Power transformers play a crucial role in electric power transmission and distribution systems, being both expensive and strategically important. Their prolonged efficient operation is essential to prevent long-term power outages. With tens of thousands of transformers worldwide approaching the end of their typical 30-40 year lifespan, the question of recycling becomes significant. Remarkably, around 95% of a power transformer's materials could potentially be recycled. Recognizing the importance of a circular economy, the European Commission adopted a Circular Economy plan in 2020, aiming to shift from a linear "take, make, dispose" model to a circular one where waste becomes a new resource. While the initial focus was on energy efficiency in transformers, the impact of materials is not negligible. The upcoming revision of the eco-design regulation for transformers in 2023 will introduce new requirements on material efficiency. The proposed project will develop research on transformer retrofilling with alternative or recycled insulating liquids. This technique is based on the replacement of the mineral oil of a transformer in service with a biodegradable and less-flammable fluid. The procedure would lead to safer and more environmentally friendly transformers and could allow the application of higher loads, deferring the replacement of equipment in service. However, the technique has not been sufficiently studied, it is needed to evaluate the impact of retrofilling on the operation of the transformer and to assess its economic and technical feasibility. Project's researchers have applied the circular economy concept to power transformers in various ways during project definition: a) Evaluating the efficient use of materials throughout a transformer's life cycle (renewable or re-refined oils instead of conventional oils); b) Lifetime extension through dielectric and thermal design review and guidance on operation and maintenance.

<< Background >>Last year the entire world experienced how important health care is and what happens when other values replace the priority of safeguarding human lives. It became clear that Health Care must be inclusive, thus allowing everyone to be able to access medical cures, both in times of emergency or in the phase of prevention. Medical systems should take care of everybody, including people that are affected by different circumstances and in need of specialized assistance, also where modern technological solutions are needed. This covers also those medical problems that could be solved in whole or in part by the application of ergonomic and bioengineering innovations, which are the core topics of the project.People with disability have the same general healthcare needs and the right to be provided the highest standard of healthcare without discrimination according to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). However, the reality is that few countries provide adequate quality services for people with disability. According to the report of the Academic Network of European Disability Experts (ANED) it is needed to a) Provide those health services needed by persons with disabilities specifically because of their disabilities, including early identification and intervention as appropriate, and services designed to minimize and prevent further disabilities and b) Require health professionals to provide care of the same quality to persons with disabilities as to others. Unfortunately, this is not always happening, and the reason is mainly due to the scarce attention of medical and technical staff (in the case of medical implants), which could be increased thanks to a specific training.The ErgoDesign project aims at creating a new interdisciplinary Curriculum which covers different topics (from ergonomics to bioengineering), taking into consideration the requirements of people with special needs, to create a more inclusive care system. The project is going to increase the inclusion and diversity, as it will improve the competencies of designer and producer 3D implants for medical purposes. The project will thus contribute to create a more inclusive environment that is responsive to the needs of the wider community, including people with special needs.Also, the ergonomic and medical implants sector is experiencing a paradigm change, due to the introduction of advanced software for implants design and the possibility of printing them using 3D printers (additive manufacturing). The impact of 3D printing on the medical sector is revolutionary: digital skills are the main leverage for boosting innovation in the sector of medical implants. The project aims at transferring such knowledge and skills to both students (also to increase their employability) and to HE lecturers/academics (so to multiply the impact on the new generation of students from the Faculties of Medicine, Ergonomics and Industrial Design, Mechanical Engineering, Bioengineering, Materials Science and Engineering).The analysis on the actual needs of the MedTech and BioTech sector for new employees demonstrated that the most important hard skills refer to design experience and experience with relevant software. The ErgoDesign e-learning course aims also at filling this knowledge gap delivering a student-centred course mixing both theory and practical exercises for practicing digital skills and boosting students’ employability.<< Objectives >>Currently, the knowledge and skills for training students in all the different topics needed for allowing design and production of 3D designed medical plants are spread in different Faculties and taught in different curricula. This fragmentation is preventing the raise of a new professional figure that has theoretical knowledge coming from different fields, from ergonomics to bioengineering, and specific digital skills (for the use of advanced software and tool for design and production purposes). The project partners want to gather these competencies and bring them together into a new e-learning course, based on a student-centred approach and mixing both theory and practical exercises, to train a new generation of medical and technical staff able to boost the innovation in the medical plants sector. Also, partners feel the need of answering to an unsolved social issue related to the requirements of people with special needs (physical or mental diseases) that are prevented from accessing cures due to their disabilities (UN statistics). This aspect will be included as transversal priority in the development of the project training