digitization Archives

IT/OT Convergence in the Factory of the Future

Since the advent of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), experts and enthusiasts have been talking about the coming together of IT (information technology) and OT (operational technologies). Some call it an integration, while others call it a convergence. I call it a good thing.

In this post, I’ll talk a bit about the convergence/integration of IT and OT, why it matters, and what it will look like in the Factory of the Future.

What is IT/OT Convergence?

WhatIs.com gives a pretty simple, yet solid definition of IT/OT convergence:

IT/OT convergence is the integration of information technology (IT) systems used for data-centric computing with operational technology (OT) systems used to monitor events, processes and devices and make adjustments in enterprise and industrial operations.

Other definitions offer variations on the theme. More detailed definitions, for example, might focus specifically on operational technologies such as the billions of connected devices that make up the IIoT.

What the Definition of IT/OT Convergence is Missing

Machines talking to each other, seamlessly improving operations without any human intervention. Maybe. Someday.

In the meantime, the most vital convergence that needs to happen is the coming together of your IT and OT people. To be clear, I’m not talking about the next big trend in organizational restructuring that merges IT and OT teams into one. I doubt most of you would want your IT technicians managing production schedules any more than you’d want your plant managers configuring your network. The skills and knowledge required are vastly different.

What you want to see is the two teams working together to solve problems. In the convergence of IT and OT, each side has something valuable to offer.

If you’re in operations, you need the folks in IT to make your ideas work. For example, let’s say you want to implement predictive maintenance in your organization to reduce unplanned downtime. You either purchase or retrofit your equipment with intelligence, and you invest in applications like SyncView^® to improve shop floor visibility.

At a minimum, you’ll need to collaborate with your IT team to make sure that your connected devices (both the shop floor equipment and the handhelds you use to access the real-time information) are secured, so they don’t increase your organization’s cybersecurity risk profile.

Connecting devices also increases the traffic on your network. IT can be instrumental in ensuring the IT infrastructure is architected to provide the level of performance you require.

While I don’t imagine there are a lot of IT professionals reading our blog, understanding the benefits of IT/OT convergence from the perspective of the IT professional can help you foster willing collaboration between the two teams.

CIOs and other high-ranking IT professionals are under increasing pressure to add value to the business through digital transformation. In the 2018 Gartner CIO Agenda Report, 17% of respondents said digital transformation was their number one priority. While 17% may not seem like a large percentage, keep in mind that this 17% ranked digital transformation over other important priorities like profit improvement (10%), innovation (10%), and customer focus (9%). The only priority that topped digital transformation was growth/market share at 26%.

The challenge for many IT professionals lies in defining exactly what digital transformation means to the organization. It is NOT simply putting more mobile devices in the hands of factory floor employees. For digital transformation to be effective, it must add value to the business.

Digital Transformation with a Purpose

OT professionals can help their colleagues in IT by providing a reason and a method behind their digital transformation initiatives. Take pull-based replenishment as an example.

In pull-based replenishment, production is tied to customer demand, and materials are only replenished once they are consumed. While pull can help eliminate many of the eight types of waste identified by Lean Manufacturing, it provides two important bottom line benefits as well: Decreased cycle times and decreased inventory levels. Pull is a vital principle in Demand-Driven Manufacturing.

Kanban systems are undoubtedly the most common method for implementing pull-based replenishment. However, manual Kanban systems are fraught with challenges such as human error and lost cards. They can also introduce the waste of excess motion into the system as workers move Kanban cards around the factory floor.

eKanban replaces manual Kanban with connected devices that send electronic demand signals. No more unexpected stock outs due to a lost or misplaced Kanban card. As an example of how much more efficient eKanban is, consider that one of our customers replaced a manual Kanban process consisting of 66 steps with an eKanban process with only six steps. At the same time, they reduced replenishment inventory by 40% and their lead time from 12 weeks to two.

IT/OT Convergence IS the Factory of the Future

In the Factory of the Future, I envision IT/OT planning meetings to be every bit as common as the weekly S&OP meeting is today. That’s because, without the convergence of IT and OT – and the people behind these technologies – the Factory of the Future doesn’t exist.

Here are a few additional resources that may help as you create your vision for the Factory of the Future and explore how you can bring together your IT and OT teams. (Remember to share these with your colleagues in IT!)

White papers:

How Technology will Connect Your Enterprise and Create the Demand-Driven Factory of the Future — Today

E2E Supply Chain Visibility Technology is Here

Videos:

How Orbital ATK Enabled the IIoT and a Visual Factory

Visualizing Metrics in the Factory of the Future

Visual Factory Software Overview

If you have comments or questions on this article or any of the concepts we’ve discussed, please add them below or reach out to me directly.

July 9, 2018

Using Big Data to Tell Your Story

Three ways narrative can connect the dots between big data and your brand

In a recent Forbes article, the writer describes Big Data as “a collection of data from traditional and digital sources inside and outside your company that represents a source for ongoing discovery and analysis.” I love this definition because it describes a process of discovery that—once linked with your brand message – allows you to uncover additional opportunities to tell compelling stories in the markets you serve.

I work in the manufacturing space, where our systems manage large amounts of real-time data aggregated from enterprise systems and machines in a client’s plant(s)—and all the way out to suppliers and customers. Manufacturers who harness this data gain insight to improve production flow; focus continuous improvement (CI) initiatives; and drive customer satisfaction via on-time delivery, innovation and increased capacity. This insight – and resulting capabilities – helps them transform into a more flexible, reactive and empowered business partner, creating a powerful story to tell in the marketplace. Sharing your most impactful big data stories will strengthen competitive advantage, profitability and your brand value.

