Smart Manufacturing

Concepts and Methods

Masoud Soroush, Michael Baldea, Thomas F. Edgar, Masoud Soroush, Michael Baldea, Thomas F. Edgar

• Editorial: Elsevier
• Año: 2020
• ISBN:
  9780128203804
• Categoría: Technology & Engineering
• Categoría: Chemical & Biochemical Engineering

Research efforts in the past ten years have led to considerable advances in the concepts and methods of smart manufacturing. Smart Manufacturing: Concepts and Methods puts these advances in perspective, showing how process industries can benefit from these new techniques. The book consolidates results developed by leading academic and industrial groups in the area, providing a systematic, comprehensive coverage of conceptual and methodological advances made to date.

Written by leaders in the field from around the world, Smart Manufacturing: Concepts and Methods is essential reading for graduate students, researchers, process engineers, and managers. It is complemented by a companion book titled Smart Manufacturing: Applications and Case Studies, which covers the applications of smart manufacturing concepts and methods in process industries and beyond.

• Takes a process-systems engineering approach to design, monitoring, and control of smart manufacturing systems
• Brings together the key concepts and methods of smart manufacturing, including the advances made in the past decade
• Includes coverage of computation methods for process optimization, control, and safety, as well as advanced modelling techniques

Chapter 1: Smart manufacturing: It's a journey, not a destination

Lance Fountaine Cargill, Wayzata, MN, United States

Abstract

As companies begin to pursue the Smart Manufacturing vision, they are often challenged by the complexity of multiple technologies, the evolving landscape of megatrends, and the various perspectives of self-proclaimed subject matter experts. This chapter highlights the importance of aligning a company around a common overarching north star vision of Smart Manufacturing, and the critical need to establish a comprehensive strategy to manage progress and success throughout the ongoing journey. It argues that Smart Manufacturing is really a story of continuous improvement, and not just a pursuit of new technology. It introduces the concept of capability and maturity within Smart Manufacturing, and the related requirements that span across people, process, and technology.

Keywords

Smart Manufacturing; Industry 4.0; Digital Transformation; Internet of Things

Contents

• 1. Introduction
• 2. The “Smart Manufacturing” north star vision
  • 2.1 People and process culture enablers
  • 2.2 Technology enablers (sometimes defined by technology megatrends)
• 3. Strategy
  • 3.1 Smart Manufacturing strategy—Understanding your business/operations customers
  • 3.2 Smart Manufacturing strategy—Technology considerations
  • 3.3 Strategy development and alignment workshops
  • 3.4 Smart Manufacturing strategy—Other considerations
• 4. Execution
  • 4.1 Define target objectives and outcomes for key customer focus areas
  • 4.2 Establish and communicate annual plans
  • 4.3 Solution development supports scalability
  • 4.4 Disciplined project management
  • 4.5 Document value and value realization
  • 4.6 Explore new technologies
• 5. Conclusion
• References

1: Introduction

If you have worked anywhere around industry or manufacturing in the last several years, you have almost certainly heard the tremendous amount of buzz around Smart Manufacturing [1, 2]. It is possible that you may have seen it referenced by a different name, perhaps as Industry 4.0, Digital Transformation, IoT (Internet of Things), Digitalization and Analytics, and probably a few others [3] that I am forgetting to highlight here. Whatever label you prefer, however, there is no doubting that the concept is being recognized as a significant disruption to our traditional model of business, production, and operations. The value potential of Smart Manufacturing is just too big to ignore.

So, what does the pursuit of Smart Manufacturing really look like? Let's start by envisioning the future state of industry and manufacturing. Here are some common elements:

