The Industry 3.0 production models of the 90s did not allow for any coordinated activity between Operations Technology (or OT) and Information Technologies (IT).
However, the production models in Industry 4.0 are based on shared data flows and system interconnections. How do they do this? They use standards that translate the information from all the OTs (sensors, actuators, PLCs and SCADA) into a common language that ITs can understand. This results in greater control over production, more efficiency, higher productivity and reduced costs.
It also opens up pathways to end-to-end solutions that enable an entire factory to be controlled with just one type of software like Thingworx.
We’ll give you all the details in our next article.
What are information silos and how are they hampering industrial evolution?
A silo is a large structure for storing bulk materials. It’s usually tightly sealed and impermeable to conserve the products stored inside. Silos are a fantastic invention for storing things like grain.
But the term “silo” has more negative connotations when it’s used in the data industry. Information that flows effectively means we win out, but if it doesn’t, if it’s isolated, we all lose.
“Throw away” data vs. an integrated management system
And this is what’s happened for decades: every element in a plant’s production process (like a sensor) only provides information to its immediate surroundings. And that makes for “throwaway” information. It doesn’t flow, it isn’t analysed, and it doesn’t create an ongoing history for effective decision making.
Here’s a simple example: a vibration sensor detects an anomaly and sends a signal to the PLC in the same machine. An operative consults the PLC and notifies the maintenance team about the anomaly so they can resolve the issue.
The PLC logs the anomaly, but that’s all it does. It doesn’t understand what caused it, or how long it took to fix it, or how, or if it caused a critical failure. So, we won’t have any automated background data if the same thing happens again.
But in an Industry 4.0, everything is interconnected, so the system not only gathers data about the incident, it also learns to detect it before it even happens, it calculates the time we have before it turns into a critical failure: it can even propose an action plan. And it reports all this in an instant, not just with a signal in the PLC, but with an alert that goes to every manager’s terminal.
We’re looking at real-time monitoring, analysis and decision-making that’s shared and happening everywhere in our factory, thanks to the new information management systems in industry: and that’s what the end-to-end concept is all about.
From point-to-point to end-to-end solutions
When we do away with information silos, we get interconnected OT and IT systems, and we shift from point-to-point information management and enter a new world of end-to-end solutions.
Thirty years ago, the only viable way to connect any machine to the Internet was through point-to-point communications (PPP). These systems were characterised by using a TCP/IP protocol and the need for physical connections like cables. Therefore, a PPP connection exists when two systems are physically connected via a phone line.
Way back then, integrating PPP-based communications in industry was revolutionary; it made PLCs and SCADA software possible, but now it’s regarded as obsolete technology, it’s simply not enough to face up to today’s challenges and make a company halfway competitive. It’s in the same league as the “vibrations expert”, whose job 50 years ago was to listen to machines and touch them to detect a noise or vibration that might show there was an anomaly.
End-to-End: From concept to service
The possibilities that interconnection offers have created an enormous capability in data transfer and analysis, and this is opening up a new era in business management based on end-to-end information management systems (also called E2E). It works by gathering, storing, protecting and giving access to data from all the sources that are currently generating them.
End to end solutions configure a unified data management system that covers all communication needs, from gathering data from the first sensor to business intelligence analytics, and it expedites the use of the information to a range of authorised user profiles. And all this happens in a secure environment.
But the question is, how can you do all this when every sensor and software in the plant speaks a different language? Simple: two answers, interconnection and standardisation.
Interconnection, the key to Industry 4.0
A lot of companies carry on working as if it were the 90s, when you could only connect IT devices to machinery through cables. Or at best, they’ve automated some tasks by installing robotic arms. But that’s not how Industry 4.0 works, that’s just a use case.
The key to the fourth industrial revolution is in the shared flow of information, in data analysis, in interconnected systems and the democratisation of information (this last term refers to ease of access to easily understandable information).
Information technologies are taking the reins and increasing productivity, efficiency, traceability, information security… that’s what Industry 4.0 is. Smart sensors and the digital thread, as we explained in previous articles, play a closely related role in this concept.
OPC UA: The key player in data standardisation
It’s not enough just to have everything connected. The data that each part shares have to be understood by the whole.
The decisive step in enabling elements to understand each other was made by industrial giants like Siemens, Rockwell and Omron, when they created the OPC standard and its successor, the OPC UA (Open Platform Communications Unified Architecture).
This communications protocol designed specifically for industrial automation simplifies machine-to-machine (M2M) communication. What it does is facilitate the exchange of information and data for devices in machines, between machines and from machines to systems.
The OPC UA is the key player that connects information technology and operations technology. This protocol makes the quantum leap from IoT to IIoT. And it opens up the way to smart factories.
Kepware and Thingworx, the tools that manage smart factories
Now every machine is interconnected and using a commonly understood language, so we just need the right software to gather all the data and give every team member the information they need to optimise their tasks.
Kepware and Thingworx is a software suite that used together provide you with the solutions to transform a 3.0 factory into a smart one. Both solutions have been developed by PTC, and Aritex integrates them into your digital transformation projects.
Kepware: The software that understands OT
Kepware’s job is to gather data from all OT sources (sensors, actuators, controllers, PLC, SCADA, etc.) and “translate” them to the OPC UA standard to make them understandable.
It’s what you might call invisible software, but it’s essential for making Industry 4.0 work.
Thingworx: Complete control of a smart factory, in the palm of your hand
Thingworx’s job is to connect all the business and industrial management software (from MES to ERP) and provide precise information to every team member. It’s the middleware that connects everything and serves you the information on a silver platter.
Let’s go back to that vibration incident:
- The sensor (but this time it’s a smart one) detects the anomaly.
- Kepware standardises the data and sends it to Thingworx.
- Thingworx automatically opens a ticket for maintenance and sends a notification to the maintenance manager and assistant manager. The ticket includes:
- a log of related incidents
- previously applied solutions
- a forecast of how long the machine can operate before there’s a critical failure
- the right moment to do the maintenance work, taking into account production needs
- the maintenance team that will be available at that moment
- and a long list of configurable information that helps everyone to make the best decision and get it done in record time.
Business Intelligence that monitors your smart factory
And the example we looked at was just one maintenance issue. The analytical power of this tool, based on machine learning, big data and business intelligence enables you to monitor a smart factory in real time and manage it with the information you really need. And you can do all this from any terminal with an Internet connection. Right in the palm of your hand.
Thingworx, the end-to-end solution to manage smart factories