Data privacy!

It’s been another busy year for hackers. According to the Central Statistics Office, nearly 1 in 5 (18 %) of Irish businesses experienced ICT-related incidents, 87 per cent of which resulted in the unavailability of ICT services, and 41% which resulted in either the destruction, corruption or disclosure of data.

Noel O’Grady, writer of this piece, is the head of Sungard Availability Services Ireland and has over 20 years of experience working with leading technology firms including HP, Vodafone and Dell in providing critical production and recovery services to enterprise-level organisations.

Last year saw a number of high-profile security incidents making the headlines. In April, 3,600 accounts belonging to former customers of Ulster Bank were compromised, resulting in some customers’ personal details being released. In July, the Football Association of Ireland confirmed that malware was discovered on its payroll server following an attempted hack on IT systems.

Entering a new decade, digital technologies will continue to permeate every aspect of modern life, and the security of IT systems will come under increasing scrutiny. This will be driven by two major consequences of today’s hyper-connected world. Firstly, the sheer number of systems and devices which have now become digitalised has vastly expanded the cybersecurity threat landscape, potentially multiplying vulnerabilities or points of entry for hackers. Simultaneously, consumers and businesses alike demand constant availability in the products and services they use, reducing the tolerance for periods of downtime.

As a result, the security of data is no less than a global issue on par with national security, economic stability and even the physical security of citizens. It is with this in mind that Data Privacy Day is observed on this day (28th January 2020), a global initiative which aims to spread awareness of the hugely fundamental role that cybersecurity plays.

One of the most important developments in the field of data privacy was the establishment of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in May 2018. Nearly two years on, it’s timely to review how the new regulatory environment has succeeded in achieving its goals, especially in the light that almost one in three European businesses are still not compliant.

Data Privacy Day 2020

GDPR works by penalising organisations with inadequate data protection through sizeable fines. While this has established an ethical framework from which European organisations can set out strategies for protecting personal data, one issue that is still often overseen is the result of an IT outage, which prevents businesses from keeping its services running. As a server or organisation’s infrastructure is down, data is then at risk to exposure and therefore a company is at risk of failing compliance. IT and business teams will need to locate and close any vulnerabilities in IT systems or business processes, and switch over to disaster recovery arrangements if they believe there has been a data corruption.

This is especially pertinent in Ireland, where, according to a spokesperson for the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation (DoBEI), “Data centre presence…raises our visibility internationally as a technology-rich, innovative economy.” A strategic European hub for many multi-national technology giants, Ireland is currently home to 54 data centres, with another 10 under construction and planning permission for a further 31. While this growth in Ireland’s data centre market is a huge advantage for the national economy, Irish businesses must also tread with caution as they shoulder the responsibility for the security and availability of the countless mission-critical applications and processes which rely on them.

An organisation’s speed and effectiveness of response will be greatly improved if it has at its fingertips the results of a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) that details all the personal data that an organisation collects, processes and stores, categorised by level of sensitivity. Data Privacy Day is a great opportunity to expose unknown risks that organisations face, but moving forward, it is vital that business leaders embed privacy into every operation. This is the only sustainable way to ensure compliance on an ongoing basis.

#Cybersecurity @SungardASUK @brands2life

Unique data acquisition system.

The modular design of the new KiDAQ from Kistler Instruments makes unlimited channels and distributed systems a reality whatever the application; industrial, laboratory, permanent installations and mobile. Engineers now have everything needed to complete any measuring task: a single integrated system that can be flexibly expanded at any time with additional measurement modules and units.

The new data acquisition system can be configured to suit any application with a choice of portable and 19 inch rack housings that can accommodate up to 13 measurement modules each, and DIN Rail modules for industrial installations with any number of measurement modules and other components of a system. This flexibility allows users to configure a data acquisition system that best meets to their current needs. Using components from Kistler’s hardware, software and sensor portfolios means that, as needs change, the original system can be adapted and extended by reconfiguring the existing modules and adding others as needed. Nothing is made redundant ensuring a low cost of ownership without compromising system performance and capability.

Reliable information about the measurement uncertainty
A key characteristic of the new KiDAQ data acquisition system is KiXact technology, which automatically calculates the measurement uncertainty. With know-how across the entire measuring chain, a reliable statement of measurement uncertainty is now possible with this technology. This eliminates the time and effort needed to manually calculate the measurement uncertainty of the whole system.

