A perfect amalgam of the virtual word meeting real manufacturing processes | We are on the cusp of a fourth industrial revolution, driven by the evolution of new technologies like Cloud, Big Data and the Internet of Things.The first industrial revolution was triggered by the invention of the steam engine and the mechanisation of manual work in the 18th century. The second revolution involved the implementation of mass production techniques in the early 20th century, and the third was ushered in during the past few decades by electronic systems and computer technologies for automating manufacturing processes. So are we in fact on the verge of a fourth revolution, one that represents the future of manufacturing. Sometimes called Industry 4.0, this revolution is occurring in a number of steps over a period of 10 or even 20 years. But make no mistake the result will appear to be revolutionary from today’s point of view.
Future production facilities will be modular and much more flexible than today’s factories. This will be made possible by the use of miniaturised processors, storage units, sensors and transmitters that will be embedded in nearly all conceivable types of machines, unfinished products and materials, as well as tools and new software for structuring data flows. All of these innovations will enable products and machines to communicate with one another and exchange commands. As such, a product that is in the process of being manufactured will carry a digital product memory with it from the very beginning and communicate with its environment at every stage of its production.
The product thus becomes a cyber-physical system that enables the real and the virtual world to merge. The end result is that factories of the future will optimise and control their manufacturing processes much more flexible than today. However, while certain elements of the “smart” factory already exist, experts also agree that it will take a very long time to get to the point of near complete automation. Through the rise of these cyber-physical systems, we’ll see the emergence of a new class of role that exists between the current manual labourer and that of a knowledge worker. These jobs will retain an element of physical work, but require a deeper knowledge and more skill to run and manage the increasingly interconnected systems within the factory and manufacturing process.
For instance, a planning team will be able to ensure efficient production of a plant’s program of operations. Through simple, software-based interfaces they will be able to draw up different manufacturing routes for new products, calculate and compare them on the basis of parameters such as throughput and cost, and then choose the most efficient one. Similarly, these workers will be collaborating more closely with other stakeholders on both sides of the production lifecycle. This will cover everything from design feedback and consulting to supplychain optimisation and customer experience integration.
As a result, this new role will require employees that are more connected, both to the technology and each other. Whether at work or on the move, this enables them to support more intelligent design, operations, maintenance and higher service quality and safety. Achieving this future vision of manufacturing will also require the elimination of a large number of discontinuities in terms of media and data transmission. This is the key to achieving the goal of making production operations cheaper and as flexible as possible, with ever more rapid innovation cycles.
The development of cyber-physical systems – generated by software, sensors, processors, and communication technologies – and associated new manufacturing processes will lead to a 30% increase in industrial productivity. This production environment created by this interconnectedness will gradually expand beyond just the machines and systems on the factory floor to include the myriad of other systems. For example, connecting an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system to the manufacturing execution system (MES) means being able to link the management of materials logistics, personnel planning and cost calculations with production operation control. Accomplishing this requires standardising the various formats, operating systems and programming languages used in these different systems to enable the smooth and complete conversion and transfer of data from one system to another.
In an increasingly connected world, product designers and manufacturers have to be increasingly agile and responsive to demands from the end user. Being able to incorporate feedback and trends directly into the design process is vital. This means being able to tie those data sources in to the entire process. As such, companies can involve their customers more closely in the production process and react faster on changing market requirements.
Effectively managing this enables a manufacturer to individualise even the smallest volumes to a high degree while retaining optimum productivity, thereby optimising multi-variant series production. Many of the technologies needed to bring about this fourth industrial revolution already exist. These include the Internet, standardised data connection protocols for industrial facilities, simulation software and advanced collaboration portals for rapid engineering. Manufacturers need to ensure that they are prepared for Industry 4.0. This can be achieved by ensuring that they have the right systems in place and can make the connections that will bind these various elements together.
This drive to interface with the analytics, data and software that surround product design and manufacturing brings together the advances in the machines and facilities with those in computing, information and communication systems. It’s clear that the transition is unstoppable as it is developing through the merger and refinement of existing technologies and Siemens PLM Software is helping to shape and lead the charge.
Mirko Baecker
Marketing Director – Tecnomatix
EMEA Marketing
Siemens PLM Software