Industry 4.0 Magazine

THE MAGAZINE FOR THE FOURTH INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION

issue no. 10 - April 2019

IN THIS ISSUE Artificial Intelligence

and the Fourth Industrial Revolution

Next Generation Industry 4.0 Technologies:

Blockchain

Manufacturing Analytics at the Core of Industry 4.0

Supporting Dynamic Reconfigurations in

Flexible Manufacturing

Thank you for downloading The

Industry 4.0 magazine

The first industrial revolution took place in the cotton mills of Manchester in the 18th century.

THE INDUSTRY 4.0 MAGAZINE IS PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY GB MEDIA AND EVENTS ORGANISERS OF THE INDUSTRY 4.0 SUMMIT

Today we are in the midst of the 4th industrial revolution, a digital one often referred to as industry 4.0. This is our special Industry 4.0 Summit & Expo issue – our flagship event which takes place in Manchester from the 10-11th of April. The event is a gathering of global digital innovators converging in Manchester. Focused on the future of manufacturing from an expert perspective, the Summit showcases the very latest technologies and solutions designed to make manufacturing smarter all set to a backdrop of compelling round table events, real-world case studies, networking and seminars delivered by a global panel of thought leaders. The event is supported by Innovate UK, Make UK, MADE SMARTER and market leading companies ranging from automation to IIOT.

PUBLISHER Gary Gilmour

In this issue we look at the hype surrounding the adoption of Artificial Intelligence & Blockchain in Industry 4.0. Experts from Dell Technologies, PTC and IBM talk about how they have enabled companies to adopt these technologies. We have a strong academic focus in this edition – with contributions from our long standing Summit partners – The University of Manchester & Manchester Metropolitan University.

Thank you for reading the magazine and we look forward to your valuable feedback..

Kind regards Pav Baghla, Editor

EDITOR Pervinder Baghla TEAM Matthew Pearsall Digital Manager Joe Illsley Designer All Editorial and advertising Enquiries to Digital@gbmediaevents.com +44 (0) 207 9932300 +44 (0)1642 438225 GB Media & Events, Wilton Centre, Redcar, North Yorkshire, TS10 4RF. GB MEDIA & EVENTS LIMITED GB Media and Events Limited is a company registered in England and Wales with company number 10114934 /Industry40news JOIN OUR INDUSTRY 4.0 NETWORK ON LINKEDIN linkedin.com/groups/8646038 i ndustry40summit.com/ latest-news

Correction: In the February issue we included a video where Derek Lane of WAGO was interviewed. His correct job title is Automation Manager at WAGO and not Process Automation Manager Profibus Profinet as cited.

2

The content of this magazine does not necessarily express the views of the Editor or publishers. The publishers accept no legal responsibility for the loss arising from information in this publication. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be producted or stored in a retrieval system without the written consent of the publishers.

04 22 32 44

Artificial Intelligence and the Fourth Industrial Revolution

Manufacturing Analytics at the Core of Industry 4.0

From Manchester city centre to the Orkney Isles

Industry 4.0 TV

14 28 36

Next Generation Industry 4 Technologies: Blockchain

Supporting Dynamic Reconfigurations in Flexible Manufacturing

INDUSTRY 4.0 SUMMIT & EXPO 10TH - 11TH APRIL 2019

Artificial Intelligence and the Fourth Industrial Revolution

We spoke with Nigel Moulton, Global CTO, Modern Data Center Business Unit, at Dell Technologies about AI’s place in 4IR Artificial Intelligence is essential to 4IR as a systemic element present in so much of its expressions. For example, it helps facilitate the design process with ‘generative design’ software to identify design opportunities as well as problems and supply a range of solutions during both the initial design and testing.

Nigel Moulton, Global CTO, Modern Data Center Business Unit, Dell Technologies

Predictive maintenance uses algorithms to predict potential failures in specific elements of manufacturing and generating alerts. Similarly, quality control uses algorithms to monitor quality and identify quality defects in real time without suspending manufacture and generating relevant data for analysis. The safety and optimisation of robotics and human collaboration is also an area where AI has a place. Collaboration is, indeed, a major element of manufacturing to which AI contributes, enabling customized solutions as the result of the interaction of different specialists and specialisms. AI extends beyond the factory to optimise the supply chain and distribution network as well.

Nigel Moulton, Global CTO, Modern Data Center Business Unit, Dell Tehnologies, believes that AI will play a pivotal role in 4IR as the technology will be deployed to provide insight that will enable manufacturers to adapt industrial and business processes to become more efficient, or safer, or both: “There is no ‘one size fits all’ approach as each company will use a combination of AI and IoT generated sensor data to shed light and better understand a process. The intended outcome will however determine the way technology is employed, whether that’s an AI to sense, reason (infer) and adapt to produce an output that drives real-time reaction; augmented by Machine Learning (ML) to store and analyse the AI data to improve the outcome over time; or Deep Learning (DL) to infer outcomes through multiple algorithms and data sets.”

4

Artificial Intelligence

Issue no 10 - April 2019

industry 4.0

Video:

Artificial Intelligence: Next Industrial Revolution?

When and how much Can AI be applied piecemeal? Can a manufacturing plant become partly smart, but remain partly pre-4IR as companies implement new technologies according to their budgets, idiosyncrasies and the limits of their imagination?

The answer probably lies in bespoke solutions that, nevertheless, embrace the need to build a smooth integrated manufacturing framework that works and will continue to work for years to come. This would imply the application of AI with the intention of evolving eventually into a complete system where the revolution has no more corners into which it has not gone. Each company is different and has its own priorities, which are reflected in its practices, policies and infrastructure. It is worth, therefore, investing time as much as money into determining the best course and most appropriate time schedule for complete adoption.

“There is an emerging use case for applying smart technologies to a discrete process or supply chain to help quantify, codify and then scale best practice from a ‘known good’ throughout the organisation,” reveals Moulton.

“In this case, smart technologies can instrument and measure something that you already do really well, help to quantify why and how it’s a core competency and then to map that competency throughout the entire supply chain process. This may well include bringing in third party suppliers, encouraging them to be a part of the instrumentation process.”

Moulton notes that businesses that leverage the intimate knowledge of the manufacturing processes held by factory-level workers to identify feasible AI initiatives to make targeted improvements to productivity tend to experience better results. “This approach, combined with partnering with trusted technology vendors, can significantly shorten the path to becoming an AI-driven company,” he says.

5

industry 4.0 Issue no 10 - April 2019

Artificial Intelligence

Benefits of AI AI is about partnership and integration. The 4th Industrial Revolution is digitally driven and shows no signs of slowing down. The potential for AI application is far from exhausted but continues to supply answers to new problems as they arise and new areas of manufacturing as they emerge.

AI is about partnership and integration. The 4th Industrial Revolution is digitally driven and shows no signs of slowing down. The potential for AI application is far from exhausted but continues to supply answers to new problems as they arise and new areas of manufacturing as they emerge.

Data and connectivity are of prime importance.

Data whether live or historic, much gathered by sensors and processed remotely, needs collection, collation and analysis. AI makes manufacturing more flexible by introducing prediction and reactivity, responding to eventualities and providing solutions.

The 4th Industrial Revolution involves a fresh layering of manufacturing input - human, mechanical, electrical, digital and robotic. AI is the ubiquitous agent of change and facilitation whereby the establishment and integration of the layers are established to comprise a single manufacturing entity. Whereas mundane labour tasks will be performed increasingly by machines rather than human beings, the human workforce will be redeployed rather than replaced. The smart factory has become a machine itself, run by AI and requiring: minding, maintaining, administering and monitoring by human beings, but ever more remotely.

“AI systems deployed in conjunction with IoT sensors can repeatedly measure and react with extraordinary speed and accuracy across a huge spectrum of environments,”

6

Generative design and training AI-driven generative design is an evolution of AI-human partnership where we set design objectives for the AI to consider, explains Moulton. “This approach can significantly accelerate the development time and reduce the overall cost of manufacturing dramatically.

But it’s worth noting that the human ultimately remains in charge making the final design decision.”

Monitoring and testing in real time?