KiDAQ provides data transparency across the entire measuring chain. As Kistler qualifies the measuring components and calibrates them for each application, the exact specifications of their properties are available. The engineer is provided with precise details about their measurements and reliable information about measuring accuracy.

KiConnect technology: Nerve centre of the KiDAQ system
Drawing on smart KiConnect technology, users can put together various Kistler measuring components and, if necessary, add selected third-party devices to the system. The integrated Precision Time Protocol (PTP) ensures exact time synchronization between the devices in the local network. Based on standard protocols (TCP/IP) the measurements can be configured and performed anywhere.

KiStudio Lab software: The entire measuring task at a glance
The web-based KiStudio Lab software enables measuring tasks and projects to be easily processed and managed. The user interface is developed according to the latest usability criteria and designed so that it can be intuitively and efficiently operated by both occasional and experienced users. Via the software, engineers can access all measuring data and results at any time from current and older projects. The raw data are easily and securely stored in a central repository and can be exported in various formats and analysed offline. The stored measurement setup can be called up at any time in the case of further measurement tasks. This saves users the time required for complex test setup and measurements can be performed immediately the next time.

Kistler KiDAQ – The total solution
KiDAQ is an innovative, modular data acquisition system which enables the user to create a test setup, perform measurements and achieve reliable results almost instantly. Kistler’s expertise and experience covers the entire measuring chain, from the sensor, to signal conditioning, and on to the software. A KiDAQ data acquisition system can be expanded at any time with measurement modules and measurement units. Third-party sensors can also be integrated into the system. The unique software provides step-by-step guidance throughout the system setup and provides valuable insight into the entire measuring chain.

#Kistler #PAuto #TandM

Permission to change and develop in the Life Sciences!

• Enjoy a unique environment to meet and gain input from all stake holders on industry direction, challenges and solutions.
• Shape your strategy on the way solutions should be developed and applied in your facility
• Understand how partnering can take you further, faster and with reduced risk
• Experience hands on demonstrations of automation equipment and packages.

The invitation was interesting, and challenging. “Future.Now – Developing the Life Sciences Landscape Together” was an arresting title. It was a co-operative event between National Institute for Bioprocessing Research and Training (NIBRT) and Emerson. We were invited to “Boost your knowledge, gain from the experience of others and increase your professional network at NIBRT state of the art facility in Dublin!”

Mike Train, Executive President with Emerson explains their focus under the attentive eye of European President Roel Van Doren.

This correspondent was aware of the NIBRT facility but had very little idea of what it was real function or its relevance to Irish industry. This was an opportunity find out. Further looking through the programme two things became apparent. One was the calibre of personnel speaking from the Emerson organisation and then the application rather than product orientation of the various sessions.

It proved to be a very interesting two days.

Day 1: Working together towards a common future.
Presentations from NIBRT, Industrial Development Authority (IDA), GSK, Alexion, Zeton, Novo Nordisk and Emerson Automation Solutions.

Pharma v Biopharma

After a short welcome fro Emerson Europe President, Roel Van Doren, the CEO of NIBRT, Dominic Carolan, outlined the foundation and raison d’etre of the organisation. It is a training and research in the area of bioprocessing. It is located in a new, world class facility in Dublin (IRL). As medical science advances “simple” chemistry, while still essential, is not fully capable of solving all health issues – Pharma versus Biopharma. Bioprocessing is a specific process that uses complete living cells or their components (e.g., bacteria, enzymes, chloroplasts) to obtain desired products.

Thus this facility exists to support the growth and development of all aspects of the biopharmaceutical industry in Ireland. It is purpose built to closely replicate a modern bioprocessing plant with state of the art equipment.

Making Ireland ready – a good news story.
Dr Chantelle Keirnan, Scientific Advisor with the Industrial Development Authority (IDA), described the far-seeing intuitive initiative to look at bioprocessing “before it was profitable or popular!” This state body is responsible for the attraction and development of foreign investment in Ireland and had been extraordinarily successful in attracting nine of the top ten pharma companies to set up manufacturing processing plants in Ireland. They considered at the turn of the century that bioprocessing was the way that life science was going and took steps to ensure that Ireland was ready. One of those steps was the provision of Government funding of NIBRT.

Togged out for the tour

Many of the delegates – in excess of one hundred attended some from other countries – donned white coats and took the opportunity to tour the impressive facility during the event. It includes a purpose-built, multi-functional building which replicates the most modern industrial bioprocessing facility. Some idea of this facility may be gleaned from their website here.

