Prototype for products’ information flow (ProFlow)

Purpose and goal:

ProFlow aims to improve the information exchange between the manufacturing industry and the construction industry, focusing on maintenance and refurbishment (renovation) of buildings by using advanced digital technologies such as Linked Data and Digital Twins, and to investigate how those technologies can facilitate a circular economy.

Expected results and effects:

The Swedish construction industry aims to reduce time, cost, and the environmental impact. Digitalization is a key factor to achieve these goals. ProFlow will improve the information exchange with the manufacturing industry and the result will be implemented and immediately used in both industries and contribute to their mutual, ongoing, digitalization process. In the project, technical solutions will be tested and developed, methods and organizational procedures revised.

Approach and implementation:

For three years, a team of senior researchers and a Ph.D. candidate will work in close collaboration with the partner companies. This project will follow the Design Research Methodology’s steps: Research clarification, Descriptive study 1, Prescriptive study (that includes the prototype implementation stages: Requirements’ analysis, Design, development, User evaluation and Optimization), Descriptive study 2, Results dissemination (in conferences, scientific journals, workshops with sector’s relevant actors, informative sector’s magazines).