SciTransfer
COMPASS · Project

Digital Passports and Reshaping Tools for Recycling Aircraft and Car Parts

manufacturingTestedTRL 5

Imagine if you could take a dented car door or a plane wing and simply heat it up to reshape it into a brand new part instead of melting it down into scrap. To do this, the project creates a digital 'ID card' for every part that remembers every repair it ever had over 30 years. This prevents the guesswork that usually leads to low-quality recycled materials.

By the numbers
90%
Target recycling rate for aircraft constituent materials
85%
Minimum weight recycling requirement per vehicle
98%
Percentage of composite materials currently ending up in landfills or incinerated
6M€
Expected private investments in technology development
30%
Target percentage of sheet metal parts and thermoplastic panels to be remanufactured
The business problem

What needed solving

Recycling high-value aircraft and car parts currently results in massive value loss because the history of repairs is unknown. This leads to incompatible alloy mixtures and weakened composite fibers that end up in landfills.

The solution

What was built

A digital component passport for 30-year data tracking and a remanufacturing process planning software to reshape metal and composite panels.

Audience

Who needs this

Aircraft OEMsAutomotive manufacturersMRO (Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul) providersComposite material recyclers
Business applications

Who can put this to work

Aerospace
enterprise
Target: Aircraft OEM or MRO provider

If you are an aircraft manufacturer dealing with the need to recycle 90% of constituent materials—like carbon fibre composites—this project developed a digital component passport that tracks repair history. This allows you to remanufacture parts without losing 90% of their value through shredding.

Automotive
enterprise
Target: Vehicle manufacturer

If you are a car maker struggling to meet the requirement to recycle at least 85% of vehicle weight, this project developed thermo-forming processes. These tools allow you to reshape thermoplastic panels for a second or third life instead of sending 98% of composites to landfills.

Advanced Manufacturing
mid-size
Target: Specialized recycling plant

If you are a recycling facility dealing with mixed, incompatible alloys that downgrade your output quality, this project developed data-driven remanufacturing software. This optimizes the match between old input components and new targeted output parts.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

What is the estimated cost or price of the technology?

Based on available project data, specific pricing for the software or tools is not provided, though the project is expected to trigger over 6M€ of private investments.

Can this be used at an industrial scale?

Yes, the project targets the remanufacturing of about 30% of sheet metal parts and thermoplastic composite panels in the aerospace and automotive sectors.

How is the IP or licensing handled?

Based on available project data, the specific licensing terms are not mentioned, but the project involves 14 partners including 8 industry entities.

What is the timeline for implementation?

The project runs from 2024-01-01 to 2026-12-31, with deliverables including on-site demonstrations of software components.

How does this integrate with existing maintenance data?

It uses a digital component passport to manage and update data over 20 to 30 years, bridging the gap where 3D information about repairs is currently missing.

Consortium

Who built it

The consortium is heavily industry-weighted with 57% industrial partners (8 companies), including 4 SMEs, which suggests a strong focus on commercial viability. With 6 research organizations across 5 European countries (AT, DE, ES, IT, NL), the project balances academic rigor with practical application in the aerospace and automotive supply chains.

How to reach the team

Contact PROFACTOR GMBH in Austria for partnership opportunities.

Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

Contact us to find the right industrial partner for your circular economy transition.

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