This is a good news story. How often are decisions of state organisations regarded, not entirely without justification, with a jaundiced eye? Those that are good are “oft interréd with their bones!” The vision that saw this development in industry and the individuals who having caught the ball ran with it and brought it so successfully to fruition is worthy of equal attention and praise.

The rest of the day was an examination of the industry, processes and looking into the future. Mike Train, Executive President of Emerson spoke on the changes that are influencing industry and his company’s focus. We are facing “an evolution not a revolution” he stated, a point emphasised by other speakers throughout the day. He also stressed the importance for giving permission to change. (See full list of speakers at below.)

Pictures from the event!

We then had a series of speakers from the industry, people who get their hands dirty so to speak in actual processing speaking of their experiences and challenges. Speakers from GSK and Novo Nordisk explored areas like partnership, legacy issues, building on or expanding existing plants, saving energy, wireless. There was some discussion on the cloud and its advantages and just how vulnerable it might be to security breaches.

The discussion on handling all this data and identifying and retrieving those pieces of data which are really useful to the process brought to mind the prophetic words of the American media theorist, Neil Postman years ago, “…a central thesis of computer technology – that the principal difficulty we have in solving problems stems from insufficient data – will go unexamined. Until, years from now, when it will be noticed that the massive collection and speed of light retrieval of data have been of great value to large scale organisations but have solved very little of importance to most people and have created at least as many problems for them as they have solved…” (Neil Postman: “Amusing ourselves to death:” 1985)

Peter Zornio, Chief Technology Officer with Emerson gave their philosophy in meeting the demands of “Life Science Visions.” He lauded the various discussion groups such as the Biopharma Operations Group in helping how to keep up to date with technology and fostering new ideas.

We are on a digitizing journey. Moving from manual and paper to digital recording and control.

Day 2: “New Technology, New Processes, New solutions!”
Presentations from BioPharmaChem, GSK, Infinity Automation and Emerson.

The day started with a presentation on modular flexible manufacturing – introducing the PK Controller and a little later in the day there was an exposition on DeltaV Discovery/DeltaV 14 in maintaining data and transferning and easing technology transfer through the life cycle of drug development.

In his second presentation Peter Zornio gave the business case behing IIoT. IoT is usually referring to domestic, building environment and other civil applications. But it is also useful in the industrial environment where it is referred to as IIoT. Initially it was a link up at the instrument and control area but of late it is spreading to the portfolio of sensors. Their emphasis is on “the first mile!” (This is a backward reference to the perennial problem in many, especially rural, areas of “the last mile” – the internet connection directly into the home! – a heart felt sigh from your correspondent!)

The Real Challenges!

Ian Allen of Infinity Automation spoke on challenges to the life science automation world. “Don’t go backward to go forward” he said. We must use things like data integrity, cyber security, Microsoft dependencies and Industrie 4.0 as “gifts to leverage the opportunity and change!” The real challenge is not so much the technology but our use of it. We were coming back to “permission for change!”

We might perhaps use the words of the Bard of Avon, “The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars. But in ourselves….”  The “gifts” are there. The Technology is there or on the way.

Let’s own these gifts and make them our own.

 

Pic: Travis Hesketh

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The Speakers:

