LASHARE has initialised a first set of Laser based Equipment Assessments (LEA‘s)

The LASHARE project uses an approach called Laser based Equipment Assessment to advance demonstrated solutions in technology readiness level. As such, 14 assessments deal with equipment such as laser sources, processing heads, user interfaces for process setup or sensor equipment to control manufacturing processes. The assessments are conducted in a so called Assessment Circle, which includes four phases.

At the last meeting of the LASHARE steering committee, several initialisation reports were reviewed as the result of task one, “Initialisation of the assessment“. In these reports, the assessment members in the role of industrial user, SME supplier and research partner reported about their approach, their implementation plan and the risks of the LEA which they identified.

The review session which was hosted at a hotel near Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam contributed to the quality of these initialisations. The steering committee, staffed with 14 experts from the field of laser based technologies, discussed the reports focusing on implementation and risks. After the two day meeting, a sound set of recommendations was compiled addressing enhancements and additions to the initialisation reports.

The LASHARE approach of conducting a Laser based Equipment Assessment contributes to a sound planning of technological development. Despite the significant effort of reviewing and discussing the initialisation reports in a group of experts, it is perceived that this LEA-external feedback enhances the soundness of the planning. It especially focuses on potential risks with an early identification of respective counter measures. This supports the success of the Laser based Equipment Assessments which now enter the development and implementation phase.