A pilot line is a pre-commercial
production line
A production line is a set of sequential operations established in a factory where components are assembled to make a finished article or where materials are put through a refining process to produce an end-product that is suitable for onward c ...
that produces small volumes of new technology-based products, or employs new production technology, as a step towards the commercialisation of the new technology.
Pilot lines help bridge the gap between research and commercialisation, which is caused by the fact that new technology that has been proved only in a laboratory usually is not ready yet for application. They help bridge this gap in two ways:
* Pilot lines promote
learning
Learning is the process of acquiring new understanding, knowledge, behaviors, skills, value (personal and cultural), values, attitudes, and preferences. The ability to learn is possessed by humans, animals, and some machine learning, machines ...
about a technology at a higher level of sophistication than in laboratories, that is, a level at which the technology is integrated in an early prototype and tested in an environment that is representative of the final operating environment.
* Pilot lines help reduce
risk
In simple terms, risk is the possibility of something bad happening. Risk involves uncertainty about the effects/implications of an activity with respect to something that humans value (such as health, well-being, wealth, property or the environme ...
by providing information on the new technology and its application in many respects, including its technical feasibility, manufacturability, costs, and market and social acceptance.
In terms of the
Technology readiness level
Technology readiness levels (TRLs) are a method for estimating the maturity of technologies during the acquisition phase of a program. TRLs enable consistent and uniform discussions of technical maturity across different types of technology. TR ...
framework, pilot plants validate production technology at levels TRL5-6: validation and demonstration of technology in a relevant environment.
Terminology
A word similar to pilot line is
pilot plant
A pilot plant is a pre-commercial production system that employs new production technology and/or produces small volumes of new technology-based products, mainly for the purpose of learning about the new technology. The knowledge obtained is then ...
.
[Pilot Production in Key Enabling Technologies; Crossing the Valley of Death and boosting the industrial deployment of Key Enabling Technologies in Europe, Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research TNO on behalf of the European Commission, DG GROW—Directorate General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SME, 2015. ] Essentially, pilot plants and pilot lines perform the same functions, but 'pilot plant' is used in the context of (bio)chemical and advanced materials production systems, whereas 'pilot line' is used for new technology in general, e.g. by the European Union.
Example
An industrial pilot line for
micro-fabricated medical devices is established as part of the ECSEL JU project InForMed. The pilot line will be hosted by a large industrial end-user, and is specifically targeted and equipped to bridge the gap between concept creation and full-scale production.
References
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Production and manufacturing