For decades, a particular maxim has ruled the manufacturing world, and it is the following: automation is efficiency. We left steam behind and went to electricity, and then to computers (Industry 3.0), providing us with the programmable logic controller (PLC) and the robotic arm. However, in the current times, we are on the verge of a new era. Industry 4.0 is no longer a dream of the future, talked about at the tech conferences, but it is the reality on the shop floor.

This guide is a breakdown of Industry 4.0 into realities and how engineers can realize those concepts into practical applications to transform their working processes.

Demystifying Industry 4.0

Fundamentally, Industry 4.0 relates to connectivity and data.

In the case of Industry 3.0 being about automating a machine to perform a task over and over again, Industry 4.0, in this case, is about that machine informing you how it is working, when it will stop working, and communicating with the machines nearby. The union of physical production and digital technology is a marriage.

In the case of a shop-floor engineer, it will mark the death of autonomous automation islands. It has sensors to provide real-time data to a central dashboard, rather than a CNC machine running unthinkingly until it crashes. Part tracking is done by self-assessing instead of using a manual clipboard to track inventory.

Practical Application 1: Smart Traceability and Serialization

The marking process becomes a part of the digital ecosystem in an Industry 4.0 environment. This is why modern equipment is bright. Take into consideration a portable metal marking machine. In a conventional arrangement, this machine may be a machine to inscribe a number. However, a smart factory makes a portable Wi-Fi machine that marks metals to be an IoT device.

Whenever an engineer writes the heavy chassis or a pipeline valve, the machine does not simply engrave the metal, but extracts the correct serial number on the company ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) system, etches it, and the job is immediately verified back on the server. No manual data entry, no chance of having the exact numbers and complete visibility by the production manager.

Through the application of smart marking, engineers overcome the physical separation (the metal part) and the digital separation (the database) in real time.

Practical Application 2: Predictive Maintenance

A motor overheats, or a spindle freezes, and all production comes to a standstill for four hours. This is addressed by Industry 4.0 using predictive maintenance. This includes the retrofit of current equipment with low-cost vibration sensors, temperature sensors, and sound sensors. You do not have to buy new lathes or presses; you have to provide them with a voice.

How to apply it: Start small and determine which asset brings the most headaches. Install a vibration sensor that is connected to a simple dashboard and set a threshold. When the vibration goes beyond that threshold the next time, it notifies you via an alert on your phone. Then you can plan maintenance at a change of shift as opposed to responding to a disastrous failure in the middle of the shift. This changes the position of the engineer as a firefighter to a strategist.

Practical Application 3: Decentralization of Decision Making

The concept of shifting decision-making to the edge, i.e., the floor machines and operators making decisions instead of a central server or manager, is one of the pillars of Industry 4.0.

To the engineer, the use of this involves the use of programming logic that would enable independence. It is the choice of tools that are versatile. 

An example of such flexibility is a portable metal marking machine. Since the tool is portable and, in most cases, powered by a battery, the operator can move to the part instead of transferring the part to a marking station. Should a fixed station fail, the portable one can be put in place to continue the flow of data along the line.

Practical Application 4: The Digital Twin

A Digital Twin is a virtual simulation of a real-world system. This may sound costly, but this is becoming affordable even to mid-sized workshops.

The software can enable engineers to simulate a change in the production line and then move an individual bench without the need to physically move it. If you would like to add a new robotic arm or alter the workflow of the operators of a portable metal marking machine, you can make the path in software first and simulate it.

This gives engineers a chance to identify such things as collisions, bottlenecks, or ergonomic problems before they occur in practice. It conserves finances, time, and physical effort.

Breaking the Legacy Hurdle

The objection to the largest size of Industry 4.0 is that we generally have old machines.

In practice, it does not need a new factory to be purchased. It requires “retrofitting.”

• IoT Gateways: These are little boxes that attach to the PLCs of the machines that were used earlier to retrieve data.
• Tablets and Wearables: Paper travelers will be substituted by tablets, where operators will watch 3D CAD models or scan QR codes.
• Innovative Tools: Dumb hand tools can be substituted with smart hand tools (such as torque wrenches, which can log data, or the marking machines as mentioned above).

Conclusion

Industry 4.0 is not a magic switch but a process of evolution and improvement. To the shop-floor engineer it begins by determining where data is lost. Does it disappear as a motor vibrates when no one is aware? Is it lost by being marked and not registered?

Through the combination of intelligent sensors, data-oriented decision-making, and intelligent work tools, such as a portable metal marking machine, engineers will be able to turn a messy shop floor into an orchestra of efficiency. The technology is there, and it is up to you to put it into practice.

Smart traceability on your shop floor. Contact MarknStamp now to get hi-tech, IoT-ready portable marking products.

FAQs

1. What is the most significant advantage of Industry 4.0?

On-the-fly data accessibility that can be used to implement predictive maintenance, minimize downtime, and increase overall efficiency on the shop floor.

2. Is Industry 4.0 costly to execute?

Not necessarily, the first thing that you can do is to retrofit old machines with sensors and smart portable devices.

3. What is the need for a portable marking machine?

It will enable you to mark heavy and immovable items and immediately synchronize them to your ERP system so that you can have full traceability.