Industry 4.0 - Feature Sample

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INDUSTRY 4.0 WRAP-UP: WAI VIRTUAL INDUSTRY 4.0 CONFERENCE

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VIRTUAL CONFERENCE

WRAP-UP: INDUSTRY 4.0 VIRTUAL CONFERENCE WAI’s Industry 4.0 virtual conference was presented Oct. 26-27—the first such dedicated event for wire and cable in the U.S.—with a series of presentations and industry briefings from key industry companies involved in the innovative technology. Collectively, they presented attendees a better sense of the potential for real-world applications and results.

Majority of participants found value in Industry 4.0 event devoted to Industry 4.0. ... It is clear that Industry 4.0 is A total of 550 people registered for the event, with 314 a manufacturing movement that will serve our needs for taking part in one or more of the conference elements, years to come. We should feel proud that our products are which included two keynote speakers, 15 presentations enablers of the movement and that our drive for continuand nine industry briefings. ous improvement will be More than 120 unique compathe basis from which we nies were represented, with the move forward.” largest single contingents from Jan Sørige, the 2020 Southwire and Prysmian. Per WAI president, said a post event survey, 92% of that Industry 4.0 was those who responded found the an important topic event to be of value. The single for the industry, and highest participation element that two people— was the Welcome Session Willem Sundblad of hosted by WAI President Oden Technologies Tom Heberling, who and Richard Baker of welcomed the audience Prysmian—made it and provided a sense of WAI’s virtual conference touched on possible to put on the how the industry has a wide range of Industry 4.0 topics. conference. He noted that been evolving in terms Left, WAI President Tom Heberling, the ambitious program of Industry 4.0.

Southwire, presided over the was originally to have Heberling recalled Association’s first-ever virtual conference. been part of Interwire hearing Willem Sundblad 2021, including support of Oden Technologies speak from Messe Dusseldorf. eloquently at a meeting several As task force co-chairs, with the full support of the Board years ago about the potential of the Industrial Internet of Directors, the conference was quickly built out. of Things. “At the time, the audience was not quick to The event saw two keynote presentations, both of embrace his message. Now, just a few years later, the which were well attended. Filmmaker Brett Culp’s Wire Association is producing an entire conference

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VIRTUAL CONFERENCE

Industry 4.0 will benefit both companies and their employees At WAI’s virtual conference, keynote speaker Kathleen Edge, Southwire’s executive vice president of operations, spoke about her company’s connected, flexible operation system. Below are edited excerpts from her presentation. dards. We’re going to connect equipment with techI am humbled and privileged to share with you my nology to digitize big data analytics. Our connected perspective of the wire cable industry today, and more factories and our distribution warehouses will fuel the specifically, Southwire’s vision for its wire and cable lean processes. operations. What an exciting time it is to be in the wire The vision at Southwire is that, when an operator joins and cable industry. We have a unique vantage point the organization, we hand them a smart device. And witnessing the convergence of Industry 4.0 in our indusonce they’ve had the appropriate training, they now try, the digitalization of manufacturing and distribution. will have the ability to “YouTube” a problem. They can We believe that it’s going to make us more efficient, choose equipment scheduling, and by doing so they own more competitive and more sustainable. For us, it’s a the decision and the process. journey of transformation.

This is a vision befitting To operate in a connected Industry 4.0. Southwire needs world, we have to be connected step-change performance to or we’re going to be left behind. advance to that goal. We need The products and solutions we to move beyond incrementaloffer bring power to and fuel the ism. We need to learn from the industrial revolution. How cool previous revolutions and aim is that? So how are businesses higher. I feel that the competias a whole doing? One study tive advantage is about creatfinds that 26% of U.S. compaing an ecosystem where people, nies have an industry 4.0 straprocesses and technology are tegic initiative. Of that group, a aligned across the value stream reported 60% stalled in the pilot Kathleen Edge shares her Southwire vision. from end to end. phases. The industrial segment We are on a mission to change lags even more. Of the large the employment experience, U.S. companies, only 40% have to empower and engage our workforce. To attract the a 4.0 strategy road map. For smaller companies, it’s best talent, you need to be modern in terms of assets, only 18%. What’s going on? technology, facilities, processes and inclusive cultures Modern assets and modern technology are the price of to create a workplace people want to join. This is no admission to compete in a connected world. However, small task, but it’s simply what we as manufacturers technology is simply an enabler, it’s not the fix. The need to do to compete in this connected world. We have benefits are going to be realized from our human capital. committed $900 million to make these things happen.

