SEPT Learning Factory for Industry 4.0 Education and Applied Research

The existing learning factories cover a variety of learning environments. Each implementation of a learning factory looks differently and is used for a different purpose. Several of the newer learning factories have a focus on Industry 4.0 and demonstrate different implementation aspects, but some of them lack a significant hands-on component. Only a few learning factories implement several Industry 4.0 components and have a strong hands-on aspect. Any new implementation needs to identify the aspects on Industry 4.0 that are addressed and to decide the ratio between demonstrations and hands-on processes that answer the goal of the learning factory. A new implementation of a learning factory that uses several technologies included in the Industry 4.0 vision and has a strong experiential learning approach is presented. This implementation provides modern design and simulation, prototyping, manufacturing processes, including 3D metal printing resources, and automated assembly and testing systems that incorporate Industry 4.0 implementation strategy technologies such as Cyber-Physical Systems, Internet of Things, and Industrial Internet of Things.