Day 1 Dominic Carolan CEO – NIBRT Dominic Carolan was appointed CEO of NIBRT in April 2015. Mr. Carolan previously held senior roles in Mallinckrodt (Dublin), Genzyme (Waterford), also Genzyme (Corporate) where he was Senior Vice President of Manufacturing, and in Sanofi, where he headed their global network of Sterile Injectable Lyophilisation sites. He has successfully lead the startup of two significant Pharma & BioPharma facilities in Ireland and has a proven track record in operations leadership and in attracting and developing the talent required to deliver long term success. A graduate of UCD in Chemical Engineering, Mr. Carolan was Chairman of BioPharmaChemical Ireland from 2008-2010. Dr Chantelle Kiernan Scientific Advisor – IDA Dr. Chantelle Kiernan joined IDA in September of 2009 and is responsible for attracting research related foreign direct investment for Ireland. Chantelle has responsibility for the Multinational research portfolio – spanning Pharmaceutical, Biotechnology, Medical Device, Engineering Food services industries. Chantelle has spent her career equally dispersed between academia and industry. She holds a PhD in Immunology from Trinity College Dublin in the area of immunomodulation and continued her academic career with a Post-Doctoral fellowship in Harvard University, Boston. Chantelle is currently undertaking an MSc in International Business law. She has spent almost fifteen years in industry. In her current role as Scientific Advisor for the IDA, she has been integrally involved in attracting and securing large scale R&D foreign direct investments for Ireland. Mike Train Executive President – Emerson Automation Solutions Michael H. Train leads the Automation Solutions business of Emerson, which posted sales of $10.2 billion in fiscal 2015. Train began his career with Emerson in 1991 as an international planner, then took on additional responsibilities in a number of executive posts that included serving as President of Emerson Japan and Korea, VP of Corporate Planning, President of Emerson Process Management Asia Pacific, and President of Emerson’s Rosemount business. He was most recently President of Global Sales for Emerson Process Management, responsible for sales, service, support, and customer satisfaction for all products and services across five world-area organizations. In that role he was also part of the leadership team that drove strategic initiatives and investments for the entire business group. Train earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from General Motors Institute and an MBA from the Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University. He currently serves on the management school’s advisory council and was a 2008 Eisenhower Fellowship recipient. Dave Tudor Vice President, Head of GMS Strategy – GSK Dave joined GSK in 1992 at Worthing as a PhD Chemist from Glasgow University. He has over 20 years’ experience with the company carrying out a number of Technical, Compliance and Manufacturing leadership roles. In 1997 he moved to Irvine to take up a lead chemist role before coming Quality Control Manager in 1998. He joined the site leadership team in 2001 to run Technical Development before moving to manufacturing as Actives Production Director in 2005. During this time he completed a Masters degree in Manufacturing Leadership at Cambridge University. In 2007 he moved to GSK House to work on a central network re-structuring project before becoming Site Director at Montrose in October 2008. At Montrose, he led the transformation of the site to manufacture over 12 products for GSK including a major investment programme. In 2011 he was appointed VP Primary Supply Chain with responsibility for global Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (API) manufacture and supply, a network of GMS sites across the world including facilities in Asia and Europe. In 2017 he was appointed VP Head of GMS Strategy with responsibility for manufacturing strategy, deployment of strategic programmes, performance management and advocacy. He plays an active role with a number of Governments and is currently co-chair of the Life Sciences Scotland Industry Leadership Group. Dave is also a member of UK Chemicals Industry Association Council and Board. Dave is married with 4 children and lives in Troon, Ayrshire. He enjoys all sports, particularly football, is a keen reader of Scottish history and does cooking to relax. Peter Zornio Chief Strategic Officer – Emerson Automation Solutions As Chief Strategic Officer for Emerson Automation Solutions, Peter has responsibility for overall coordination of technology programs, product and portfolio direction, and industry standards across the Automation Solutions group. He has direct responsibility for the product definition and development organizations for control systems and software products. He has been at Emerson for 10 years. Prior to Emerson, he spent over 20 years at Honeywell in a variety of technology and marking roles, most recently as overall product management leader. Peter holds a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of New Hampshire. Herman Bottenberg Marketing Director,, Zeton PDEng. Ir. Herman Bottenberg is a chemical engineer with 15+ years of industrial experience, along with two years of Post academic work on Plant Design. He worked for 17 years at Zeton B.V. in The Netherlands, with five years of experience in project engineering and project management. The last 12 years he has been active in business development, sales and marketing. Since 2016 Herman is also responsible for the Marketing and Sales group at Zeton B.V. Herman has specialised in transformation of processes from batch to continuous, process intensification and modular processing plants for pharma and chemical industry. Day 2  Matt Moran Director – BioPharmaChem Ireland Matthew Moran is Director of BioPharmaChem Ireland. He graduated in Chemistry at Trinity College Dublin in 1980 and in Chemical Engineering at University College Dublin in 1981; he holds an MBA also from University College Dublin (Smurfit School of Business). He worked for over ten years in the pharmaceutical industry where he held a number of management positions both in active ingredient and dosage form manufacture. He is a member the European Chemical Industry Council (CEFIC). Matthew Moran is a Board member of the Active Pharmaceuticals Ingredients (API) Committee of CEFIC (CEFIC/APIC) and The European Association for Bioindustries (Europabio) BioPharmaChem Ireland represents the interests of the biopharmachem sector in Ireland. CEFIC/APIC represents the European API Industry. Europabio represents the European Biotech Sector. Ian Allan Automation Consultant – Infinity Automation Currently the Managing Director of Infinity Automation, a relatively new company carrying out Automation & MES Consultancy, Strategic Planning and Major Program/Project Health checks, with blue chip Global Life Science companies and Strategic vendors that support that Industry. Formerly Ian was the Global Head of Automation & MES with Novartis, where he was responsible for the Manufacturing Automation Strategy and MES Program within Technical Operations in the Vaccines division.  Prior to that he worked for GSK as Global Automation Director responsible for Automation, Process Control and MES across 73 sites worldwide. There he led a team that developed a library of Emerson DeltaV modules to be deployed in multiple Bulk API sites across the world, as well as developing a blueprint for MES integration and Network delivery of Electronic Batch Records. Prior to that he held several roles in GSK within the Engineering and Automation departments. Ian started his career with IBM as a junior engineer when computers were a little bigger than they are today and holds a BSc in Electrical & Control Engineering from Strathclyde University. He is currently facilitating GSK’s Global Automation Steering Team and is leading the Digital Factory Automation workstream for a new Hybrid Manufacturing platform with the first instance being delivered in GSK Singapore Jurong site. Colin Chapman Director of Manufacturing IT – GSK Colin Chapman is a Chemical Engineer with nearly 20 years experience in Life Sciences with GSK. Colin’s career has spanned across process engineering & automation, operations and new product introduction in both commercial manufacturing and clinical supply chains. In his current role as Director of Manufacturing IT Colin has successfully led the introduction of Manufacturing Operations Management across the clinical supply chain driving business process re-engineering and global workflow automation using technologies such as Syncade. GSK’s continuing program focuses on three value drivers, Compliance, Business Intelligence and Productivity. Klaus Erni Product Manager & Namur 148 Board Member – Emerson Automation Solutions Klaus started his Emerson career in 2003 in Germany, where he was working as a Technical Manager for Key Accounts before he transferred to Austin, TX to become the DeltaV Hardware Product Marketing Manager. In 2015, he went back to Europe and took over another Global Role, being now the Technical Consultant to some major Strategic Accounts. While in Germany with Emerson, he was responsible for the technical aspects of the DeltaV Systems during the Sales and Implementation Phase, as well utilizing the latest Hardware and Software features while upgrading and expanding Systems on Key Customer sites. Prior to Emerson, Klaus was with the Hoechst AG, he did several Engineering projects with various PLC and DCS and SIS Systems and was as well a RS3 System User. Danny Vandeput Director Pervasive Sensing Strategies – Emerson Automation Solutions The (Industrial) Internet of Things (IIoT) is revolutionizing the way we live but it also provides many new challenges to the industry. This can create confusion, uncertainty – combined with fuzzy statements – and different opinions. My great passion is to bring clarity in the Industrial Internet of Things and what benefits it can bring for you. I help industries to find the right perception of IIoT, how sensors can maximize profit, reduce downtime and bring the ROI into the IoT. Being already 23 years with Emerson I have assisted many types of industries on their way to Top Quartile Performance. This includes amongst other trainings, workshops, audits and implementing solutions.