An article in Industry Week captured the essence of this.

We are transforming to a centralized, dedicated I quote, “Technology is less about replacing employees modernization and engineering organization. We are or people. It’s about leveraging experienced employees creating a process center of excellence to have experwith the tools they need to compete.” So, it’s the tools tise in drawing, stranding, extrusion, finishing and our employees need. Are we providing them? packaging. We are deploying a value stream manageOur mission at Southwire is to make our operators’ ment structure to operate in a lean management system, lives easier. We have three focus areas: to reduce the not a hierarchal system. For training, we are leveragphysical demands of our job; to remove the frustraing augmented reality, virtual reality, and moving on tion of firefighting with a lean process mind set; and to to customized apps. We have an operator cross-trainreplace the collection of historical data with real-time ing program that employees can join to learn multidata analytics to drive decision making. Why? To enable ple processes. We will help our employees be the best problem solvers with modern assets and technology. they can be. We’re even partnering differently with our We are doubling down on a lean management system equipment suppliers. to ensure we have a dual focus on process and results.

We are passionate about our vision and about It’s not just about what we accomplish, it’s about how the possibilities of what Industry 4.0 can bring to we go about it. At Southwire, once we get talent in the Southwire. It is with the utmost gratitude that I have door, what are we going to do to ready it? How do we this opportunity in our lifetime to change lives. Please create or ensure we have ready, flexible problem solvjoin me in this evolution, and let’s make a difference ers? We are going to prepare our talent by connecting together. Thank you. our experience with technology to digitize our stan-

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VIRTUAL CONFERENCE

inspiring speech—Superhero Leadership: how everyday people can have an extraordinary impact— presented a well-crafted sense of how what each of us does can make a difference. Southwire’s Kathleen Edge, executive vice president of operations, spoke about her company’s connected, flexible operation system. She focused on why Industry 4.0 has an important role to advance the industry, and stressed that the solution is more than just the technology, that it has to be embraced by employees. See p. 43.

A presentation by Jeff Dewbery, Southwire’s director of manufacturing innovation, went into detail as to how Southwire set out to pursue Industry 4.0. Edited excerpts from his talk (see p. 46) show the considerable aspects that had to be considered to create a plan.

There were 15 presentations by companies that included Advaris, Cimteq, Continuus-Properzi, Enkotec A/S, 40Factory Srl, Maillefer Extrusion Oy, Marposs Corporation, MFL Group, MindSphere World Italy/ North America, Oden Technologies, Parsable, Rockwell Automation, SIKORA International Corporation, Southwire and Troester GmbH & Co KG. The role of staff was stressed in many presentations.

Companies that made industry briefings included Advaris, Cimteq, Continuus-Properzi, Davis-

Standard/Maillefer, Enkotec A/S, MFL Group, Oden Technologies and Parsable.

Platinum Sponsors for the event included Cerrowire, Encore Wire, GEM, James Monroe Wire & Cable Corp., Lloyd & Bouvier, Prysmian Group, SDI LaFarga COPPERWORKS, Sonoco Reels & Spools, Southwire and Wire Plastic Machinery Corp.

Gold Sponsors included Caris Reels and Continuous Properzi. Silver Sponsors included AIM Inc., Insteel Wire Products, NDC Technologies, Niehoff Endex North America, RichardsApex and Sikora. Bronze Sponsors included Champlain Cable, Enkotec and Fort Wayne Wire Die. The Industry 4.0 theme was to have been the centerpiece of Interwire 2021, but like many other events, the Atlanta setting was not possible because of Covid.

