IoT in Manufacturing, also known as Industrial IoT (or IIoT), is a system of interconnected assets (machinery, equipment, vehicles, warehouses, shop floors, inventory) with data being collected by the sensors. Manufacturers can control such smart assets via a Business Application and extract valuable insights.
The replacement of humans by connected devices in numerous production processes has completely transformed the face of the manufacturing industry.
Key use-cases in IIoT
- 1. Remote Production Control: IoT devices enable remote process monitoring and equipment configuration. First, employees can remotely collect information on production processes and check whether they or their outcomes meet specific regulations and requirements. Second, they can tune and configure devices remotely, significantly saving time and effort.
- 2. Predictive Maintenance: This practice allows technical service teams to detect issues before they occur, thus reducing downtime and costs. Predictive maintenance also allows for the integration of IoT-connected devices with advanced analytics software to anticipate when technical support service is needed.
- 3. Industrial Asset Management: Utilizing IIoT devices, manufacturers can obtain and monitor real-time information on all their industrial assets through ruggedized IoT sensors and specialized business applications. Thus, you can track and optimize assets at all manufacturing stages from the supply chain to the end product delivery. Proper asset monitoring enables quick and efficient identification of issues that adversely impact product quality or time-to-market.
Benefits of IoT in Manufacturing
- 1. Cost Efficiency: The most significant expenses for manufacturing firms are energy, materials and losses caused by downtime. Process automation is the hallmark of IoT and results in a considerable reduction of operational costs.
- 2. Improved Decision-Making: Resource management and asset optimization that involve both humans and machines require comprehensive data. IoT-based sensors gather valuable data and distribute it through robust networks in real time. Fast information flow throughout the manufacturing facility enables the ongoing creation of dashboard metrics that help broadcast results and facilitate decision-making.
- 3. Quicker Time-to-Market: IoT empowers direct communication between employees and network components, significantly enhancing productivity. Also, real-time data access enables faster decision-making and contributes to improved response to market fluctuations.
- 4. Improved Safety: IoT sensors that monitor working conditions (for instance, the level of harmful emissions) and wearable devices that monitor workers’ health in many plants and factories help create a safer working environment and eliminate many accidents.
- 5. Higher Customer Satisfaction: Quality is the decisive factor that determines the behavior of potential customers and turns prospects into loyal clients. IoT technology provides predictive maintenance tools and statistical evaluations that help innovate, plan, design, build, operate and maintain industrial facilities, resulting in improved product quality.