Industry 4.0 : Driving Manufacturing Forward

For the Indian manufacturing industry to evolve and get at par with its global peers, it is highly crucial that its players – big, medium, small – embrace Industry 4.0, the current trend of automation and data exchange. Indian Machine Tool Manufacturers’ Association (IMTMA), in the 50th year of its flagship event IMTEX, endeavored to reach out to the industry to help raise awareness on its significance.

Industries in India are faced with the challenge of meeting the ever-changing requirements of its customers. Factories, to cater to the demands, are ramping up their shop-floor activities by deploying Artificial Intelligence, Automation, Robotics, Big Data, Internet of Things (IoT), and so on in their manufacturing process. This will help Indian manufacturing industry compete with the best in the globe.

Making the Next Move

Among these technologies, Industry 4.0 is influencing the process chain in two significant ways i.e. in terms of technology and engineering, and data flow. IoT has been transforming lives and aiding manufacturers to build a momentum for achieving a manifold growth in the years to come.

The advent of Industry 4.0 has led to the birth of smart machines. A lot of thinking features have been introduced into them that minimize human intervention. They are able to take care of predictive maintenance, prescriptive maintenance, storing of information for future usage, etc. This has led to transparency in production process as real-time data is available on the fingertips of senior management, middle-level management, and machine operators in factory premises without any blockages.

The deployment of intelligent machines and automated processes create a significant impact on the production as we set up ‘smart factories’. Real-time production happens as utilization capacity is optimized with shorter lead times and avoidance of standstills. Production is getting decentralized as machines self-organize. Individualization of production depending upon customer requirements also happens. Manufacturing is turning ‘smart’. The concept of ‘smart manufacturing’ first came to light at Hannover Messe fair in 2011 and is now gaining popularity across continents. It is heralding a new way of organizing the means of production.

In these ‘smart factories’ everything is connected. There is a constant interaction between products and machines as well as between machines and machines. Humans, machines and materials are all linked together on a network, which, in turn, is connected to outside world. There is a seamless communication, the overall objective of which is to convert data into information and knowledge in real time to make the manufacturing process more productive and flexible besides ensuring quality.

IMTEX and Industry 4.0

IMTMA recently celebrated 50 years of its flagship IMTEX exhibition in Bangalore. As a new initiative, the Association introduced a pavilion as well as a seminar on ‘Factory of the Future: Industry 4.0’. The primary goal was to increase the awareness on the significant opportunities and challenges of Industry 4.0 in manufacturing. The pavilion and seminar provided visitors a holistic understanding of the importance of IT infrastructure, Data Security, and IoT. The pavilion featured 32 exhibitors and the seminar was attended by 200 delegates.

IMTMA also organized a Live Demo on Industry 4.0 during IMTEX 2019 at its Technology Center. A model smart factory has been set up at IMTMA Technology Center where CNC Turning Centers, CNC Machining Centers, Digital Height Gauges and CMM machines are digitally connected and monitored in real time. The real-time data is acquired through data acquisition devices and CNC controls.

The need for Industry 4.0

Industry 4.0 is a harbinger of change in manufacturing activities. Small and medium enterprises which dot India’s manufacturing landscape need to make the most of its phenomenal opportunities. Advanced analytics will enable industries to enhance their production capacity and quality. This is so as with data analytics prediction will result in the prevention of defects. Robotics and automation will shorten production cycle, reduce the ‘time to market’ as well as result in more efficient utilization of resources. Digitization of numerous business processes can increase costs saving and enhance the experience of users as well as workers. IoT and connectivity of machine to people and machine to machine will tighten the supply chain and reduce the lead time. Entities can enhance their operating profits. The Government of India aims to increase the contribution of the manufacturing industry to around 25 percent of GDP and this will be possible only when the industry implements Industry 4.0 in all possible operations on the shop-floor.

The advent of Industry 4.0 has led to the birth of smart machines. A lot of thinking features have been introduced into them that minimize human intervention. They are able to take care of predictive maintenance, prescriptive maintenance, storing of information for future usage, etc.