Aluminium International Today Showcase Supplement October 2020 by Quartz Business Media

OCTOBER 2020

SHOWCASE SUPPLEMENT

OCTOBER 2020

SHOWCASE SUPPLEMENT EDITORIAL/PRODUCTION Editor Nadine Bloxsome +44 1737 855115 nadinebloxsome@quartzltd.com Production Editor Annie Baker

2 ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AI powered tools and solutions tailored for complex industrial intelligent systems

Advertisement Production Martin Lawrence

6 DIGITALIZATION

SALES

A key opportunity towards reducing scope 3 emissions throughout the value chain

Sales Manager Nathan Jupp +44 1737 855027 nathanjupp@quartzltd.com Sales Director Ken Clark +44 1737 855117 kenclark@quartzltd.com

10 ALUMINIUM SHOW Aluminium 2021: Re-start in May with new digital formats

CORPORATE Managing Director Tony Crinion

Published by: Quartz Business Media Ltd Quart House, 20 Clarendon Road Redhill, Surrey RH1 1QX, UK +44 1737 855000 www.aluminiumtoday.com

Â© Quartz Business Media Ltd 2020

ISSN0143-7798

14 DATA With industrial intelligence to the pioneer of modern quality management - in just 3 steps

20 ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING Ecosystems and digital platforms fueling industrial additive manufacturing 24 ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING Potentials and challenges of additive manufacturing with aluminium 28 Q&A Q&A with Hélène Wagnies, Managing Director, DuckerFrontier in Berlin

Over the last few months, our inboxes have been filling up daily with webinar invites, requests to join online seminars and leaving you wondering whether you should bother brushing your hair or changing your shirt incase one of them involves a live video option... These online ‘events’ have reinforced the importance of live meetings and face-to-face contact, but we also recognise how essential it is to keep up-to-date with industry knowledge and stay connected to our clients and colleagues. For this reason, while we should have all been attending the ALUMINIUM 2020 Show in Dusseldorf, we hosted a weeklong series of webinars, all relating to the themes that would have been a focus of the live show. We had record attendee numbers and heard from esteemed speakers on topics including green technologies, automation and additive manufacturing. In case you missed out (or your webinar calendar was already booked!) this special supplement highlights a selection of the presentations in more detail and you can read through without having to worry about turning on your webcam... Nadine Bloxome Editor

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

AI powered tools and solutions tailored for complex industrial intelligent systems

SHOWCASE SUPPLEMENT

Aluminium International Today

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Quantillion Technologies Leading smelters worldwide are looking towards further automation as a value driver, especially related to manufacturing equipment (for e.g., crucible cleaner, vacuum cleaning, etc.) and process equipment (for e.g., crucible transport, anode transport, skimming stations, PTMâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, etc.). However, an inevitable future that the industry is heading towards is to become an interconnected and intelligent enterprise. The equipment and the human workforce on the plant interface with the machine intelligence, where the equipment will be able to share information and instructions seamlessly with human supervision. Quantillion Technologies envisions to play the crucial role of developing this intelligence layer during this transformation towards an interconnected industry. Quantillion takes a 2-axes approach in developing the intelligence layer - (I) sensing and understanding complex environment (the plant) and (II) develop decisionsupport systems that enable the equipment to make decisions, autonomously and independently. Quantillion has developed tools such as Vala and Maia to enable the digital representation of the environment and a Traffic Management System (TMS) to facilitate interactions between the humans, equipment and the machines, serving as a decision-support system. Together with these tools, Quantillion solves the problem of co-operative interaction of multiple agents in a shared complex environment rendering the human-equipmentmachine ecosystem in a plant more interconnected and intelligent. To put the agents and the environment into context, consider the processes in the pot room. The process involves tasks such as changing spent anodes to fresh ones in the pots, having empty crucibles ready at the pot for tapping liquid aluminium into them. Subsequently, such tasks demand efficient transportation of anodes (fresh and spent) and crucibles (empty and full) within the plant. Furthermore, this transportation is concerned with Aluminium International Today

BHARGAV TEJA NALLAPU MANAGING LEARNING ENGINEER, QUANTILLION TECHNOLOGIES the other auxiliary processes that are simultaneously taking place in the plant like cleaning machines tending the pots, cleaning the alumina dust off the floor, performance measurements of the pots etc. A great deal of transportation in these tasks are now carried out by Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) in the plant, working alongside other manual vehicles as well as other equipment like cranes. Human operators in turn play a crucial role in defining and supervising schedules to carry out all the required tasks (usually referred as orders) efficiently within a given timeframe. The mobile and stationary equipment together with the human operators comprise the agents and the plant then becomes the shared environment. To tackle this problem of cooperative interaction of multiple agents in the shared environment, Quantillion develops tools and solutions that are built on the state-of-the-art Artificial Intelligence (A.I) techniques from the fields of Data Science, Machine Learning (ML) and Reinforcement Learning (RL). However, these solutions require the necessary data (orders, status of equipment, layout of the plant etc.) to be digitally available. Moreover, certain AI techniques such as RL, although quite effective in rendering the agents intelligent after considerable amount of learning, require the agents SHOWCASE SUPPLEMENT

