How can we produce in a more flexible, better controlled, and resource-efficient way? The FUTURE project (Factory Upgrading Through Unified Resources & Engineering) brings together the complementary expertise of Sirris, Certech, and CER Groupe to support Walloon companies in the assessment, development, and adoption of new manufacturing approaches.
By combining chemistry, continuous processing, biocatalysis, biotechnology, advanced analytical technologies, and digital tools, the project aims to develop more efficient, sustainable, and competitive processes. Its ambition is to enable companies, particularly SMEs, to evaluate and de-risk the adoption of these technologies under representative operating conditions before investing in industrial deployment. The objective is to overcome the main scientific and technological barriers limiting their implementation, demonstrate their feasibility and industrial relevance, and accelerate their adoption throughout the Walloon industrial ecosystem.
Within the framework of the FUTURE project, Certech will leverage its expertise in chemistry, chemical engineering, process intensification, continuous flow technologies, and analytical chemistry to support the transition toward high-performance and robust continuous manufacturing processes.
Certech’s activities will notably include:
– The transfer of chemical, catalytic, and biocatalytic processes from batch to continuous manufacturing
– The design, sizing, and evaluation of safe and modular continuous reactors
– The integration of advanced analytical technologies (Process Analytical Technologies, PAT) enabling the real-time monitoring of reactions, critical process parameters (CPPs), and critical quality attributes (CQAs)
– The implementation of statistical tools (Design of Experiments, DoE) to accelerate process development and optimization
– The definition of advanced control strategies aimed at developing autonomous, safe, and robust processes
– Process modelling, coupled with the development of a digital twin, to improve process understanding, control, flexibility, and optimization
– The realization of a demonstrator integrating reactors, sensors, analytical tools, and digital solutions within a representative operating environment
– The assessment of the relevance of the developed solutions and the creation of decision-support tools to facilitate their industrial adoption
