E.D.&A. has been awarded Factory of the Future

Smart manufacturing means smart investing

Electronics manufacturer E.D.&A. has been awarded Factory of the Future for the third time. Operations Manager Andy Vanhooreweghe is particularly proud: "We have made even more smart investments in further automation of our production equipment and in our employees. As a result, we are now in a pole position to be so flexible, efficient and cost-effective in the world of tomorrow that we can innovate competitively and thus further anchor our production activities in our country".

It is once again a reward for their entire team, because as a thoroughly Belgian company with development and production, they depend on committed employees with smart ideas. Compared to three years ago, E.D.&A. has grown considerably in all areas: the building has doubled in size, production has increased considerably, there are many new colleagues, new machines and robots (including a cobot).

Reshoring production pays off

Since 2012, E.D.&A. has been demonstrating every day that production in Belgium is possible, provided you make smart investments in people and automation. The jury was very impressed that they can produce both small and very large series (200.000 pieces) cost-effectively and at an exceptionally high quality. The extensive automation and digitalisation within E.D.&A., combined with our highly motivated and committed employees, also caught the eye. The intense partnership with customised companies in the area completes this picture.

In 2016, E.D.&A. received the Factory of the Future award for the first time and was allowed to wear this title for three years. After a re-assessment in 2019, they were again awarded the title for three consecutive years. Now, in 2022, E.D.&A. has again shown that it is well advanced in all criteria to be named "Factory of the Future" for the third time.

More about Factory of the Future

Factories of the Future are companies that invest in digitisation, in their personnel, in smart processes and products and in world-class production. They use energy and materials in a well-considered way and stimulate the involvement, creativity and autonomy of employees. To achieve the coveted title, companies must score at least four out of five on a maturity scale in each of the seven transformation domains (including Advanced Manufacturing Technology, Eco-factory, End-to-end integrated Engineering) during a critical audit by independent experts.

The Factories of the Future Awards are an initiative of technology federation Agoria and Sirris, the collective centre of the Belgian technology industry.