“AI systems deployed in conjunction with IoT sensors can repeatedly measure and react with extraordinary speed and accuracy across a huge spectrum of environments,” the Global CTO comments. “But AI is only as good as the algorithms that it is deployed with. Perhaps surprisingly, much depends on the definition of real time, the associated thresholds, how they are measured and what constitutes a deviation. When combined with techniques such as Machine Learning AI systems can in some instances infer outcomes that are too difficult or nuanced to be detected by human monitoring techniques.”

Issue no 10 - April 2019

Artificial Intelligence

industry 4.0

AI in the UK The UK is a world leader in AI and 4IR, so well placed as a global smart manufacturing hub.

Innovative companies are already located at the beating heart of technological innovation and primed to be at the forefront of change.

The UK government has set out its vision and strategy around Artificial Intelligence as a ‘grand challenge’, says Moulton. “This is why AI is now taking centre-stage for the UK government’s industrial strategy focusing on clean growth and the future of mobility. The strategy also includes opportunities to look after and managing an aging society and how to exploit the datasets in government and the private sector using AI to improve productivity and generate economic value.

The UK is in great shape to explore these challenges because we have world-leading universities and leading private businesses. We also have some of the most digitally minded consumers and businesses in the world that has firmly placed our country as one of the leading nations around digital transformation.”

What next?

“The next phase of AI in manufacturing is reaching scale to deliver the economics of mass instrumentation of an entire manufacturing environment,” says Moulton.

“AI as a technology has matured to the point where it should not be considered a science project, and the costs associated with the required instrumentation engines – IoT connected sensors – are at a point where they can be considered marginal versus the returns that can be realised.

As companies start to recognise the process improvements and the associated returns to the bottom line of a well instrumented, constantly iterating industrial process AI, ML and DL will become embedded in business practices and viewed as commonplace. In fact, it will be considered retrograde to not have them.”

Find out more: delltechnologies.com linkedin.com/company/delltechnologies twitter.com/DellTech

7

“Simply put, generative design means humans and computers working together to create objects beyond the human imagination alone.�

Product Designs Beyond the Human Imagination Why future product development with generative design and artificial intelligence will now gain momentum

Paul Haimes, VP, Europe Technical Sales, PTC

The concept of generative design controlled by artificial intelligence (AI) in product development is not ground-breaking innovation. Some years ago, there was the first hype around this topic; but there was still no real breakthrough in this field.

The scepticism towards AI algorithms seemed to be too great a driving force in product design. In addition, it was difficult for suppliers of 3D CAD technology to get engineers and developers enthusiastic about the early and frequent use of simulation technology in the design process, as the technological challenges such as the lack of application speed often seemed too great.

8

But, a lot has happened since that time.

Thanks to cloud technologies and advances in simulation technology, 3D printing, and, as one of the AI technologies, machine learning, the concept of generative design in product development is facing a broader application in the market. And with that, it is now time to think about the future role of the product developer.

Artificial Intelligence

Issue no 10 - April 2019

industry 4.0

The true “Computer Aided Design” Simply put, generative design means humans and computers working together to create objects beyond the human imagination alone. While product developers and engineers have been actively thinking and creating a new product, component or larger construction - such as a bridge or a house - using the computer and modern CAD software as a tool, generative design turns the computer into the driving creative force.

Human beings first define design parameters and functional requirements such as maximum size (installation space), weight, type of material, load capacity, manufacturing process or costs.

It is even possible to define further design parameters that consider purchasing decisions, manufacturing capacities, the status of the supply chain and regionally required product variants. Then the computer takes over, but it not only calculates an optimal geometry, it also creates thousands of design drafts that meet the specified criteria catalogue, pushing it in all possible directions. Thus, simulation is integrated into the development process through generative design. So, for example, the system only generates designs suitable for the CNC milling machine or the 3D printer, although differing production methods can be proposed for selection.

The advantages that companies achieve through the generative design process alone are manifold: The productivity of the product development department in the design phase increases immensely as well as the gain in creativity and innovation if more time can be invested in researching conceptual designs.

For example, it is possible to develop more powerful designs with lower weight and improved durability. At the same time, this type of development promotes the optimization of new products for improved manufacturability, the reduction of material costs and shorter production times, and it allows a high degree of personalization, which will delight customers.

Because simulation, analysis and manufacturing are all on the same level, the risk of costly rework is dramatically reduced, which can further reduce time to market.

AI chooses the “winner” After several thousand design drafts have been developed, using generative design and a possible catalogue of boundary conditions, technology does not leave the human being alone how should he finally determine which draft fits best? This part of the evaluation is carried out by AI. It selects the most suitable version and thus selects the “winner” based on the specifications.

The developer, on the other hand, can have several design variants selected at this point using various parameters such as the best suggestions for different materials ie the lightest model with the greatest possible stiffness. Criteria can also be changed in real time, whether it’s material or design requirements, as well as parameters linked to production costs, such as production volume, are converted immediately by the software.

The technology provides the developer with optimized designs for several targets simultaneously in a very short time. Once the possibilities have been explored, the first prototypes can be produced in milling machines or 3D printers, or the results can be automatically incorporated into tests based on other company findings, including cost calculations, supply chains and quality data. This not only saves an enormous amount of time, but also greatly increases output.

The “aided” in CAD - Computer Aided Design - is finally actually implemented.

9

industry 4.0 Issue no 10 - April 2019

Artificial Intelligence

Generative design is not topology optimization At this point, it is important to review the difference between generative design and other technologies such as topology optimization, grid optimization or the like, which are often listed under one name.

While generative design is based on a “white sheet of paper” for which the product developer only defines a few framework criteria, all other technologies refer to the optimization of an already existing design through simulation on the 3D model.

Here, for example, the aim is to reduce the weight without changing the outer shape of the component. However, this does not create completely new design possibilities as in generative design, but only optimized variations of a known solution.

The product developer remains the last instance As already described, generative design and AI change the entire product development process and thus also the role of the product developer or engineer himself. In the past, he was the driving creative force that delivered design drafts but in this process, he becomes more of a curator of the results.

Although he remains involved in the design phase from the outset, he only defines the parameters for the computer and then juggles with a few objectives such as the fastest production variant, the most cost-effective model in production or the variant with the best product characteristics. Compared to today’s reality, this has the advantage, among other things, that he no longer must defend his models against other decision-makers; after all, all of them have been created using algorithms, whereby the respective optimum can be assumed.

10

However, an important role remains - the examining eye in terms of optics and aesthetics.

The computer does not (yet) possess this. It calculates all given parameters and implements the optimal design according to technical aspects. Does a car ultimately have an appearance that appeals to the buyer despite its “optimal” design, or does it become a shelf warmer for car dealerships? What about colour and people’s aesthetic sense of form?

Does a material feel “better” in the calculation despite its poor performance and is it more likely to be bought? These are all questions that demand the product developer’s broad set of multisensory capabilities and experience. There is a difference whether it is a component within a machine, car or airplane that no one will see later, or whether it is a component or a product that is visible later and whose shape, colour or sound can be decisive for the purchase.

Issue no 10 - April 2019

Artificial Intelligence

industry 4.0

Ready for daily use Generative design and AI have now reached a maturity that makes a wide range of applications possible. This is also ensured by new application packages, such as PTC who offer it within its future Creo portfolio, in which the ANSYS visualization technology and the Generative Design technology of the company acquired at the end of last year are frustrating. The joint solution shifts the analysis to the beginning of the design process.

Using the integrated functions of Frustum and ANSYS, Creo can recommend design methods with generative design, guide users through the iterative design process with ANSYS Discovery Live and validate the complete product to scale with the more comprehensive ANSYS Discovery package. These Creo-integrated features provide product developers with world-class opportunities to rapidly drive product innovation.

Gone are the days of slow applications that cost more time than they save. As a result, generative design and AI are likely to be more widely adopted very soon as companies increasingly discover the benefits of this method in conjunction with available technology. Especially the first users who will be able to design and manufacture products faster and offer them with improved features or at a lower price.

Find out more: ptc.com linkedin.com/company/ptc twitter.com/PTC

SPEAKER Julien Develle,

Head of Sales, AMA XpertEye

DAY 1 10 APRIL TH

3 pm

3 rd INDUSTRY 4.0 SUMMIT & EXPO Be part of the 4 th industrial revolution

Advanced Remote Solutions

MEET US BOOTH B10!

