106 www. t e c h n o l o g y r e c o r d . c om F E ATUR E For example, industrial equipment provider Komatsu Industries, a subsidiary of construction machinery manufacturer Komatsu, created a predictive maintenance system that uses Azure AI, Azure Machine Learning and Microsoft Power BI to streamline maintenance work, identify worn parts and calculate when they’ll need replacing. In addition, the system has enabled it to provide innovative solutions to customers. Running through all these efforts is an intense awareness of the agile factory’s role in the supply chains it depends on, and those that depend on it. Microsoft’s focus on this role can be seen in the supply chain solution experts it’s bringing together in Cloud for Manufacturing, and in its own investment to solve one of the industry’s biggest headaches. “Our manufacturing customers really need end-to-end supply chain visibility,” says Masson. “They need early warnings of potential supplier issues so they can look for alternative sources, and accurate predictions of spikes in demand so they can satisfy the market. We’ve developed Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Insights (currently in preview) to answer that need. It provides a control tower, along with the ability to create digital twins of the entire supply chain.” In fact, Masson points out, supply chain decisions about where to site factories, who to source from and which markets to serve are instrumental in building both resilience and sustainability. Augmenting Cloud for Manufacturing capabilities with those of the Microsoft Cloud for Sustainability can help manufacturers to target both goals with pinpoint accuracy. Ultimately, Cloud for Manufacturing is intended to simplify and accelerate manufacturers’ transformation journeys. At its heart is Microsoft’s dedication to open standards, which enables consistency across that journey, however small the steps are. “It’s vital that we align with prevalent standards to ensure interoperability as we develop connectors and data models for the Microsoft Cloud for Manufacturing,” says Masson. “This supports any organisations that may need to deploy capabilities incrementally – for instance, by adding low-cost sensors to their most critical machines as a first step, then starting to build intelligence on top of those. Open standards ensure that companies can still connect those machines and get a single view across the system as they make further investments in the future.” Advanced tools and capabilities are empowering manufacturers to drive agility and sustainability across their operations and ecosystems. We asked selected Microsoft partners about the technologies and solutions that are helping manufacturers to navigate disruption and keep up with changing markets Partner perspectives Sree Hameed Consumer Products Industry Strategist, AVEVA “Industry 4.0 will be at the heart of the agile factory of the future. Internet of things, cloud, artificial intelligence, machine learning and data analytics will revolutionise production facilities and drive sustainable practices. Manufacturers want to achieve carbon-neutral manufacturing, optimise processes and enhance performance through actionable intelligence and real-time insights. The agile factory of the future will take automation to the next level. AVEVA has enabled Schneider Electric’s Lexington factory to earn World Economic Forum ‘Advanced Global Lighthouse’ recognition. Our integrated cloud and edge solution has empowered the Lexington workforce with digitised processes, enhancing production line effectiveness while enabling smarter decision making. AVEVA’s Discrete Lean Management software has improved labour productivity, with AVEVA Insight further shrinking unplanned downtime by nearly six per cent. AVEVA Edge has enabled the factory to reduce manual paperwork by 90 per cent. With AVEVA and Microsoft solutions, the Lexington factory has simplified application infrastructure and helped customers optimise energy performance.”
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