rEUman partners gather in Budapest to strengthen the allignment between robotics, automation, data and personnel in remanufacturing
At the end of November 2025, the rEUman consortium held its third live meeting in Budapest, hosted by project partners HUN-REN SZTAKI and HEPENIX. The two-day event offered a unique opportunity to deepen technical collaboration across the work packages and define a common strategy for integrating rEUman’s enabling technologies into the project’s five pilot use cases.
From Robotics to Pilot-Ready Solutions
After a successful start into the work packages‘ status reports the participants visited partner HEPENIX, where participants explored the company’s extensive expertise in automation and robotics engineering. As a key industrial partner in the project, HEPENIX plays an essential role in translating research outcomes into system-level improvements for the rEUman pilots. The visit offered valuable insights into how HEPENIX’s capabilities can support smarter, more flexible remanufacturing solutions on factory level.
On the second day, the consortium visited the laboratories of HUN-REN SZTAKI, where researchers demonstrated human-robot collaboration in remanufacturing settings. These demonstrations reflected rEUman’s core commitment to developing digitally enhanced human-centric solutions.
A Common Methodology for Technology Integration
A key outcome of the Budapest meeting was the definition of a common operational methodology for progressively integrating rEUman’s enabling technologies into the pilot cases. This shared framework will ensure that developments across the project’s technical work packages are consistently aligned with real-world requirements in sectors such as automotive, optoelectronics, and home appliances.
Furthermore, META Circularity introduced the approach for designing the project’s exploitation strategy. As one of the key steps, the partners began defining the project’s Key Exploitable Results (KERs), which represent the most promising outcomes of the research activities and will guide future impact. These identified KERs will serve as the foundation for building the project’s long-term strategy to generate value for industry, research, and society.Discussions also strengthened cross-links between technology-developing work packages, helping to ensure coherence and coordination as the project advances toward implementation.
Looking Ahead
The Budapest meeting marked a pivotal moment for rEUman, as the consortium transitions from development to deployment. With a clear roadmap for technology integration now in place, partners are well positioned to demonstrate tangible impact across the pilot sites.
The next live meeting will take place in spring 2026, hosted by Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) and ZEISS, where the consortium will continue its collaborative efforts toward a digitally-enhanced, multi-level, and human-centred future in European remanufacturing.