THE DRIVING FOR

BEHIND PERFO Drive System Software

IndraMotion MLD

Open Core Engineering

Technology Functions

WE MOVE. YOU WIN. www.boschrexroth.co.uk/drives

CE

ORMANCE Cycling may be an individual sport, but behind each winner is a team of expert technicians responsible for driving them to victory.

In the same way, the technology pioneers in your business will understand the importance of drives in delivering your future success.

Choosing a reliable automation partner is the key to the future success of every machine builder and end user. Only through the best drive solutions, delivered with speed and efficiency, can your business maximise productivity.

We recommend you have the world-leading drives experts steering you towards the finish line.

Energy Efficiency

Safety Technology

Next Generation Industry 4.0 Technologies

Blockchain

Blockchain has matured in the last few years, but Gartner’s 2018 curve analysis still places the technology at “peak hype”. IBM has been investing heavily in the technology for the last three years; it donated code to Linux Foundation Hyperledger Fabric project back in December 2015. Industry 4.0 magazine tracked down the Blockchain CTO for IBM’s Blockchain Solutions business to find out whether Blockchain is on a fast-track journey to the trough of disillusionment or whether there’s a more positive story to be told.

14

Krishna Ratakonda, IBM Fellow & CTO, Blockchain Solutions

Some 90 percent of world trade is carried out by the international shipping industry using more than 50,000 merchant ships. However the industry still relies on many manual and paper-based processes.

To help connect the global shipping ecosystem and improve efficiency, the IBM and Maersk TradeLens platform uses blockchain technology to help provide real-time insight to critical data about shipments.

Krishna Ratakonda was made an IBM Fellow in 2014. Since then his work has featured prominently in IBM Investor briefings, and in the press – from AI-inspired recipes with Chef Watson in 2013, through social analytics in 2015, to how Blockchain can be applied to financial services in 2016.

Much of the focus of his recent work is on Blockchain as applied to global trade – with implications for manufacturers and their logistics and retail partners.

When we speak with him, he begins by pointing out that while the early variations of Blockchain – most notably bitcoin – were all about the exchange of value by anonymous participants, today’s Blockchain solutions are much more interesting in terms of their potential.

“Blockchain technologies allow for the exchange of information in a secure and automated fashion. This lends itself to the exchange of information between partners; for example, for smart contracts. In this way, Blockchain is beginning to look like traditional data communications but with some new properties. This makes it much more interesting from a manufacturing point of view.”

Video:

IBM Blockchain Car Lease Demo

15

industry 4.0 Issue no 10 - April 2019

blockchain

The Principles of Blockchain Ratakonda identifies three key principles which underlie this new generation of Blockchain technologies: • Immutability • Identity • Privacy

“When you start to appreciate the special characteristics of this type of network, you can start to understand ‘how can I use this?’,” he says.

Most people are familiar with the concept of immutability as it pertains to the Blockchain world. The distributed ledger technology depends on a quorum of network participants to agree on the state of the legers, thereby underwriting its immutability.

The second characteristic – that of identity – is where Blockchain has evolved the most since its early days. At the start, Blockchain was designed to be anonymous.

“That anonymity came at a price,” explains Ratakonda. “You have to have a stringent way of checking that transactions aren’t fraudulent.

But once you turn that around and say ‘on this Blockchain network we do need some

Ratakonda way of checking people are who they say they are’ and actors need identities, then we can bring identity to Blockchain making it more suitable for use within the enterprise.”

This evolution has had some serious implications for the performance of Blockchain networks.

Now transactions can happen much more quickly. Using similar certification tools to the Verisign application we all know from standard Internet financial transaction processing, identities can be confirmed and this means actions can happen much faster.

Ratakonda explains, “Once identities are known there are much more efficient algorithms that can distribute data around the participants. To give you some idea of the scale of magnitude: Bitcoin tops out at around 10 to 20 transactions per second. It’s hard to go beyond that because of the nature of the necessary checks required. With the newer kinds of identitybased Blockchains, what we call Permissioned Blockchain, this actually goes up to something like 2,000 to 3,000 transactions per second.”

Finally, privacy is another key aspect. The data that is shared must be only visible to participants in a secure manner.

Ratakonda asserts, “You don’t want data to be visible to people who are not party to the transaction.”

The Continued Evolution of Blockchain With these three principles guiding its development, Blockchain has moved on significantly in the last few years. There is a ubiquity to the potential use cases, argues Ratakonda.

“It is like the Internet, but it has more guarantees about the data that is being shared. You have a clear line of sight to who shared the data, when they shared the data, and how the data that they shared has never been modified by other parties.”

The launch of Hyperledger Fabric – which IBM uses as the foundation technology for its own Blockchain platform – represented a huge leap forward.

16

Hyperledger is an open source collaborative effort created to advance cross-industry blockchain technologies. It is a global collaboration, hosted by The Linux Foundation, which includes leaders in finance, banking, Internet of Things, supply chains, manufacturing and Technology

blockchain

Issue no 10 - April 2019

industry 4.0

About Hyperledger Not since the Web itself has a technology promised broader and more fundamental revolution than blockchain technology. A blockchain is a peer-to-peer distributed ledger forged by consensus, combined with a system for “smart contracts� and other assistive technologies.

Together these can be used to build a new generation of transactional applications that establishes trust, accountability and transparency at their core, while streamlining business processes and legal constraints.

Think of it as an operating system for marketplaces, data-sharing networks, micro-currencies, and decentralized digital communities. It has the potential to vastly reduce the cost and complexity of getting things done in the real world.

Only an Open Source, collaborative software development approach can ensure the transparency, longevity, interoperability and support required to bring blockchain technologies forward to mainstream commercial adoption. That is what Hyperledger is about – communities of software developers building blockchain frameworks and platforms.

Read more: hyperledger.org/about

17

industry 4.0 Issue no 10 - April 2019

blockchain

IBM launched IBM Blockchain Platform in March 2017.

Hailed as the most secure enterprise-ready Blockchain services for Hyperledger Fabric, it launched on IBM Cloud. It was the first commercial deployment of opensource Hyperledger Fabric and IBM hopes to create open, integral business networks through its deployment.

One such initiative is the IBM Food Trust network. This uses Blockchain technology to create unprecedented visibility and accountability in the food supply chain.

It is the only network of its kind, connecting growers, processors, distributors, and retailers through a permissioned, permanent and shared record of food system data.

It launched commercially in October 2018 and is currently being piloted by some of the largest global retailers and suppliers, including Nestlé, Dole, Carrefour and Walmart.

“This is not something abstract,” says Ratakonda. “It’s happening in the market already. You can see the whole provenance of a food item.”

What Are the Opportunities for Manufacturers?

The Food Trust network illuminates a key opportunity for all manufacturers: Blockchain is an ideal fit with solutions for demonstrating trusted traceability and provenance.

“These days, the supply chain has become truly global. Goods trade hands many times.

With that, comes the possibility that bad actors can enter the supply chain,” continues Ratakonda. “Whether they do it intentionally or unintentionally, how do you know when someone is introducing bad quality food into the supply chain? Without the ability to trace information in a secure manner, you are relying on each of these parties’ record keeping abilities. Blockchain turns that around: the onus is not on individual participants but, rather, the network itself will maintain the record of where each item came from.”

The other key benefit is the universality.

Participants within the same trading network may start using a variety of different systems to records date, from Excel spreadsheets or an MES system for their recordkeeping or no system at all. Blockchain offers a common model of how the data is shared and how the provenance is recorded.

18

“At present you will never get the level of traceability you need because data often remains in siloes,” says Ratakonda. “Blockchain fundamentally changes that equation.”

With Permissioned Blockchain, IBM envisions that the model will be similar to how other networks operate. Small farmers aren’t going to build up the infrastructure to run their own Blockchain node.

Ratakonda explains, “We’re playing the role of network operator, but we don’t operate the nodes. The network is openly governed by a governance council of members that can make sure that any bad actors in the system are disabled. In the true Blockchain spirit, the larger participants take on the responsibility of making sure the network itself is healthy; that there are enough people who have copies of the transactions to make sure that you can trust the data on the network. Each participant on the network owns their own data and can control who sees it and what gets shared.”

“IBM and Maersk announced today more than 90 companies are piloting TradeLens, a blockchain shipping platform designed to increase transparency and efficiency across the global shipping ecosystem.”

