INDUSTRY NEWS/行业新闻
A catalyst for digital transformation
We speak to Nina Rasmussen, the new head of Norican Digital, about how digital is rapidly transforming foundry processes and her approach to digitally supporting customers in China – and across the globe.
数字化转型催化剂 我们采访了诺瑞肯数字Norican Digital的新任负责人Nina Rasmussen，就数 字化如何迅速改变铸造工艺以及她如何为中国乃至全球客户提供数字化支持的实 例进行了讨论。 Nina, tell us a bit about Norican Digital and what excites you about your role. Norican Digital drives all of Norican Group’s digital efforts, serving the needs of DISA, Italpresse Gauss, StrikoWestofen and Wheelabrator customers and their equipment (whether it’s from us or not). Our HQ in Munich, Germany, is home to our Digital Lab. Here, we develop and evolve our latest digital tools, platform and infrastructure. A digital team in China do similar work, with other regional digital hubs in India and the USA arriving soon. These teams include experts from our four brands whose in-depth process experience feeds straight into our digital tool development and is vital when implementing solutions at customer sites. Our strategic AI partner DataProphet adds cutting-edge data science and analytics expertise. I’ve been involved in fascinating digital projects for some years: at DISA, we spearheaded many of Norican’s digital innovations and, in my current role, I work with some of the most forward-thinking foundries in the world. What’s really exciting me now is shaping our future offering for a much more diverse group of customers. What’s right for a DISA customer in China may not necessarily fit a Wheelabrator customer in France, a StrikoWestofen customer in Germany or an Italpresse Gauss customer in America. We want our digital offering to be inclusive, to have something for everyone.
How do you support each customer’s digital journey? There are two journeys we consider that ultimately drive one big improvement. The first track uses Digital to optimize processes (incrementally or radically), working towards zero waste (ultimate efficiency) and zero defects (ultimate quality). The second track is about reacting to and preventing downtime. The goal here is zero unplanned downtime (ultimate productivity). On either track, customers will naturally be at different stages of maturity. Their maintenance may be purely reactive: wait till it breaks, then fix it. That’s costly. Or they may replace parts at scheduled intervals, which usually means changing them too soon or too late. Digital sensor data showing a part’s actual condition lets you replace it at exactly the right time. That’s predictive
Nina，请为我们介绍一下Norican Digital以及你作为 负责人，在工作中令你感到激动的是什么。 诺瑞肯数字 Norican Digital推动诺瑞肯集团的所有 数字化努力，满足迪砂、意特佩雷斯高斯、史杰克西和 维尔贝莱特客户及其设备（无论是否来自我们）的需求。 诺瑞肯总部位于慕尼黑，同时也是我们数字实验室 的所在地。在这里，我们研究和开发我们最新的数字工 具、平台和基础设施。同时我们还有一个在中国的数字 团队，也在做类似的工作；接下来印度和美国的其他区 域数字中心很快就会建立起来。 这些团队包括来自我们四个品牌的专家，他们对于产 品流程经验丰富，可以直接对接我们的数字工具开发， 并且在客户现场实施解决方案时至关重要。我们的战略 AI（人工智能）合作伙伴 DataProphet增加了尖端的数 据科学和分析专业知识。 多年来，我一直参与令人着迷的数字项目：在迪砂， 我们引领了诺瑞肯的许多数字创新，在我目前的职位上， 我与世界上一些最具前瞻性的铸造工厂合作。 现在真正让我兴奋的是，我们正在为更多样化的客户 群体塑造我们未来的产品。适合中国迪砂客户的产品不 一定适合法国的维尔贝莱特客户、德国的史杰克西客户 或美国的意特佩雷斯客户。我们希望我们的数字产品具 有包容性，为每个人提供一些东西。
您如何为每位客户的数字化旅程提供支持和帮助？ 我们认为有两个数字化发展最终会推动一项重大变 革。第一个方向是使用数字来优化流程（增量或完全变 革），努力实现零浪费（极限效率）和零缺陷（极限质 量）。第二个方向是关于对停机时间的反应和防止停机， 目标是不出现计划外停机（极限生产力）。 在任何一个发展方向中，客户自然会处于不同的成熟 阶段。他们的维护可能纯粹是被动的：等到它坏了，然 后修复它。这样花费是巨大的。或者他们可能会按照预 定的时间周期更换零件，这通常意味着当更换发生时， 会要不太早或太晚。
MARCH 2022 FOUNDRY-PLANET.COM | MODERN CASTING | CHINA FOUNDRY ASSOCIATION |
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