strategically important work requires more than simple
co-ordination , the Commission could , in consultation with the CGC , consider a
higher Community funding .
Demonstration Projects
It is to be expected that demonstrations of project results will be required
as the wide range of projects supported within the first BRITE and EURAM
programmes . near completion .      The type of support needed will be included
within the Industrial Applied Research and will be defined with the advice of
the CGC and reported on during the mid-term review of the programme .
Calls for Proposais
The closing date for the first of the        annual calls for proposals is expected
to be in March 1989 .     This is subject    to the adoption of a Common Position by
the Council before the end of 1988 .        By early autumn of 1988 an advance call
for proposals , giving early warning of      the programme , will be published in the
Official Journal for those intending to participate .
                                                                 t
There will be a separate call for proposals for the Feasibility Awards .           This
will take place at about the same time ,           in order that the winners can be
selected and    have  undertaken the work       in advance of     the  second call  for
proposals for the Industrial Applied Research .
As a basis for calls for proposals the Commission will , in consultation with
the CGC ,    establish and update annually information packages specifying
detailed topics and priorities within the scope set out in the Technical Annex
to the Council Decision .      For this purpose the Commission will encourage an
exchange of views between related sectors about their future technology needs .
A similar but simplified         information     package   will  be   adopted  for  the
Feasibility Awards to SMEs .
To assist in the process of finding partners ,        potential participants would be
invited to submit an 'expression of interest' so that they can be put in
contact with those having similar interests . The network of 'national contact
points' within the Member States will continue to be encouraged to provide an
initial   form   of  introduction    to   the   programme .     The   arrangements  for
expressions of interest and the national contact points are of particular
benefit to SMEs and will be developed in consultation with the CGC .
PROJECT SELECTION
Experts , from industry , research organisations and universities , familiar with
the research needs of industry will assist the Commission in the selection of
projects for funding .       Those projects satisfying the eligibility criteria
related to conformance with the technical themes , composition of partnerships ,
and project size will be judged on the basis of the relevance of the project
to advancing industrial performance and to the technical quality and degree of
innovation .     Project partners should include those who are able to follow
through the results into industrial exploitation .
A particular welcome will be given to projects which :
- encourage the wider use of more advanced techniques , processes and materials
   associated with C ADC AM , modelling , expert systems , etc .; including those
  developed in other Community supported Programmes such as ESPRIT .
 ---pagebreak---                                        - 15 -
- establish links between enterprises from different horizontal or vertical
   sectors , particularly bridging the customer-supplier interface ;
- exploit the capacity of SMEs to provide innovative solutions to technical
   problems and also open up advanced technology for more effective use by
   SMEs ;
- aim to exploit a potential market opportunity which will arise from
   advancing the development of new standards or other codes of practice
   including those which might be associated with environmental or safety
   considerations ;
- aim to develop a level of human interaction with the manufacturing system or
   process which best serves and extends man 's creative and intellectual
   abilities and capacity , while taking away the tedium and drudgery of
   repetitive or undesirable tasks .
RELATED EUROPEAN PROGRAMMES ’
Links with complementary EC programmes are aimed at avoiding gaps and avoiding
unnecessary overlaps .         For example , some of the technical areas         are
complementary to parts of the work programme for the second phase of the
ESPRIT programme .        However ,   the primary objectives and scope of the
programmes are very different .         Links between the programme managers will
encourage the wider use of appropriate deliverables from ESPRIT , such as
advanced manufacturing systems approaches , within projects .             Of course ,
proposals which fall clearly within ESPRIT will not be considered within the
new _ programme .   In the reverse direction it is anticipated that the wide
sectorial coverage within the new programme would provide a valuable input
into the periodic redefinition of the ESPRIT Work Programme .          There will be
similar exchanges of information with the BCR , ECSC Steel Research , and SPRINT
Programmes and with appropriate COST actions .         Links will also be maintained
with appropriate JRC activities .        Care 'will also be taken to ensure that the
envisaged Aeronautical ,      ENERGY and TELEMAN Programmes take into account the
scope of BRITE / EURAM .
In the important area of high critical temperature superconductivity,            the
programme will , together with other Community programmes including ESPRIT and
SCIENCE form part of the Community Superconductivity Action
Recognising that successful innovation and its implementation depends on
appropriately trained and experienced people , links with the SCIENCE Plan and
the COMETT programme and related . actions will aim to develop the scope for
increasing the human transfer of technology within the new programme and this
will include grants for students undertaking work related to the themes of the
programme .
In addition to exc hang inn information at the stage of programme definition and
setting of priority themes , unnecessary overlaps between programmes will also
be avoided by involving teams from other programmes in the selection process
itself .
There will also be a continuing exchange with the EUREKA Programme and this
will include initiatives such as joint workshops .            This will be aimed at
accelerating thp path of innovative R&D into the market place . Projects within
the new programme could be regarded as establishing the ore-competitive
7,
   OJ No . C 124 , 11.4.1988 , p. 6
 ---pagebreak---                                    - 16 -
deliveraht.es which might be taken to the market place within EUREKA . Contacts
would continue to be encouraged between participants in similar technical
areas .
PROGRAMME EVALUATION
In the third year the programme will be evaluated by an independent group of
experts . The cost of this evaluation will be approximately 400,000 ECU .
                                                          t
 ---pagebreak---                                       - 17 -
                                                                            ANNEX A
                        TECHNICAL AREAS FOR THE NEW PROGRAMME
                         1 . ADVANCED MATERIALS TECHNOLOGIES
The work in this area will focus on the development ,               processing and
application of improved or new materials and material processing . In addition
to materials and composites based on metals , polymers and non-metallic
materials ,, the work will cover materials for a range of specialised
applications . Among the wide range of possible applications of these new
materials , some are directly related to IT and are therefore excluded from
this programme .    Developments of materials already covered by ESPRIT are , for
instance , dealing with magnetic , magneto-optical , optical thin films for
sensors , recording media and heads , optical layers and specific materials for
opto-electronics ,     ceramics and polymers for IC packaging and specific
substrates , superconducting thin films for low current applications and
devi ces .
1.1 . METALLIC MATERIALS AND METALLIC MATRIX COMPOSITES      /
For metallic materials , including metallic based composites , advances in
processing and alloying technologies have considerably widened the design
scope . For example , castings can now be made to high accuracy and are used in
critical fatigue loaded applications in ways that were not considered possible
10 years ago . The potential of metal matrix composites is in the early stages
of realisation and they are already demonstrated as ceramic reinforced light
alloy pistons .      A   major challenge is to establish confidence in the new
materials and improve processing techniques of these and more established
materials so as to bring production costs to competitive levels .
A particular focus of this class of materials is in those          industries where
improved materials can be exploited by designers to secure the reduction in
operating and maintenance costs , including savings in energy , necessary for
success in the market place .
Up to now most      structural materials have been homogeneous metallics and
alloys .    Increasingly , anisotropic materials using various strengthening
techniques such as particles or fibre reinforcement will be required to meet
the exacting requirements of the designer .         The optimised approach demands
that the material is designed alongside the specific component and matched to
the appropriate manufacturing process .
Goals
- Extended working life of components
- Higher operating temperatures for increased thermal efficiency
- Better and more effective material processing techniques
1.2   MATERIALS    FOR   MAGNETIC ,    OPTICAL ,  ELECTRICAL   AND  SUPERCONDUCTING
      APPLICATIONS
These materials are crucial to advances in a wide range of industries .