Wider Applications While Food and Beverage is an obvious candidate for this type of solution, the same model applies to many other sectors, argues Ratakonda.

“Traceability is important for pharmaceuticals, especially in the European Union. But how trustworthy that supply chain is isn’t always obvious and it isn’t always easy to enforce standards. Blockchain becomes a way to democratise the network. Even smaller providers can submit their piece of the puzzle.”

“For new people to break into the market, there is no easy way. With Blockchain, because of its immutability, you can use the records on the Blockchain to prove you have a good track record. So supplier scoring is a big aspect of it as well creating greater inclusion of more suppliers.”

Ratakonda identifies ethical mining and sustainable practices as other key areas of potential application. Indeed, Ford began working with IBM at the end of last year to initiate a Blockchain pilot that will improve the traceability of the cobalt used in its electric cars’ lithium-ion batteries. Another project is underway with Seagate to track the provenance of its HDDs in a bid to reduce counterfeiting.

Dispute resolution, maintenance and servicing records, auditing and quality assurance are other convincing use cases.

“Blockchain levels the playing field for smaller manufacturers. If you’re in the market for a certain part, you’d rather go to an established manufacturer that has a long history for delivering at the right time to the right quality,” proposes Ratakonda.

“Today car manufacturers are really only assembling piece parts. The software and various parts and components are coming from many different suppliers. How do you know they will all work together?” Ratakonda asks.

“Blockchain can provide an opportunity across this diverse ecosystem to see how your car was put together, where all of the parts came from and how it was updated over time. This way, if there is a problem, you can identify the cause much faster or understand the origin of a part in the event of a recall.”

19

industry 4.0 Issue no 10 - April 2019

blockchain

The Five to Ten Year Vision Gartner’s analysis puts the date of Blockchain entering the main stream at five to ten years hence.

IBM seems to be operating at the closer end of this spectrum – perhaps it might pass over the “trough of disillusionment” altogether – particularly, in the context of its IBM Food Trust network.

What advice does Ratakonda have for manufacturers in other industries if they wish to explore the potential of Blockchain?

“Everyone in the Blockchain network needs to have some incentive for why they are sharing data with other people in the Blockchain network. The networks that fail are the ones that start with the notion ‘I really need this data so I am going to create a network and everyone else can send me this data’. But everyone needs an incentive as to why they need to send the data and everyone should mutually benefit. For example, in the case of traceability networks we’ve spoken about, the motivation is: recall is a very costly business.

A clear incentive to share the data has to be starting point.”

Making the information visible to the end consumer is one powerful motivation.

This might be made more attractive through one of the features Ratakonda highlights as another future evolution for Blockchain, the ability to prove something without sharing the actual data. “With zero knowledge proofs it can be more nuanced, with new possibilities to share just enough of the right information.”

How Should Manufacturers Engage with Blockchain?

Ratakonda recommends that interested parties look to join a network that already exists “Start with a community that is already in existence,” he recommends. “Building from scratch requires a decent amount of learning in terms of how you want to share data in the network – so start with a network that already exists. On the IBM platform we have a number of networks around trade-related data, and traceability, that already have a lot of participants. These are very active networks with millions of transactions happening each day on them. So starting there is probably a good idea. There are also directories of blockchain networks that can be consulted. Then you can decide which way to go.”

“It’s almost like getting electricity. You get your network connection and you establish an identity. As long as the other parties on the network are ones you want to exchange information with, you can always share only a certain type of information. Maybe you started wanting to share traceability data, but now you want to create some kind of smart contract.

There is nothing to stop you doing that. When you think about it, when we first got the Internet all we did was use it to surf the web. Now our phone service has migrated to the Internet – everything has consolidated to just this one wire coming in.

If there are no existing networks, you need to think about what incentives exist to make everyone want to participate in a new network and share their data.

“Similarly, with Blockchain there will be consolidation overtime. Provided you join a network where most of the people you want to communicate with are already there, there are ways of setting up different types of data you want to share. Over time, we envision there will be a network of blockchain networks, many interoperable and interconnected.”

“Blockchain is like a communications protocol but with some very unique characteristics that make it ideal for the right business applications because it enables trusted, encrypted, real-time interactions,” concludes Ratakonda.

20

Find out more: www.ibm.com/blockchain

Issue no 10 - April 2019

blockchain

industry 4.0

Steps for Implementing Blockchain • Think about the incentives structure for participants: what will motivate them to share information?

• Think about what information you want to share and why?

• Pick the technology, e.g. IBM offers a platform based on Hyperledger that is designed for the enterprise.

• Understand how the blockchain network is governed and how decisions are made.

• Work with a trusted and experienced solutions partner, such as IBM, to set up the network and implement the solution.

“Building from scratch requires a decent amount of learning in terms of how you want to share data in the network – so start with a network that already exists.”

Find out more: ibm.com linkedin.com/company/ibm twitter.com/IBM

21

Manufacturing Analytics at the Core of Industry 4.0

As we embark on the fourth industrial revolution, manufacturers across the globe – and across all industry sectors – are captivated by the promise of various cyber-physical systems that enable the computerization of manufacturing. In particular, decentralized intelligence, which helps to create intelligent object networking and independent process management with the interaction of the real and virtual worlds, represents an exciting new aspect of the manufacturing and production process.

The basic principle is that by connecting machines and systems, we can create intelligent networks along the value chain that control each other. For example, machines would be able to predict failures and trigger maintenance processes autonomously, or self-organize logistics that react to changes in production.

Industry 4.0 technologies include many of today’s buzz-words, like Big Data, artificial intelligence, machine learning, virtual reality, the cloud, internet of things (IoT) and M2M (machine-to-machine communication).

Peter Guilfoyle, Northwest Analytics

These technologies offer the vision of a future with efficient, self-automated manufacturing processes that monitor themselves, so they never go wrong.

However, while many manufacturers are eager to embrace these new technologies, it isn’t uncommon for their progress to falter as they meet a number of stumbling blocks along the way. Typically, these companies stumble because they failed to establish the basic foundation on which to build their digital platforms. That foundation lies in manufacturing analytics – the core of everything that is Industry 4.0.

Find out more: nwasoft.com linkedin.com/company/northwest-analytics twitter.com/nwanalytics

22

What is ‘manufacturing analytics’?

Manufacturing creates and stores more data in a day than many companies do in a month. Plant engineers and operators need knowledge and information quickly, but data interpretation is a constant struggle. Which signals should they listen to? What do those signals mean?

Manufacturing analytics is the science of drawing insights from raw process information sources. The majority of process data offers little value in its raw, unprocessed state, but applying the right tools to those data can reveal trends and metrics that are useful in optimizing the overall efficiency of a business or system, but which would otherwise be lost in a mass of data points and digits.

Manufacturing analytics can be descriptive, predictive and/or prescriptive. Software that captures and analyzes big data is already widely available, offering the ability to detect trends, spot anomalies and predict patterns that provide useful insights and considerable value.

In other words, manufacturing analytics makes sense of data, and converts it into value.

Lloyd Colegrove, PhD, Data Services Director, Fundamental Problem Solving Director at The Dow Chemical Company, began driving Dow’s digital transformation in the early 2000s. As a leading adopter of manufacturing analytics technology within the chemicals sector, Dow is now benefiting greatly from the investments made. However even leaders like Dow needed to start somewhere.

“The question I asked one of our lab technicians about 15 years ago was – what do you do with all the data?” explains Colegrove.

“He looked at me and said we quality assess it to make sure the product is in specification. So my next question was – wouldn’t it be better to use the data to avoid problems before they occur? Why wait until the lab tells us there’s a problem after it has happened?”

Colegrove is widely viewed within the industry as a visionary for manufacturing analytics. His vision is based on the observation that when plants found themselves in trouble, they could understand how the trouble arose by examining the data leading up to the incident, but that it would be far better to know in advance that these issues were about to happen so they could be prevented altogether. Manufacturing analytics provides a means to realizing this promise of the digital age, by unlocking the full potential of vast quantities of manufacturing data – in real time.

It is important to understand that it is only with a core foundation of manufacturing analytics that all that data can be interpreted and implemented for value-added outcomes.

Until this foundation is in place, it is simply not feasible to construct more advanced platforms for systems such as automation or artificial intelligence, as the data management required for those more advanced systems can only be provided – and must be underlaid – by core foundational analytics software.

