Europe is trying to fix a major problem in digital manufacturing: everyone uses different terminology to describe materials and processes, and as a result, industrial data is fragmented, incompatible and difficult for software, AI systems and simulations to interpret. That inconsistency has become a major barrier to scaling advanced digital technologies across European manufacturing.
To address the issue, the EU-funded DiMAT project is contributing its expertise to a new initiative aimed at standardising how materials terminology is defined and used.
The initiative is being carried out in partnership with DIN, Germany’s national standards body, and Fraunhofer IWM, which is contributing its expertise in materials data structures and ontology development.
The effort is being developed through the newly launched CEN Workshop “Terminology Definition for Domain Ontologies in Materials Science” (CEN/WS OntoWF), which has now published a draft agreement and opened it for public comment.
Why shared terminology matters
Modern digital manufacturing – including AI materials modelling, digital twins, simulation software, predictive maintenance and automated lab systems – relies on accurate, structured and interoperable data. But materials science is a huge field, and different industries often use:
- different names for the same concept
- different definitions for the same parameter
- different units, formats or metadata
- different structures for their databases
The result is a sector-wide “Tower of Babel” where data cannot move easily between companies, research labs, software vendors or national platforms.
A key part of the solution lies in creating materials ontologies – structured vocabularies that define concepts (such as yield strength, heat treatment, microstructure or thermal conductivity) and explain their relationships in a machine-readable format.
Ontologies allow different software systems to understand materials data the same way, making it far easier to exchange and reuse information.
A new bottom-up approach
What makes the CEN/WS OntoWF initiative notable is its bottom-up approach. Instead of starting with abstract theoretical models, the project begins with real industrial use cases and builds the ontology outward from actual manufacturing practice.
This method is faster and more grounded, but has historically lacked clear guidelines. The Workshop aims to change that by creating a CEN Workshop Agreement (CWA) that defines:
- rules for defining terminology
- review and approval workflows
- recommendations for technical implementation
Such a framework would bring consistency to how Europe develops materials ontologies and standardises terminology across different sectors.
Connecting global standards with industrial needs
Recent global standards such as ISO/IEC 21838 (top-level ontologies) provide high-level structure, while mid-level frameworks like EMMO and PMDco cover common scientific concepts. But industry still lacks detailed, domain-specific ontologies that capture the full complexity of real materials processes.
The DiMAT project aims to bridge this gap by demonstrating an example-driven approach to ontology development, aligned with the workflows used by actual manufacturers. According to the project, this will help:
- improve data interoperability
- speed up adoption of AI and simulation tools
- integrate databases and digital platforms more effectively
- support FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) data practices
Because CEN Workshop Agreements are agile and market-oriented, they can be developed far faster than formal European Standards – sometimes in months rather than years.
Public comments now open
The CEN Workshop brings together 23 experts across Europe, working in three groups focused on terminology, review processes and implementation. Fraunhofer IWM leads two of these groups, drawing on its experience with the DiMAT Cloud Materials Database (DiCMDB).
A draft CWA has now been released for public comment, marking a key phase of the process. Industry professionals, researchers, standards bodies and developers are invited to submit feedback via the CEN/CENELEC form:
https://www.cencenelec.eu/news-events/news/2025/workshop/2025-11-19-ontologies/
Deadline: 19 December 2025
A step toward interoperable European materials data
By helping establish a more coherent framework for materials terminology, DiMAT and its partners aim to unlock the full potential of digital manufacturing in Europe.
The hope is that better data structure today will support faster innovation, more reliable digital tools and a more competitive industrial base in the years ahead.