contents and addressed in a specific module included in the full curriculum.The general objective of the project is to support the introduction of ergonomic and bioengineering innovations in implantology and prosthetics by adopting new digital applications and training in their use. The specific objectives are: to increase the students’ knowledge in the field of ergonomics and bio-engineering and their digital skills for designing and producing related 3D printed medical products (dental and orthopedic implants, prostheses and exoskeletons, etc.) (SO1); to increase the knowledge necessary for the design of healthcare implants for people with special needs (physical and mental) (SO2); to extend the trainers’ knowledge of software/digital tools and their possibilities of use and adaptation for training (SO3); to increase the employability of the students in the medical implants sector (SO4); to create a community of practice around the topics of ergonomics and bioengineering (SO5)<< Implementation >>ErgoDesign proposal aims at developing a multi-disciplinary and trans-disciplinary e-learning course aimed at training HE students to become future designers and producers of implants for health care with special attention to the requirements of people with special needs. The course will encompass both theory and practical activities, with the primary scope of developing students and HE lecturers/Academics digital skills, crucial for design and production tasks in the medical sector.The project aims also at creating a community of practice around the topics of ergonomics and bioengineering that could communicate on a collaborative platform, fed with training contents, but also with information and knowledge from the stakeholders.In order to reach the project objectives, the partners will follow a development path: creation of a selection of software and digital tools aimed at extending the knowledge and the digital skills of students and EU lecturers; definition of the main elements on which to build the training courses; creation of supporting materials (Handbook and e-learning course) for easing the replication of ErgoDesign-like courses by other stakeholders.In detail: the first step of the project implementation consists of conducting extensive analysis on software and digital tools that are currently used for the design and production of medical implants (SO1, SO4). The identified digital tools will be analysed jointly by the partners to create an online toolkit with searchable items to extend the knowledge of HE lecturers and students (SO1, SO3).Once the Digital Toolkit will be completed, the partners will define the Design Principles for the course that will be the starting point for the definition of the ErgoDesign Curriculum (SO4). This will be the cornerstone on which to build the training materials (PR4) that are aimed at filling the knowledge gap identified in the need analysis conducted prior to the start of the project. During both the phases of curriculum design and training materials preparation, the partners will take into consideration (transversal approach) the requirements of the people with special needs (SO2). All training materials will be uploaded on the Collaborative Platform, that will become also the focal point for the stakeholders’ collaboration and the place where the partners will build the community of practice on the topics of ergonomics and bioengineering for giving sustainability to the project results (SO5). When all the courses will be piloted and the training materials raised according to the participants' feedback, the partners will create a package of materials (Handbook, webinars, e-learning courses) aimed at increasing the competencies of HE lecturers and Academics for organizing ErgoDesign-like courses and giving sustainability to the project results (SO5).For ensuring a qualitative and effective implementation of project activities, the partners’ approach will include first the design of the proposed results, then the discussion, a piloting phase and, finally, validation and release. The pilot phase is the most strategic, as it will allow the partners to test the prototype of the results with a sample of internal and external testers.<< Results >>The project aims to increase the digital skills of Universities for boosting the capacity of HE lecturers/Academics in supporting students’ innovative skills, taking also into account the requirements of people with special needs. All expected outcomes, such as project Results (PR1-PR5), will produce effects during the life of the project and at its conclusion.The partners will develop 5 project results: PR1 – A Specialized software for design in the Health Care sector dynamic toolkit aimed at presenting several software/digital tools for booting digital competencies of HE lecturers/Academics and students. PR2 – Course Design Principles and ErgoDesign Curriculum aimed at defining the principles on which to build the multidisciplinary curriculum (topics, learning outcomes, duration, etc.).PR3 – A Collaborative Platform. aimed at creating a space for discussion and training for stakeholders, hosting the virtual community of practices. PR4 - ErgoDesign Training Materials, aimed at filling the knowledge and skill gaps of the students, by providing them with theoretical formation and practical exercises. PR5 - Handbook and e-learning course, aimed at creating resources to ease the replication of the ErgoDesign course by other organizations.An Exploitation Plan (§ Sustainability section) will detail the Exploitation strategy (capitalization, follow up, etc.) of the project results in the long term .The project expected outcomes are: increasing the pedagogical digital skills of HE lecturers in the fields of 3D design and production of healthcare implants (linked to PR1, PR4); increasing the number of HE lecturers taking into consideration the requirements of people with special needs when delivering their training in the fields of ergonomics and bioengineering (linked to PR2, PR4); - increasing HE students’ digital skills (linked PR1, PR4); increasing HE students’ employability in the healthcare sector (linked PR4); - promoting the exchange of good practices, open discussion among HE lecturers/Academics, students, other stakeholder in the fields of ergonomic and bioengineering through the community of practice hosted on the collaborative platform (linked to PR3); - promoting the topics of the project and training other HE lecturers/Academics in how to replicate the ErgoDesign course (linked to PR5).