23

industry 4.0 Issue no 10 - April 2019

Manufacturing analytics

Video:

Resource requirement for Industry 4.0 Analytics.

Where Industry 4.0 should start As any company embarks on its journey to Industry 4.0, it should begin with manufacturing analytics that is simple to use and understand – for example real-time Statistical Process Control (SPC) or a univariate analytics system – yet provides an extensible platform that will then accommodate and enable additional analytics approaches (e.g. multivariate, machine learning).

That software needs to be compatible with existing equipment so it can maximize on existing technologies and data sources, and it should be scalable for future Industry 4.0 technologies. Also key to success is a userfriendly interface, such as a simple dashboard that provides real-time signals for operators and engineers to quickly see and understand, so they can take any actions that might be necessary to run the plant efficiently and safely.

The case study below provides an example of a major chemical company on its journey to Industry 4.0. Crucially, that journey started with an in-depth review of processes and unmet needs, and looked at how best to maximize on existing strengths, expertise and technology in moving forward to the next stage of the company’s evolution. In looking for a solution to processing issues that were impacting the 24

bottom line, the company set a goal to achieve a better, data-driven understanding of parameters changing during the manufacturing process, and the real-time effects of those changes, with the goal of achieving more consistent, more efficient product manufacturing. Manufacturing analytics helped the team to realize what their data meant, which parameters were important, and reduced the 8 hours previously spent collecting and analyzing these data to zero. A simple green/red dashboard enabled operators to quickly and easily see which parameters required attention, so any issues could be dealt with before they affected product quality or caused shut-down. The success of this project reflected careful planning regarding the implementation and applicability of the new technology, setting the company on its path to Industry 4.0 in a useful and productive way.

Case study: Dow Chemical Background: The Dow Chemical Company is a multinational chemical corporation headquartered in Michigan, USA. With a presence in about 160 countries, it employs about 54,000 people, and is the world’s second-largest chemical producer by sales (around $58 billion).

Challenge: One if the company’s US plants had repeated upsets resulting in unscheduled downtime. The problems were costing money in terms of fixing the equipment, lost manufacturing time, and the need to reprocess the catalyst under manufacture, as it did not meet the required quality standards when these issues occurred. The plant’s management realized that they needed to learn how to better listen to the signals that their plant was sending to the operators, and how to better respond to those signals. To satisfy these requirements, Dow selected the NWA Focus EMI® platform from Northwest Analytics.

Solution: Using Dow’s existing expertise, the team identified parameters of importance. This was no simple task – the company had previously been spending 8 hours a week to gather, analyze and visualize their data, but scanning the different datasets in isolation made it difficult to understand what was important.

Analytics helped the team to realize what their data meant, which parameters were important, and reduced the 8 hours previously spent collecting and analyzing these data to zero. With the help of the company’s IT team, the data analytics software connected to existing Dow data sources (e.g. historian data, laboratory and technology data) in real time to capture key data and calculate relationships across different sources. The findings were presented in a simple green/red dashboard that enabled operators to quickly and easily see which parameters required attention, and included recommended actions to help balance competing phenomena.

Result: ROI was rapid, removing the time spent analyzing data and allowing the production team to focus on other things.

A better understanding of the data available, and the real-time nature of the platform meant that any issues were dealt with before they impacted the catalyst or caused shutdown, allowing the plant to have its longest catalyst run ever – in terms of time and product – and an ‘Industry Excellence Award’ from Frost and Sullivan. As the value of the pilot was appreciated by senior management, the data analytics software was marked for roll-out to other Dow plants across the globe.

Video:

Smart Data Analytics: BMW Group relies on intelligent use of production data.

25

“A lot of the current human work can be replaced, but people will always be needed to take some decisions. You can’t replace human creativity,”

Industry 4.0 is an additive process Rather than making a choice between the installation of manufacturing analytics software and the introduction of these advanced technologies, Industry 4.0 needs to be considered an additive process, whereby manufacturing analytics forms the grounding on which more advanced technologies can then be built. Once the analytics is in place, gleaning value from a company’s data and providing a foundation for digital transformation, it is feasible to look at – and ultimately be successful with – more narrow-cast analytics techniques like artificial intelligence, neural networks and machine learning.

For example, machine learning for predictive maintenance should be more sensitive to faint signals because of the foundational analytics in place. Experience built by human experience with the manufacturing analytics interface will provide vital insights into how to best respond to those signals under different circumstances.

Additionally, the software must have input from all possible relevant parameters. It is highly likely that during the implementation of foundational manufacturing analytics, engineers, operators and plant management will achieve a greater understanding of ongoing processes, what the data mean, and which parameters are most important. This will involve signals from unexpected sources that might not have been known or considered before the manufacturing analytics journey started.

Jasper Rutten is Advanced Analytics Manager at Huntsman Corporation, where his goal is to set the route for digitization and advanced analytics for the company’s upstream manufacturing facilities within the Polyurethanes Business.

As manager of the department, he is leading a global journey to bring Industry 4.0 into practice. His experience provides a great example of building a digitized approach in an additive way.

26

“We started our first Proof of Concepts about 3 years ago, about the same time that Industry 4.0 in Europe was taking off,” explains Rutten.

“Working in the polyurethanes division, our aim is to get maximum production out of our units. So we wanted to use all kinds of tools to mine the data and build clever models – neural networks – that would help us run our processes in a more optimal way. We’ve done a lot of conceptual work now, and we know there’s value. But now we’re looking at stage two of real implementation – the long-term view is to get close to full automation.”

Rutten says that currently most companies’ processes are not ready for full automation due to, for instance, cybersecurity issues. However, his vision is that at some point in the not too distant future, algorithms will be one of the key tools helping actively monitor chemical plants.

That’s not to say that there will be no people at all involved. Even ‘full automation’ will require some human input, in Rutten’s view.

“A lot of the current human work can be replaced, but people will always be needed to take some decisions. You can’t replace human creativity,” he points out. He expects new roles will emerge, although it is difficult to predict at this moment what these will look like.

Conclusion The digitization of manufacturing can already be seen picking up speed as more and more companies start to realize the promise that it brings: higher quality products, produced more efficiently, and more economically, with better process safety.

The initial goal of manufacturing analytics is to avoid potential problems altogether by detecting early signals and fixing any anomalies before they impact products or processes. Real-time, analytics-based monitoring offers an early warning system that protects plant assets and product quality – and the people working at those plants.

Beyond this lies the promise of artificial intelligence, neural networks and machine learning.

WEBINAR SERIES PRESENTED

BY

NORTHWEST

A N A LY T I C S

However, building a fully digitized company that embraces such advanced technologies needs to be seen as an additive process, in which the manufacturing analytics provides a core, or backbone, from which more vertical analytics systems can draw strength and structure. Once this foundation is in place, the potential for analytics in manufacturing would appear to be almost limitless. However, that future can only be built on a foundation of manufacturing analytics – the technology that lies at core of Industry 4.0.

M AY 8 , 2 0 1 9 | 3 : 0 0 P M ( G M T )

BUILDING THE FOUNDATION OF INDUSTRY 4.0 L LOY D CO L E G R O V E , P H D

THE DOW CHEMICAL COMPANY

THE FOUNDATION OF INDUSTRY 4.0

GO.NWASOFT.COM/I40WEBINARS COMING SOON...

new ad coming

THE HUMAN ASPECT OF INDUSTRY 4.0 J U LY

SCALING INDUSTRY 4.0 MANUFACTURING ANALYTICS SEPTEMBER

INDUSTRY 4.0 SUCCESS IN SMB MANUFACTURING NOVEMBER

1 1 1 S W F I F T H AV E , S U I T E 8 0 0 | P O R T L A N D O R 9 7 2 0 4 | 1 . 5 0 3 . 2 2 4 . 7 7 2 7 | N WA S O F T. C O M

Supporting Dynamic Reconfigurations in

Flexible Manufacturing

Internet of Things, Data Analytics and Artificial Intelligence, Robotics and Additive Manufacturing are amongst the technologies which enable the vision of flexible and adaptable manufacturing underpinning Industry 4.0. These technologies are necessary but not sufficient to implement this vision. We also need to learn how to manage the millions of dependencies linking organisations, activities and resources in any manufacturing value chain of realistic size, and this is the focal point of a 15-years long research programme conducted in the University of Manchester in collaboration with partners such as Airbus, Comau, MAN, Magna Intier, BT, SAP and Atos.