Magnetic materials , for examole , play an indispensable part in the electrical
and computer industries .       The value of their annual production worldwide is
apnroximately 5 billion ECU .        There is considerable scope for developments
which permit effective and          economical exploitation as ,      for example ,
 ---pagebreak---                                      - 18 -
polymer-bonded anisotropic permanent magnets or massive segments of metallic
glass for applications such as electric motors , security systems , ore
separation , medical equipment and magnetic levitation for transport .
Optical materials are of major importance particularly for optical
communication in a wide range of applications such as laser beam delivery
systems .    New materials are emerging which have the prospect of reducing
signal attenuation .
Among materials for electrical applications are those            for electrochemical
devices .    Improved materials based on solid state ionics are needed as the
basis for a new generation of batteries and fuel cells .
The discovery of high temperature superconductor materials aroused worldwide
interest and is expected to have a great impact in the medium and longer term
on most of the high technology industry sectors , particularly in component
design for reduced energy consumption .      However ,  many basic problems remain
unsolved .     The  industrial breakthroughs     will not    be achieved without a
systematic investigation of the operating mechanism and engineering problems .
-   Improved materials and materials processing          for    optical ,   magnetic ,
    electrical and superconducting applications
1.3   HIGH TEMPERATURE NON-METALLIC MATERIALS
There are estimates that the world market for engineering ceramics ,        including
special glasses and amorphous materials , will be some 12 billion ECU within a
few years .     It is expected that the demand will be evenly divided between
electro-ceramics and structural ceramics . The demand is increasing for high
temperature materials that can also take structural loads needed to contain
the processes now being used in the ' materials and chemical processing
industries .    They are also needed in the power generation , energy conversion
and notive power industries instead of metals so that the energy losses due to
cooling are minimized , more efficient high temperature combustion can be used
and combustion products produce as little pollution as possible . In contrast
to the US and Japan , the European share of today’s activity is very low .        The
large potential of this class of materials depends on solving some difficult
problems .     In speciality powders ,     such as whiskers , there are supply
difficulties within Europe .     If this technology is to meet the user 's needs ,
there will be a requirement for closer links with powder producers .
There are still many basic oroblems . There is a very limited understanding of
the most appropriate structure , such as the optimum spectrum of grain size ,
for a particular application .      Large scale manufacture of advanced ceramics
can introduce pollution issues , considering that there may be some 40Z of
oroanic additive to be burnt off in some processing steps .           Not only is it
difficult to control the process to achieve desired levels of porosity ,
particularly in products designed with variable porosity , but there are also
problems in quality assurance , both           in establishing that the desired
structure is achieved and also that it is      defect free .
The potential application goes a long way in defining a ceramic and so there
must always be close user involvement .      Similarly , there is a need for the
manufacturing process to reflect properly the characteristics of ceramics .
Too often the equipment used is a modified version of what is used in other
 ---pagebreak---                                        - 19 -
appl i cat ions , for example ,    in traditional ceramics ( slip casting ) or even
plastics injection moulding .       New equipment specially designed for processing
advanced ceramics will be required .
Finish machining of ceramics is not easy but even with near-net shape forming
it is often necessary .       Though an important aspect of ceramics technology ,
Europe is currently behind its major competitors .
Goals
- Design methodologies for products based on ceramics ,       glasses and amorphous
  materials
- Improved monolithic and ceramic composites and metal / ceramic interfaces for
  industrial applications
- (letter processing techniques and quality control strategies .
1.4     POLYMERS AND ORGANIC MATRIX COMPOSITES
The world polymer market is of the order of 120 billion ECU , of which
engineering polymers , including polymer matrix composites^, amount to 5 billion
ECU .     Europe is a net importer of engineering polymers .      The US with 70% of
the world production and Japan with 10% are increasing market share at the
expense of Europe with 10-15% .       Europe has been slow to respond to the trends
of general purpose materials replaced by functional materials .             There are
major opportunities for Europe to respond in specific applications .
Set    in  the context  of 815000    tons as  the  US  market for   fibre  reinforced
thermosets in 1986 , the US market for high performance composites is expected
to be 10,000 tons within 5 years .         Currently the market for these advanced
materials is limited and mostly in the US because of the aerospace dependance .
Growth will come from cheaper applications .        For example , in automobiles or
construction where materials have to be , typically , an order of magnitude less
expensive per kilogram than for aerospace*.
The polymer industry is characterised by large suppliers of raw materials ,
equipment manufacturers ( tending towards medium sized units of larger groups
supplying injection moulding machinery or extruders ),               specialist SMEs
manufacturing moulds , or handling equipment or polymer finishing , and SMEs as
component suppliers .       There is however a tendency for the machinery
manufacturers to restructure into larger groups and also for the major users
to process nore of the polymers themselves .
The availability of new polymers - components with specific properties is a
serious consideration in the lead time of new products .       Modelling should help
and is already being used in mould design and extrusion dies for simpler
components but it is not yet capable of dealing with the moulding process for
complex parts ,      and anisotropic shrinkage in injection moulding without
excessive computing costs .
The major problems limiting the applications of polymer composites to motor
vehicles - springs , suspension , drive shafts - include the need for more
economic process techniques for composites made from long fibre thermosets
and / or thermoplastics and joining composites to other components .
Moving to greater use of polymers in consumer products puts more emphasis on
environmental considerat ion , particularly when there are some 7000 types of
polymer in circulation .        The scope for recycling should he included in the
specification for new polymers .
 ---pagebreak---                                         - 20 -
Goals
- Development of polymers for specific applications
- "ore cost effective process techniques for parts made from polymer and
   polymer matrix composites
- Design rules for the specification and manufacture of engineering polymers
   and composites
- New polymers with improved recycling attributes
- Improved . product assurance techniques
1.5    MATERIALS FOR SPECIALISED APPLICATIONS
There are classes of materials whose development is dominated by a single area
of    application .    These   will   relate   to either   established or   emerging
oooortunities .
New and improved materials are essential to the packaging industry which is of
major economic and technical significance and had an annual turnover in the
Community of about 30 billion ECU in 1984 employing about 1 million people .
Packaging 'systems' are vital elements of preservation (and product security
'systems' in a range of market sectors such as the food , pharmaceutical and
paint industries .      Innovation in this fragmented industry is essential to
respond to rapidly changing market requirements focussed on the competitive
edge of a customers' products .        The material and its processing route must
meet a novel combination of properties - strength , heat resistance , barriers
to gases , liquids and micro-organisms - for the product and short lead times
for the process .
For the time being biomaterials for which there is a growing world market have
emerged as being of special interest for the Community .           For example , the
world market for joint prostheses in 1985 was 700 mio ECU and is expected to
be more than double at 1500 mio ECU by 1989 . In contrast to the US and Japan ,
biomaterial products emerge from a large 'number of small companies in Europe .
They cannot afford the research investment to secure European competitiveness
in this field .     Nevertheless , the European market is sufficiently large to
provide a good demand base .      Its development requires effective collaboration
between industry , the clinics and research expertise in universities and
research organisations . Areas of potential application include bone and joint
replacement , osteosynthesis materials , dental implants , drug delivery systems
and catheters and materials in direct blood contact ,               non thrombogenic
materials , and organ replacement materials .
Other    materials  which  will  be   considered will    include  the  more advanced
materials for the building and civil engineering industry .
