EDITOR’S CHOICE
FIELD OF DREAMS
FANUC
FANUC brings new IIoT data platform to UK market
With a view to helping UK manufacturers
improve the efficiency and output of
their production operations, FANUC
has unveiled its new Industrial Internet
of Things (IIoT) platform, FIELD (FANUC
Intelligent Edge Link and Drive) system.
Suitable for industrial applications ranging
from subcontract machine shops through
to major production facilities alike, FIELD
system is an open source platform which
connects a broad range of FANUC and
third-party production technology –
including both new and legacy models
dating back to 2000. Its ultimate aim is
to provide fast, centralised access to all
production data within a factory and help
end-users take a decisive step towards
Smart Factory status.
Unlike other IIoT solutions, FIELD system
is ‘edge-heavy’ and collects, keeps and
processes a wide range of production data
at source, on the shop floor, rather than
in the cloud. As such, it gives operators
access to much more accurate real-
time data and analytics. For larger sites,
FIELD system is also fully scalable across
multiple cells within a factory, and allows
manufacturers to make informed and
intelligent decisions that can drive tangible
improvements in productivity.
“FIELD system operates primarily ‘on
premises’. It ensures a fast response
to edge devices without the need for
a cloud connection,” says Craig Taylor,
European Technical Support Manager, at
FANUC. “This allows for better real-time
processing and autonomy to move without
the internet, as well as reduced cloud
communications costs and better data leak
prevention. However, if customers want
to store data for future analysis or make
a combined data analysis from different
factory locations, they can do so via a cloud
solution.”
Craig continues: “With FIELD system, we
are aiming to empower the engineer, not
de-skill them. Manufacturing is becoming
increasingly digitised and we see FIELD
system as a tool that can amplify the
knowledge of those running production, by
taking a few key inputs and using them to
improve the efficiency and output of their
operations.”
FIELD system is compatible with a number
of different applications available from the
newly-launched FANUC App store, which
end-users can browse and download from
directly. Apps include both those offered by
FANUC as well as those designed by third-
parties such as software houses, systems
integrators and even end-users.
Two of the most important applications
available to end-users are FIELD system
PMA and FIELD system ZDT.
PMA (Production Monitoring and Analytics)
software is used to monitor the production
and performance of all machines connected
to FIELD system, including flagging any
which are not operating at intended
capacity, as well as facilitating waveform
failure analysis.
ZDT (Zero Down Time) continuously
monitors the health of machines and can
identify trends – such as torque changes
or disturbances – with a view to informing
operators when preventative maintenance
action needs to be taken.
Among the first third party apps to be
added to the FANUC App store, and also
displayed at the 2019 Hannover Fair, is one
from Open Data which captures the OEE
(Overall Efficiency of Equipment) of the
entire production system in real-time and
visualises the data on a dashboard.
Craig continues: “Ultimately, the open
nature of the platform is intended to
improve the efficiency and quality of a
production process, while also optimising
maintenance. We want FIELD system to be
able to keep production running, regardless
of whether the equipment is exclusively
FANUC or a combination of multiple
different manufacturers.”
For more information on FIELD system, please visit: www.fanuc.eu/uk/en/field-system
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PECM Issue 44