1. A Bite of the Elephant
This week’s 27th annual ARC Advisory Group’s Industry Leadership Forum in Orlando was held adjacent to Sea World. The most discussed creature during the three-day event wasn’t aquatic.
On more than one occasion, panelists discussing the challenges around digital transformation used the phrase, “eating the elephant one bite at a time.” It was an important concept as more manufacturers begin to embrace the necessity of an interconnected, data-driven plant ecosystem.
There’s still a long way to go to adoption of digital manufacturing, but panelists repeatedly pointed out that the success of this endeavor depended on it being done in smaller steps. Digital transformation is scalable, they said, but it also should be done in stages, both as a way to prove the concept and as a way to take the savings from the first phase and use that to fund the next phase. And so on.
2. A Competitive Necessity
A panel of companies that all are part of the ARC Digital Transformation Top 25 rankings talked about how their digital journey has brought benefits ranging from better maintenance to a managed sustainability effort. Companies such as Pfizer, Dow and Lockheed Martin all discussed their journeys.
But the sharpest assessment of the need for digital transformation came from John Dyck, CEO of CESMII, the smart manufacturing consortium. Dyck made it clear that digital transformation is essential not just for plant improvement, but to maintain America’s global leadership in manufacturing. “The last 10 years about Industry 4.0 has been about creating awareness of where we might go,” he said. “Innovation is not our challenge. The real question is how we can enable that kind of innovation. Unleashing innovation at scale through interoperability is the key.”
3. New Kids on the Block
Beyond the dozens of sessions at ARC—all of which will be viewable in a virtual format from Feb. 27 to March 27—there were more than 50 suppliers and innovators in the event’s main exhibit hall. Many of the names were familiar, but about half were companies either new to ARC or those expanding their visibility in the marketplace.
With a focus on everything from data management to cybersecurity to software supporting the digital transformation, these companies breathed some fresh air into the event and were warranted closer examination.
4. Bad Data, Good Data, Real Data
While the most recent Institute for Supply Management PMI Index showed a continuing deterioration in the manufacturing sector, there is some better operational and financial news to report as well.
First the bad news: The January PMI fell to 47.4%, the second straight month of contraction in the manufacturing sector after more than two years of steady growth. New Orders have slowed dramatically, although most of the respondents to the survey stated they are more optimistic about the second half of the year.
On the positive side. Siemens reported its first-quarter financial report this week, with revenues climbing 8% as both the Smart Infrastructure and Digital Industries portfolio showed increased profits.
Siemens also donated $1 million to relief efforts in Turkey and Syria following that region’s devastating earthquake. The tragic numbers continue to grow and provide some stark perspective on all of the data we capture and measure each day.
5. Taking The Pulse of the Medical Device Industry
At this week’s MD&M West Conference in Anaheim, Machine Design Editor-in-Chief Rehana Begg reported on a number of innovative ways sensor technology continues to improve our personal health in fascinating—and apparently flexible—new ways.
3M has launched a new adhesive tape that can stick to the skin for up to 28 days. It is intended for use with an array of sensors, long-term medical wearables and health monitors such as glucose and heart monitors. For devices such as blood glucose monitors, the long-lasting tape can hold devices in place twice as long as previous products.