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE FEATURE

to be explorative during the learning phase. But it is certainly not desirable that the agents perform explorative actions inside the plant, leading to dangerous or accidental outcomes. Hence, Quantillion follows a thorough bottom-up approach, building the solutions that are based on solid foundations of digital representations. As a foundation for simulations, modelling and A.I solutions, we develop tools that enable the plants to establish a transparent humanmachine communication with respect to the orders that need to be fulfilled, the equipment concerned with the orders, configuration and status of vehicles etc. On that front, Vala is a tool that provides an interface between operators on ground and the machine about the real time activity on the plant. With a convenient web as well as a mobile version, Vala makes all the communication transparent and at the fingertips of the operators, such as a tapping operator creating an order for a crucible that needs to be picked up or a vehicle driver / AGV accepting the crucible pick-up order instantly. Effectively, Vala provides a centralized data repository of every activity by every agent in the process minimizing handshakes, providing real time statuses of vehicle, furnaces, current shift areas etc. On similar lines, we also build a digital twin of a plant, in terms of its layout, in a way that is comprehensible to all the agents that interact in the plant. Maia is a layout digitization tool that Quantillion developed in-house that will generate machine readable information about the plant layout that can be provided to the automated vehicles. Maia not only is an editor to create a digital version of the physical layout of the plant with its fixed pathways and landmarks (such as pots, metal treatment stations and so on), but also is an intelligent software that takes into account the specifications of vehicles such as their dimensions and speeds which

directly affect the paths the vehicles need to take to operate on the layout. In addition, Maia provides a version control system of the digital version of the plant, tracking the changes in the plantâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s layout such as a new treatment station or an obsolete charging station. Tools like Vala and Maia give Quantillion the ability to provide the plants with useful simulations such as estimated time and most efficient sequence of performing orders of a schedule, number of AGVs that are required to execute a given set of schedules, and real-time alternative routes in case of partial blockage in the plant. Ultimately, with the power of strong foundations of data and simulations, we built a Traffic Management System (TMS) that is an ever-improving self-learning system that manages the entire fleet of (several types of) AGVs and manually driven vehicles of a given plant to operate in synchrony, each vehicle working towards an individual goal of efficiently executing the necessary orders and consequently a common goal of successfully fulfilling all the order in a schedule. What makes TMS stand out as an intelligent solution of fleet management and equipment control is the fact that it renders each vehicle (and other agents) autonomous in making decision while being informed about the current status of all the other agents of the plant. Any unprecedented events in the plant are thus handled dynamically by each agent, executing alternative actions centrally controlled by TMS spontaneously. TMS acts as a tool for visualizing the status of all logistics on the plant, to easily toggle (parts of) routes and (temporarily) overwrite traffic rules and to continuously simulate resulting changes in planning, taking into account failures, accidents, other changes. The suite of AI solutions within TMS, by identifying underlying patterns in the historical data, further provides the plant with more predictive tools

such as automatically generating, prioritizing and distributing work orders for operators and vehicles. In addition, the fleet of AGVs and fixed equipment alike work together towards a common objective in a single environment, maximizing throughput of the equipment by allowing humans and machines cooperate in a natural way. Most importantly, by rendering the agents more autonomous and responsive, the system as a whole becomes more resilient to unprecedented situations like accidents or blockages in the plant or equipment breakdown. Further ahead in the future, the learning from one plant can be abstracted and transferred to handle similar situations in different plant with similar challenges, without having to start the learning ground-up from the scratch. The solutions Vala, Maia and TMS fit in smoothly into the existing IT and communication infrastructure of the plants, seamlessly interacting with the Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES), remote control rooms and pot control systems. By developing tools that capture the complex environments of aluminium smelters, creating a digital twin of the entire plant and its activity, and by building intelligent solutions on the top of these tools â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Quantillion envisions to be at the forefront of the transformation of the industry towards an interconnected intelligent ecosystem. Using the same assets and equipment, but utilizing them optimally with the help of our solutions, the plants can achieve effective, increased utilization of equipment and more throughput and most importantly become more reliable and safer. Far ahead into the future, such interconnected plants play the role of interacting agents in the global environment, where the actions of each plant have direct impact on the environment, making It crucial for the plants to be more dynamic now in their resource management by leveraging intelligent solutions.

www.quantillion.io

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Aluminium International Today

Standards change.

The next standard in smart plant automation.

T E C H N O L O G I E S

www.quantillion.io

KLAVENESS DIGITAL

Digitalization

A key opportunity towards reducing scop

throughout the value ch

SHOWCASE SUPPLEMENT

Aluminium International Today

KLAVENESS DIGITAL

pe 3 emissions

hain

It is not a stretch to argue that the aluminium industry is one of many that is often constrained by conventional ways of working. And, as a result, the logistics and carbon footprint associated with the transportation of bulk materials has great potential for improvement. Fortunately, the industry is better positioned than ever before to harness the increasing power of technology and put it towards real change. This article aims to shed some light on how to address the challenges and take advantage of the opportunities available. Until recent times; industry focus, regulatory drive, and corporate agenda has been geared towards reducing scope 1 and 2 emissions. With mounting pressure on all industries to reduce carbon footprints, there is an increasing shift driven by endconsumers and stakeholders towards industrial companies encompassing scope 3 emissions into their green initiatives. Nevertheless, before any individual company can consider changing anything in its supply chain it first needs to be able to measure it. And in order to measure anything a good visual representation of the supply chain is needed. To manage scope 3 this needs to include a way of accurately reporting the carbon sources and quantities; and not just for auditing purposes, but as a means of using that insight to adjust and improve. Learning how to use digital tools is the ďŹ rst step towards creating greener supply chains Think about the changes that have happened in the last 10 years. Consider the data and availability of information that exists throughout the production process of supply chains today. In smelters and refineries, sensors can provide near real-time data

ALEKSANDER STENSBY, MANAGING DIRECTOR, KLAVENESS DIGITAL throughout the production processes, the rise of the Digital Twin is allowing manufacturers to create global visibility throughout many locations. This forms a solid foundation for improved decision making. On the transportation side of the supply chain the ability to track where raw materials are at any given moment through satellite data (i.e. AIS) is another luxury that that did not exist 10 years ago. A key enabler of this digital age has been the access to computing power and the democratization of that power through cloud services. The calculation and processing of massive amounts of data can be done today using advanced algorithms that was simply not possible 20-30 years ago. These are digital enablers of change to welcome and celebrate; but, at the end of the day, creating greener supply chains depends on the ability to put these into action. Drivers and motivation Costs and revenue have always been key drivers for digitalization and optimization of any business activity.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;As an industry, aluminium has great potential and a significant opportunity to become leadersâ&#x20AC;? Aluminium International Today

