Does Embracing Industry 4.0
Really Optimize Growth?
Industry 4.0 is the collection of technologies that employ
computer controls, modelling, big data and other
automation to improve manufacturing efficiencies.
Increasingly, it is being adopted by cable
and wire manufacturers who recognise its
immeasurable value in improving bottom
line. Leading worldwide provider of software
solutions specific to the cable manufacturing
industry, Cimteq has been an advocate of
Industry 4.0 for several years. It believes that
a focus on three key areas of Industry 4.0 – the
Internet of Things, Digital Twinning and Big
Data – brings the dream of ‘The Smart Factory’
one step closer.
one against the other to identify the most cost-
effective production location. Cimteq’s CableBuilder
fully supports digital twinning through complex
algorithms which have been built by its inhouse team.
Introducing such smart assets to a factory is the
first step on a transformational journey in creating
competitive edge. Helping to deliver this vision is
Cimteq’s automation software with its proven track
record in producing accurate costings, reducing waste
and automating labour-intensive tasks.
The Internet of Things
In the Internet of Things, the sensor connects to
the cloud computer which in turn connects to the
machine part. Separating the system in this way
allows more individual configuration of each element
to meet wide-ranging business outcomes such as
triggering burglar alarms or saving electricity.
Digital twinning
Simulating a product or process through a ‘digital
twin’ allows design engineers to perfect a product
without creating multiple physical prototypes. This
has an immediate benefit of calculating product
price and in turn profitability before involving the
production line. Where manufacturers have more
than one factory, it allows them to benchmark
Big data
Sales figures, product design, production and quality
information all constitute big data and typically
reside in a company’s ERP, CRM or MES. The
Cimteq suite of cable manufacturing software is
fully compatible with these systems as well as single
virtual databases such as Wonderware. Collating big
data in such a real-time manner with instant ‘alarms’
accelerates issue resolution on an unprecedented
scale.
.
www.cimteq.com
WIRE NEWS July 2019
11