Historically, production was confined to small artisan workshops, where we had a couple of people, their tools and materials. This configuration could produce bespoke products personalised for every customer. Subcontracting activities or sourcing components such as furniture handles from the ironmonger down the street was also flexible and done with comparative ease.

28

Prof Nikolay Mehandjiev Professor of Enterprise Information Systems

At the other extreme we have the contemporary production lines such as those of Volkswagen which has six factories in Germany alone employing more than 130,000 people. Its Wolfsburg plant is now producing over 800,000 Golfs, Tiguans and Tourans per annum, with a workforce of 21,000 and 98.3% utilisation of resources. The supply chain is also incredibly complex, with 15000 processing and transporting stations on the path of raw material to a component installed in a Volkswagen car.

Coordinating all activities and resources in such a factory to achieve this amazing utilisation rate has created a complex network of dependencies, and managing these dependencies by conventional means stands in the way of any visions of dynamic reconfigurations and personalised production. The figure below illustrates this trade-off between agility and complexity.

Flexible Manufacturing

Issue no 10 - April 2019

industry 4.0

Video:

Academic Experts From The University of Manchester Talk About Industry 4.0

At the University of Manchester we study how to manage these dependencies in novel ways, using Artificial Intelligence techniques and formal representations of manufacturing structures, resources and processes. We create new approaches to flexible manufacturing both within and outside of a factory.

Within the factory we focus on innovative approaches of dynamic reconfiguration of production facilities to minimise the impact of changing order mixes on the throughput. We do this by allowing orders to find their way through the factory using mechanisms borrowed from ant colonies, where ants leave pheromones once they find food, and other ants follow the scent trail to the food. This ensures seamless adaptable routing of orders to the processing centres. The processing centres can also move to accommodate changing order mixes, avoiding the pitfalls of conventional solutions to the facilities layout problem and resulting in 20% to 30% improvement of throughput within a range of conditions where order mixes change in accord with the Industry 4.0 visions of personalised manufacturing and “lot size of one�.

These ideas are also impacting collaborations outside of any single factory, indeed the creation of a new customised product implies the rapid creation of product-specific supply networks.

We call this demand-driven supply network formation, and support the creation of consortia which can deliver the required product or service.

The software supporting this creation is based on formalised knowledge about the specific manufacturing domain, about the skills and capabilities of suppliers within the domain, and about collaborative teamwork including process coordination and team risks. We have created a demonstrator of these ideas in collaboration with Airbus on Digicor, an â‚Ź8m H2020 project involving partners from five European countries.

Having developed the software supporting the rapid creation of supply networks, we are now focusing on the factors and features which will make business managers follow the advice of the software and convert the recommendations in real consortia. This poses a new set of challenges which we address within a wider research programme looking at the attitudes to artificial intelligence in the context of Industry 4.0.

29

SpONSORED ARTICLE

BUILDING A BUSINESS CASE FOR INDUSTRY 4.0 CONvINCING YOUR STAkEhOLDERS Much noise has been made about Industry 4.0 and the global movement towards connected factories, but the reality is that here in the UK, things are moving a lot slower – and rightly so.

For drives and controls expert Bosch Rexroth, the fourth industrial revolution isn’t actually a revolution at all, but rather a period of logical and essential evolution- an evolution doesn’t happen overnight.

Here, Andrew Minturn, Strategic Product Manager at Bosch Rexroth, explores the first - and critical - phase of transitioning towards a connected facility: stakeholder engagement.

The concept of Industry 4.0 was first coined in Germany in 2010, with the manufacturing superpower leading from the helm with the implementation of digitised factories, connected plant and more importantly, a connected supply chain. Here in the UK, progress is slower, with most successful penetration points to date being the result of a UK subsidiary pushed towards digitisation by their German or Japanese based head offices.

3630

Many surveys and studies have revealed that there is a reluctance and even a suspicion towards implementation of data-driven facilities, and a lack of education amongst stakeholders has been identified as one hindrance to progress.

ThE SITUATION RIGhT NOw Whilst the ‘factory of the future’ has gained much media attention in recent years, this has largely caused a sense of panic for many facilities who think they need to completely digitise their facility overnight – a task which would be near impossible for even the most well-resourced business.

Media hype aside, the situation right now in the UK is that smart manufacturing, connected equipment, data-driven facility management and a connected supply chain are all on the horizon. Evolution has started, and you must factor it in to your growth strategy in order to maintain your market position.

That said, industry leaders like Bosch Rexroth are promoting a steady, strategic, step-by-step approach to fully connecting a facility. A process which Rexroth itself has undertaken and successfully completed. The first stage to this strategy is to convince reluctant stakeholders to engage with the possibilities of Industry 4.0 in a process of education and information sharing.

Let’s look at five areas of buy-in which many facilities could focus on during this early, but critical, stakeholder engagement phase: UNDERSTAND ThAT EvOLUTION IS pOSSIBLE, EvEN FOR AGEING mANUFACTURING ENvIRONmENTS The notion that a process facility is too large or too old to evolve in favour of digitisation is unfortunately a common one and is a mindset which must be challenged if stakeholders are to engage with and support industrial connectivity.

Whether a facility chooses to take a granular approach to Industry 4.0 implementation, or prefers the idea of a complete digital switchover, it is important to remember that digital technologies are highly scalable and can match even the largest, most complex of production environments.

Even legacy machinery equipment which at first glance, doesn’t lend itself to machine communication and data sharing can often be bought inline too, with a variety of technologies on the market designed to support the digitisation of ageing infrastructure. For many reluctant stakeholders, this offers reassurance over CAPEX investments in the early stages of any Industry 4.0 strategy.

SpONSORED ARTICLE Identifying the correct connectivity implementation partners, and carefully assessing each area of the process line to outline where efficiencies could be realised and which machinery holds the largest potential ROI are time consuming but completely vital tasks which shouldn’t be rushed.

CUSTOmER AND SUppLY ChAIN DEmANDS wILL REqUIRE CONNECTIvITY

DATA-DRIvEN mAINTENANCE AND pROCESS SYSTEm hEALTh

The gold standard in Industry 4.0 is not that of a digitised factory, but of a digitised supply chain; something which the automotive industry in particular is keen to adopt. It has been suggested by many early adopters that before long, the ability to ‘plug in’ to an Industry 4.0 ready supply chain will become a “qualifier to compete”, and those who are unable to connect in this way will face losing out on valuable customer contracts.

At plant level, real-time gathering and processing of data from sensors not only enables production quality checks at the point of manufacture and economical batch size reduction, but also facilitates accurate machine and system health checks and continuous monitoring.

A connected supply chain maximises efficiencies and profit for the entire route to market and is the only viable way industry will be able to meet the demands of the more convenience-led, digitally-minded customer profile of the future.

Working within a fully automated supply chain allows suppliers and logistics providers to view data gathered and analysed at plant level so that they can adjust their performance in accordance with realtime production requirements. Further downstream, there could be additional automated communication with delivery providers and the customer, generating lean efficiencies for OEMs. Failing to show your commitment to this process of evolution will, in the medium-to-longer term, damage supply chain relationships and leave you unable to service the demands of connected customer demanding the ultimate in efficiency and convenience.

With instant, and even remote, access to this information, repairs and maintenance can be predicted and scheduled in to natural production breaks, to prevent costly plant downtime or worse, unplanned system failure.

A SLOw AND STRATEGIC AppROACh wILL mAINTAIN OUTpUTS AND DELIvER OpTImISED RESULTS The idea of delivering a complete digital overhaul of a process facility is simply unreasonable and would most likely require a considerable period of system shutdown to initiate; a cost and inconvenience which most facilities simply couldn’t offset.

A more successful approach is a slow and highly strategic stepby-step process, which enables businesses enough time to make well-researched and well-considered decisions. Remember, this is evolution, not revolution – a message which must be made clear when vying for stakeholder buy-in.