SHOWCASE SUPPLEMENT

KLAVENESS DIGITAL FEATURE

The same can be said as a central driver to the environmental agenda; however, one of the biggest challenges today when it comes to proactive reduction of scope 3 emissions is the lack of regulatory agenda. Since the industry is not yet at a level where a price has been put on emissions, there are few economic incentives to drive the necessary change. Any given charterer be it a smelter or refinery is unlikely carry the full burden of transportation costs when it comes to moving from today’s environmental footprint to a carbon neutral footprint. This therefore needs to be a joint effort and it needs to be regulated. The big question is when will regulatory bodies agree, and a potential carbon tax come into effect? And can the world really afford to wait for it to happen? The industry has great potential to take ownership of this agenda. It should be a valid choice when negotiating freight, the willingness to pay for the environment ought to be to be as commonplace as agreeing which party will carry the costs of vessel waiting time. Today, the consumers are largely driving the agenda for the industry, but the world cannot settle for ‘good enough’. The industry has come a long way on the production side and is now, with the technology available, better positioned than ever to fully consider the scope 3 emissions and be ready to deliver on all aspects of the supply chain.

3 emissions it is difficult to pin-point supply chain waste and take the necessary action. And the ability to measure starts with visibility. Consider the number of business units and stakeholders involved (internally and externally) to ensure the end product reaches the consumer. In order to better predict and manage the uncertainty that lives throughout this supply chain the industry needs to move away from manual processes, silo-based sources of information, and segregated workflows. The future needs to become datadriven, centered around one version of the truth, and facilitate collaboration among stakeholders internally and externally. Without first building those foundations, the individual company will struggle to build resilient, decarbonized, and cost-effective supply chains while hoping to remain competitive. The perfect world of the supply chain will never exist. There will always be some degree of uncertainty and risk due to circumstances beyond human control as the events of 2020 have demonstrated. But, in order to react and move towards proactive change for the better, improving visibility is the starting point.

Visibility is foundational to any supply chain analysis At the very foundation of this change is improving supply chain transparency and achieving end-to-end visibility. Without the ability to measure scope

An industry-wide opportunity Technology can form the foundations for this by enabling tracking, optimization and facilitating the reduction of scope 3 emissions associated with the supply chain. The

“The future needs to become data-driven, centered around one version of the truth, and facilitate collaboration”

“The industry should start by first measuring and benchmarking emissions and use this data as a tool when planning and looking for optimization potential

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”

challenge facing not just the aluminium industry, but global industry, is the lack of standards. The intentions of moving towards carbon neutral or even carbon positive supply chains are no doubt widespread, but it is not feasible to simply wait for regulators to agree and force industries to move forward. Nor can the burden of responsibility be assigned solely to the transportation side, i.e. the shipowners. Calculation of EEOI (Energy Efficiency Operational Indicator) is a proven way of calculating scope 3 emissions. However, a big challenge for the smelters, the refineries, or the shipowners is to agree on is what should be used as the factors to accurately measure the consumption of carbon fuels to get to the end number. In order to get there, the industry has the components at its disposal to calculate those figures. The question of what to track and what to calculate is up for debate, but with the level of information available today such as satellite data, sensor information, vessel information, and voyage specifics just to name a few; the pieces are there. Consumer drive in the industry is large and a force to be reckoned with, which means the industry has a powerful voice. It is important to note there are many praiseworthy initiatives in play today, such as how the industry has seen companies join forces to publish their scientific targets around emissions. One noteworthy example of action is the Sea Cargo Charter, an initiative involving some of the world’s largest energy, agriculture, mining, and commodity trading companies together with a handful of shipowners/operators. This will set a new benchmark for responsible shipping, transparent climate reporting, and improved decision making in line with the United Aluminium International Today

KLAVENESS DIGITAL FEATURE

Nations decarbonization targets. Learn more about the Sea Cargo Initiative here. While such initiatives are welcome and should be applauded, this should be continuously recognized as a global challenge and as an industry aluminium has great potential and a significant opportunity to become leaders. Conclusion In order to improve and reduce the carbon footprint of scope 3 the industry should start by first measuring and benchmarking emissions and use this data as a tool when planning and looking for optimization potential.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;To manage scope 3 this needs to include a way of accurately reporting the carbon sources and quantitiesâ&#x20AC;? Such intel can then be turned into value in the decision-making process when nominating vendors and considering not just where to source materials from; but what vessel types and under what speed should be used? What lot-sizes are optimal? Which shipowners should be used? Although there are many initiatives aimed at zero emissions shipping,

www.klavenessdigital.com

there is still a way to go. Until then, acceptance needs to be given to the fact that the industry does and will have emissions but now is the time to explore how it can optimize, reduced, and identify the opportunities for continuous improvements until the common goal of carbon neutral is achieved.

ALUMINIUM SHOW

ALUMINIUM 2021: Re-start in May with new digital formats transport sectors or the developments in the construction sector may have slowed down due to the Corona crisis, they cannot be halted in the long run”, he adds.

Following the postponement of the ALUMINIUM World Trade Fair from October to 18-20 May 2021, organiser Reed Exhibitions is working full steam ahead on the upcoming event in Düsseldorf. The exchange during the ALUMINIUM Online Showcase illustrates how urgently needed physical meetings and marketplaces are for the aluminium industry. “After the standstill of recent months and the continuing low demand in many segments, the aluminium industry needs new sales markets as quickly as possible in the coming year,” says Goetz-Ulf Jungmichel, who is the Event Director responsible for the materials trade fairs of Reed Exhibitions in Germany. Jungmichel is convinced that the market will recover. “Even though the future in many sectors will look different from what we can imagine today, the outlook for lightweight construction materials like aluminium remains positive long-term. While the transitions occurring in the mobility and