There is a good chance that Industry 4.0 will make a WAI return. “The staging of the Virtual Industry 4.0 Conference was a remarkable feat, considering how little time there was for volunteers and staff to create the program,” said WAI Executive Director Steve Fetteroll.

“This conference was good, but I think that everyone involved in it wants to see it happen in a live setting.

Industry 4.0 is only going to get bigger, and that experience would be a great fit at Interwire 2023.”

A slice of the conference’s Industry 4.0 business briefings WAI’s Industry 4.0 Virtual Conference included a series of industry briefings, where companies could explain how their technology ties in to the theme. Below are comments from one of the briefing companies, Sikora.

Industry 4.0 refers to machines transitioning to become completely autonomous in manufacturing. Today’s cable production process is characterized by an increasing level of automation.

Measuring gauges installed in a cable production line, such as SIKORA’s CENTERVIEW 8000, continuously supply real-time measurement data including the cable’s diameter, eccentricity and ovality to the line control computer at the production site.

These devices send production data to a central computer where the information can be made accessible to the entire company and lead to repeatable quality at all of the company’s production sites.

This data exchange is achieved by standardized interfaces, such as industrial ethernet-based field busses or OPC UA. If the cable is out of specification, the operator receives a signal to adjust the line by modifying line speed or extruder rpm to control the nominal value. The more precise measurement data available, the faster and more reliable conclusions can be drawn, optimizing the process. For example, the CENTERVIEW 8000 can identify distinct patterns within the display of a scatter plot.

The plot consists of 5,000 points, whereby each point represents an actual single value of the eccentricity (value and direction).

The overall distribution of the scatter plot easily highlights the standard deviation of the eccentricity. This device is an example of one of the many SIKORA devices that are Industry 4.0 ready. n

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Sikora’s CENTERVIEW 8000 model is one of its measuring systems that can fit in a manufacturer’s Industry 4.0 plans.

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F E AT U R E

Industry 4.0 The potential of the data “umbrella” that is collectively presented here as Industry 4.0 has continued to gather momentum. This feature presents a long detailed look at one company’s approach, how another manufacturer pursued further automation for a different reason, observations from three presenters from WAI’s Virtual Industry 4.0 Conference and a market outlook.

Southwire’s Industry 4.0 experience: it’s been quite the journey A standout presentation at WAI’s Virtual Industry 4.0 Conference was made by Southwire’s Jeff Dewberry. The company’s director of manufacturing innovation discussed Southwire’s path to embrace an Industry 4.0 approach. Below are edited excerpts that provide an overview of the different steps—including a lot of specific elements—that have been part of this ongoing initiative.

The Industry 4.0 journey is similar to a personal journey.

These are details like your location, your destination, how many stops you will make along the way and method of travel. All these elements impact planning, effort and cost.

While cost is always a concern, I believe that the biggest obstacle for this journey is the uncertainty of the overall ROI. At Southwire, we faced that quandary in taking our first step, and even now there are still unknowns. We are far from done, but what follows are the steps we have taken to date. I warn you, it presents many questions. Consider it the first chapter in the story of a mammoth project as it goes from concept to R&D to tests to deployment.

Similar to any engagement, preparation is key It starts at the top. Ensure you have executive level sponsorship, not just support. What’s the difference? Support is more of a complement or supplement to the initiative, whereas sponsorship is about having some personal ownership for the results. To get that, you need to develop a plan that illustrates these commitments, communicates the road map and vision for the project, and identifies some of the uncertainties. If the unknowns are too great, you may have to reevaluate, as executive sponsorship is a must. Why? Because resources, time and money are all involved in this initiative. Money may be the initial focus, but do not

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underestimate the commitment of resources and their time. There is no simple concise way to define each of these requirements as they can rely heavily on the state of your systems, your data and your deliverables. Basically, resources are limited, which is why sponsorship matters.

