During the second reporting period, Exploit4InnoMat entered a mature technical implementation phase and consolidated its Open Innovation Test Bed as an operational ecosystem for the development, upscaling, testing and validation of innovative materials and components for building envelopes. The project moved decisively beyond preparatory work and established the technical conditions required to connect pilot-line production, scientific modelling, experimental validation and real-environment demonstration within one integrated framework.
A major achievement of the period was the operational consolidation of the pilot-line infrastructure. Eight pilot lines were successfully upgraded, improving production capacity, process stability, monitoring, automation, quality control and safety procedures. In parallel, Pilot Line 9 was positioned as a horizontal technical service supporting circularity, recyclability and sustainability assessment across the entire portfolio of developed solutions. This strengthened the overall functionality of the OITB and created a coherent technical backbone capable of supporting both internal product development and future external user cases. Substantial progress was achieved in the development and upscaling of the project’s final products. The consortium completed the production of 11 advanced materials and components for building-envelope applications, including multifunctional paints, insulating mortars, advanced bricks, cement-free panels, concrete load-bearing and refurbishment panels, 3D-printed cladding elements, photovoltaic-thermal systems and smart glazing-related solutions. These outputs demonstrate the breadth of the project’s innovation portfolio, combining passive and active envelope technologies, improved thermal and mechanical performance, energy-related functionalities and enhanced circularity potential. In the area of scientific and technological development, the project generated strong results in modelling and digitalisation. Multiscale and multiphysics modelling approaches were developed and applied to different material systems in order to predict thermal, mechanical, hygrothermal, fracture, acoustic and other relevant behaviours. These were complemented by data-driven and AI-supported tools, uncertainty analysis methods and automation approaches that reduced trial-and-error effort and improved the reliability of performance prediction. At the same time, process-modelling tools and workflow digitalisation were developed for selected pilot lines, while BIM objects, material libraries and a BIM model of the demo building were produced to support interoperability, digital integration and downstream replication. These activities significantly strengthened the scientific basis of the project and improved its ability to optimise materials and processes in a structured and predictive way. The project also delivered important progress in advanced materials design and formulation. In multifunctional coatings, novel nanoparticle-enabled formulations were developed for interior and exterior applications, delivering antibacterial performance and significantly improved solar reflectance. In insulating mortars and related systems, formulation refinement, additive optimisation and performance testing supported the development of solutions with improved insulation characteristics and application suitability. Across the wider portfolio, the project demonstrated the ability to move from formulation and laboratory development to pilot-scale production and product readiness for real demonstration conditions.
A further major achievement was the establishment of a robust validation and monitoring framework. The developed products were delivered to the three Lighthouses and the Demo Building, where installation and in-situ monitoring activities were initiated. Dedicated measurement protocols were prepared in accordance with the characteristics of each site and the properties of interest of the installed materials and components. More than 100 sensors and peripheral monitoring devices were procured and deployed, enabling monitoring both at material level and at integrated system level. This represented a critical transition from controlled pilot production to real operating environments, allowing the project to begin generating long-term evidence on the performance of its solutions under realistic climatic and functional conditions.
The project also advanced significantly in characterization, environmental assessment and circularity analysis. A structured characterization framework was developed to support the metrological and functional assessment of the project’s materials and components, while environmental assessment activities established a common basis for life-cycle and cost-related evaluation across the value chains. In parallel, a criteria-based recyclability methodology was applied to the developed products, allowing the consortium to assess and compare their end-of-life recovery potential in a systematic way.
Overall, the technical and scientific outcomes of the reporting period show that Exploit4InnoMat successfully transformed its distributed pilot-line network into a functioning innovation ecosystem able to design, produce, optimise, test and begin validating advanced building-envelope technologies under realistic conditions.
