Many process manufacturing companies are on the path to digitization and have piloted analytics to improve operational performance and improve their competitive edge.
The need for leadership in smart manufacturing cannot be overstated: Making revolutionary changes can be arduous.
NASA landed another rover on Mars in February, thanks in part to the work and leadership of Adam Steltzner. Smart Manufacturing interviewed him shortly thereafter—just as he got off the phone with U.S. President Joe Biden.
With the passage of the fiscal year 2021 Consolidated Appropriations Act at the end of 2020, MxD, the national digital manufacturing institute, secured $8.5 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Defense for 5G for manufacturing and cybersecurity for arsenal supply chains.
To achieve a better world, we have chosen Society 5.0 as our key driver. The evolution of automation technologies in the context of Industry 4.0 and Industry 5.0 is fantastic, but the focus should be to benefit society, humankind and the earth.
While precision, part programs and productivity have improved markedly, the basic process is still the same.
The adoption of smart manufacturing processes reminds Bob Willig of his “lean manufacturing journey, years ago,” he said.
In competitiveness studies for economic development projects, a strong workforce is always one of the leading factors for a project win. A talented workforce is also necessary when a company is evaluating expansion opportunities.
Manufacturers who have deployed the digital or smart factory have put down their pencils, found new uses for their clipboards and closed their spreadsheet programs in favor of using real-time data gleaned from condition monitoring of their machinery.
Information technology and operations technology are unlikely candidates for a successful marriage. But to ensure that manufacturers thrive in the digital age, OT and IT must find ways to work together—or to at least, as on Tinder, swipe right to indicate interest.