Ooa I
   Improved materials and their processing for specialised applications
 ---pagebreak---                                      - 21
           2 . DESIGN KETHODOLOGY AND ASSURANCE OF PRODUCTS AND PROCESSES
The development of techniques to improve product quality and the reliability
and maintainability of structures , and manufacturing systems by clarification
of the design aims for both product and process , and by refinement of the
criteria against which the attributes are measured .            The exploitation of
materials for sensors , and the reduction in the whole life costs of sensors
are also included in this section . This will complement work in Community IT
programmes , where on-line control is treated ,         including monitoring and
diagnostics , predictive maintenance and quality assurance .
2.1 QUALITY , RELIABILITY AND MAINTAINABILITY IN INDUSTRY
The costs relating to total quality have been estimated in one of the Member
States to be some 10% of GNP and can typically range from 5 - 25% of company
turnover .      These costs are often unmeasured and hence uncontrolled , but it is
estimated that it would not be difficult to make a reduction by 70% of their
present level through better management and control .
The costs of quality are related to the imperfection ? and also costs of
process and product assurance .        A major task is to reduce the imperfection
rate while reducing the assurance costs .            BRITE / EURAM will contribute
improvements in product quality and in the reliability and maintainability of
manufacturing systems by clarification of the design aims for both , and by
refinement of the criteria against which these attributes are measured .          It
will thus complement work in ESPRIT, where on-line control is treated ,
including monitoring and diagnostics ,        predictive maintenance and quality
assurance .
However , in a world moving to low inventory or Just In Time ( JIT ) manufacture ,
the requirements for reliability and maintainability are growing more
stringent .      Work is needed to ensure that all elements of the process perform
reliably , because their availability ha ^ become more critical with more high
capital based integrated manufacturing systems .             However , due to the
irregularity or short cycle nature operations in these sectors , there are
problems in determining the physical characteri si ti cs of the process which can
be the basis of condition monitoring systems , such as those being developed in
ESPRIT .
Goals
- Improved performance measurement for manufacturing operations in a wide
  variety of industries
   Improved and more predictable physical and environmental behaviour of
  products
- Improved quality control strategies
- Design rules for reliability and maintainability of components ,        structures
  and systems including machinery operating under varying conditions
2.2 PROCESS AND PRODUCT ASSURANCE
In many sectors there has been a concern expressed over limitations of
available process control and the means by which the product specified is
assured .      The control of processes may be limited by the understanding of the
nrocess itself as in nowder atomisation ,       or the availability of sensors to
measure and enable real time corrections to be made as in metal cutting or
meat processing .       Jn product assurance - non destructive evaluation - there
 ---pagebreak---                                    - 22 -
are many problems in establishing the presence of significant defects such as
might affect safe use as in ceramics for aero engine components , or customer
satisfaction as in textiles .
Sensors are key elements in controlling any process and their importance
increases with scale and flexibility of the systems they are operating within .
The exploitation of materials for application in sensors , and the reduction in
the whole' life costs of sensors are key objectives towards better
competitiveness .    However , the development of small area and large area
sensors , with built-in or chip signal processing , based on microelectronic
related technologies , is covered by ESPRIT .
A promising area appears to be fibre optics sensors . Potentially they are
cheap , attractive and capable of detecting many variables within hostile
environments including electromagnetic fields .         There can be problems ,
particularly when more than one variable changes .      This is a new technology
which is expected to be particularly suitable for measuring distance and
liquid levels , and for fire detection .
The areas of testing , detection and' inspection are we¥l illustrated by the
developing technology of optical engineering . This has a number of very
attractive and industrially significant applications .     However , in almost all
cases applied RSD , and even some more fundamental work , is required before
wide cost-effective operation is achieved .
As a technology holography is capable of meeting the motor industry 's needs
for tyre examination where current tests are inadequate . However , the process
is currently too slow and too expensive . There would be many applications for
structural and vibration testing if a breakthrough allowed the process to be
easily operated by a technician .
An outstanding technical problem for manufacturing        industry is   that many
precision manufacturing machines can work to a greater accuracy and rate than
the measurement capability which is typically manual .     Contactless in-situ 3D
measurement and vision systems , such as those developed in other Community
programmes , are attractive tools to overcome the problems to solve most of the
weaknesses in tracking technology .       Therefore the use of those innovative
systems for testing and monitoring of products and processes based , for
example , on ultrasonic measurement techniques must be a target of the
programme .
A further important aspect of control technology concerns power control
engineering , that is the ability to control the energy flow in industrial
nrnr.esses and machines for speed or position as in electric motores used in
metal cutting machinery .     It is at the base of advances in automation in all
kinds of industry . Though there were strengths in the past , European and US
manufacturers are now losing market share against Japan .     It is essential for
the European manufacturers of process and production machinery to have access
to the most suitable technology .       Advancing this technology in Europe will
depend on close co-operation between producers and users exploiting advanced
materials and IT techniques .
 ---pagebreak---                                    23 -
Goals
- Reduction of whole life costs of sensor systems for process control
- Exploitation of materials properties for applications in sensors
- Use of advanced measurement techniques for more cost effective examination
  of tonoloqy
- Improved energy control for industrial applications
- Improved non destructive testing methods for product assurance
                                                         !
 ---pagebreak---                                       - 24 -
                   3 . APPLICATION OF MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGIES
In this area the task is to identify and address the needs of manufacturing ;
industry and particularly the less advanced sectors , - many of which have a
major part made up of SMEs .      It is to be expected that modelling of physical
processes will be a valuable instrument for progress .         Also addressed is the
challenge to the industries based on the use of flexible materials .. Overall
the work will mainly focus on product and process development transferring
and adapting technology already used in other sectors . This should complement
work in ESPRIT where IT systems for advanced manufacturing and CIM are being
developed .
3.1 ADVANCING MANUFACTURING PRACTICES
There is a need to apply the principles of the best manufacturing practices
already established in the leading sectors to others which have been slow to
exploit the benefits that can be obtained in terms of business performance .
Those sectors most likely to gain will include a high proportion of SMEs and
have limited research and development capabilities themselves and so be
dependent on the expertise and experience of other sectors . ,
The challenge is to identify common opportunities relevant to a significant
number of companies in the Community and then , in conjunction with those
having relevant expertise and experience ,           to develop the manufacturing
processes which will enable them to improve the services they give their
customers .
Modelling is essential in many areas of interest to estabished industries ,
such as the filling of complex injection moulds , particle formation in
atomisers , positioning of sensors in condition monitoring systems , noise
generation in machinery or the design of composite materials . However ,
modelling projects can only be justified 'in . applied RRD. when their application
would be used as an effective industrial tool . :                         _
Goals
- Identifying means for improving manufacturing practices in specific sectors
- Transfer and adaptation of technology already used in other sectors
3.2 MANUFACTURING PROCESSES FOR FLEXIBLE MATERIALS
This activity addresses the         challenge to the industries based on the
processing and use of flexible       materials including textiles , leather , non
woven products , composites and     packaging materials . Their importance is well
illustrated hv the Community 's      textile and leather related industries where
some 3.5 mi l lion people are employed .
The clothing i ndust ry i l lust rates the problems of these industries . "       Its
manufacturing processes deliver very large batches of similar products ,          but
often at a price not competitive with the rest of the world .         The long runs ,
high stocks and long lead times are no longer applicable to today 's markets
where the competition is wor Idwide .        Clothing retailers have to be able to
carry the right amount of the latest style .          No longer is it acceptable to
have the lead times of 6 months or even longer characteristic of many of
today 's clothing manufacturers , to go from design through selection of fabric ,
cnttinr ,   assembly and batch nreparation .     Uncertainties associated with lonn
lead times result in considerable waste at all stages of the process ,           from
 ---pagebreak---                                     - 25 -
ordering of too much raw material ,      through high work in progress to unsold
stocks of finished goods .      The challenge for the textile suppliers is to
provide short delivery of small batches having reproducible dyes , finishes and
properties .
