CONTROL & AUTOMATION
INDUSTRIAL TRENDS FOR 2019
COPA DATA
PREDICTIONS FOR MANUFACTURING
Industry 4.0, the Fourth Industrial Revolution
or the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT).
Regardless of the phrase used to describe
digitalization in manufacturing, there’s no
denying that a shift has already taken place.
But, is the age of industrial buzzwords coming
to a grinding halt? Stefan Reuther, Chief
Sales Officer at COPA-DATA, gives his three
predictions for industrial automation in 2019
— no buzzwords included.
‘INDUSTRY 4.0’ IN PRACTICE
Manufacturers have long felt the pressure to
invest in new technologies. In the so-called
age of Industry 4.0, this pressure has been
heightened by an influx of products and
initiatives, all claiming to help manufacturers
digitize their operations. Unfortunately, some
of these schemes are nothing more than a
waste of money.
Don’t get me wrong, there is certainly
value in investing in technology to enable
digitalization in factories’ practices.
However, rushed approaches have led to
some manufacturers making haphazard
investments. For example, some have
delegated digitalization to third parties and
as a result, are not in charge of their own
automation.
Before embarking on a digitalization scheme,
manufacturers should first examine which
technology is practical to their facility. A good
place to begin is to listen to the people on the
factory floor. Understanding how technology
can practically help workers can ensure that
investments are pragmatic. from production. To identify areas of
improvement, manufacturers would need
to collect production data and compare this
with data from Enterprise Resource Planning
(ERP).
Another thing to consider is simplicity,
by reducing complexity of processes and
gaining a clearer overview and full control.
Manufacturers should choose technology that
is easy to understand, implement and scale
up in the future. Looking forward to 2019,
digitalization should be approached in a more
practical manner — a steady, incremental
transformation is better than a failed one. Without a pre-determined strategy like
this, manufacturers run the risk of simply
collecting and storing hordes of data. There’s
no value in data if it is left to gather dust.
Over the next twelve months, we hope to
see data strategies become an integral part
of manufacturing. That said, data strategies
are only comprehensible when using the
correct software.
LESS DATA HOARDING, MORE DATA USE
Software is another area that has been
constantly hallmarked as a method to speed
up manufacturing digitalization. However,
before investing in software for data
collection, manufacturers should begin 2019
by implementing a coherent data strategy. THE SOFTWARE EVOLUTION
Recent years have seen a shift in the amount
of investment manufacturers assign to
software. Traditionally, hardware would have
received the largest bulk of cash, but this is
beginning to change — particularly as more
advanced software platforms emerge.
Rather than simply collecting and storing
data, manufacturers must identify the results
that they want to achieve and decide how
data can help them to meet these business
objectives. Software for manufacturing facilities is no
longer limited to Manufacturing Execution
Systems (MES) and Supervisory Control
and Data Acquisition (SCADA). The realm
of industrial software is experiencing
a convergence of IT and operational
technologies (OT), giving birth to new
platforms which integrate a plethora of
different areas — including enterprise data
from the corporate level, through to field
and process level automation.
Consider this as an example. Let’s say a
manufacturer wants to improve return
on investment (ROI) in the facility by
reducing the amount of materials wasted
While this may sound more complicated
than traditional systems, these platforms
often boast better design, visualization,
calculation logic and ergonomics than their
predecessors. This makes the operation of
systems safer, simpler and more transparent.
I might have promised no buzzwords,
but software is the driver of what is so
commonly referred to as Industry 4.0. As
a result, it is no surprise that we are likely
to see increased investment in integrated
platforms like these over the next twelve
months.
The age of conceptualizing the possibilities
of manufacturing digitalization is over.
During the next twelve months, the
products and initiatives hailed as ways to
transform manufacturing facilities will finally
be put to practical use.
www.copadata.com
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PECM Issue 37