The Marco Garetti Laboratory is a research and educational facility within the Department of Management, Economics and Industrial Engineering at the Politecnico di Milano. It is located in Building BL27 on the Bovisa La Masa campus.

Established to address the scientific and technological challenges of Industry 4.0, the laboratory has expanded its research activities to include emerging developments in Industry 5.0 and human-centric manufacturing.

The laboratory is designed to replicate realistic production environments and integrates several technological areas dedicated to manufacturing, assembly, quality control, warehousing and logistics. This configuration enables experimental activities to be conducted under controlled conditions that closely reflect real-world industrial settings.

The laboratory promotes applied research and experimentation with technological solutions for manufacturing and logistics systems. It supports the validation of innovative solutions, technology transfer to industry, and the development of collaborative research projects with industrial and academic partners through its infrastructure, technologies, and expertise.

The laboratory also plays a key educational role, providing students and researchers with the opportunity to complement their theoretical knowledge with hands-on experience of experimenting with and applying industrial technologies.

Research Areas

The laboratory's research activities focus on the application and experimentation of Industry 4.0 and 5.0 enabling technologies in manufacturing and logistics systems. Its main research areas include:

• Digitalisation of manufacturing and logistics systems, digital twins and the industrial metaverse.
• Artificial intelligence, machine learning and computer vision.
• Augmented and virtual reality.
• Industrial and collaborative robotics.
• Wearable technologies and exoskeletons.
• Human–machine interaction and human-centric manufacturing.

Particular emphasis is placed on the interaction between technologies, operators and production systems, with the aim of improving process performance, ergonomics and worker well-being in industrial environments.

Equipment

The laboratory is equipped with a wide range of technologies, including:

• Vision systems: optical, infrared and laser sensors, and 2D and 3D vision systems.
• Robotics and automation: articulated industrial robots and SCARA robots, collaborative robots and autonomous mobile robots (AMRs).
• Assistive technologies: exoskeletons.
• Additive manufacturing: 3D printers.
• Wearable sensing technologies: EEG, ECG, EMG, PPG and EDA devices, and eye-tracking systems.
• Localisation and tracking: indoor localisation and motion capture systems.
• Simulation: software for simulating robotic, manufacturing and logistics systems.
• Extended reality: headsets and software for augmented and virtual reality.

Research Project

The laboratory hosts research activities addressing a range of topics related to innovation in manufacturing and logistics systems. These include:

• Monitoring and identification of operators' psychophysiological states and stress levels during assembly and logistics processes.
• Application of computer vision algorithms for quality control.
• Dynamic adaptation of workstations based on ergonomic indicators.
• Optimisation of production processes, taking into account both operational performance and operators' psychophysiological well-being.
• Technologies and methodologies for the disassembly and end-of-life management of electronic circuit boards.
• Representation, simulation and interaction with production systems through digital twins and virtual environments.

Services and opportunity for companies

The Marco Garetti Laboratory operates according to the Teaching and Learning Factory model, integrating applied research, technological experimentation and education.

The laboratory serves as a valuable resource for companies seeking to test and validate emerging technologies, develop innovative solutions for manufacturing and logistics processes, and collaborate with Politecnico di Milano on research and technology transfer initiatives.

Collaborations may take the form of dedicated research activities, experimental trials and feasibility studies, or joint participation in funded research projects.

The laboratory also contributes to the educational activities of the POLIMI Graduate School of Management at Politecnico di Milano, providing experiential learning opportunities through direct engagement with industrial technologies and production environments.

Collaborations and Partners

Through its Scientific Coordinator, Sergio Terzi, the laboratory is a member of the International Association of Learning Factories (IALF).

The laboratory is also recognised as a Testing and Experimentation Facility (TEF) within the Alliance for AI, IoT and Edge Continuum Innovation (AIOTI).

Visits and Contact Information

Politecnico di Milano, Bovisa La Masa Campus
Building BL27, Via Raffaele Lambruschini 4
20156 Milan, Italy

For enquiries, scientific collaborations or requests to visit the laboratory, please contact walter.quadrini@polimi.it.

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