In the clothing industry about 80% of production comes from SMEs ,           many of
which  have   limited   technical   capabilities .     The  transfer   and   further
development of technology already used in other sectors is seen as an
important means of meeting their needs .           Where appropriate ,     prototype
developments might be demonstrated to potential users to keep them informed of
emerging technologies .
Though the clothing industry has been used to illustrate the R&D
opportunities , there is much in common with other , but quite different ,
applications in the physical processes involving flexible materials used in
the     packaging ,   meat   processing   and  composite   material  manufacturing
industries .
- Increased process flexibility
- Reduce waste of material
- To improve process and product quality
 ---pagebreak---                                        - 26 -
                    4 . TECHNOLOGIES FOR MANUFACTURING PROCESSES
Improved techniques for shaping , joining and assembly , surface treatment ,
chemical processes and particle technology are fundamental needs for industry .
Advancement of these processes is essential for securing manufacturing
competitiveness .
4.1 SURFACE TECHNIQUES
Surface treatments vary considerably in nature and are applied across industry
to a very wide range of materials for a wide variety of reasons , including
improving resistance to wear , corrosion and high temperatures . In the case of
corrosion it has been estimated that the costs of its prevention and effects
amount to about 4% of Gross National Product in industrial countries .         Similar
figures can be given for wear .       Such information indicates the scale of the
problem,     although    the   scope    for   cost-effective    amelioration   may  be
considerably less .
In almost all surface treatment systems ,            quality assurance ,     condition
monitoring in service and control of the treatment process are very weak
areas .    For example , there are no satisfactory tests for the adhesion of
coatings or coating quality in general .               Because of the variety of
applications , materials and environments , research work on a surface system
has to be applications driven and recognise that there can be major problems
in scaling up laboratory scale techniques .
The selection of the best system should be assisted by the increasing emphasis
on the understanding of the degradation of materials . This requires the
synergistic appreciation of environmental , stress and ageing issues . With a
better understanding of the way in which surface systems behave , it should be
possible to model systems to optimise selection .         With some exceptions , such
as in parts of the process industry , it is unlikely that existing knowledge is
sufficiently complete to support the use of expert systems which would bring
enough benefit to others to justify their development costs .           Development of
such a knowledge here , but not the mere collection of data , should be a
further topic for development .
Overall this is an area where collaboration is needed to bring complementary
expertise together and to ensure that equipment suppliers and users , which
include many SMEs , are able to integrate the different technologies into
cost-effective applications making use , as appropriate , of the advanced
information handling technologies developed elsewhere .
Gon l s
- Cost-effective surface treatments for industrial applications
- Techniques    for quality assurance and control      of   the treatment process
4.2 SHAPING , ASSEMBLY AND JOINING
Technologies for shaping ,          assembly and joining are fundamental to
manufacturing industry .      Many of these technologies are regarded as mature
with scone for development being limited to changes necessary for their
incorporation into computer integrated manufacturing systems .          However , ever
increasing demands for inproved performance including high precision and
faster operation , and the availability of more advanced materials both to be
treated and also for use in the treatment process ,            challenge conventional
practice .
 ---pagebreak---                                     - 27 -
As the programme progresses the need to improve methodologies for shaping
processes and assembly will be developed .        For this purpose shaping is taken
to mean component processing techniques including forging ,            moulding and
cutting and particularly those approaching near net shape .
In the area of joining , besides meeting more stringent technical requirements ,
an overriding priority is to reduce fabrication costs in all the major
industrial areas , e.g. power generation , process plant , petro chemical ,
offshore . hydrocarbon     extraction ,      transportation ,    civil  engineering ,
automobiles and construction plant .        For example , manual metal arc welding ,
whilst offering considerable flexibility and tolerance in use , has low
productivity and is being progressively replaced in many applications by
alternative and particularly more automated processes such as those being
developed in ESPRIT which include seam tracking , adaptive control and sensing
when geometrical changes occur in the joint . These technologies are equally
applicable to adhesive bonding .
Adhesive bonding , in addition to providing an alternative to welding , has
opened up new approaches to joining , particularly suited to the assembly stage
and the joining of dissimilar materials .            Improvements in the speed and
control of curing ,    together with wider operating temperature ranges would be
welcome .
An associated problem to joining is the limited reliability of the non
destructive inspection methods used to evaluate the weld soundness and its
behaviour in service , an area where physical principles require development to
allow better reliability of results and service predictability .
In certain manufacturing industries , where there is a large throughput of
repetitive fabrication , the use of friction welding or the power beam
processes such as electron beam and laser may be practicable and economic but
their inflexibility ,      high capital costs and often poor stability and
reliability outweigh their general use . *
In the case of laser systems for materials processing , the laser itself is of
low efficiency and often there is poor conversion efficiency at the workpiece
where there is little understanding of the interaction of the beam with the
target .
Lasers are suited    to a limited range of applications and it is important that
research reflects    their needs .     This will pull together the eventual users -
to ensure that       a cost-effective solution can emerge - with potential
manufacturers and    the reservoirs of expertise in research organisations .
Goals
- Improved methodologies for shaping processes and assembly
- Improver' joining techniques to improve reliability and reduce defect levels
- - 'ethcds for testino welded and bonded joints to improve reliability of
   results anti service predi ctabi l i ty
- Design methorioloqy for joining
- Retter understanding of beam / workpiece interactions for industrial power
  'v?a .Ti processes
 ---pagebreak---                                         - 28 -
4.3 CHEMICAL PROCESSES
There are many aspects underpinning the effectiveness and usefulness of
chemical manufacture which will only result if there is collaboration between
chemical manufacturers , users and suppliers of new technology or expertise .
Improved predictability of chemical reactions             will help in optimising
specificity , safety and energy conservation . This       is a vital area where tools
can be of wide applicability but where , as in             the case of chemical and
electrochemical sensors , the European industry is        under considerable pressure
from Japan and the USA .
The effectiveness of many chemical reactions depends on the use of catalysts .
The supply is generally local and Europe is generally strong but needs to
maintain and improve its position . Most catalysts are of high specificity and
so their development is generally inappropriate for collaborative research .
There are , however , basic . problems related to the performance of catalysts
such as poisoning which , if solved , would underpin the competitive edge of the
European catalyst manufacturers and users .
                                                               /
Separation technologies are vital elements of many industrial processes .          In
addition to opportunities to develop operating efficiency , the incentive for
new technology in this area may come from a cost effective response to
environmental pressures such as those associated with effluent control . Though
many separation processes are of importance , membrane technology is currently
identified as having a particular potential for development .
In the face of strong competition , Europe has been slipping behind in membrane
innovation .     In terms of installed capacity , desalination is by far the
largest application area .          The size of the world market for membranes is
estimated to be about 400 mio ECU / year .       This is likely to grow significantly
in the future as new applications for membranes are identified , such as gas
filtration .
Mew membranes are very expensive to develop and , for some types , can typically
take up to 10 years . Few users are willing to make such an investment ,           so
development is left to the membrane makers .          Many of these are unwilling to
make such long term and high risk investments . Development tends to be highly
exoerimental reflecting the poorly categorised media to be processed and the
very limited understandi ng of membrane separation processes .
