Manufacturing relies on continuous production. Fast, accurate, real-time analytical insights are intuitively recognized as valuable. Many decisions must be made in real-time, so having real-time data will naturally improve those decisions. Actionable, up-to-date metrics create many new benefits, including: Improved OEE and Predictive Maintenance: With real-time equipment analysis based on the most up-to-date data, maintenance […]
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Implementing digital transformation strategy presents many challenges. These can range from having to manage massive revamping of business and work processes to implementing completely new models for customer engagement. Some challenges are understood but still difficult, such as dealing with legacy technology and infrastructure. Many other challenges of digital transformation simply can’t be foreseen, yet […]
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Industrial equipment manufacturers around the world are looking for ways to protect their core businesses while also seeking new cost savings and customer revenue opportunities. Many look to digital transformation and industrial IoT for enabling new services like remote monitoring and predictive maintenance. They’re seeking methods for collecting and integrating machine and enterprise data, and optimizing their […]
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Making the most of legacy equipment According to the Annual Manufacturing Report, 2018, four in five manufacturers believe that smart factory technologies will improve their supply chain relationships. The proposed benefits of data collection from smart sensors are huge, but some manufacturers still feel that a smart factory is out of their reach. In […]
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Contradictory to the common belief that technology necessary for Industry 4.0 is expensive, the Combine and Conquer report by Accenture found that combining technologies such as AR/VR, big data and machine learning can save large businesses an average of $ 78 000 per employee. Despite Industry 4.0 being far from a new concept, first being […]
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IDC estimates that spending on digital transformation will reach $1.7 trillion worldwide by the end of 2019, as businesses deploy new technologies and become more data-driven. However, one of the biggest challenges to organisations reaping the full benefits of digital transformation is that the technologies that underpin many of their data processes have not been […]
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With the expansion of the Internet of Things come increased cybersecurity concerns. The technology is finding its way into every industry, elevating connectivity and making our lives easier. However, there are downsides to this, and ever-growing connectivity is becoming more of a problem as cybercriminals seek to exploit it. Perhaps this is most visible in […]
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Common misconceptions about smart manufacturing Machine automation could be compared to the human body. Our eyes are the sensors that monitor operations. Our hands are the actuation to manoeuvre things around us. Finally, our brains are the process control, providing intelligence and managing processes. Traditionally, machines in industrial environments could only provide actuation, but not […]
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In light of a growing number of food recalls in recent years, the food industry is in a precarious situation where consumers are trusting manufacturers less than ever before. There was widespread panic across Europe in mid-2017 when millions of eggs were recalled due to being contaminated with Fipronil — a highly toxic insecticide that […]
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In 2018, KFC ran out of chicken, we sent a car into space and we all had to decide if we heard Yanny or Laurel in an audio clip. As we start a new year, we have a lot to look forward to, particularly in manufacturing. Each new year brings new technologies and processes to […]
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An issue in manufacturing that is singular to machine builders is the speed with which they can respond with service to the machines, in the case of a failure. In the past, this has usually meant an actual failure has taken place, resulting in a delayed order, scrapped parts, and potentially days of downtime. When […]
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A go-at-it-alone approach to capitalize on data analytics won’t workOf all the new capabilities that manufacturers can gain by adopting Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) technology, data analytics can be among the most powerful—and the most challenging. Manufacturers make things and, as such, they’re accustomed to working with materials and machines, not bits and bytes. […]
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