SENSORS ARE A SENSIBLE START FOR GAThERING DATA AND IDENTIFYING OppORTUNITIES FOR ImpROvEmENT Contrary to what much of the media hype might have us believe, the right place to start your journey towards connectivity is in fact data gathering via sensors, which are fitted onto a cell, machine or tool. These sensors are connected to software which, once correctly installed, can measure variables such as temperature, pressure, vibration and power consumption.

It is important to work with a leading provider to assess, install and help you to interpret the process data you gather, in order to shape your ongoing digitisation strategy.

Once process data gathering is in place, businesses can choose to enhance the capabilities of their insitu sensors, through the integration of ‘higher-level systems’ which will facilitate the collation and display of data in real-time. This can lift your connectivity implementation from a simple ‘plug and play’ function to something which is more integral to the business’s overall infrastructure and processes.

The benefits of starting with data collection and interpretation is clear.

It provides businesses with their first taste of a connected environment, and an inside view to the machines they rely on daily, it also enables decision makers and strategy facilitators to validate their connectivity plans before requesting additional CAPEX or larger scale evolutionary improvements.

Engaging with stakeholders on the evolution of a process facility towards Industry 4.0 can be daunting, but make no mistake, failure to move in favour of connectivity will result in loss of revenue and ultimately reduced market share. Early adoption and a slow, strategic, step-by-step approach, under the guidance of a class-leading industrial connectivity specialist, is a proven recipe for success.

For more information on sensors and other Industry 4.0 technologies, visit the new Bosch Rexroth blog called 7.51 at community.boschrexroth.com/t5/Rexroth-Community/ct-p/rexroth_community

31 37

From Manchester city centre to the Orkney Isles

How Manchester Metropolitan University’s research is powering one of the UK’s northernmost points When you think of tech innovation, the Orkney Isles may not be the first place to spring to mind.

However, due to an abundance of wind and wave power, the people of the Orkney Isles now produce more energy than they use — although not necessarily during peak demand.

32

“Reducing the costs of electrolysers may also bring down the cost of power for the Orkney Isles community, benefiting residents and workers alike.”

With a production of 120% of power needs, the question arises of how to use and store excess power. This is where expertise from Manchester Metropolitan University comes in.

Manchester Fuel Cell Innovation Centre at Manchester Metropolitan University is working with the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) in Orkney to help use the existing renewable sources. Researchers will explore how to connect them to electrolysers to provide hydrogen power, a storable fuel source, and reduce power generation costs for the region.

Through a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP), a research associate will work with EMEC with academic supervision from the University over a three-year period, providing the Centre with focused technical expertise.

Whilst in post, the associate will work on the development of a hydrogen-powered fuel cell ‘stack’ and a prototype electrolyser that can be synchronised with the renewable energy sources already in use on the island.

A significant cost of electrolysers, which split water into hydrogen and gas, is the requirement for costly precious metals to operate. To reduce costs, the KTP will explore replacing expensive components with advanced 2D nanomaterials. Extremely thin at two nanometres or less, the nanomaterial would be cheaper to manufacture. Part of the KTP’s remit is to investigate the commercialisation potential of this novel electrolyser.

Manchester Metropolitan University has the unique ability to support this project with its facilities and expertise in the mass production of cheap, scalable and reproducible screen-printed electrodes. Any prototypes produced will also be tested for their hydrogen output purity and robustness at the University and in Orkney.

Reducing the costs of electrolysers may also bring down the cost of power for the Orkney Isles community, benefiting residents and workers alike.

Such work is imperative: while the Orkney Isles makes good use of renewable energy, over half of residents spend more than 10% of their household income of fuel. Orkney MSP Liam McArthur describes the amount of fuel poverty as “astronomical”.

33

industry 4.0 Issue no 10 - April 2019

from Manchester to the Orkney Isles

Researcher Dr Samuel Rowley-Neale has been working closely with EMEC and says “I have found that there can be a disconnect between state-of-the-art technologies developed within universities and their application within commercial settings. Here at Manchester Metropolitan University, we’re working to bridge this divide.

“I take great pride in this project, as it is based upon the original work that I published here at Manchester Metropolitan”, says Sam. He is supervised by Professor Craig Banks, who features in a list of the most highly cited researchers in the world in 2018.

“What is so exciting about this project is that cutting-edge knowledge of how advanced 2D materials can be used in fuel cells will be transferred directly from the University to the EMEC. “Manchester Metropolitan University and EMEC will work together to develop the next generation of hydrogen-producing devices.

These in turn will allow green hydrogen-based energy technologies compete on price with their fossil fuel based competitors, helping to reduce polluting emissions and tackle the problems of man-made climate change.

Director of Manchester Fuel Cell Innovation Centre Amer Gaffar adds, “the project is one that will result in producing real innovation for the sector.

“For a while now, the Orkney Isles has been emerging as a real leader in developing clean hydrogen technology. The Islands are using wind and tidal power innovations to lead the way for the UK’s transition to a low-carbon economy.

“Working with EMEC is a fantastic collaboration for Manchester Metropolitan University and Manchester Fuel Cell Innovation Centre. Our plan and hope is that in three years’ time we have a commercial product that is capable of producing hydrogen at a much lower cost than current levels.

The project and partnership will result in real innovation and step change in the sector.”

Discover more about Manchester Fuel Cell Innovation Centre: Staff from Manchester Fuel Cell Innovation Centre will be on the Manchester Metropolitan University stand at next week’s Industry 4.0 Summit and Expo with a demonstration of live fuel cells in action. mmu.ac.uk/fuelcell

“Manchester Metropolitan University and EMEC will work together to develop the next generation of hydrogen-producing devices. These in turn will allow green hydrogenbased energy technologies compete on price with their fossil fuel based competitors, helping to reduce polluting emissions and tackle the problems of man-made climate change.

34

INDUSTRY 4.0 SUMMIT & EXPO 10TH - 11TH APRIL 2019

Industry 4.0 Summit is the UK’s premier gathering of senior manufacturing executives interested in achieving real-time benefits from implementing Industry 4.0 technologies and practices across their operations. It returns to Manchester for the third year on April 10th & 11th 2019.

The Industry 4.0 Summit and Expo takes place over two days at the Manchester Central Convention Complex. Entrance to the Expo is free when you pre-register.

Video:

Industry 4.0 Summit & Expo 2019 Promotional Video

36

“You are missing an opportunity if you are not here.”

Deborah Sherry, Senior Vice President & Chief Commercial Officer, GE DIGITAL EUROPE

THE SUMMIT Industry 4.0 Summit is the UK’s premier gathering of senior manufacturing executives interested in achieving real-time benefits from implementing Industry 4.0 technologies and practices across their operations.

The two-day, insight-packed programme will help you advance your Industry 4.0 strategies – wherever you are on your journey towards digitalisation. It’s a unique opportunity to network with your peers and get your Industry 4.0 questions answered.

Summit keynote speakers include: Brian Holliday, Managing Director, Siemens PLC, Digital Factory

Donna Edwards, Programme Director, Made Smarter North West

Ian Funnell, CEO, ABB UK

Sheryl Bunton, VP Chief Information Officer, Gulfstream Aerospace

Nigel Moulton, Global CTO in the Modern Data Center Business Unit, Dell Technologies

Stephen Phipson CBE, CEO & Chair, MAKEUK – The Manufacturers’ Organisation

Stewart Miller, Operations Director, Bosch Rexroth

Paulo Bartolo, Industry 4.0 Lead, University of Manchester

Andy Schofield, Manufacturing & Materials Strategy and Technology Director, BAE Systems – Air

Emma McLeod, Principal, Process Technology, Mondelez International

Debates include an Industry Leaders’ panel which will examine how to deliver Britain’s fourth industrial revolution. Over the two days, we’ll hear from manufacturers who have already moved towards Industry 4.0 and learn from their experiences, picking up ideas and best practice to make manufacturing smarter.

37

THE expo The expo is a showcase of digital solutions – from IIOT, automation, robotics, sensors, big data, artificial intelligence, materials, to predictive maintenance.

Thanks to our sponsors, attendees can also get involved in a variety of free events on the Expo floor.

Open Technology Forum, sponsored by Siemens

Robot Zone, sponsored by Omron

SME Clinic, in partnership with Made Smarter North West, sponsored by Valuechain Technologies

Digital Innovation Challenge in partnership with Manchester Metropolitan University

One-day IOT workshop, run and sponsored by Intel

Women in 4.0 lunch

Please note: If you wish to attend the free one-day IoT workshop, you must book in advance to secure your place.