SHOWCASE SUPPLEMENT

Trade fairs will take place again in Germany Even after the latest government decisions to contain the corona pandemic, trade fairs can still be held in Germany. In close coordination with the health authorities the exhibitions industry has developed concepts for the health protection of all participants. The ALUMINIUM venue in Düsseldorf already saw the “Caravan Salon” draw to a successful close under the new, current requirements for organising events in September. The biggest trade fair held so far in Germany since Covid restrictions has proven that trade fairs can be held both successfully and safely for exhibitors and visitors. ALUMINIUM organiser Reed Exhibitions is currently busy taking the trade fair format to the next level. By means of new solutions and formats, exhibitors and visitors at ALUMINIUM will in future also network virtually alongside the classic physical event and capitalise on the benefits of digitalisation in the exhibition business. “Besides a hygiene concept, we are currently developing digital solutions in parallel, that will offer exhibitors and visitors numerous new opportunities,” says Goetz-Ulf Jungmichel, taking into account those visitors who will not be able to come to Düsseldorf due to possible travel restrictions but who want to be part of ALUMINIUM 2021. Hybrid trade fair format unites live event with digital formats The concept designed for a “hybrid”

ALUMINIUM trade fair encompasses exhibitors’ highlights in a digitally edited version and live streams of events. Also new is “video matchmaking” – a feature allowing ALUMINIUM to establish live contact between exhibitors and visitors unable to meet physically in Düsseldorf. For the ALUMINIUM visitors on site Reed Exhibitions has developed Audio Guided Tours that also make possible well-structured trade fair visits during Corona times. The matchmaking tool is a bit like a “dating platform” for business people: thanks to sector-specific and interestoriented filter options the profiles of matchmaking participants can be searched and found and promising contacts addressed direct. This allows potential cooperation partners, investors, producers or distributors to make appointments for the period of the event even before the trade fair starts. In addition to this, the video functionality enables participants to meet virtually and make contact via video chat. “However, there is one thing digital ranges cannot do: replace people-to-people contact, the clarification of products in need of explanation as well as the tactile product experiences at a trade fair. For long-term, trust-based business relations face-to-face contact at a trade fair is indispensable,” says Jungmichel. New mobility, digitalisation and sustainability remain in focus On the show floor and in the accompanying program, ALUMINIUM 2021 will pick up on the latest mega trends and major challenges like: globalisation, the importance of aluminium to new mobility, digitalisation, recycling and sustainability. These Aluminium International Today

ALUMINIUM SHOW

topics will also be addressed within the ALUMINIUM Conference, which will be organised by the Gesamtverband der Aluminiumindustrie e.V. (GDA) - the German association of the aluminium industry - and which has been

postponed, together with the world leading trade show, to May 2021. “Innovation and creativity in conjunction with a high degree of automation and sustainable, resourcesaving production are the cornerstones

of competitiveness for the international aluminium industry. The future does not wait. So, with ALUMINIUM 2021 we will give the full support and platform to meet these challenges”, says Goetz-Ulf Jungmichel.

After months of lockdown, fairs have been taking place again in Germany since autumn 2020. Trade fairs can take place again because the organisers, together with the authorities, have developed hygiene and safety concepts for their events that set binding standards. This also applies to the ALUMINIUM World Trade Fair in Düsseldorf. The tour will give an impression of how trade fairs work under the current conditions.

→ WATCH THE VIDEO

ALUMINIUM 2021 18th-20th May, 2021 Exhibition Centre Düsseldorf / GERMANY Aluminium International Today

www.aluminium-exhibition.com SHOWCASE SUPPLEMENT

In light of this year's ALUMINIUM Show being postponed to 18-20 May 2021, Aluminium International Today hosted a dedicated â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Online Showcaseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; where the sector came together to hear the latest product launches, investments, projects and market updates. More urgently than ever, the aluminium industry needs impulses and ideas to find its way out of the current situation. This collaboration between Aluminium International Today and ALUMINIUM World Fair provided a unique opportunity to offer this important information to the industr. Speakers from all areas of the industry presented new technologies and market overviews each day, presentations are available on the www.aluminiumtoday.com/onlineshowcase or can be downloaded by clicking on the images below:

GREEN TECHNOLOGIES As the aluminium industry strives for a more sustainable future, in this dedicated webinar, we look at some of the green technologies leading the way and low carbon efforts across the supply chain. CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD Sponsored by:

ALUMINIUMTODAY.COM/ONLINESHOWCASE

DATA

With industrial intelligence to the pioneer of modern quality management â&#x20AC;&#x201C; in just 3 steps.

SHOWCASE SUPPLEMENT

Aluminium International Today

DATA

“The best is the enemy of good” – a very accurate quote from the French writer Voltaire. Unfortunately quality has its costs, at least that is what we experience. One of the main cost drivers is the fact that the most defects occur at the very early stage of the production but are often only discovered during finishing. This kind of defects lead to significant costs due to unnecessary production steps, as well as to delivery delays as these orders may have to be fulfilled by starting a new production sequence with a new material. If defects could be predicted early, most of them could be avoided by adapting the remaining production route or process. Having a tool that gets us to the roots of the problem, would safe costs and increase quality along with service performance improvements. PSImetals offers such a tool and has the experience from many projects and implementations to provide the necessary consulting and service to help you make the most of it. In only 3 steps you can become the pioneer of modern quality management and finally enjoy the sound of silence on the shopfloor by reducing defects, improving the quality and thus saving costs. � 1st - you need data, lots of data � 2nd - you do a holistic defect mapping � 3rd - you perform the root cause analysis and reveal the reason for the defect. � (4th step) – Now you can finally enjoy the sound of silence and benefit! Step 1: Mass Data Acquisition PSImetals Quality provides the platform for mass data acquisition and can perfectly handle quality raw data provided by the automation level, such as: � temperatures recorded from a furnace, � speeds from the rolling mill, � thickness profiles of a coil or � surface inspection data from a Surface Inspection System (SIS) All data is stored in the Production Aluminium International Today

Management System (PMS) and centralized in the Factory Model. � raw data and measurement curves represent a process value of a production line � each curve is described in a separate process data repository � for each data value � the timestamp and � the exact position within the coil can be added The raw data can be related to a process and a specific material whereas material related raw data are stored with a link to the material genealogy node. Even if you have all the data for a single coil along the entire production process, this says little about the root cause. It is like the evaluation of last summer by the weather of a single hour. To maintain statistical relevance, it is beneficial to have data from many orders and materials. The more, the better. Step 2: Holistic Defect Mapping Collecting lots of data is the starting point. The next step is bringing the data into a holistic context, which the collected mass data a massive added value. PSImetals makes data transparent by displaying it in the right context: � At which production stage and material genealogy node the data was collected � The exact defects with its location at the material � Underlaid by pictures from the surface inspection system With the data along all production stages related to the genealogy nodes, you can rewind in time and view historical data related to the material at that stage! Looking at many materials usually means looking at materials of different length and width. To make them comparable we use a little trick, patented by our partner and research institute, BFI. The trick is called “High Resolution Server”. If you normalize the coordinate system, all coils will have the same virtual dimension again.