REcovery the CRisis through Entrepreneurial ATtitudE - RECREATE aimed to foster, in line with the provisions of the Modernisation Agenda for higher education, the acquisition of transversal and entrepreneurial attitude among young researchers, young graduates, students and university staff, in order to contribute to the recovery from the current economic crisis. Furthermore, RECREATE aimed to stimulate the acquisition of key competences, such as entrepreneurship and digital skills through innovative learning environments such as open educational resources, and flexible learning approaches. RECREATE also intended to increase the opportunity for improved employability by offering training and learning in entrepreneurship and transversal skills. A number of objectives were set in order to achieve the aim of the project: - To provide a high quality innovative ICT learning environment meeting the needs and requirements listed by the European Commission and other important studies to face the challenges of Europe 2020 Strategy, in particular for what concerns innovation and the development of transversal skills. - To develop a set of open educational resources, including innovative educational games, simulation and interactive tools: the goal is to develop a brand new product, innovative and experimental also in terms of educational methods, tools and practice. - Implement pilot test activities with members of the target groups in 5 countries, that offers the possibility to test and validate (and amend if necessary) the interactive tool and the training system developed. - The training programme will allow researchers, students and young graduates in the partner countries to become more entrepreneurial and acquire new skills and qualifications. After attending the training they will know how to start their own knowledge based businesses and/ or commercialise research results. - To disseminate the final version of the interactive tool in the project partner countries and to prepare for its further exploitation especially within Universities, Research centres, Incubators, Innovation Centres, etc in additional countries. The target groups envisaged for the RECREATE project were the following: DIRECT TARGET GROUPS will be the direct beneficiaries of project results: - Researchers, young graduates, students and university staff - Higher education institutions, university incubators: they could include the set of workshops in their educational offer and the platform within the tools used for entrepreneurship education and to support researchers in the development of businesses from the results of their research activities; INDIRECT TARGET GROUPS: Other potential users of project results that were to be reached through dissemination and exploitation activities, such as educational and training policy makers, science parks, research institutions, business incubators.It was expected to reach about 5000 people/organisations via dissemination and exploitation activities. Over 3000 leaflets were distributed during various events. The project website was visited by over a thousand people. Partners' websites, where information about the project is available, were visited by over 20,000 people. The project was also promoted via social media, email-s to target groups.RECREATE is created within the topics of Enterprise, industry and SMEs (incl. entrepreneurship), Entrepreneurial learning - entrepreneurship education and International cooperation, international relations, development cooperation. The partnership is highly experienced in international relations, and has extensive contacts and networks that was used to support the target groups in their technology and knowledge transfer to market and start-up of their possible companies. The project objectives was reached through the development of intellectual outputs, performing a detailed analysis of the target groups’ entrepreneurial attitude in the partners’ countries, in order to understand their needs and skill gaps. Training content and an open educational resource (interactive tool) were developed and implemented with the target group direct involvement, especially in the validation and fine-tuning. These activities were supplemented with dissemination efforts, including 5 multiplier events in all the partners’ countries to promote and ensure sustainability of the project results.

SUPREEMO aims to establish the first pre-commercial Rare Earth Elements (REEs) production value chain (TRL7) using European (EU) primary resources as feedstock, developing sustainable, cost-competitive processing, refining and Rare Earth (RE) Permanent Magnet (PM) production technologies in a responsible way complying with local and international safety regulations. This will contribute in securing REE materials supply for the EU industry and strategic sectors which depends 100 % on Chinese imports. The largest end-user of REEs is the PMs industry, that contain neodymium, praseodymium, and dysprosium as key elements to produce high energy-efficient motors, which are vital for electric mobility and renewable energy technologies. SUPREEMO will exploit the European primary resources from two major EU sites: Fen deposit Norway (largest carbonatite deposit in EU) with >200 Mtonne grading 1.2-1.5 % Total Rare Earth Oxides and secondly, exploring extraction technologies related to deposits from uranium extraction in the Czech Republic, technologies which is also intended for implementation in direct extraction during uranium beneficiation related to nuclear energy supply chains. SUPREEMO will capitalise on technologies demonstrated in previous projects to develop innovative, environmentally friendly, socially and economically sustainable REEs processing technologies. During phase 1, the partners will optimise the stand alone technologies to elucidate the final integrated process flowsheet with the best processing parameters in phase 2, guided by LCA and LCCA. This will be validated at the piloting activities in phase 3. Finally, the production of 50-100 kg of REO at similar cost to commercial value from Chinese production will be demonstrated at TRL7 by processing ~ 10 tonnes of ores, and the production of Rare Earth Alloy for the manufacturing of 50 kg PMs. Results will be communicated and disseminated to key stakeholders and a concrete first business plan will be set to attract more investors and stimulate a competitive, resilient and sustainable REEs production value chain ready for full-scale deployment in the EU market.