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5 Reasons You Need IIoT Technology In Your Factory Today
The business of manufacturing is rapidly evolving. Being coined the Fourth Industrial Revolution, or Industry 4.0, it’s all about retrieving big data that couldn’t be accessed before. By bringing the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) into factories across the globe manufacturers can streamline production and push products to market faster. Are you ready to gain a competitive edge?
How Narrative Software Helps Your Operators Feel Heard
As a plant manager or team lead, you have the essential responsibility of keeping your operators motivated. Helping them gain new perspectives on their work can improve employee engagement and, ultimately, your bottom line. When employees are provided with narrative software resources to see how their contributions make a difference, they become much more interested in putting in a productive day.
2017 Manufacturing: A Year In Review
The political landscape of 2017 has been a portrait of peaks and troughs. Brexit in the UK presents potential possibilities for trade deals with the US and beyond, and (love him or hate him) President Trump’s tempestuous first year in office was preceded with promises to rebuild North America’s industrial sector. Whether his ambitious promises yield fruit is yet to be seen, and it’s rather too easy to get lost in the crowd hysteria that big change conjures. However, significant transformation brings significant opportunities, and in the manufacturing sector particularly, we’ve seen increased adoption of digital technologies, harboring a new dawn in manufacturing processes.
In the same way that the Industrial Revolution had a major impact on manufacturing and society, digital transformation within manufacturing houses is set to change the way we produce and cater to our customers. Not since Henry Ford developed mass-production manufacturing have we seen changes like those that 2017 has exposed us to; but “digital” represents a move away from mass-production, toward a leaner, less wasteful, bespoke, and customized production approach.
However, only 5% of manufacturing executives are satisfied with their existing digital strategies, or even recognize the importance of this digital revolution. Digitization helps to overcome the “Seven Wastes” of lean manufacturing by making more affordable the bespoke production approach; as opposed to over-producing, under-engaging employees and keeping customers waiting while we produce against demand.
Internet of Things (IoT)
At the heart of the change in manufacturing processes in 2017 was the implementation of IoT processes, providing live reporting of incremental production data, defect and damage.
By effectively connecting our analog (and digital) machines to monitoring networks, companies have found an essential, competitive edge in consistency, efficiency, employee engagement, and instant visualization of project progress; yielding benefits to the manufacturing process and to the customer, as the price of wastage drops as a result of digital monitoring.
Industry 4.0 and mass customization
Scary as it sounds, Industry 4.0 presents a reverie of the interconnected factory, and this has developed exponentially in 2017. Machines are online and capable of making decisions.
Now, don’t run for the hills, here – this is good! Industry 4.0 presents a hybrid approach of actual and virtual content-producing warehouses, freeing up workforce to focus on mass customization which can directly react to consumer demand.
IoT and Industry 4.0 are developing the way we interact with our customers post-sale, by providing immediate and consistent support online.
Machine Learning
AI is nothing new – IBM’s supercomputer defeated the world’s best chess player over ten years ago, after all. Advanced algorithms are collecting data on the factory floor, performing skilled labor, and predicting consumer behavior, so that we, the manufacturer, can better cater to their needs. Smart factories can increase production capacity by 20% by gleaning live information from integrated IT systems. And FreePoint Technologies can help!
Quality becomes more consistent as machine learning determines the factors affecting service and quality of product.
Growth
Manufacturing continues to be an essential contributor to Canada’s GDP; providing 1.7 million quality, well-paid jobs, and contributing over 10% of Canada’s overall GDP (around $174 billion).
The manufacturing industry, therefore, has massive potential for strengthening Canada’s economic future. We have the skills, innovation and exports of more that $354 billion each year, which represents 68% of Canada’s entire merchandise exports. Competition is healthy and success breeds success: where our industry grows, we attract new investment.
Growth is dependent upon continued innovation, and the more we adopt new technologies, the more our healthy manufacturing sector continues to grow.
Industry 4.0 – The Modern Industrial Revolution
The world underwent a massive technological change with the discovery of solid state technology. The 1960s & ’70s saw a major technological upheave, which later on came to be known as the 3rd Industrial Revolution. Through the application of electronics and use of computer technology, conventional assembly lines were given the first stint of automation.
Fast forward to the 21st century, and the world had transformed into a global village, with all the credit going to one entity, i.e. Internet. This very entity is the majority contributor & motivator behind the modern industrial revolution, Industry 4.0.
Industry 4.0 involves a series of groundbreaking innovations in production and leaps the industrial processes towards higher productivity. It shifts the handling of all production processes to a chain of autonomous devices, interlinked with each other along the entire value chain.
Here’s a better way to look at it. Imagine a model of a “smart factory”, where all physical processes from maintaining heat to checking assembly lines are monitored by an array of sensors. These sensors, in turn, are connected to computer units that monitor & control their output based on the sensory inputs. Furthermore, the bulk of all this data is fed into a business-centric computer system that receives inputs regarding customers’ requirement & market conditions.
