Industry 4.0, Smart Manufacturing are hot topics for companies gearing-up Industrial Transformation. The goals of these ambitious programs while admirable have a long-term view. Here at LNS as we define our upcoming research agenda and delve into Industrial Transformation, it has become clear that many of our clients are opting for shorter term view than the typical large-scale and expensive Industrial Transformation programs.

The goal of a Digital Twin is to have a software copy that behaves as closely as possible to its real-world twin, capturing every single attribute of that physical thing. We are often focused on Digital Twin of a product – because as products evolve their Digital Twin can be updated to reflect the new product, it can also predate the new product. But what about the benefits of having a Digital Twin for assets? Consider a manufacturing plant, we can start with small pieces of equipment that are vital to the production – the more critical that equipment is, the more likely is it that a Digital Twin will deliver benefits. The component, of course, must be significant enough to warrant the (high) cost of developing a Digital Twin or have enough pre-existing models available to construct a first-generation Digital Twin. The key for executives is to understand that Digital Twins can bring immediate benefit to a manufacturing plant (and the products it produces), but they are a long-term play rather than a quick fix.

On Wednesday, June 20, LNS Research co-presented the webcast, “Smart Maintenance: Using APM 4.0 to Drive Better Business Results” with AVEVA, an engineering and industrial software provider. The presentation explained why leading manufacturers use APM 4.0 to achieve balance between maintenance performance and overall economic performance. The discussion included an examination of which industries are prime candidates for APM 4.0, where to begin, and how to assess results.

The Smart Manufacturing Experience launched its first edition of manufacturing event on April 30, 2018 at the Boston Convention Center. The 3-day event, which focused mostly on Smart Manufacturing, the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), additive manufacturing, and augmented reality/virtual reality (AR/VR), witnessed several hundred presenters and attendees from an assortment of companies including IIoT Platform start-ups, industrial analytics providers, 3D printing companies, and big technology players like Microsoft, PTC, among others.

Like manufacturing, asset performance management (APM) has evolved to leverage the digital technology associated with Cloud, the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), mobility, Big Data, and the associated analytics. This overall industrial shift has been referred to as both Industry 4.0 (or Industrie 4.0) and Smart Manufacturing. Accordingly, LNS set forth a vision of how APM has evolved in support of these highly digital, capable manufacturing assets which we call APM 4.0.

In 2013, the concept of Industrie 4.0 was first touted at Hannover Messe, the world’s largest, and most expensive manufacturing show for exhibitors, industrial automation, and equipment. In the ensuing five years, the halls have been full of hype, everything 4.0 and grand promises of what is coming soon. Thankfully, signals from the Messe this year are aimed at delivery on a commercial scale. The Industrie 4.0 messaging spread across dozens of stands has gone, and the stand holders seem to be ready to deliver the first stage of benefits that Digital Transformation promises.

The notion of a risk-based approach to manufacturing domains such as quality, asset performance, safety and environmental management is not new to life sciences manufacturers. What’s changed is the scope and nature of risk management processes, and how they relate to overall enterprise risk management, sustainable operations, and profitable growth. This trend is driven by the accelerating rate of change in global business networks and operations, creating a more dynamic risk environment and calling for better risk processes and outcomes.

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LNS Research has been tracking and influencing the market’s use of Industry 4.0 technologies to improve quality for several years. These technologies have proven to be transformative, and include advances in connectivity and sensors, data management, analytics, app development, and collaboration. LNS calls this Quality 4.0 and recommends all quality teams include Quality 4.0 in their strategies. To better understand it, read the blog post and eBook.

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On Tuesday, March 20, LNS Research hosted the webcast, “Industry Standards as Building Blocks to Quality Maturity and Operational Excellence.” The presentation examined how to use industry standards to capture the attention and cooperation of senior corporate executives, the capabilities required to achieve competitive advantage through quality, and the results companies should expect.

Earlier this month, I participated in the NAEM EHS and Sustainability Software conference in St. Petersburg, FL. I’ve come to rely on this annual event as the place with highest concentration of people, companies, and content focused on EHS information technology (IT). This year’s event did not disappoint.

Click here to speak with Peter Bussey