Dewberry

A pilot or production install?

Once you have support, you can determine the approach.

We developed a plan for a production solution on a limited number of machines. Our executive team felt a smaller more manageable pilot would bring more definition to the proposal. Here are some key points.

Data, data, data. The Industrial Revolution’s fourth leg is all about data and data availability. Whether you choose an in-house solution or outside provider, they all need data to deliver their platform benefits. Focus on integration of data with disparate systems. Data generated from different methodology can be hard to access, so a “universal” approach is important. Data can be collected in a historian, cloud services, a data lake (a centralized repository to store structured and unstructured data at any scale), etc.

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There are other questions that you should consider. If you have storage, is the targeted equipment connected? If it is connected, has the data integrity been validated? How easy is it to access the stored data for both your systems and the provider? Also, some storage is not easy to access or may be obsolete.

Network architecture assessment.

This is more straightforward, but having answers is just as important. Are security protocols sufficient? Is there physical separation between the OT/IT networks with proper firewalls? Does the OT network comply with best practices? Is continuous threat monitoring in place?

Does it have enough bandwidth? Is routing and switch gear sufficient? Are there local servers and/or cloud based centralized reporting?

ERP/MES. Similar questions apply.

If you have an ERP, MES or any automated production tracking system, how are the relevant data points collected/stored? These points are more the contextual data (order, product, operator, machine, etc.) and not process data points. What is the level of confidence in data integrity? And, when you

do have something in place, it is imperative to understand where it is coming from in order to validate the values.

Scalability. If you consider expansion, how does the pilot exercise scale? You might select assets that are simple or convenient, but will it help accelerate efforts? Do the assets represent the majority of the organization (age of controls, process type, equipment brand, etc.)?

Scope complexity. Scalability is a concern, but so is scope complexity.

It may be tempting to pick a difficult process to prove the platform provider has the necessary capability. This approach can lead to delays in deliverables, additional efforts not considered and possible impact in time to value. You may want to consider a process that is very well established and documented but lacks connection to an available network. The connection may be an easier option. Another consideration is how much of the required data do you have and how much will you have to “fabricate” for the process? Every concession for data made in the pilot can have a huge impact in the production solution.

Report: Industry 4.0 global market sees increasing momentum A report from Fortune Business Insights pegs the global market for Industry 4.0 at nearly $102 billion in 2020, and predicts heady annual growth will continue this decade.

The report—Factory Automation/Industry 4.0 Market— projects that demand will drive CAGR growth through 2028, at which time the market should be worth $337 billion. Advances in digital technologies and industrial automation have started extending the opportunity for industrial value chain disruption. Companies are witnessing improved efficiencies, lowercost benefits, increased output, customized offerings, and more significantly, developing new revenue and business models.

That should lead to more companies venturing into 4.0. “Based on our study, the global market exhibited a significant growth of 14.5% in 2020 as compared to the year-on-year growth during 2017-2019. The market is projected to grow from $116.14 billion in 2021 to $337.10 billion in 2028, at a CAGR rate of 16.4% in the 2021-2028 period.”

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4.0 market share in 2020. Industry there had made substantial investments, and Germany especially has seen greater deployment of connected objects and automation techniques. and has given rise to the fourth industrial revolution. However, North American companies are increasingly embracing the concept of smart manufacturing, and the region is expected to dominate the market.

Manufacturers that have not yet begun or are in the early stages of transitioning to Industry 4.0, may face difficulties as the ability to be flexible in analyzing and adjusting inventory requirements, optimizing supply chains and increasing manufacturing capabilities will be crucial for manufacturers and enterprises globally.

The pandemic has heightened the importance of Industry 4.0’s potential, but data breaches and security are concerns. The 160 p. report covers these and other issues at length.

For more information on the report (#102375), contact Fortune Business Insights, tel. (U.S.) 424-253-0390, (U.K.) 44-2071939123 and APAC 91-744-740-1245, sales@fortunebusinessinsights.com.

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