When it comes to Industry 4.0 there are a lot of manufacturers stuck at Industry 3.0, simply because they don't know how to bridge that gap between the two, nor have an understanding of why and how Industry 4.0 can benefit them.
Fair call I say!
Welcome to episode 5 of a fourteen-part series by John Broadbent from Realise Potential.
We have software vendors banging on the door, marketing emails in our inbox, the next must-attend webinar, the silver-bullet offerings, and so much hype around Industry 4.0, you can understand why much of it is landing on deaf ears.
"Show me the money!", screamed Jerry Maguire.
If you're not familiar with the era of Industry 3.0, the consensus says it started when Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, back in 1969. And I still remember watching the black-and-white TV footage in the hall of my primary school, when Neil Armstrong took that “One Small Step ...”
This was the era of automation, early electronic machine control, followed by PLCs and all the automation hardware that we've since seen in manufacturing. So why are many manufacturers still stuck at Industry 3.0?
A recent research report identified two areas that form the foundations of a future Industry 4.0 environment. Without them, you can't move forward. It's as simple as that, and based on my own empirical experience, I'd agree.
What are they, I hear you ask?
I'm happy you asked!
The first one is COMPUTERISATION.
This means ensuring the equipment you have on the factory floor is controlled by systems such as PLCs that can be mined for information, and to do so, must be capable of being networked. So, it's best to ensure when you're buying equipment that you include networking capabilities such as an Ethernet network card that support standard protocols.
Failure to do this at the time of purchase can mean you pay much more later to retrofit, and this is assuming that there's actually spare space in the control panel. I've seen panels made so tight in terms of sardine real estate, that retro-fitted modules have been mounted to the inside of the panel door.
Of course, this also requires you to have access to the PLC code, to change the network addresses etc., so you can get the gear onto your network, assuming you have one.
Now, assuming to have computerised equipment and can get data out of it, you need to connect it to something. So, CONNECTIVITY is the other foundational step. It's one thing to connect a PLC to an existing network, and it's another thing to have appropriate IT infrastructure in place, such as managed switches, firewalls and cyber security. Just think of Toll, Fisher & Paykel and LION, who suffered cyber-ware ransom attacks that severely affected their ability to manufacture.
The role of IT here is to provide the platform to support the connection, extraction and storage of information, in a secure environment. It's the role of operations to mine the data they need, for real-time visibility into production and more importantly, do something with it.
This is where the IT and OT worlds overlap and collaboration between IT and OT is paramount if Industry 4.0 and smart manufacturing projects are to succeed.
For a moment though, imagine you are a manufacturing CIO and you're realising your factory is not lit up when it comes to industrial WiFi, LANs, switches, firewalls, and servers etc, so you ask for a substantial amount of dollars to put the foundations in.
If you were building a house you couldn't live in or rent out the foundations, but you need them to support the rest of the building. It's the same with this level of IT infrastructure, it's needed for the rest to progress.
So, the CIO goes to the CFO and asks for $150,000 with a 12-month Return on Investment being the centre of a doughnut: Zero!
How do you think that's going to land?
It's incumbent on the CIO and COO/Operations Manager to layout a 2 to 3-year implementation plan, with the initial investment followed by some return from improved manufacturing efficiency, reduced waste, better labour utilisation, increased yield, etc in years 2 & 3 and further into the future.
Most organisations that contemplate this fail in one major area and that is, ‘the high cost of doing nothing’, which if considered, can sometimes mean the end of the business itself, as it gets left behind and becomes non-competitive.
You could be forgiven for thinking that Darwinism will have its day, and it will. Just look at the history of businesses that failed to act and you'll see it's littered with businesses that became dinosaurs because they failed to adapt.
It's the same with manufacturing.
Industry 4.0 is upon us whether we like it or not, global supply chains are changing, customer requirements are demanding quicker deliveries, a better customer service experience and the ability to customise their purchases, and they want it yesterday.
You can see this disruption as a headwind or a tailwind. The choice is in the business's hands and time is always the judge of whether a choice was good or bad.
My advice?
Get educated, don't be led by vendors who are hammers looking for nails.
Buy smart equipment and build relationships with your equipment vendors.
Have a strategy and follow it.
You see, it's not rocket science after all.
If you need help with this, you can reach out to me on LinkedIn or the Realise Potential website. In the meantime, stay safe and well and may your machines keep running and downtime be minimised.
John Broadbent
Watch John's original LinkedIn video here.