Here are what I believe to be the three most compelling storylines for our manufacturing audience in what I call, “The Big Data Narrative”:

1. Pain Points

As marketers know well, features and benefits must solve specific customer problems. Spend some time brainstorming with your front-line people about the “pain” your customers are in and come up with an engaging narrative to show how your products can provide actionable information to solve these problems. Take care to create a distinction between a pile of data and actionable information that elicits “discovery” or insight into innovation. For example, our client was able to access actionable information to manage their inventory and WIP in a visible way and experience a 50% reduction in operating expenses. This customer’s pain point was ineffective inventory management, but they also had spotty supplier relationships. We helped them use and interpret their new system-generated data to create new synergies with their suppliers—a story worth the telling.

2. Related, Real-life Narratives

After you identify the pain, look at your past and current customers to give your big data solutions weight and depth. You’ll need case studies and testimonials like the one I used above. We often use case studies from our clients to paint a picture of value, particularly from those who use our InSync Services after implementation to jump start continuous improvement actions based on their new system-generated knowledge. We tell our products’ stories by telling these client stories—how they improved flow and continued to build value through their Big-Data-driven CI process. I love sharing the real-life ways that show how manufacturers use us to turn their big data into actionable information – and then into transformational improvements.

We also use stories to differentiate ourselves in the marketplace we serve. Because we have a unique position as a provider incorporating demand-driven manufacturing processes into our systems, we use stories from current clients to validate our value proposition to prospective clients. In turn, these customers use our stories to sell the solution internally to gain adoption.

3. Table the Tables?

Mark Schaefer’s excellent blog post cautions against using too many pies, charts and graphs to tell the story—but let’s face it—70% of us are visual learners and supply-chain managers tend to want these graphics. They’re used to a dashboard approach and it would be a mistake not to give them one. In fact, the factory of the future is a visual environment, where status is easily viewed and actionable information is within reach, accessible to everyone. But don’t lose the people in the process of telling your story. Paint a “people picture” – use the shop foreman’s real first name – and don’t be afraid to use emotion as you translate Big Data into the big stories that create big results for your customers. As Schaefer puts it:

“If we distill the complex and nuanced world into only averages and pie charts, we could be missing the important opportunities presented by context. What’s the story behind the data? What’s there that we didn’t expect to be there? What are the implications of a trend and why is it happening?”

Ask these questions of your Big Data and you can show your audience the exponential value they will experience once they get a handle on their own story.

Let me know your Big Data stories. And thanks for reading mine!

– Marketing

Big data, the Internet of Things, Industry 4.0, Factory of the Future, the Visual factory – what do you really need to pay attention to and what do these concepts mean to most manufacturers? A sceptic and trend-spotter, Pam’s posts leverage a background in technology marketing to apply these big concepts to the real world – and real work – of demand-driven manufacturers.

The post %%POSTLINK%% appeared first on %%BLOGLINK%%.

December 29, 2014

Three Ways Your Data Empowers Customer Confidence

The Internet of Things helps differentiate your company by providing more information and insight so you can be more agile in responding to customer needs.

I’ve spent my career in marketing explaining to people how having the right software will make them the right company for their customers. Can it really be that simple? I think it is.

When the Gartner Group first put voice to the concept of an interconnected world, one in which Cloud-based software, linking to things (products, machines, etc.) creates an “Internet of Things” that holds incredible value for customers — I nearly rose from my desk and cheered. Experts say that by 2025, this vast network will be worth over $225 billion dollars. To me that number represents value for customers who work with manufacturers who know how to harness all of zillions of bytes of data included in this network. And if you are such a manufacturer, you should be already on your way to creating your own, mini, Internet of Things across your supply chain.

Data as Differentiator

I understand that using data as a differentiator seems daunting. But please consider that in this new world, data is the single most important driver to your growth in the marketplace. The actual products you produce can no longer meet your customers’ needs by themselves. I don’t think it’s too strong of a statement to declare—your data can and will make or break your customer relationships. Here are just three ways:

1. Machine-level data gives you unsurpassed control over your flow—Connecting machines to the rest of your production data allows you to truly identify the constraints to flow on the shop floor. Identifying issues with flow on the machine level creates an environment where your promise to order promises are as real as they get. And your customers will stay satisfied.
2. Hooking up suppliers to your data network allows you control over your supplier relationships—If you don’t have your suppliers included on your own Internet of Things, you’re missing out. As you know better than anyone, your finished goods can’t get to your customer until and unless you have figured out a way to manage your inventory appropriately. Having your suppliers’ supply chains included in your digitized, inventory management software solves this problem.
3. Controlling flow by digitizing your production process frees up capacity and allows you to meet new customer needs—You can start by using software to manage inventory. That will often give you enough new capacity to create new opportunities to meet customer needs. Once you get an entire platform connected, you will delight your customer. How? By gaining access to actionable data that lets you identify constraints in real-time and improves your time to delivery. In empowering people to act quickly to mitigate constraints, you are protecting your customers’ orders. And by creating a business environment that promotes continuous improvement, your customers see that you are truly focused on being the best you can be — for their benefit.

Of course, your own Internet of Things at your company empowers you in many more ways. I will talk about these in later posts. I think together we can uncover even more exciting trends about how software and the Internet of Things creates value for our customers. In fact, if you have any stories about how harnessing your big data has granted you big rewards, definitely send them to me. I’d love to hear from you.