GUNTHER SCHOBER SALES MANAGER, PSI METALS NON-FERROUS GMBH We then take the different materials with different dimensions and fit them into the same rectangular shape, so to speak. These normalized data can even be mapped over time. The number of grid cells in one production stage remains constant over the whole production process. So, you can compare cells with each other! You know, it is inherited what is in the genes. Looking back in time, you have to consider that coils might have different winding directions. Heads turn to tails and up-sides might become bottom-sides. This is resolved by Production Management System. Step 3: Overlay Noise Maps – the Root Cause Analysis With data and the holistic overview, overlaying different production data with the defects, root causes suddenly become transparent. This provides the flexibility in combining different defects with possible dependencies. You can refer to different production data from different sources: � 1-dimensional data – such as speed, tension, etc. � 2-dimensional data – like thickness, flatness, temperature, coating layer, etc. � Event based data – for example: surface defects, internal defects, manual inputs, etc. SHOWCASE SUPPLEMENT

DATA FEATURE

The holistic view offers the opportunity to zoom in and out. The centrally stored data allows to look at different production stages, you can wind forward and backward. You can change between genealogy nods. There is more than just production data - the PMS knows all the details: � Where was the material produced, which lines, which production steps � How it was produced – what were the production parameters: events, defects, 1-and 2-dimensional data � The order information – what did the customer ask for and how was it supposed to be produced � Material tracking information � The material genealogy with all its details and relatives � Data in the High Resolution Server And PSImetals makes all these data visible! The holistic view gives a full and consistent picture – and provides the information you need to find the root cause. Example This concept is not pure theory but already successfully applied at different customers of ours. Here is one

example, where a pioneer of modern quality management benefitted from applying this concept. A customer identified scratches on numerous coils which he called “paw scratches”. Unfortunately, he detected these scratches quite late, at the finishing line. There was one thing these defect materials had in common – they all passed a bell annealing line. Moreover, the scratches could be found over the entire coil length. At the beginning our customer looked at the defects presented in a noise map – all defects over all coils accumulated. The picture was, however, not very meaningful. As we assumed that the defects were actually caused at a different line than recognized we wound back in production data and found a picture, that looked more promising. We saw defects cumulated at the head of the coil with a tendency towards the middle of the coil from width perspective. With that we have found the line, where the defects originated. In the next step, we added production data to the defect picture. By adding tension level, we saw a correlation between the average strip tension and the defects. That means we have found the problem and by reducing the tension

level at the head of the coil, the defects were avoided already in an early stage of production. Our customer improved quality and saved costs at the same time! Summary What does it take to become a pioneer of modern quality management and benefit from this concept? 1. Defects, coils, more coils the more, the better. The statistical relevance is important. 2. Data, lots of data – PSImetals will handle it. 3. Details from the production flow, even if it is a complex flow – PSImetals will manage it. 4. Genealogy with all its details and relatives retrieved from the PSI Quality System and brought in relation with the data. Enjoy the sound of silence, the sound of silent production. To maintain it, you can use the same tools for continuous improvement. Do you want to produce better Quality by avoiding defects at an early stage and reach higher Quality at lower costs? Get in contact with us to become a pioneer in modern quality management – in just 3 steps!

www.psimetals.de

SHOWCASE SUPPLEMENT

Aluminium International Today

Digitalization

Enjoy the Sound of Silence with PSImetals Quality

www.psimetals.com/quality

Software Excellence for Steel & Aluminium Producers Steel Times International Today 210 x 297 mm DU 2020-10-09.indd 1

09.10.2020 12:18:19

ALUMINIUM 2021 The World's Leading Trade Fair for Aluminium and its Application Industries

E GET YOUR FRE TICKET NOW e: Your promocod onlineshowcase

THE RESTART EVENT OF THE ALUMINIUM INDUSTRY 18 – 20 May 2021 Exhibition Centre Düsseldorf, Germany aluminium-exhibition.com

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2-3 DECEMBER 2020

ALUMINIUM FORUM DIGITAL

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Future Aluminium Forum

GOES VIRTUAL! The COVID-19 pandemic means that we won’t see you in Canada for the 2020 edition of the Future Aluminium Forum. But our exhibitors have so many great innovations, and our speakers have so much business critical information to share, we don’t want to wait until 2021 to see you all again. So we will be online with a digital version of the Forum from 2-3 December 2020.

If you want to know exactly what’s happening in the world of digitalisation then look no further than the Future Aluminium Forum 2020. Use code SHOWCASE to get 10% off

Vincent Christ ELYSIS

Éloïse Harvey Mecfor

Hans Erik Vatne Hydo

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ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING

Ecosystems and digital platforms fueling industrial additive manufacturing

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Aluminium International Today

ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING

With the advancement in technology and computing capability, and the networked world that we live in, we witness collaboration in all walks of life. Right from our daily cab ride to, home deliveries, to the current work from anywhere situation; we are all collaborating. Manufacturing too is leveraging the available technology and ecosystem to move to a new level. Additive Manufacturing, or 3D Printing, is the way forward for many industries. Aluminium Industry has a huge potential, riding on this technology, to scale new frontiers. What is additive manufacturing? Let me use a simplistic example of a component manufacture, an area where Aluminium Industry has a in increasing presence, especially when we talk of Areo-space, Automotive and Machinery industry. (Fig 1) The traditional approach for component manufacture would remove material, from a block of material, to give it the desired shape. We either use molds, machining or a pass material through a die to give the desired shape to the component. Additive Manufacturing, as the name suggests, is the reverse of the traditional manufacturing where we keep adding material layers to arrive at the desired component shape. It depends heavily on Computer Aided Design and uses special â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;printersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;, that print the component / output, layer on layer. What it brings to the table is the following benefits: (see table 1) Since the process is digitally controlled, and creates output by adding material, only what is required, it ensures that there is an elimination of waste and increases manufacturing efficiency. Additive Manufacturing opens new doors in handling Complex design. The chart below not just highlights the Cost and Complexity relationship, it also highlights the fact that additive manufacturing can make the impossible of traditional manufacturing, possible. (Fig 2) Also, with additive manufacturing, Aluminium International Today

PRITAM PRITU METALS LEADER APAC-JAPAN, IBM since we are printing by layers, using digital instructions, change in designs are simple to handle and without process changes, which is contrary to traditional manufacturing where design changes are a nightmare. Since, incorporation of design changes is easy, that the process is fully automatic and that manufacturing can be distributed, it ensures shorter leadtimes â&#x20AC;&#x201C; for new product introduction as well as delivery to customer. Economic production of components in small quantities, a common concern, can now be addressed easily. It also has a lower life-cycle energy use, and hence is a greener option. All these make the process of Additive Manufacturing cost effective. Traditionally, lightweight Aluminium alloys are being used for additive manufacturing in many industrial, aerospace and automotive applications; as they exhibit high strength-toweight ratios, and also demonstrate good resistance to metal fatigue and corrosion. And these are the industries that are driving the double-digit growth in Additive Manufacturing. Aluminium alloy powders typically offer better build rates than other metal powders. Their fine-grained microstructures with grains roughly equal in size are typically as strong as their wrought counterparts. Excellent fusion characteristics make aluminum alloys particularly well-suited for use in 3D printing. With weight reduction being a predominant objective in both aerospace and automotive industries, the possibility of geometrically complex structures with additive manufacturing, SHOWCASE SUPPLEMENT

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Fig 1

enables further weight reduction with little or no compromise in strength and overall performance. Although technology cost is still a concern, the cost will come down as we progress and 3DP looks like the next big thing in the Aluminium. How do we move ahead? Component manufacturing business has always been a distributed ecosystem. Design and Manufacturing have always been separate. What Industrial Additive manufacturing needs is to leverage the ecosystem. (Fig 3) With an ecosystem so diverse and with players with different, sometimes conflicting, objectives and motivations, it is very easy for mistrust to creep in. Mistrust, that can kill the ecosystem. What is required is an ecosystem that has TRUST. This can happen only when each one is sure that their interests are secure. What is needed is a channel for open communication, confidence that data and IP is secure, there is provenance in transaction and a transparency and traceability in all transactions. Looking more closely at the ecosystem needs, we realize that, to ensure clear communication among the members, what is foremost is a common language â&#x20AC;&#x201C; standardization across the ecosystem. As more and more digital technologies are being embedded in the process workflows, a key challenge being faced by the manufacturing ecosystem is of data protection and

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Table 1

protection of intellectual property. Who is using my data and IP and how; and for what purpose? These are burning questions in the mind of the IP owner. Addressing this risk will accelerate the growth of additive manufacturing. Also, each member of the ecosystem has different degree of control and security needs. What the ecosystem needs is a decentralized solution that can ensure data sovereignty and trace the data usage, or to say, provide audit trail. This is even more pertinent as manufacturing is becoming more and more decentralized and is conducted within global networks and parts are produced where they are needed. How can these ecosystems be enabled by Digital Platforms? The answer lies in a distributed and trusted platform, enabled by blockchain technology. Blockchain provides you with the distributed ledger that addresses the needs around security, provenance, and embedding of business rules in the platform. Data is available on a need to know basis

to each participant and addresses the different needs of the individual players. All this to ensure that there is a trust that prevails. IBM Blockchain is optimized for enterprise requirements. It offers specialized compute for security, performance and resilience. It enables not just development, but also provides the framework for right governance and enables deployment and operations on always-on networks with enterprise and production-ready performance and security. How do we ensure standardization? So how do we cater to this big need around standardization - the common language. Well, for this, IBM has partnered with IDS or International Data Spaces Association. The International Data Spaces (IDS) is a P2P network, and provides an IT architecture for safeguarding data sovereignty within the ecosystem. It provides a virtual space for data where data remains with the data Aluminium International Today

ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING

Fig 3

Fig 2*

owner until it is needed by a trusted business partner. It supports the secure exchange and the simple linking of data in business ecosystems on the basis of standards and by means of common governance models. IBM is IDSAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s main integration partner for Blockchain, enhancing data sovereignty with data provenance and traceability in digital ecosystems. Value IBM and IDS bring to the Industrial Additive Manufacturing ecosystem? With standardization issue addressed, the platform brings benefits in the area of IP where we have immutable records of process to secure intellectual property. The file / data exchange is completely secure. The IP owner owns the data throughout the transaction life, and also get to know who is using their data and the how, why where and when of it. It ensures Transparency of process data, and anyone in the ecosystem can see the data anytime, restricted only as per the need defined in the system. The transactions are fully Traceable through the entire process for quality assurance and purposes like warranty and audits. And it ensures that the players have the requisite Control over production and supply chain process in areas that they need to.

