The future of manufacturing is local, accessible, urban, digital, and sustainable.
The European research project LAUDS is developing new concepts for sustainable urban production facilities. The acronym LAUDS stands for Local, Accessible, Urban, Digital, and Sustainable—and this is precisely what the vision of LAUDS Factories stands for: open, sustainable, and European value-based production.
In cooperation with 15 international partners from research, civil society, and business, LAUDS Factories are being created—small, open, and digitally networked production sites that use local resources, promote social participation, and contribute to sustainable urban development. They combine sustainable small-batch production with local resource use, accessible innovation platforms, urban cultural integration, digital collaboration tools, and comprehensive sustainability practices.
As transformative spaces for innovation, co-creation, and civic engagement, LAUDS Factories offer a genuine alternative to centralized industrial models and open up new avenues for locally anchored, globally networked production.
Project objectives
LAUDS factories as a new paradigm in manufacturing
- Co-design: open, participatory design processes for the collaborative development of urban production sites
- Digital tools & physical spaces: Setting up a hybrid manufacturing system based on cyber-physical infrastructures
- Skills development: Development of new job profiles, training opportunities, and inclusive access to future-relevant production skills
- Scalability: Piloting and scaling LAUDS Factories as building blocks for a sustainable urban manufacturing ecosystem
- Open Calls: Competitions for creative projects and circular innovations from SMEs, makerspaces, and creative professionals
- Business models: Developing viable business plans for sustainable urban production models
Motivation
LAUDS Factories address key challenges of European transformation: sustainable food systems, renewable energies, and livable cities. Urban production facilities play a crucial role in this: they shorten supply chains, increase sustainability and resilience, and create social, inclusive spaces for innovation.
The New Production Institute (HSU) is leading the development of the digital and physical infrastructure of the LAUDS factories based on open source principles and standards. It also supports the Open Call projects in Hamburg via the Fab City network.
Open Calls - Exploration and Replication
- Open Call #1 – Exploration (closed, 07/2024): Funding was awarded to at least six hybrid teams with a total of €240,000 to develop new urban production approaches in existing LAUDS Factories – inspired by the New European Bauhaus.
- Open Call #2 – Replication (läuft bis 15. September 2025): Mit insgesamt 216.000 € unterstützt LAUDS mindestens 8 Teams dabei, das Factory-Modell in neuen Kontexten wie Mobilität, Energie und Agrar/Food zu erproben und lokal nachhaltige Produktionskonzepte umzusetzen.
Key results
- Development of a readiness index for LAUDS factories
- Conducting co-creative workshops & case studies
- Mapping technical factors and creating a digital architecture
- Development of training modules and knowledge pool for makers and innovators
- Conducting open calls, selecting and evaluating funded projects
- Development of an experimental web interface and visualizations
- Closing event and dissemination
Local
Accessible
Urban
Digital
Sustainable.
Image courtesy of LAUDS Factories (lauds.eu). Team Picture at Mekanika in Brussels, 2025. CC BY-SA 4.0
At the 2024 Climate Congress, 3D printing workshop at OpenLab Mobile (Süderelbe Ag). Photo: Claudia Hohne
Small CNC milling machine from the OpenLab Starter Kit.
XYZ Cargo Bike with Fab City Hamburg’s “OpenBox”, designed by regenholz (parameo – Parametric Build Assistant – Fab City Hamburg).
Build workshop for a 3D printer with trainees from the Chamber of Crafts X Fab City Hamburg e.V..
Small CNC milling machine from the OpenLab Starter Kit. Photo: inmachines.net
The modular, open-source based microscope – PlanktoScope. Photo: Interfacer.eu, CC BY-SA 4.0, Dawid Jakubowski
Photo: Interfacer.eu, CC BY-SA 4.0, Dawid Jakubowski
Open-Source Coffee Grinder. Photo: Interfacer.eu, CC BY-SA 4.0, Dawid Jakubowski
Accessible. The mobile workshop in Hamburg and the metropolitan region: OpenLab Mobile.
Locally produced – The modular, robust, and lightweight cargo bike (XYZ Cargo).
Opening of the OpenLab MedTec at the Bundeswehr Hospital in Hamburg. Photo: Bwkh, Rossler.
Urban – Building for everyone: From the build workshop series of the Interfacer project. Construction of a Libre Solar Box for a renewable energy supply with photovoltaics and battery storage in a small format. Open source documentation on GitLab.
3D model of the OpenLab Microfactory. Currently on display at FABRIC, Große Bleichen 21, Hamburg, and accessible to everyone.
Project consortium
Dictionary
Urban Manufacturing
Maker Challenges
Maker Challenges are open calls to creative tinkerers, designers, and developers to find solutions to specific social or environmental challenges. They combine competition with co-creation and invite active participation. Whether it’s energy, circular economy, or mobility, Maker Challenges not only promote innovation, but also community, learning, and knowledge sharing. In projects such as LAUDS, they are a key means of integrating external ideas and diverse perspectives into urban production ecosystems.
Project title & duration
- LAUDS Local Accessible Urban Digital Sustainable Factories
- Grand amount: 2.8 million €
- 2024 – 2026
further links
Funding
LAUDS Local Accessible Urban Digital Sustainable Factories is a Horizon Europe research and innovation action – Co-funded by the European Union, 2024-2026, GA 101135986