#PAuto @EMR_Automation @NIBRT_ #IIoT @HHC_Lewis

Sink or swim? Drowning under too much info!

Rachel Cooper, category marketing manager – field services with Schneider Electric on managing the Big Data Flood.

The Internet of Things (IoT) is constantly in the news. That’s understandable since forecasts anticipate that there will soon be tens of billions of connected devices, helping the IoT sector to generate more than £7.5 trillion worth of economic activity worldwide. In fact, according to McKinsey Global, the IoT economic impact on factories, retail settings, work sites, offices and homes could total as much as £3.55 trillion by 2025.

Oil refinery control room screen

One area where the IoT is driving development is in smart buildings. Today’s more complex buildings are generating vast quantities of data, but building management systems (BMS) are not leveraging that data as much as they could, and are not always capturing the right data to make useful decisions. With 42 per cent of the world’s energy consumed by buildings, facility managers face escalating demand for environmentally friendly, high-performance buildings that are efficient and sustainable.  The data collected can help them to achieve this.

However, many facility managers lack the time and resources to investigate the convenient methods that can help them to turn the flood of IoT and other sensor data they’re exposed to, into actionable insights

Forced to do more with less 
Reduced budgets force building owners to manage sophisticated building systems with fewer resources. This issue is further aggravated by older systems becoming inefficient over time. Even when there is sufficient budget, it is increasingly difficult and time-consuming to hire, develop, and retain staff with the skills and knowledge to take advantage of BMS capabilities.