Let us understand using an example of platform usage involving client, print partner and an engineering service provider. The process is actuated when the client orders a â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;partâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; from the additive manufacturing service provider and provides specifications including business sensitive data. The engineering service provider evaluates and optimizes the construction file for additive manufacturing usage and creates the print file and defines the material and manufacturing process to be used. Thereafter, it initiates the bidder process and provides a secure view access to selected potential print hubs. A supplier is selected and the print file, including the metadata, is transferred through a secure channel. Once the print job is executed, manufacturing process data are stored immutably for warranty purposes and product provenance. The client benefits not just in form of protection of sensitive business data and knowledge; it also provides, especially to small manufacturers, access to additive manufacturing engineering and consulting services including the print execution without technical knowledge about additive manufacturing. The Engineering Service Provider is able to guarantee full data sovereignty

and provenance to client, while the print partner is benefited as they can guarantee adherence to process and material requirements and through increased machine utilization. From and Operational perspective, you can see the three broad areas of benefit. The first is around Certification & security of the Additive manufacturing Platform. Certification authority certifies process and material for Additive Manufacturing Platform users for process standardization and compliance. As the world continues to struggle with counterfeit parts, the platform ensures Provenance from raw material to the additive manufactured part, for warranty, maintenance instructions and simplified replacement process. The Material supplier and the Post Processor have a key role to play in this. IBM Blockchain based digital additive manufacturing platform enables a higher degree of automation within the additive manufacturing process, as well as provide data security and data sovereignty. It enables better planning and a verifiable quality standard across the entire process chain. The platform offers a huge opportunity. Ecosystem players can join this platform to shape the future of Additive manufacturing in the Aluminium Industry.

*Fig 2 Source: https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/de/Documents/operations/Deloitte_Challenges_of_Additive_Manufacturing.pdf

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Potentials and challenges o manufacturing with aluminiu

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Introduction to Additive Manufacturing In times of ever-shorter development and innovation cycles, the pressure for constant innovation is also increasingly noticeable for the manufacturing industry. From an economic point of view, the trend towards individualization in our society is reflected in the demand for individual and customized products and, consequently, considerably smaller batch sizes in terms of production technology. Additive Manufacturing (AM) provides the ability to create physical components layer by layer from a digital model. Since the process is not tool-bound, complex component geometries can be produced that cannot be achieved by conventional manufacturing or only with considerable effort and correspondingly long process chains. Due to the flexibility of the additive processes regarding the complexity of the component geometries, individual components can be produced in small quantities comparatively economically or variants of a product can be produced in parallel and without retooling. Compared to conventional production, not only considerable time but also cost advantages can be achieved. However, when entering the technology, users are not only confronted with hurdles of a technological nature, but also with financial and personnel obstacles. A successful implementation goes far beyond pure process knowledge and rather requires a profound knowledge and understanding of the entire AM value chain. Aluminium is of particular interest for Additive Manufacturing with metal materials as it can be used for both the manufacturing of prototypes as well as batch production of components. Thus, aluminium is and will be one of the most demanded materials in AM. Aluminiumâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s material characteristics make an excellent choice for many applications in industries such as the aerospace and automotive sector. Especially when looking for materials that are both light and more cost-

LEA EILERT TECHNOLOGY AND PROJECT MANAGER, AACHEN CENTER FOR ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING GMBH

effective than for example titanium. Aluminium based alloys for AM processes Various AM processes exist for processing metal materials, of which the Laser Powder Bed Fusion (LPBF) process is one of the most widely known and used. In LPBF, components are generated from a powder bed by selective melting using laser radiation. The input for this process is both the metallic material in powder form and the sliced CAD model of the component to be generated in the process. In an inert gas atmosphere, a thin powder layer is first deposited on a substrate plate, then the powder particles are completely melted by laser radiation according to the cross-sectional layer geometry of the component. After the substrate plate has been lowered by the thickness of a powder layer and another powder layer has been deposited, the melting process is repeated. This creates a near net shape component layer by layer. Various alloys in powder form are available for processing with LPBF. SHOWCASE SUPPLEMENT

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However, the choice of materials is limited compared to conventional processes. Particle morphology, particle surface composition, and particle size distribution are key factors to produce high quality and reliable parts. To ensure these properties, metallic powders are produced by gas or plasma atomization. The well-known material properties of aluminium make it a very interesting material for the automotive and aerospace sector, especially in the field of lightweight construction: Low density, high thermal and electric conductivity, good alloyability and good processability with LPBF. The most commonly used Al alloy for the LPBF process is AlSi10Mg, a typical casting alloy. AlSi10Mg has good thermal and strength properties, low weight and offers flexible finishing possibilities. Due to the high cooling rates in the LPBF process (~ 106 K/s) a fine granular microstructure is caused, which is also stable at high temperatures. Applications include housings, cable routing systems and motor parts, both for prototyping and production. The achievable mechanical properties are comparable to or even exceed those of conventionally manufactured parts. A high strength Al alloy especially developed for LPBF processing is Scalmalloy®, an aluminium-magnesiumscandium alloy. The high-cooling rates of melt pools during LPBF establishes the thermodynamic conditions for a fine-grained crack-free aluminium structure saturated with fine precipitates of the ceramic phase Al3Sc. The precipitation allows tensile and fatigue strength of Scalmalloy® to exceed those of AlSi10Mg by about 70%, making it comparable to Titanium. Adequate powder handling is crucial for quality and safety Correct handling of metal powder is essential to increasing productivity with quality and reducing resource waste in a safe environment, especially for the machine operator. Three key-points

can be enumerated why adequate handling is crucial: Some powder materials can explode under certain conditions and Al powder is one of the critical candidates. When reusing powders, humidity, contamination, and particle size distribution (PSD) need to be controlled to guarantee part quality. Finally, breathing fine powders can have a negative impact on the operator’s health. Trying to extinguish metal powder fires is usually not effective and disturbing the powder source can generate more dust and worsen the situation. Usual firefighting measures consist of isolation, applying limestone sand and using low-pressure class D extinguishers. Some powder pairs can form thermites or intermetallic reactions that will generate fires. Storing powders separately is a preventive measure, for example in appropriate containers in fireproof F90 cabinets. Another essential point that must always be carefully considered is the correct use of personal protective equipment (PPE). In order to prevent accidents and damage to health in the short and long term, it is essential for machine operators to wear a respiratory mask, safety shoes, a laboratory coat and, if necessary, fireproof gloves. The size of the powder particles processed by the LPBF usually are in the range of approx. 20 to 50 µm. These easily settle in the human lung and are highly suspected to cause cancer. Successful business cases and future demands The combination of the material properties of aluminium, which are advantageous for lightweight construction, and the advantages of the LPBF process make aluminium alloys particularly interesting for the automotive and aerospace sectors. By exploiting the possibilities of realizing highly complex bionic designs using AM, weight savings can be achieved, resulting in fuel savings and reduced carbon dioxide emissions. Especially

