What if machines could talk? Wouldn’t production be much more efficient and cooperation between man and machine work better? Undoubtedly yes. And machines can talk—about data. Now it is up to us to make this language visible and understandable, and thus implement smart production of the 21st century. The Internet of Things makes the smart factory possible!
The path from 20th-century production to 21st-century smart production is through machines that communicate with each other. It is only with the Internet of Things (IoT) that a smart factory has become possible. Intelligently networked machines, exchanging information about their status, fill levels, or maintenance cycles, for example, allow production facilities to respond to changes in production with much more agility. Future-proof production and the implementation of IoT today are indispensable to ensure the competitiveness of manufacturing companies, in order to increase flexibility and efficiency of manufacturing operations while simultaneously reducing costs.
From IoT to IIoT
Outside of the production industry, IoT is also a central component of digital business and new platforms. The core of this technology is based on high-level networks with the ability to interact and analyze. The highly complex ecosystem that IoT creates in this industrial context is known as IIoT and is a basic prerequisite for Industry 4.0. The goal is to have efficient and self-organized production lines in which machines, systems, products, and people communicate and cooperate with each other. The aim of this network is to optimize the entire value chain of the company, from a product idea to its development, production, marketing and sales, use, maintenance, and recycling.
Smart production involves employees
But the goal of IoT is not just fully automated production. Employees in all production areas must remain at the center with their expertise and operational activities. IoT processes and machines communicating within the manufacturing operations area offer a wide range of advantages both for production facilities and for the employees involved. Smart production with IoT always involves engaging employees at all stages of the production cycle and enabling them to benefit from intelligent networks. Today, comprehensive human, technical, and machine-to-machine communication offers many advantages that can give production facilities the decisive edge over the competition. Together with a fully integrated software base, this creates truly smart production facilities to meet the demands of their target market.
Production and logistics flow seamlessly with IoT
A major advantage of IoT is the integration of complex production and logistics based on transparency. Production processes are, at best, complicated though learnable, but they are generally quite complex. With more accurate and timely feedback from production and logistics, these complexities can be identified and resolved. Smart machines can precisely reveal these process intersections by collecting status and sensor data. As a result, new digital processes can be developed in which individual process steps can be separated—for example, selecting packaging before the product is finished and then integrating it seamlessly into the overall process at the end. This means that production never stops unnecessarily.
Accident prevention through smart technology
In addition, the issue of safety plays a decisive role in the Industrial Internet of Things, especially in the field of manufacturing operations. Safety regulations to protect employees are in place in many production environments. With IoT applications, employees can instantly see on their computer or mobile device where special safety zones are, or where mobile machines are currently located and what type of protection is provided in certain areas. Furthermore, machines can react to people in production facilities through active sensor technology and communication with other production machines, thus avoiding unnecessary stoppages or even accidents.
Smart production planning thanks to IoT
Another important aspect of IoT that offers concrete added value for production is resource planning. This requires a mature database and Big Data so that all production states, from planning to customer delivery, can be viewed at a glance and conclusions can be drawn. These data can already be largely collected automatically in IoT-based production.
With high-performance processing, employees, decision-makers, suppliers, and customers can view relevant data sets, dashboards, and information to make evidence-based decisions. Not only the production facility is considered, but also the warehouse and other parts of the company. Data-driven smart production is made possible thanks to IoT.
Everything flows with IoT
If all kinds of autonomous machines along digital processes are to cooperate with the internal and external world of production, they must be designed to organize themselves in a seamless flow. Based on routines and experience, machines can achieve maximum efficiency. The future of digital production in smart factories inevitably lies in IoT processes, where machines perform their tasks with foresight and make their own decisions for the benefit of an integrated production process. But this will not be possible without people. Therefore, IoT technology should never be considered completely separate from factory employees, but rather in a complementary symbiosis.
Germanedge
Germanedge is a corporate group that brings together leading companies in solutions within the field of Industry 4.0 and digital transformation. Established to be a global provider, it drives the digitalization of factories towards highly efficient, intelligent, and connected processes. Geprom collaborates with Germanedge and its companies in the development and integration of software and digitalization solutions, supporting our clients on their path to Industry 4.0.