Most recent updates on the project, some take-aways from the General Assembly in Thessaloniki and more
“Dear readers,
We are thrilled to share the significant progress made in the FLEXIndustries project. Key milestones include the successful onboarding of Fertinagro Nutrigenia in December 2023, a leading fertilizer producer for the agricultural industry. This addition broadens the scope of Energy Intensive industrial sectors where FLEXIndustries’ solutions will be deployed. January 2024 saw a productive General Assembly in Turin, featuring 1-to-1 workshops with demo-sites to discuss implementation activities. In February, a successful review meeting in Brussels with the Project Officer provided valuable feedback on our achievements during the first year and a half of the project.
On the technical front, the design and dimensioning of renewable-based and storage solutions, as well as waste heat recovery solutions, are advancing well, supported by advanced simulation studies. The beta platform is now ready for testing, featuring monitoring, logging, dashboarding, routing, proxying, and security services Key monitoring tools, including a central log service and Keycloak for Identity and Authentication Management, have been developed.
Significant strides in optimizing energy systems were made, with algorithms developed and services integrated into the FLEXIndustries platform. Day-ahead forecasting models and automated data ingestion modules have been developed. Machine learning algorithms for anomaly detection, energy scheduling optimization and predictive maintenance are being fine-tuned, with preparations for scientific publications underway. An initial version of the Holistic Decision Support System User Interface has been developed. Demo plants are at various stages of implementation, from design to installation. Customized use cases for the Energy & Process Management Platform are being defined for each demo site and integration of technological solutions with the grid is progressing.
On the other hand, FLEXIndustries is also engaging with other research projects for potential standardization collaborations and has hosted two international workshops on “Reviewing flexibility in the industrial electrification: US Green Ammonia and Steel Industries” and “The Economics of Electrolyzers flexibility in the future Power System.” Libraries of Key Exploitable Results (KERs) have been developed, capturing IP management and exploitation plans. Communication efforts include newsletters, press and news releases, pilot interviews, and a video interview series, with a robust Communication, Dissemination, and Exploitation plan focusing on KERs and stakeholder engagement. Potential business cases for flexibility services were defined, aligning business models with use cases across demo sites to enhance revenue streams from grid flexibility services and industrial material reutilization.
The recent, May 2024, General Assembly in Thessaloniki allowed the consortium to visit the MILOIL biodiesel production plant and served as a crucial platform to exchange updates on the project’s activities and progress. The event featured 1-to-1 workshops with demo owners, essential for closely monitoring and aligning implementation activities across the seven different demo sites. Overall, the assembly was a vital occasion for strengthening partnerships within the consortium and propelling the project toward its goals.”
Erik Garofalo
RINA – C
FLEXIndustries project coordinator