FANUC has made real one of the promises of Industry 4.0, that of predictive maintenance for factory equipment, with its Zero Down Time IoT solution. ZDT can be applied to any of FANUC’s robotic arms and their peripherals.
Hybrid manufacturing—using one machine to perform both additive and conventional subtractive manufacturing processes—is gaining traction across manufacturing sectors, allowing companies to leverage the benefits of both.
Amid vigorous growth in their industry, product lifecycle management (PLM) software developers are exploiting the cloud and machine learning to manage data and enhance the users’ experience.
The auto industry wants to expand the use of 3D printers. Automakers such as Ford Motor Co. and BMW AG are working directly with additive manufacturers concerning deployment of the technology.
McDermott International is using Digital Twins to grow its business and to keep information flowing instead of trapped in silos.
Well into the 21st century, the medical industry faces a host of intriguing challenges, from aging populations to a growing range of personalized and at-home diagnostic and care devices—all set against a backdrop of increasing digital collection, transfer and storage of sensitive patient data.
We all know the buzzwords circulating around digital data and the factory. You have heard them—Industry 4.0, smart factories, data analytics, and artificial intelligence (AI). The question we all have is how will this impact workers in the long term? What do these terms really mean? Nevertheless, both traditional software suppliers and makers of advanced manufacturing equipment are offering digital solutions.
For machine shops in a competitive global marketplace, keeping spindles running and making product is the only way to stay in business. Still, adding a new piece of equipment, even with the promise of improving the efficiency of your existing ones, may be a difficult sell to management.
Rod Anthony is the president of Anthony Screw Products Ltd., Burlington, Ontario, Canada. He has more than 25 years of experience working in every position in his plant’s manufacturing process.
Speeding the flow of jobs through the shop, while maintaining top quality, ranks among the hallmarks of any successful manufacturing operation’s goals.