| Ref.No: | 63275500 |
| Start date: | 01.09.2026 |
| End date: | 28.02.2030 |
| Approval date: | 20.05.2026 |
| Department: | CHEMICAL ENGINEERING |
| Sector: | MATERIALS SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING |
| Financier: | HORIZON EUROPE, E.C. |
| Budget: | 3.983.544,89 € |
| Public key: | ΨΙΘΠ46ΨΖΣ4-Ρ75 |
| Scientific Responsible: | Prof. CHARITIDIS |
| Email: | charitidis@chemeng.ntua.gr |
| Description: | EUROPE’S TRANSITION TO CLIMATE NEUTRALITY AND A CIRCULAR ECONOMY REQUIRES RELIABLE AND COMPARABLE TOOLS TO MEASURE, REDUCE, AND COMMUNICATE PRODUCT IMPACTS. THE EU’S PRODUCT ENVIRONMENTAL FOOTPRINT (PEF) PROVIDES A COMMON METHOD, BUT UPTAKE IS LIMITED BY SECTORAL GAPS, FRAGMENTED DATASETS, TECHNICAL COMPLEXITY, AND INSUFFICIENT LINKS TO ECO-DESIGN AND COMPLIANCE. ORBIT RESPONDS BY CREATING A SIX-LAYERED INNOVATION ECOSYSTEM TO OPERATIONALISE PEF ACROSS TEXTILES, PLASTICS/PACKAGING, CHEMICALS, AND ICT/WEEE. IT DEVELOPS ADAPTIVE PEF CATEGORY RULES USING MACHINE LEARNING FOR FASTER, ITERATIVE UPDATES, AND CONDUCTS FULL CRADLE-TO-GRAVE LCAS WITH SOCIO-ECONOMIC AND END-OF-LIFE MODELLING. A FAIR-COMPLIANT DATA BACKBONE AND CLOUD-BASED PLATFORM AUTOMATE LCA DATA FLOWS, INTEGRATE ERP/PLM SYSTEMS, AND REDUCE BARRIERS FOR SMES. EXPLAINABLE AI TOOLS TRANSLATE FOOTPRINT RESULTS INTO ACTIONABLE ECO-DESIGN CHOICES, WHILE A DIGITAL PRODUCT PASSPORT & COMPLIANCE ENGINE ENSURES AUTOMATIC ALIGNMENT WITH ESPR, REACH, CIRPASS, AND GREEN CLAIMS. IMPACT WILL BE DEMONSTRATED THROUGH SECTORAL PILOTS SHOWING ≥30% FOOTPRINT REDUCTIONS IN REDESIGN SCENARIOS. TO FOSTER UPTAKE, ORBIT PROVIDES MULTILINGUAL TRAINING VIA THE ORBIT ACADEMY, A STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT HUB, AND SME-FRIENDLY VALIDATION PIPELINES. BY COMBINING LEADING RESEARCH, AI SPECIALISTS, INDUSTRIAL FRONTRUNNERS, AND POLICY ACTORS, ORBIT WILL DELIVER VALIDATED, STANDARD-ALIGNED PEF TOOLS AND DATASETS THAT EMPOWER SMES, ACCELERATE COMPLIANCE, AND STRENGTHEN EUROPE’S GLOBAL LEADERSHIP IN SUSTAINABLE PRODUCT POLICY AND CIRCULAR ECONOMY INNOVATION. |