Membrane processes often have to trade off separation efficiency against flux
rate .     Rarely does a membrane behave in the anticipated way and fouling
nrohlems can severely limit life .         There is considerable scope for optimising
the design of the membrane systems , such as to enhancing turbulence at the
membrane surface and also techniques to inhibit fouling .
Goals
- ! r,proved predi ctabi l i ty and yield in chemical processes
- Membrane materials with improved characteristics
- Improved performance of membrane orocessos
- be 11 systems for separation in hostile environments
 ---pagebreak---                                    - 29 -
4.4 PARTICLE AND POWDER PROCESSES
Particles , whether in the form of powders , dusts , gaseous or suspensions , or
porous media , are found in almost every area of manufacturing industry .
Problems with their production , separation , stability and - categorisation limit
their application in both quality and quantity , such that alternative and much
more expensive solutions have to be employed .
In general ,    the Japanese are in the lead on the novel approaches to particle
production and application .     Europe , like the US , has its strengths but has
not been so good at bringing together complementary expertise to tackle common
problems .    There is a need to bring together the complementary expertise from
the different interests - the material suppliers , the users , the instrument
makers ( often small specialists ), the process plant manufacturers and the
innovators from universities and research organisations .
There is a series of common problems which are found in many very different
narticle systems and these include the inability to fully categorise particles
- not only in-process but also for batch sampling .           There is also poor
efficiency and size control within many conventional processes - such as
milling and classification .     There are also many problems in maintaining even
flow and distribution in the flow of powders          and suspensions .    Serious
difficulties also arise when separating suspensions , particularly at high
temperatures or when the medium is of high viscosity .          In contrast , the
improved stability of colloids ,          including micro-emulsions ,    would be
advantageous in many sectors .
The scale of the powder technology industry is illustrated by the level of
production in the US - about 270,000 tonnes ( of which 200,000 tonnes is
stainless steel ) per year valued , in parts and products , at about 2 billion
ECU .    Japan and Europe produce about 1 billion ECU each .         The value is
illustrated by the value of steel semi-finished powder and metallurgical
components being between 20-50 ECU / kilo , 'while ceramic powder parts can cost
2000 ECU / kilo .
Overall it is an area where international competition is very strong , driven
in part by the requirements and spin-offs , such as vacuum technology , from the
space programmes .      Though not in the lead overall , Europe has strengths in
some  process areas .
There are a number of areas , such as aero and automative engines , magnets ,
tools steels and electronic materials , where advanced powder materials could
meet industrial requirements ,     though in each the technology is limiting the
achievement of potential benefits .
Oetter products will come from improvements in powders and their processing .
There is sufficient understanding of the powder categorisation and the physics
and chemistry of the processes involved but , to date , there has been a limited
amplication of modelling techniques to address the problems .         It is likely
that modelling techniques could assist in improving the performance of powder
nroduction ( for example , the yield of atomisers is typically around 60% ),
pressure transmission in compaction , and sintering . The high capital cost of
nowder production and processing equipment makes the need for an improved
understanding of the processes necessary .
 ---pagebreak---                                  - 30 -
For the future , the competitive edge will reflect advances in process
techniques to supply and compact smaller quantities of high quality powder .
Movement   in  this direction would allow  smaller companies   to exploit the
potential of powder technology .
Goals
- Improved techniques for particle production to optimise product shape ,
, structure and stability
- Cost-ef fecti ve techniques for particle      catégorisation   and process
  performance
- Better approaches to handling and separation
- Cost effective routes for small lots of high quality powder
 ---pagebreak---                                            - 31
                                                           ANEXO B
      DICTAMEN DEL COMITÉ CONSULTIVO EN MATERIA DE GESTIÓN Y COORDINACIÓN
                             DE TECNOLOGIAS INDUSTRIALES
Tras examinar y discutir en profundidad el proyecto de Comunicación de la
Comisión al Consejo y al Parlamento Europeo referente a un Programa de
Investigación y Desarrollo Tecnológico de la Comunidad Económica Europea en el
sector de las tecnologias de la fabricación industrial y en el de la
aplicación de los materiales avanzados ( BRITE / EURAM ) ( 1989-1992 ), de fecha 3
de mayo de 1988 ( CGC-IT / 88 / 20 );
Tras oir las conclusiones y las recomendaciones preliminares expresadas per la
junta de expertos externos encargados de la evaluación del programa BRITE en
curso ( 1985-1988 ),
El Comité consultivo en materia de gestión y coordinación de tecnologias
industriales emitió las siguientes opiniones y sugerencias en su reunión del
30 de mayo de 1988 .
En reunión conjunta con el Comité consultivo en materia de                gestión  y
coordinación de materias primas y otros materiales , el Comité :
- suscribe el enfoque de conjunto propuesto para el nuevo programa y reconoce
  la importancia de los objetivos establecidos en él , y suscribe de manera
  especial la importancia de la posibilidad de incluir                 Investigación
  Fundamental Orientada en todos los ámbitos del programa ;
- aprueba el contenido científico y técnico del nuevo programa ,       que incluye 4
  ámbitos técnicos : tecnologías de los materiales avanzados , diseño y garantía
  de productos y procesos ,          sistemas de fabricación y tecnologías de los
  procesos de fabricación ;
- recomienda la aprobación del proyecto de programa y su adopción por la
  Comisión con tiempo suficiente para que el Consejo tome una decisión antes
  de la fecha límite requerida para su aplicación a partir del 1 de enero de
  1989 ;
- recomienda que se asignen 500 millones de ECU para             la aplicación del
  prog rama .
 ---pagebreak---                                         - 32
                                                           ANEXO C
      DICTAMEN DEL COMITÉ CONSULTIVO EN MATERIA DE GESTIÓN Y COORDINACIÓN
                         DE MATERIAS PRIMAS Y OTROS MATERIALES
Tras examinar y discutir en profundidad el proyecto de Comunicación de la
Comisión al Consejo y al Parlamento Europeo referente a un Programa de
Investigación y Desarrollo Tecnológico de la Comunidad Económica Europea en el
sector de las tecnologías de la fabricación industrial y en el de la
aplicación de los materiales avanzados ( BRITE / EURAM ) ( 1989-1992 ), de fecha 3
de mayo de 1988 ( CGC-IT / 88 / 20 );
Tras oir las conclusiones y recomendaciones preliminares expresadas por la
junta de expertos externos encargados de la evaluación de los programas en
curso BRITE ( 1985-1988 ) y EURAM ( 1986-1989 ),
El Comité consultivo en materia de gestión y coordinación de materias primas y
otros materiales emitió las siguientes opiniones y sugerencias en su reunión
del 30 de mayo de 1988 .
