SSHMC Lab Engages in IEEE-SA’s Inaugural “Digital & Green Technologies for ICT, Industry 4.0 & Smart Manufacturing” Session at IAECST 2024

Delegates at the IEEE SA Industry Connections workshop during IAECST 2024, Guangzhou

Held in Guangzhou from 6 to 8 December 2024, the 6ᵗʰ International Academic Exchange Conference on Science and Technology Innovation (IAECST 2024) brought together more than 500 scholars and industry leaders committed to accelerating collaborative R&D across the Greater Bay Area.

A highlight was the first-ever IEEE Standards Association (IEEE SA) Industry Connections Activity focused on “Promoting Standards on Digital and Green Technologies for ICT, Industry 4.0, and Smart Manufacturing.” Formally approved in mid-2024, the initiative aims to fast-track consensus standards that integrate cloud, IoT, AI, and cyber-physical systems into energy-efficient production lines.

SSHMC Lab contributed through its Director, Prof. David Bassir, who outlined how structural health monitoring, digital twins, and additive manufacturing optimisation depend on standards-driven interoperability to transition innovations from laboratory prototypes to factory floors. During the session, delegates from academia, manufacturing, telecoms, and policy circles mapped priority topics including real-time data governance, lifecycle carbon metrics, and edge-AI safety into future IEEE working groups. The resulting white papers and open technical reports, scheduled for public review in 2025, will shape reference architectures and testing protocols that SSHMC is well positioned to influence.

Looking ahead, SSHMC will align its digital twin research roadmap with emerging IEEE SA workstreams, explore joint pilot lines in Guangdong that showcase green, standards-compliant production, and nominate early-career researchers to participate in draft standard ballots slated for 2025 reinforcing the Lab’s mandate to couple advanced mechanics research with globally harmonised standards and amplify its impact for regional industry partners.

(Written by Anicet Barrios, first reviewer: Lara Nizet, second reviewer: Li Qianqian)