Software

Earlier this week we shared the conclusions of the McKinsey Report, which concluded that it may be possible for U.S. manufacturing to grow by 20 percent and add more than 2 million jobs by 2025. That was the good news. It can only happen, however, if manufacturers embrace Industry 4.0 technology. The Integr8 conference in Detroit showed how to get started.

In the digitized manufacturing world being born, the product that a job-shop produces is less a piece of engineered metal and more a piece of intellectual property. So said Tom Kelly, the executive director and CEO of Detroit’s Automation Alley. That difference brings risks but also unprecedented opportunities for those who are ready.

I attended ‘Integr8,’ an Industrial Internet of Things conference hosted by Automation Alley at Detroit’s Renaissance Center last month. At numerous breakout sessions, a common question from participants was, “How do I get started with getting my shop floor connected?” This was an event full of experts enthused by the possibilities that IIoT hold for manufacturers, so I was pleasantly surprised to hear many of them reply, in effect: “With moderation.”

I’m one of those annoying people who stays current on technology. I store my stuff in the cloud, patch my software religiously and have my fifth smartphone in as many years. Despite my geeky tendencies, however, I’m apprehensive about the effect that Industry 4.0 and the industrial internet of things will have on … well, the industry. Call it smart manufacturing if you like, but many shop owners and managers—especially those who grew up with black-and-white TVs and rotary phones—might secretly call it scary manufacturing instead.

Open Mind Technologies AG has announced that its hyperMILL CAM software has provided 5-axis programming to successfully replicate a basketball hoop. The basketball hoop was machined on a GROB G350 5-axis machining center using conical ball barrel cutters from OSG.

A survey designed to assess manufacturers’ preparedness for Industry 4.0 changes polled 537 manufacturing executives across eight industry segments. The vast majority of manufacturers surveyed have recognized the need for industrial transformation, with most already taking action. Those that have done so say they are already seeing benefits as a result.