En reunión conjunta con el Comité consultivo en              materia de   gestión y
coordinación de tecnologías industriales , el Comité :
- suscribe el enfoque general propuesto para el nuevo programa y reconoce la
  relevancia de los objetivos establecidos en el mismo ;
- aprueba de manera general el contenido científico y técnico del nuevo
  programa ,  que comprende 4 âmbitos técnicos :     materiales avanzados , diseno y
  garantía de productos y procesos ,      sistemas de fabricación y tecnologías de
  los procesos de fabricación ;
- recomienda que , previa consulta al CGC , la Comisión tenga en cuenta tas
  conclusiones de las evaluaciones mencionadas anteriormente en la aplicación
  del programa ;
- recomienda que la cuantía destinada inicialmente a investigación fundamental
  orientada se incremente hasta un 20% del presupuesto total en cada ámbito de
  investigación cuando sea necesario para los progresos que haya que realizar ;
- recomienda que la Comisión sea flexible al abordar las modalidades , de
  manera que se vea en el programa algo dinámico y capaz de adaptación para
  hacer frente a las necesidades cambiantes de la Comunidad . Recomienda además
  que se consulte de manera regular a este respecto al CGC-Materiales ;
- recomienda que el programa BRITE / EURAM no se solape con otros programas
  comunitarios y , de manera especial , con ESPRIT y SCIENCE en el ámbito de la
  superconductividad ;
- recomienda que se asigne un mínimo de 500 millones de ECU para la aplicación
  del programa ;
- recomienda que se apruebe el proyecto de programa y su adopción por la
  Comisión con tiempo suficiente para que el Consejo tome una decisión dentro
  del plazo requerido para su aplicación a partir del 1 de enero de 1989 .
La mayoría de las delegaciones presentes en el CGC recomendaron la
financiación , hasta el 100% de sus costes marginales , de la participación de
las universidades y organizaciones similares en cualquier proyecto del
programa BRITE / EURAM .
El CGC se felicita del equilibrio técnico del programa y toma nota de que la
Comisión propone el fortalecimiento de la propuesta mediante la referencia a
los comentarios técnicos del CGC .
 ---pagebreak---                                        - 33 -
                                   Propuesta de
                               DECISION DEL CONSEJO
 por la que se adopta un programa especifico de investigación y desarrollo
      tecnológico para la Comunidad Económica Europea en el sector de las
     tecnologias de la fabricación industrial y en el de las aplicaciones
                    de los materiales avanzados ( BRITE / EURAM )
                                    ( 1989-1992 )
EL CONSEJO DE LAS COMUNIDADES EUROPEAS,
Visto el Tratado constitutivo de la Comunidad Económica Europea y, en parti ¬
cular, el apartado 2 del articulo 130 Q,
Vista la propuesta de la Comisión ( 1 ),
En cooperación con el Parlamento Europeo ( 2 ),
Visto el dictamen del Comité Económico y Social ( 3 ),
Considerando que el articulo 130 K del Tratado prevé que el programa marco se
ejecutará mediante programas especificos desarrollados dentro de cada una de
las acciones ;
Considerando que, por Decisión 87 /516/ Euratom, CEE ( 4 ), el Consejo ha adopta ¬
do un programa marco de actividades de la Comunidad en el ámbito de la inves ¬
tigación y desarrollo tecnológico ( 1987-1991 ) que prevé una serie de acciones
en el sector de la ciencia y la tecnología para la industria manufacturera y
para los materiales avanzados; que tal Decisión , establece que las acciones
comunitarias en materia de investigación tendrán en particular por objeto cojn
solidar las bases científicas y tecnológicas de la industria europea y fomen ¬
tar su competitividad a nivel internacional , y que la acción comunitaria est£
rá justificada cuando la investigación contribuya , entre otros fines , a refo£
zar la cohesión económica y social de la Comunidad y a impulsar su desarrollo
global armonioso, respetando el objétivo de la calidad científica y técnica ;
que el programa BRITE / EURAM está destinado a contribuir al logro de estos ob¬
jetivos ;
Considerando que por Decisión 85 / 196 / CEE ( 5 ) se adoptó un primer programa pl^
rianual de investigación y de desarrollo para la Comunidad Económica Europea
dentro del campo de la investigación tecnológica básica y de la aplicación de
las nuevas teonologias ( BRITE, 1985-1988 );
( 1 ) DO nû
( 2 ) DO nû          , DO nû
( 3 ) DO nû
( 4 ) DO nû L 302, 24.10.1987, p. 1
( 5 ) DO nû L 83, 25.3.1985, p. 8
 ---pagebreak---                                       - 34 -
Considerando que, por Decisión 86 /235 / CEE (6 ), el Consejo aprobó un programa
de investigación en el sector de Los materiales (materias primas y materiales
avanzados ) ( 1986-1989 );
Considerando que es necesario reaccionar de manera adecuada ante el interés
mostrado por la industria por la cooperación internacional ;
Considerando que es necesario que las pequeñas y medianas empresas participen
en la mayor medida posible en el desarrollo de tecnologías industriales , te¬
niendo en cuenta sus necesidades concretas y especificas y respetando el ob¬
jetivo de la calidad científica y técnica del programa;
Considerando que es necesario subrayar el carácter industrial e internacional
del programa seleccionando proyectos de investigación aplicada que requieran
al menos dos participantes industriales de dos Estados miembros ;
Considerando que es necesario garantizar el carácter industrial del programa,
seleccionado proyectos de investigación fundamental orientada que requieran
el apoyo industrial de al menos dos empresas independientes ;
Considerando que la participación de organizaciones de los países de la AELC
en los proyectos de I + D de orientación industrial , en condiciones apropia¬
das , puede contribuir a la competiti vidad del conjunto de la industria manu¬
facturera ;
Considerando que, en interés de la Comunidad, deben consolidarse las bases
cientificas y tecnológicas de la investigación europea mediante una mayor par¬
ticipación de los paises de la AELC en determinados programas comunitarios y,
en particular, en programas que impliquen una cooperación en materia de inve^
tigación y desarrollo de las tecnologías industriales de base, incluidos los
materiales avanzados ;
Considerando que la ejecución de acciones concertadas en el marco COST es un
elemento esencial para completar los proyectos de I + D de orientación indus ¬
trial ;
Considerando que el Comité de investigación científica y técnica ( CREST) ha
sido consultado al respecto,
HA ADOPTADO LA PRESENTE DECISION :
                                    Articulo 1
Se adopta , por un periodo de cuatro años a partir del 1 de enero de 1989, un
programa especifico de investigación y desarrollo tecnológico para la Comuni ¬
dad Económica Europea en el sector de las tecnologías de la fabricación indu£
trial y en el de las aplicaciones de los materiales avanzados , tal como se d£
fine en el Anexo I.
                                    Articulo 2
El importe estimado necesario para la ejecución del programa asciende a 439,5
millones de ECU, incluidos los gastos de personal cuyo coste no debe superar
el 4,5% de la contribución comunitaria .
( 6 ) DO nû L 159, 14.6.1986, p. 36
 ---pagebreak---                                            - 35 -
                                        Articulo 3
Las modalidades de ejecución del programa y la tasa de participación financie^
ra de la Comunidad se definen en el Anexo II .
                                        Articulo 4
1 . Durante el tercer año de ejecución del programa , la Comisión procederá a
      la revisión del mismo y transmitirá al Consejo y al Parlamento Europeo un
     informe sobre los resultados de esta revisión , acompañado, en su caso , de
     propuestas encaminadas a modificar o a prorrogar el programa .
2 . Antes de que finalice el programa , la Comisión procederá a la evaluación
     de los resultados conseguidos y transmitirá al Consejo y al Parlamento Euro¬
     peo un informe al respecto .
3 . Los informes mencionados se establecerán teniendo en cuenta los objetivos
     definidos en el Anexo III de la presente Decisión y de conformidad con las
     disposiciones del apartado 2 del articulo 2 del Programa marco .
