How Does IoT Adoption Help The Manufacturing Sector

The manufacturing sector requires simultaneous or parallel monitoring of multiple activities like facility tracking, machine utilization, supply chain, and warehousing. Technologies like the Internet of Things (IoT) provide the manufacturing sector with tools for monitoring operations, production planning, and maintenance. IoT helps increase efficiency, improve safety cut down on operational costs.

A digitized system of interconnected industrial assets such as machinery, inventory, warehousing, and equipment is termed an industrial or manufacturing Internet of Things. Such interconnected systems have built-in sensors and software that collect and exchange data for process analytics. The IoT solutions are now at the heart of the industrial digital transformation and have created a subset of IoT technology aptly named The Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT).

Digital trends in Manufacturing are:

• Internet of Things -Sensors and devices that are connected to networks for data collection and analytics.
• AI and Machine Learning -Use of advanced algorithms that analyze raw data and transform it into practical actions
• Robotics - Use of AI and Machine Learning for use in manufacturing activities.
• Big data and Industrial analytics -Use of increasing amounts of data to manage, update, and analyze manufacturing activities.

Statistics on IoT in Manufacturing:

• Almost 91% of companies are investing in IoT to enable smart manufacturing.
• 6% of manufacturing units consider their factories to be fully digitized.
• 75% of manufacturing units have invested in digitization to meet customer preferences.
• 12% efficiency gains are expected over the span of 5 years.

Benefits of IoT in Manufacturing:

• Asset tracking and shop floor operations - Machinery and equipment embedded with sensors collect real-time metrics on operational conditions, machines, and machine parts. The data collected is exchanged continuously with the cloud for generating real-time analytics. The results provide the shop floor managers with a detailed overview of the production process, assets, and asset utilization. The analytics generated help monitor the production conditions and make data-driven decisions for equipment maintenance.
• Supply chain optimization - IoT technologies enable the real-time seamless exchange of data using tracking devices, computer systems, and software. Actionable information allows companies to manage and track goods within the premises and in transit. The data generated by IoT devices can help generate predictive analysis reports that can be used to eliminate delays, losses, and even theft.
• Remote and third-party operations – The manufacturing operations of a company can be located at multiple sites across regions and even countries. Additionally, many companies outsource their manufacturing operations to third-party manufacturers. Monitoring of all distributed and outsourced processes at any given point in time can be done by adopting IoT solutions in manufacturing. IoT helps ensure that processes within all distributed manufacturing sites follow and comply with set standards.
• Inventory management - Keeping track of Inventory is a huge and formidable task. IoT devices such as RFID tags can easily enable real-time inventory management and streamline the inventory flow. By keeping IoT devices and RFID tags at suitable locations within the warehouse, these devices can share data in real time with the main server and ensure that the inventory is continuously updated and recording errors are eliminated.
  Product details like item type, batch id, manufacturer’s name, etc. can be scanned and data sent to the central system for further processing without manual intervention.
• Predictive maintenance - IoT devices send continuous real-time data feeds that can give alerts regarding service and maintenance of the manufacturing assets. It reduces long-term maintenance costs and helps preserve the lifespan of various equipment. The data helps generate patterns related to repairs and maintenance. IoT devices can send alert notifications to shop floor managers if they sense the possibility of a breakdown. The IoT software and applications can create maintenance schedules for each asset based on its usage and life span.
• Remotely controlling production - IoT sensors and devices help enable remote equipment configuration and process monitoring. Remote collection of information on manufacturing helps in production processes and meets regulation compliances and other legal requirements. Remote monitoring also helps in tuning and configuring process machines remotely. Remote monitoring systems also help fix performance issues via virtual networks and streamline the management and control of equipment.

Challenges of IoT Application in Manufacturing:

• Security - Data exchange and transmission between various interconnected devices can be vulnerable without proper security measures. This makes data and privacy security issues the most significant concern for the use of connected devices. The need to adopt sophisticated technologies to counter hacking activities that can lead to data loss, theft, and intellectual property infringement is vital.
• Skill gap - With the increasing digitization of manufacturing facilities, the need for a skilled, qualified workforce has increased leading to an urgent need to address this requirement.
• Interoperability - Because of a lack of standardization across IT platforms and protocols, manufacturers face increasing issues regarding the interoperability of integrating IoT devices with manufacturing systems.

In conclusion, the Internet of Things is an integral part of the modern manufacturing landscape. Connecting with an experienced software development company can help manufacturing companies want to adopt and integrate IoT in manufacturing.