• • There will be an increase in automation, and a reduction of hands-on workforce [4]. This trend has already been progressing over several decades and will continue for decades to come. The need for manual labor and hands on activities will continue to decline.
• • Robotics and autonomous equipment will replace people for needed transport, process monitoring, and inspection. This will reduce exposure to safety risks and also help reduce the industry and manufacturing size footprint [5].
• • Factories will become modular and mobile, making relocation much simpler and less costly. Commodity industries will be closer to supply chain and sources of energy. Manufacturing will be done closer to the consumer reducing time to market and the cost of transportation and logistics [6].
• • Similar to the trend in automation, artificial intelligence will also start to become a prevalent capability in our production and operations facilities. AI will begin to replace traditional professional roles in industry and manufacturing [5].
• • With improved operational intelligence, virtual and/or physical centers of excellences (CoEs) will be established to monitor or control like assets. This will more effectively leverage critical subject matter experts (SMEs), enable improved knowledge sharing across teams, and help offset risk associated with the loss of key resources [7].
• • Sustainability and conservation will go beyond the walls of individual companies and start to optimize at both a community and global enterprise level.
• • Data and information will continue to become a more valuable asset in support of continuous performance improvement and effective decisions [8].
• • Digital technologies and related skillsets will be a key enabler for the future. Knowledgeable resources will be in high demand across all business sectors.

For some perspective on how industry and manufacturing will likely change, let's quickly recap how digital technologies are currently disrupting transportation across the world:

• • Navigation systems are now available on your mobile device. This not only gives the driver step by step instructions, but also automatically reroutes when unexpected events occur. These scenarios could include accidents, weather, construction delays, law enforcement, etc. Real-time intelligence is now helping drivers optimize their routes and arrival times.
• • Although not widely adopted as of yet, autonomous vehicles are available and driving alongside humans on shared roadways. Autonomous capabilities are also starting to impact transportation and logistics, and related distribution trends.
• • Companies such as Uber and Lyft have turned information into a business, mapping available drivers to those who need rides. This not only helps reduce traffic and parking needs, but can also help improve safety on the roads.
• • Fleet-wide artificial intelligence is helping to optimize fuel efficiency and vehicle wear by better understanding driving habits and equipment condition.

All of these capabilities will also soon become prevalent in industry and manufacturing. The disruption is already underway.

The transition toward Smart Manufacturing is a prerequisite to the future, and for companies who truly want to succeed, the most important next steps are to recognize what is coming and start progressing into the change. There is no silver bullet or easy button to get you to your destination, instead the concept requires a journey of continuous improvement that will be ongoing for many years to come. To be successful, company leadership will need to align around a common Smart Manufacturing vision, commit to a comprehensive strategy for adoption, and drive ongoing disciplined execution year after year in support of the pursuit. The remainder of this chapter will highlight what I believe to be the key aspects of the vision, strategy, and execution.

Fig. 1 highlights a comprehensive approach to supporting the Smart Manufacturing journey. The vision represents where you are going in the journey and why. The strategy represents how you are intending to support your journey. And finally, execution represents the specific project steps you will take to meet required milestones along the way.

Fig. 1 Smart Manufacturing—driven by vision, strategy, and execution.

2: The “Smart Manufacturing” north star vision

The first critical step in the Smart Manufacturing journey is establishing the north star vision. The purpose of this vision is to drive alignment around where the company is going with its Smart Manufacturing program and why it is an important pursuit. The vision should have strong linkage to established company value drivers and any associated target objectives. Typical value levers across the manufacturing supply chain include

Sustainability—license to operate

• • Environmental impact—minimize impact on the communities where we operate and in the markets we serve.
• • Health and safety—zero harm to our employees and the markets we serve.

Supply chain—supplier side

• • Risk management—ensure availability and integrity of supply.
• • Cost management—management of supply pricing/impact on customer pricing.

Manufacturing operations—costs of goods sold (controllable)

• • Resource management—optimization of supply resources, including energy, water, raw materials, people.
• • Productivity—increasing production volume against baseline schedule/costs.
• • Asset health—improving critical asset uptime, reducing related maintenance costs, and extending asset life.

Supply chain—customer side

• • Transportation/logistics—ensuring ontime delivery and cost control.
• • Product quality—zero returns/zero complaints.
• • Product demand—agility to meet evolving customer wants and needs.
• • Profitability—effective decisions on when to enter/exit markets.

In addition to recognizing the key value drivers and related target objectives for the organization, the Smart Manufacturing vision should also outline some of the critical enablers for success. Most companies are quick to recognize digital technologies as a foundation enabler, but consideration should also be given to the related people and process culture changes that are fundamental for ongoing success. Included below are some of the common culture and technology enablers that support Smart Manufacturing.

2.1: People and process culture enablers

• • Reboot of operational excellence/lean manufacturin...