                                        Articulo 5
1 . La Comisión será responsable de la ejecución del programa , y estará asisti ¬
     da , en su ejecución, por el Comité consultivo en materia de gestión y cooi–
     dinación ( CGC ) de tecnologías industriales , creado por la Decisión 84 /338 /
     Euratom / CECA / CEE del Consejó ( 7 ).
2 . Los controles celebrados por la Comisión regularán los derechos y las obli ¬
     gaciones de cada parte , incluidas las modalidades de difusión, de protección
     y de aprovechamiento de los resultados de la investigación .
                                        Articulo 6
1 . Cuando se hayan celebrado acuerdos marco de cooperación científica y técni ¬
     ca entre países europeos no comunitarios y Las Comunidades Europeas , las
     organizaciones y empresas establecidas en dichos países podrán, en las con ¬
     diciones apropiadas que establezca la Comisión , participar en un proyecto
     emprendido en el marco del programa . Para cada uno de dichos proyectos , el
     Comité previsto en el articulo 5 asistirá a la Comisión en la definición
     de dichas condiciones .
2 . Ningún contratista establecido fuera de la Comunidad que participe como so¬
     cio en proyectos empnendidos en el marco del programa tendrá derecho a la
     financiación comunitaria prevista para el programa . El contratista contri ¬
     buirá a los gastos administrativos generales .
( 7 ) DO n£2 L 177, 14.7.1984, p. 25
 ---pagebreak---                                     - 36 -
                                  Articulo 7
La Comisión velará por que se establezcan procedimientos que permitan una
adecuada cooperación con las actividades COST relacionadas con los secto¬
res de investigación que abarca el programa , asegurando intercambios de in
formación periódicos entre el Comité contemplado en el articulo 5 y los co
mités de gestión COST pertinentes .
                                  Articulo 8
Los destinatarios de la presente Decisión serán los Estados miembros.
Hecho en
                                                  Por el Consejo
                                                  El Presidente
                                           \
 ---pagebreak---                                          - 37 -
                                                              ANEXO I
                                      ANEXO TÉCNICO
1.    TECNOLOGIAS DE LOS MATERIALES AVANZADOS
      EL trabajo en este ámbito se orientará al desarrollo de nuevos o mejores
      materiales y tratamiento de materiales para una amplia variedad de
      posibles aplicaciones, excepto las directamente relacionadas con las TI
      cubiertas en ESPRIT ( 1 ).
      En particular :
      1.1 . Materiales metálicos y compuestos de matriz metálica
            Metas
            - Alargar la vida de trabajo de los componentes
            - Mayores temperaturas de funcionamiento para una mayor eficacia
               térmica
            - Mejores y más eficaces técnicas de tratamiento de materiales
      1.2 . Materiales para aplicaciones magnéticas ,      ópticas ,   eléctricas y de
            superconductividad                                                      1
            Metas
            - Mejores materiales y tratamiento de materiales para aplicaciones
               ópticas , magnéticas , eléctricas y de superconductividad
      1.3 . Materiales no metálicos para altas temperaturas
            Metas
            - Metodologías de diseno para productos a base de cerámica , vidrio y
               materiales amorfos
            - Mejora de    compuestos monolíticos y cerámicos y de interfaces
               metalcerámi cas para aplicaciones industriales
            - Mejores técnicas     de tratamiento     y estrategias     de control de
               calidad
      1.4 . Polímeros y compuestos de matriz orgánica
            Metas
            - Desarrollo de polímeros para aplicaciones específicas
            - Técnicas de tratamiento más eficaces en relación al coste para
               piezas hechas con polímeros y compuestos de matriz polimérica
            - Normas de diseño para la especificación y manufactura de polímeros
               y compuestos para ingeniería
            - Nuevos polímeros con propiedades de reciclado mejoradas
            - Mejores técnicas de garantía de productos
( 1 ) El desarrollo de materiales ya cubiertos por ESPRIT tiene que ver por
      ejemplo con películas delgadas magnéticas , magnetoópticas y ópticas para
      sensores , instrumentos y cabezales de grabación , membranas ópticas y
      materiales específicos para optolectróni ca, cerámica y polímeros para
      envasado de       CI y     substratos     específicos ,     películas delgadas
      superconductoras para aplicaciones y mecanismos de baja tensión .
 ---pagebreak---                                      - 38
   1.5 . Materiales para aplicaciones especializadas
         Meta
         - Materiales perfeccionados y        tratamiento   de  los  mismos   para
           aplicaciones especializadas
2. METODOLOGÍA Y GARANTÍA DE DISEÑO PARA PRODUCTOS Y PROCESOS
   El desarrollo de técnicas para perfeccionar la calidad de los productos y
   la fiabilidad y la posibilidad de mantenimiento de estructuras y sistemas
   de fabricación mediante la clarificación de los objetivos del diseño ,
   tanto del producto como del proceso , y mediante el refinamiento de los
   criterios con que se miden las propiedades . También se incluyen en esta
   sección la explotación de materiales para su aplicación en sensores y la
   reducción   de   los  costes   de  vida   totales   de   los  sensores .   Ello
   complementará el trabajo de los programas comunitarios de TI que traten
   del control en línea , incluidos vigilancia y diagnóstico ,      mantenimiento
   preventivo y garantía de calidad .
   En particular :
   2.1 . Calidad , fiabilidad y posibilidad de mantenimiento en la industria
         Metas
         - Prestaciones de medición perfeccionadas para las operaciones de
           fabricación en una amplia gama de industrias
         - Comportamiento    físico   y   medioambiental   perfeccionado    y  más
           predecible de los productos
         - Estrategias de control de calidad perfeccionadas
         - Normas de diseño para la fiabilidad y posibilidad de mantenimiento
           de componentes , estructuras y sistemas , incluyendo funcionamiento
           de maquinaria bajo diferentes condiciones
   2.2 . Garantía del proceso y del producto
         Metas
         - Reducción de Los costes de vida totales de los sistemas sensores
           para el control del proceso
         - Explotación de las propiedades de los materiales para aplicaciones
           en  sensores
         - Uso de técnicas de medición avanzadas para un examen topológico
           más eficaz en relación con el coste
         - Control energético perfeccionado para aplicaciones industriales
         - Métodos de prueba no destructiva perfeccionados para garantía de
           producto
3. APLICACIÓN DE LAS TECNOLOGÍAS DE FABRICACIÓN
   En este punto la tarea consiste en determinar y dirigir las necesidades de
   la industria manufacturera y , de manera especial , de los sectores menos
   avanzados , muchos de los cuales se componen en su mayor parte de PYMES .
   Cabe esperar que el modelado de procesos físicos sea un instrumento
   valioso para el progreso . También se dirige el desafío a las industrias
   basadas en el uso de materiales flexibles .           El trabajo se centrará
   principalmente en el desarrollo de productos y procesos , mediante la
   transferencia y adaptación de tecnología ya usada en otros sectores . Ello
   complementaría el trabajo de ESPRIT, en el que ya se están desarrollando
   sistemas de TI para manufacturas avanzadas y CIM ( fabricación integrada
   por ordenador ).
 ---pagebreak---                                              39
   En particular :
   3.1 . Prácticas avanzadas de fabricación
         Metas
         - Determinar los métodos de perfeccionamiento de las prácticas de
            fabricación en sectores específicos
         - Transf erencia y adaptación de tecnología ya usada en otros
            sectores
   3.2 . Procesos de fabricación para materiales flexibles
         Metas
         -• Mayor flexibilidad del proceso
         - Reducir el desperdicio de material
         - Calidad de proceso y producto perfeccionada
4. TECNOLOGÍAS DE PROCESOS DE FABRICACIÓN
   Constituyen necesidades fundamentales para              la industria las técnicas
   perfeccionadas de moldeo , unión y montaje ,            tratamiento de superficies ,
   procesos químicos y tecnología de partículas . Es esencial avanzar en esos
   procesos para garantizar la compet i t i vidad de la fabricación .
