Digitizing step by step

Some machine builders are far ahead of others and have an entire digital team to set up IIoT. But smaller companies can also make strides forward. Patrick Bruder, team leader Product Management Systems & IIoT at Lenze explains how this is possible.

Machines are built to last thanks to a stable production process. Little is changed on the PLC side. A retrofit may be necessary after 10 years as some spare parts are no longer available - especially if they contain electronic components. At the same time, you can find out if more is possible with this machine by using the available data. "There are several possibilities to get to IIoT step by step," says Bruder.

OEE

But how do you start? "Many companies do not yet know exactly how the machine is running: the number of production hours, what the most frequent breakdowns are, how long waiting times are, ... With OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness) you make this insightful. It is therefore a good starting point for many machine builders to get started with digitization." Lenze can support companies in this. "For example, we offer an OEE & downtime tracking solution that provides transparency in the production process," says Bruder. "The system brings downtime into focus which ensures transparency in the production process."

Condition Monitoring

Once you gain insight into the OEE, you also immediately hit the ground running to implement condition monitoring, he states. "You use the available data from the machine to analyze the condition of the machine. Compare it to a car. If something breaks down in your car, you often hear something anomalous such as a vibration prior to the breakdown. By adding intelligence, by applying algorithms, you can link cause and effect." For condition monitoring, you need a lot of data. "In addition, it requires a different kind of computing power to apply this, for which the Edge layer is often used. One solution Lenze offers here is the Drives DataHub. This is a software package that creates a gateway between Lenze solutions and an IIoT interface in which the existing process control operates completely independently of the Drives DataHub and thus remains unaffected. Through a standardized, manufacturer-independent interface, the data is made available to a higher cloud system via a protocol MQTT or OPC UA in the desired quality, enabling condition monitoring or predictive maintenance. This is a great start to digitization. Companies that get started will find that with every step they take, they gain more knowledge and can also grow." 

Open systems

Systematically advancing digitization is a must. "You can say that the better you digitize your systems, the more business you can generate with them. We support companies in their search for new, digital business models since it is no longer sufficient to merely sell hardware. We like to think along with customers and want to provide them with the means to make the most of all possibilities. This is why we recently launched an open automation platform - Nupano - which is synonymous with a platform with simple operation and an open system. In doing so, we use open IT architectures and technologies which means that prior knowledge of information technology is not necessary while companies themselves can link to self-developed functions or Docker without any problems. This saves them a tremendous amount of time and thus costs. The Nupano platform enables the integration, management and protection of innovative technology applications that are precisely tailored to the machine builder's machines, putting them one step ahead of competitors."