Digital glassmaking
Smart bottling: Connecting the data with a digital thread A
ll around the world, consumers are becoming more conscious about their own environmental impact and how their choices can significantly affect it. Glass has always had a competitive edge in the packaging sector due to its innate ability to be recycled easily and cost-effectively. Today, as we pair one of the oldest forms of packaging with cutting-edge industry 4.0 technology, we’re only now starting to realise its full potential. Digitalisation is undoubtedly becoming one the most important developments in the world of glass making as we enter this new phase of the sector’s evolution. Capturing and making use of data provides an enormous amount of opportunity and could be used to offer clarity on each individual glass item’s lifespan – but we need to work out how to do this most effectively. Central to this
will be understanding the true value all stakeholders can gain by using data from each stage of a container’s journey.
� Harnessing the power of data to connect workers, factories, customers and consumers
The current picture in glass technology
� Decarbonisation and the race to net zero, which continues to dominate conversation with new technological solutions coming to the fore all the time.
As a leading business in the technology sector, Siemens invests enormously in understanding where trends are heading. Predicting the market’s next move is a key part of our business strategy so we can develop innovations which are ahead of their time and help our customers grow. There are a number of key shifts happening in the glass sector currently, which we see as having a major impact on the future of the industry. These include: � An increased use of digitalisation and automation in manufacturing, providing vast opportunities to further improve the glass production process
Collaboration is key to making sure we get the most out of these trends – and not simply one-to-one partnerships. It’s vital that industries group together to explore new possibilities, working with partners and suppliers to share knowledge and achieve our common goals.
The power of digitalisation We know that digitalisation and the creation of ‘smart bottles’ will soon enable Continued>>
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Stephen Haigh* examines predictions around increased digitalisation in glassmaking, and how data-driven initiatives may shape a new sustainable future for packaging.
17 Glass International December/January 2022
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