Finally, a decision is taken by the Control System to scale up/down manufacturing based on real-world parameters in real-time.
The major features of Industry 4.0 can be summed up as:
- Interoperability: Cyber-physical systems allow the use of multi-platform hardware/software.
- Virtualization: Control programs are able to simulate manufacturers’ requirements based on real-world data.
- Decentralization: Ability of control systems to work independently.
- Real-time capability: Removes the uncertainty factors within the supply-chain.
- Modularity: Industry 4.0 flexibility allows for quick customization & upgrades.
Industry 4.0 isn’t waiting to be implemented, rather it has already started gaining acceptance in several industries. The following companies have already changed their course to suit the canons of Industry 4.0:
- Bosch Rexroth, a German Engineering Firm that develops mobile applications, machinery applications and factory automation services
- Siemens, a well-known name in the world of industrial automation, Siemens has begun to integrate its solutions in a more streamlined manner in line with Industry 4.0
- SAP, an Enterprise Software company that has started a collaboration with various clients on producing implementable Industry 4.0 models
Industry 4.0 hard at work at SIEMENS
Other companies like Wittenstein, General Electric, Festo, Rockwell Automation, etc. are also in line and are gradually leading the Industrial Revolution.
But how does implementing Industry 4.0 and its associated concepts affect you and your plant?
Intelligence
In addition to monitoring your machines & equipment, Industry 4.0 solutions will safely control these systems and intelligently predict upcoming faults based on the measurements taken. The deep interconnectivity of each unit will ensure that its tracking & assignment is carried out automatically, irrespective of the complex user requirements.
Greater Productivity
Industry 4.0 will greatly increase the productivity of any manufacturing division. Through meticulous use of resources, control systems would be able to perform a wide variety of tasks in the most efficient manner possible. Not only will wastage of raw materials and energy be curtailed, but the productivity will increase as well as each product will have precision & refinement.
Shorten Time to Market
No matter how efficiently or accurately a product is made, it’s worthless without considering the actual market requirements. An Industry 4.0 solution would encompass the entire lifecycle, from production to consumption, so that manufacturers get real-time requirements regarding the market.
Increased Flexibility
Products can be manufactured based on user requirements, and not on a single design, all the while maintaining the economic efficiency of the plant. Minimum manual interaction would result in maximum plant efficiency, resulting in greater profits, a diverse market share, and tougher competition.
While “Industry 4.0 – The Next Industrial Revolution”, may seem like a thing of the future for most companies, manufacturers (big or small) don’t have to wait for implementation of new equipment to start seeing positive results. At FreePoint Technologies, our simple and noninvasive machine monitoring software connects with each of your current machines; regardless of brand, type, complexity or age. Going beyond the machine, we also focus on engaging and empowering your employees, equipping them with real-time data to see tangible progress, and allowing them to make informed decisions.
Top 3 Benefits of Machine Monitoring
In our previous blog post, “How Machine Monitoring Works”, we explored the 6 steps involved in connecting your machines, storing and displaying information, and using the data to increase productivity.
Today, we are going to continue with this theme and look at the top 3 benefits of machine monitoring.
Benefit #1 – Reduce Downtime
Every manufacturing plant wants to run their operations as lean and efficiently as possible and one of the biggest obstacles that stands in the way is downtime. Downtime consumes valuable resources that could have been used for productivity. When a FreePoint’s monitoring system is integrated with your machines, managers and supervisors are notified as soon as the machine goes down. They can than investigate the issue, find out what the problem is and prevent it from happening again.
When speaking with Vic Kinesella, plant supervisor of AutoTube, he mentioned that before their company implemented FreePoint, they had no idea how long machines were down for. Now that they have machine monitoring implemented, Vic can respond quicker to the issue and find the root of the problem. This has saved Vic’s company thousands of dollars in reduced down time.
Benefit #2 – Empower employees
At FreePoint, we believe in the importance of empowering and engaging employees with modern technology. Manufacturing processes need to be re-humanized and provide an environment for workers to play a bigger role in identifying productivity improvements using factual, real-time process information. Machine monitoring enables that. When our customers share their machine data with their employees, the machinists start to feel engaged and a have sense of accountability. When management invests in a machine monitoring system, it demonstrates to their employees that they are committed to increasing productivity and continuous improvement.
Benefit #3 – Make informed decisions
With the data you receive from your machines, it will help to make more informed decisions on a daily basis. Here are just a few items where the information will be used:
- More accurate quoting for jobs
- Better decision making on purchasing more machines
- More informed decision making on hiring employees
- Useful information that can be used for training employees
At FreePoint, we are dedicated to helping manufacturing companies improve their bottom line, engage their employees and bring modern technology to the plant floor. Through the power of the internet and our patent-pending technology, we are able to connect to any machine, giving you the tools you need to keep your manufacturing facility going strong. Reach out today to start experiencing the benefits of machine monitoring!
Read more: Learn The 6 Ways Machine Monitoring Saves You Money!