the possibility of mass customization by AM allows not only the serial production of parts in the automotive sector, but also the on-demand production of mounting aids at short notice. In the aerospace sector, where many components are typically produced in small quantities in a complex and expensive way, AM offers the possibility to significantly reduce production costs and times through toolless manufacturing on demand. The digital warehouse made possible by AM not only allows components to be produced where they are needed. Even spare parts can be produced flexibly and do not have to be kept in stock. This not only reduces production costs but also downtime. Successful business cases for AM with aluminium are, as previously mentioned, in the low volume area due to the high costs per kg of AM manufactured component, for example satellite parts, components for passenger planes and racing cars. If the cost per kg of component decreases, further attractive business cases can be developed (e.g. luxury cars). The main factors for cost reduction in the next 15 years are the productivity of AM processes and the associated costs for plant technology and powder materials. A considerable growth in metal AM is inevitable, which is demonstrated by the growing market demand for metal powders over recent years. The technology is beyond the hype and the number of industry players, both on the supplier and user sides, should increase and contribute to the growth of all involved processes. Cost reduction provided, Aluminium will remain one of the most demanded materials for lightweight applications, especially in the aerospace and automotive sector. In general, better software integration, in-situ process control, higher processing speeds, more automation, and user awareness are all contributing factors to higher maturity and lower overall costs across the industry.

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Q&A

Q&A with Hélène Wagnies, Managing Director, DuckerFrontier in Berlin

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Q: How is COVID-19 impacting light vehicle production? COVID-19 is having a significant impact on light vehicle production. 2020 production levels are estimated to be approximately 20% lower than in 2019 for both Europe and North America. As compared to pre-Covid forecasts which where the basis for Automotive suppliers to define their production and sales targets, about 4 million less cars than expected will be produced in Europe,3.6 million less in North America. A return to 2019 production level is expected in 2022 for North America, and slightly later by 2023 in Europe. Q: And how is it impacting aluminum demand? The implications for aluminum are smaller in North America than in Europe. Consumers in NA have been favoring larger vehicles like pickups and SUVs. These vehicles - for example, the Ford F-150, Ford Explorer, Chevy Tahoe, Toyota RAV-4, and the Nissan Rogue - utilize higher than average aluminum content, particularly for aluminum ABS (Automotive Body Sheet). Pick-ups and SUVs/CUVs represent not less than 70% of North American production (vs. 40% in Europe) and are further rising. Pick-ups alone account for nearly 25% of North American production, while these are non-existent in Europe. These major differences in the vehicle mix drive a 29kg higher average aluminum content per light vehicle in North America as compared to Europe. Instead of an average 179kg per vehicle in the EU, net aluminum content in NA amounts 208kg (459 pounds). Q: What is the outlook on the aluminum demand between Europe and North America? Overall pretty positive outlook for the aluminum industry in the light vehicle segment. Aluminum demand is expected to further grow at a strong pace by 2025, driven by an increase of the average aluminum content per vehicle by 20-21kg in both regions – therefore increasing aluminum demand Aluminium International Today

HÉLÈNE WAGNIES MANAGING DIRECTOR DUCKERFRONTIER BERLIN

even if production were to stagnate. Growth will benefit all aluminum product forms (sheet, extrusions, castings, and forgings), and especially sheet and extrusions. Castings will remain the major aluminum product form but will start losing momentum, especially in Europe - decreasing from 65% of the average aluminum content today to 59% in 2025 – due to receding ICE powertrain components demand. Today, due to lower production numbers, the North American market is smaller than Europe in terms of total aluminum consumption; however, it grows faster and will soon outpace Europe. In terms of content per vehicle, the average content is about 30kg higher in North America than in Europe - this higher aluminum intensity is directly linked to the vehicle mix characterized by a strong share of large D and E segment vehicles, particularly the pickup trucks where for example the Ford F-150 contains over 453 kg of aluminum in all product forms. Q: What is the impact of electrification on aluminum content? Electrification is picking up in both regions. However, due to stricter CO2regulation in Europe, the electrification trend will develop much stronger and faster in Europe than in North America. Electrification is expected to translate SHOWCASE SUPPLEMENT

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into a significant increase of BEV and MHEV production. Even though ‘ICE only’ will remain the largest powertrain segment by 2026, the powertrain mix will have undergone a drastic shift toward electrification since 2019 (expected share of 40% ‘ICE only’ in 2026 EU production vs. 82% - twice as much - today). What this means with regards to the aluminum content in light vehicles? On one hand, powertrain fullelectrification for BEVs makes some components redundant – combustion engine, transmission, driveline – but on the other hand creates the need for new components – such as the battery box (the largest one), electric motor(s), and gearbox. This shift implies losses and gains in aluminum content within product forms and overall as compared to ICE vehicles. Further aluminum content differences can be noticed between BEVs and ICEs due

to increased aluminum penetration for structural parts in BEVs which are in higher mass saving need. At the end of the equation, BEVs currently use about 100 kg more aluminum than ICE-only vehicles in North America, in Europe these are even 150kg more. Along with necessary portfolio adjustments,

this opens up tremendous growth opportunities for market participants in the aluminum industry. At the same time, the evolution of electrification and specifically battery technologies needs to be closely monitored in order to anticipate the impact on aluminum demand. Our clients count on Ducker to help them develop their strategic playbook as it relates to the specific nuances of serving the European, North American, and global automotive OEM and tier supplier networks. A careful review of market demand, (technical) requirements, decisionmaking process, as well as supply, capabilities, capacities, strategic plans and investments aimed to increase market share and customer intimacy are required to ensure growth and success. Trusted and accurate market data from Ducker forms the basis for all our consulting engagements.

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