Video:

Innovate UK talks about how technology can enable the 4th industrial revolution

38

INDUSTRY 4.0 SUMMIT & EXPO

Issue no 10 - April 2019

industry 4.0

PROMOTING NEW TALENT The Industry 4.0 Summit & Expo has a strong track record in supporting new talent.

We’re delighted that former Manchester Metropolitan University student, International Student Ambassador and Women in Leadership Ambassador, Elen Perry is part of our conference programme. Elen has won international competitions because of her work in additive manufacturing at the university’s Print City Campus.

Students from Manchester Metropolitan University and the University of Manchester will be exhibiting their work on the Universities’ stands throughout the exhibition.

The Industry 4.0 team at Manchester Metropolitan University were part of the panel which has selected the eight finalists in the Expo’s Digital Innovation Challenge.

Student teams from around the world submitted their Industry 4.0 innovations throughout 2018. The eight shortlisted finalists will be presenting their ideas on day one of the Expo on the main exhibition floor.

The 2019 finalists are: Elen Parry @ManMetUni Adam Votava @alookanalytics Marcin Regulski @MiddlesexUni David Byrne @LimerickIT Emmanuel Ayodele @UniversityLeeds Dien Curtis @HiveUrbanFarms Thomas Kendall @OfficialUoM Emiliano Pinto @OfficialUoM

The winning finalist will be announced at the end of day one, with an opportunity to showcase their ideas at the Expo throughout day two.

CELEBRATING WOMEN IN INDUSTRY 4.0 The Women in Industry 4.0 lunch was one of the most vibrant elements of the 2018 Expo.

Infused with a real spirit of empowerment, it brings together leading women in their fields with the aspiring engineers and manufacturing leaders of the future.

We’re delighted that the Summit programme features some fantastic women speakers, but we’re still not at parity yet. Through initiatives like the Industry 4.0 women’s lunch, we hope to strengthen the talent pool and widen the opportunities for women in the sector in the years to come – and hopefully inspire a new generation of role models.

We are thrilled that the Women’s Engineering Society will be represented at the Expo this year. This member-led organisation is celebrating its centenary this year. Drop by the WES stand if you would like to find out more about the work the society does to support and inspire women to achieve as engineers, scientists and as leaders – or if you would like to become part of this professional network.

39

industry 4.0 Issue no 10 - April 2019

INDUSTRY 4.0 SUMMIT & EXPO

EVENTS ON THE EXPO FLOOR All exhibition visitors can participate in a variety of events that are happening around the exhibition hall.

Open Technology Forum This mini-conference is a free-to-attend programme for all Expo attendees. It provides a platform for suppliers and organisations working in the sector to share their success stories and insights.

Sponsored by

In order to enable you to get the most from the presentations they have been grouped by technology theme. The format is a series of succinct fifteen-minute presentations offering a precise insight into the deployment and business benefits of each technology.

Robot Zone Discover the latest robotic technologies from industry and academia in a dedicated display area on the Expo floor.

Sponsored by

Featuring new solutions from technology leaders such as HMK, Omron and ABB, the area will be staffed by students from the University of Manchester. The young, enthusiastic team will be on hand to answer your questions.

If you’d like to know more, then simply ask the team to direct you to the technology suppliers’ stands elsewhere on the Expo floor.

Round Tables The Round Table sessions were very well received last year. Delegates valued the opportunity to sit down with their peers and explore and debate Industry 4.0 topics in greater depth.

This year, the Round Table sessions return for the second day of the conference.

Whether you are a Tier One manufacturer, a technology provider or an SME still finding your way with Industry 4.0, we invite you to sit down with us: your contribution will help to shape the debate. Round Tables are open to Summit delegates only. Please book your place in advance.

40

Sponsored by

INDUSTRY 4.0 SUMMIT & EXPO

industry 4.0

Issue no 10 - April 2019

SME Clinic Do you have a particular aspect of Industry 4.0 about which you’d like to know more? Would you like advice from someone who is already wearing the t-shirt about how to get started? Drop by the SME Clinic for a free consultation session with an Industrial Digital Technology adviser from the Made Smarter North West team, Valuechain and other experts.

in partnership with

MADE SMARTER.

Sponsored by

valuechain

One-day IOT workshop Intel’s workshops in 2018 were highly praised by the participating delegates, so we’re delighted Intel are returning this year. This year’s free-to-attend course is “The Smart Video” workshop.

Sponsored by

The one-day training sessions will run over both days of the conference, but spaces are limited to just 25 delegates per day. If you would like to participate in the workshop this year, please book as soon as you can to secure your place.

ACADEMIA SUMMIT

co-hosted by

An academic programme is running alongside the Industry event, with a separate event programme. This will be the second International Conference on Sustainable Smart Manufacturing (S2M 2019).

The Industry 4.0 Academia Summit takes place over the 9th – 11th April 2019 in Manchester. It is co-hosted by The University of Manchester (UK), The University of Lisbon (Lisbon School of Architecture) and The Polytechnic of Leiria (School of Technology and Management).

30% OFF

Tickets can be purchased online gbmedia.circdata-solutions.co.uk/RFG/publish/ISE19 Apply promo code EX30 at the registration page.

41

2019 Headline SponsorS

A 2-day conference examining best practices for manufacturers keen to digitalise their business

31ST March - 1st April 2020 Manchester, UK

400+ delegates and 40 speakers. 2019 speakers include: Brian Holliday Siemens plc, Digital Factory

Stephen Phipson CBE EEF - the manufacturers’ organisation

Donna Edwards Made Smarter North West

A FREE to attend 2-day exhibition showcasing the latest technologies & solutions for Industry 4.0

Andy Schofield BAE Systems – Air

Emma McLeod Mondelēz International

FREE TO ATTEND

E EXX PPO O 31ST March - 1st April 2020 Manchester, UK

2019 Sponsors and Partners

valuechain MADE SMARTER.

Join the 4th Industrial Revolution

42 Visit www.industry40summit.com | Email info@industry40summit.com

SUBSCRIBE

www.youtube.com/industry40tv Industry 4.0 TV is the official channel of The Industry 4.0 Summit 2019 - Europe’s leading event for Industry 4.0. We regularly visit exhibitions and bring our viewers a snapshot of the latest technologies and solutions from cutting edge companies.

Video:

SmartFactoryKL Talks To Industry 4.0 TV About Their Smart Factory Solution

Video:

Texas Instruments Talks To Industry 4.0 TV About Their Smart Factory Solutions

43

UPCOMING

ISSUE

We aim to bring you cutting edge insights, knowledge & news on how Industry 4.0 is being adopted and implemented. issuu.com/gbmediaevents/docs/issue_9

JULY ISSUE

Editorial deadline - 25th June EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

INDUSTRY 4.0 - THE FUTURE

INDUSTRY 4.0 SUMMIT & EXPO REPORT 2019

MES SYSTEMS

HOW TO KIT OUT A SMART FACTORY

IIOT ASSET MANAGEMENT NEW PRODUCTS AND SOFTWARE

Subscribe now for future editions – digital@gbmediaevents.com

PREDICTIVE MAINTENANCE?

Predictive Maintenance – Path to Industry 4.0 Success Detect changes and faults ahead of time, connect machines and sensors, enable cross communication and real time alerts to improve machine efficiency. Reduce downtime quickly and easily with HARTING’s MICA (Modular Industry Computing Architecture).

Why create a Predictive Maintenance Solution with MICA? MICA provides you with the relevant data at the right time Improve machine efficiency Machine monitoring in real time Digitally retrofit existing machinery Digital dashboard on mobile or desktop Simple vertical integration (MES, ERP, cloud)

www.harting-mica.com/en

Britain’s Manufacturing Future. We’re here to enable it The Factory of the Future is coming to Britain soon and we’re here to help make it happen. British businesses are already taking their first steps to remain competitive in a world where customers demand customised products, faster delivery and shorter lead times. As leaders in drive and control solutions, we offer the digital solutions you need to maximise the opportunity of Industry 4.0.

The Factory of the Future is more than just a vision, so join us on our journey Now. Next. Beyond.

WE MOVE. YOU WIN. www.boschrexroth.co.uk/FOTF