   En parti eu ta r :
   4.1 . Técnicas de tratamiento de superficie
         Metas
         - Tratamientos     de  superficie      eficaces  en   relación    al   coste  para
            api i caciones i ndust ri a les
         - Técnicas de      garantía     de calidad     y de  control    de l   proceso de
            t ra t ami ento
   4.2 . Moldeo , montaje y unión
         Metas
         - Metodologías perfeccionadas de            los procesos de moldeo y en el
            montaje
         - Técnicas de unión perfeccionadas para mejorar                la    fiabilidad y
            reducir los niveles de defecto
         - Métodos de pruebas de soldaduras y remaches para mejorar                      la
            fiabilidad de los resultados y la previsión del servicio
         - Metodología del diseño de uniones
         - Mejor comprensión de          las   interacciones haz / pieza para procesos
            industriales de Uaces de energía
 ---pagebreak---                                  - 40 -
4.3 . Procesos químicos
      Metas
      - Previsión y rendimiento perfeccionados en tos procesos químicos
      - Materiales de características perfeccionadas para membranas
      - Prestaciones perfeccionadas de los procesos de membranas
      - Nuevos sistemas de separación en ambientes hostiles
4.4 . Procesos de partículas y polvo
      Metas
      - Técnicas perfeccionadas de producción de partículas para
        aprovechar la forma, la estructura y la estabilidad del producto
      - Técnicas de categorización de partículas y de prestación de
        proceso eficaces en relación al coste
      - Mejores métodos de manipulación y separación
      - Itinerarios eficaces en relación al coste para pequeñas cantidades
        de polvo de alta calidad
 ---pagebreak---                                       - 41
                                                        ANEXO II
                              NORMAS OE OESARROLLO
Los participantes podrán ser organizaciones industriales , institutos de
 investigación y universidades       estaolecidos   en   la  Comunidad .    La
contribución de la Comunidad normalmente no excederá del        50% del gasto
total, debiendo el remanente en principio correr a              cargo de los
participantes industriales . Participante industrial podrá       ser cualquier
instituto de investigación que esté financiado por entero
parte por organizaciones industriales .
                                                                o en su mayor
 Investigación industrial aplicada
 La principal forma de apoyo a la investigación industrial aplicada de carácter
 precompetitivo consistirá en una acción de coste compartido . Las condiciones
 de participación supondrán que cada proyecto cuente con una financiación del
 50% por socios industriales y al menos dos empresas industriales
 independientes de diferentes Estados miembros por proyecto .            Para ser
 clasificadas como empresas independientes , las organizaciones de investigación
 normalmente deberían recibir el 50% industrial en pagos directos de compañías
 designadas vinculadas a la dirección del proyecto .
 Al reconocer el importante papel de las PYME en el desarrollo de la base
 manufacturera de la Comunidad y los méritos de su participación en el
 programa , la Comisión está considerando , junto con el IRDAC , de qué manera las
 mejores organizaciones de investigación pueden encajar dentro del programa
 como un polo de atención que satisfaga las necesidades en I + D de las PYME .
 Estos proyectos deberían comprender por lo menos diez años-hombre , el mínimo
 realista para un proyecto de colaboración efectivo , y los costes totales del
 proyecto deberían quedar comprendidos entre 1 y 3 millones de ECU .         Pueden
 participar las filiales de compañías multinacionales con sede fuera de la
 Comunidad si la I + D y su explotación tienen lugar en la Comunidad .
 Investigación fundamental orientada
 Los proyectos de investigación fundamental orientada incluirán por lo
 menos a dos participantes establecidos en diferentes Estados miembros .
 Cuando los participantes sean universidades o institutos de investigación ,
 el proyecto debería ser respaldado por al menos dos empresas industriales
 jurídicamente independientes y la Comunidad podría correr a cargo del 100%
 de los costes marginales de dichos participantes . Los proyectos deberían
incluir por lo menos diez años-hombre y los costes totales del proyecto
deberían estar comprendidos entre 0,4 y 1 millón de ECU .
Concesiones de viabilidad a las PYME
La Comisión introducirá un plan piloto de concesiones de viabilidad destinadas
a ayudar a las PYME en el establecimiento de la viabilidad de un mecanismo ,
proceso o concepto , como medio de realzar su naturaleza y encontrar un socio
en una ulterior licitación con arreglo a una acción de coste compartido . La
comisión se hará cargo de hasta un 75% ( con un máximo de 25.000 ECU ) del coste
de la investigación , con una duración de hasta 6 meses . Unas normas elevadas
de evaluación garantizarán que las concesiones sean altamente competitivas y
merezcan su reconocimiento .    Este plan será cofinanciado por la Task Forcé
PYME .
 ---pagebreak---                                 - 42 -
Actividades coordinadas
 En Los casos en que ya se esté realizando un trabajo, financiado con créditos
 nacionales o con créditos enteramente privados , el papel de la Comisión se
 puede limitar a la simple organización y coordinación del trabajo y la
financiación comunitaria   puede  limitarse  a cubrir    los costes  de dichas
actividades de coordinación .  No obstante ,  en determinados casos en que sea
obvio que un trabajo estratégicamente importante requiere algo más que una
simple coordinación, la Comisión podría , previa consulta al CGC , considerar
una mayor financiación comunitaria .
 ---pagebreak---                                       - 43
                                                        ANEXO III
                       CRITERIOS DE EVALUACIÓN DEL PROGRAMA
Los resultados a través de los cuales se llega a evaluar el programa deberían
reflejar sus objetivos y los objetivos más amplios del Programa marco .
1.  Puesto que el objetivo principal es realzar la posición competitiva de las
    industrias manufactureras de la Comunidad ,          la evaluación debería
    determinar :
    - la medida en que los proyectos fueron seleccionados según criterios
      industriales creíbles y mensurables ;
    - la medida en que se ha alcanzado el desarrollo del producto o del
      proceso a partir del trabajo realizado .
2.  Un objetivo adicional es el de fortalecer la colaboración internacional en
    la investigación industrial estratégica . La evaluación debería determinar :
    - en qué medida , antes y después de la conclusión del proyecto , existían
      vínculos continuados entre los socios para la investigación ,           el
      desarrollo , la fabricación , la comercialización o la formación del
      persona I .
3.  Un objetivo adicional del programa es el de fortalecer la transferencia de
    tecnología de un lado a otro de las fronteras comunitarias y entre
    sectores , especialmente aquéllos con un elevado predominio de las PYME . La
    evaluación debería determinar :
    - en qué    medida  las  PYME han explotado las tecnologías y los nuevos
      materiales resultantes de proyectos realizados satisfactoriamente ;
    - en qué medida los logros están protegidos por el mecanismo de las
      patentes o hasta qué punto se les ha dado difusión para despertar en la
      Comunidad Europea la conciencia investigadora y tecnológica .
4.  En el contexto más amplio del Programa marco ,         la evaluación debería
    determinar :
    - en qué medida han contribuido los proyectos a la armonización de la
      Comunidad mediante la reducción de las barreras técnicas al comercio .
La evaluación debería llevarse a cabo por evaluadores independientes .