The Executive Committee of the Business Factory Auto (BFA) has selected the 20 new business projects invited to participate in the fifth edition of the initiative, which will begin their journey at the accelerator in mid-December.
The fifth edition of the BFA has once again set a record for participation, since 127 projects from 20 different countries, belonging to the five continents, have been submitted to this new call. All of them related to digital transformation and Industry 4.0. About 40% of the initiatives presented have their origin in companies or knowledge centers, which is why the BFA continues to be a benchmark for promoting intrapreneurship.
For this call, two international projects have been invited to participate, one from Scotland (Computer vision for automated visual inspection) and the other from Turkey (Quality inspection of challenging surfaces via AI), in addition to other national initiatives from Valencia, Madrid, Barcelona or País Vasco.
For yet another year, the selected projects respond to the technological challenges proposed by the Galician Automotive Sector, transferred to the BFA by different companies such as: Tecdisma, CIE Galfor, Denso, Maier, Groupe PSA, GKN, TI Automotive or SMRC among others.
Projects invited to participate in the fifth edition:
The Committee, made up of representatives of the Xunta de Galicia, the Vigo Free Zone Consortium, Groupe PSA and CEAGA, selected the following ten projects as invited to participate in its fifth acceleration program:
BIONIX – SUPPLY CHAIN DATA DRIVEN PERFORMANCE: Comprehensive solution for total control and visibility of the supply chain that combines RFID, IoT and Artificial Intelligence.
COMPUTER VISION FOR AUTOMATED VISUAL INSPECTION: Visual inspection solution based on Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, which also uses Computer Vision for precise object recognition.
DATA ANALYTICS ON EV BATTERIES: Application of analytical models for the analysis of the life cycle of electric vehicle batteries and the improvement in their manufacture.
EMG-IIOT: ELEMENTS MANUFACTURED FOR LIVING INDUSTRIAL IOT: Design and manufacture of components with intelligent, integrated and calibrated sensors, which allow the monitoring, collection and analysis of IIoT data.
IRISBOND: Development of Eye Tracking solutions so that workers can operate, through their gaze, a screen or a robot.
LOGICMELT: Digitization service for Industry 4.0 based on innovative Artificial Intelligence solutions and Edge Computing service.
PROCESS MINING WITH INVERBIS: Process mining software that allows undertaking analysis, optimization and monitoring projects of industrial and service processes.
NUAUTO: Non-intrusive system that, with the plant’s cameras, applies artificial vision to monitor and analyze assets in real time.
ROBOT PLUG-IN: Flexible software development for the control of industrial systems and processes, using a robot as the master of the solution.
WHIMCON: Outdoor geolocation system via GPS of packaging.
The consolidation phase for more mature projects will feature the following ten projects:
4INDUSTRY CONNECTED EMPLOYEE AND THE DIGITAL FACTORY: Solution that connects all the systems of the industrial company, digitizes industrial operations, identifies events, triggers actions and generates digital workflows, representing all this information in a 3D digital twin.
ALLREAD AUTOMATIC READING SOFTWARE: Software based on Deep Learning to detect and digitize text, codes and symbols in complex logistics environments.
ANCORA CONNECT&ASSIST: Technology for mobile applications to connect directly with machines or any production system to exchange information.
AUGMENTED FACTORY: Cloud platform that integrates and manages multiplatform augmented reality solutions for industry 4.0.
CONECTINO IOT: Combination of hardware, data network and cloud platform to connect to industrial systems or machines (retrofitting) and convert them into 4.0 machines interconnected with each other, in environments where connectivity through Wi-Fi or network is difficult or requires large infrastructure of installation.
DATAAIR. MONITORING COMPRESSED AIR / GAS LEAKS: Low cost solution that allows the monitoring of compressed air and welding gas installations for the early detection of leaks and consumption outside the usual range.
NORT3D PGS: Development of multipurpose grips for the handling of pieces, which include the possibility of handling different pieces with the same gripper or the possibility of providing extra control, detection or accessory processes within the same gripper.
QUALITY INSPECTION OF CHALLENGING SURFACES VIA AI: Machine vision, deflectometry or artificial intelligence inspection system for textured surfaces of plastic parts, metal surfaces, extruded surfaces or shiny components.
PREDICTIVE AND QUALITY MAINTENANCE SYSTEM: Solution for the prediction of failures and deterioration and the optimization of production processes, through advanced data analytics.
WITRAC: Location solution and measurement of assets and people in real time.
After evaluating the projects presented, there are other candidacies with such a high score that the Committee has decided that they remain on the waiting list in case any of the invited to participate, finally, does not formalize their registration in the program.
It is important to highlight the transversal nature of the projects that have participated in any of the four editions of the BFA, since after validating and testing their technologies in the automotive sector there is a strong mainstreaming to other industrial sectors such as food, naval, etc.
Since its launch, the BFA project, promoted by CEAGA, the Xunta de Galicia, the Vigo Free Zone Consortium and Groupe PSA, has created more than 50 new companies, has generated more than 350 highly qualified jobs and a turnover of more than 70 million euros. This vertical accelerator develops a community around the automotive industry in which new opportunities for innovation are identified.
These results have allowed the BFA to win various awards for excellence, both in Spain and in Europe. In December 2018, the initiative was recognized nationally by the National Federation of Innovative Business Groups and Clusters (Fenaeic), with the award for the “Best Disseminated Project 2018”, delivered during the VI National Congress of Clusters. In October of the same year, it received the award for the “best practice developed in a technology park” from the Association of Business and Technology Parks of Spain (APTE), and was named “regional partner” in the Startup Europe Awards, of character international, being the first automotive accelerator in Europe to achieve this. In 2019, the BFA was recognized, also by the Startup Europe Awards initiative of the Finnova Foundation and DG Connect, as the first “Mobility Startup Europe House” for promoting essential values for the European Commission such as innovation or entrepreneurship. The BFA is currently nominated internationally, in the category of best accelerator, at the 2020 South Europe Startup Awards.