Facility managers also face challenges maintaining existing equipment performance. Components can break or fall out of calibration, and general wear and tear often leads to a marked decline in a building’s operational efficiency. Changes in building use and occupancy can contribute to indoor air-quality problems, uncomfortable environments, and higher overall energy costs. These changes begin immediately after construction is complete.

Owners often undertake recommissioning projects to fine-tune their buildings. Such work is intended to bring the facility back to its best possible operation level. However, recommissioning is often done as a reactive measure, and traditional maintenance may not identify all areas of energy waste. Operational inefficiencies that are not obvious, or that do not result in occupant discomfort, may go undetected.

Upskilling the current workforce
Many tools have come onto the market over the past decade to help employees get a better understanding of their facilities and assist them in their day-to-day operations and long-term planning. This can include anything from dashboards and automated analytics platforms to machine-learning optimisation engines. However, much like the sophisticated BMS platforms available today, for each tool you deploy, more investment is needed in time for training. In fact, research shows that lacking training is evident with roughly only 20 per cent of facility managers using 80 per cent of capabilities available to them within their BMS. The remaining 80 per cent use a very limited amount (20 per cent) of the potential functionality in their system.

With personnel turnover and competing facility-management responsibilities, many facilities are left without staff who have the time to learn the full capabilities of these tools. Of course, outsourcing different functions is one way to overcome these issues. However, vendors must be managed closely to ensure efficacy, and to ensure that outsourcing costs do not accrue significantly as third parties spend more time on-site.

In tech we trust
Technology has become an important part of building management, as BMS play an ever bigger role in how facility managers perform their jobs and operate buildings. Newer technologies like data visualisation dashboards let facility managers view building performance metrics in a single window, helping them to spot trends and gather insights. By visualising data in terms of graphs, charts, and conversion to different equivalents – for example, kWh to pound cost or kWh to carbon footprint, an experienced building operator can manually identify areas of concern for closer inspection.

Yet, while dashboards can be helpful in determining building behaviour, the data is often complex and challenging to interpret. In fact, even if building staff have the time and skills to review and understand the data, dashboard information alone tells only part of the building performance story. Facility managers can identify where inefficiencies exist but usually not why. This requires additional troubleshooting and investigation. Therefore, dashboards are most effective for simple monitoring in environments where there are plenty of trained staff to perform troubleshooting and identify the root causes of issues.

Analytics is the answer 
To gain more from a BMS deployment, many facility managers are turning to data analytics software to interpret large volumes of BMS data. Best-in-class software automatically trends energy and equipment use, identifies faults, provides root-cause analysis, and prioritises opportunities for improvement based on cost, comfort and maintenance impact. This software complements BMS dashboards because it takes the additional step of interpreting the data – showing not just where but why inefficiencies occur. Engineers can then convert this intelligence into “actionable information” for troubleshooting and preventative maintenance, as well as for solving more complicated operational challenges. 

Using this software, facility managers can proactively optimise and commission building operations more effectively than with a BMS alone. It enables them to understand why a building is or isn’t operating efficiently so that they can introduce permanent solutions rather than temporary fixes. For instance, with data analytics, facility managers can proactively identify operational problems such as equipment that needs to be repaired or replaced. Moreover, it can do this before critical failure and before it has an impact on the building occupants. Repairs can be scheduled before an emergency arises, eliminating costly short-notice or out-of-hours replacement and avoiding failure and downtime. With this proactive approach, equipment becomes more reliable, the cost of replacement and repair can be much lower, and occupants are assured of optimal comfort. In fact, by following best practice, they can even reduce HVAC energy costs by up to 30%.

The Future
Smart, connected technology has taken us beyond the human ability to manage what can amount to hundreds of thousands of data points in large buildings. Efficient operations require a proactive response. Analytics solutions effectively manage the new state of information overload created by a digital world and filter out what’s not valuable to you. For example, they can provide insight on how to fix problems when they are first observed, before total failure. This predictive maintenance approach means capital assets can be preserved and significant energy savings can be made. The advent of IoT means that we must shift our approach to facility management in order to deliver against the financial, wellbeing and sustainability targets of today’s facilities. By investing in a sophisticated BMS, users can uncover which data to ignore and which to act upon. After all, data for data’s sake is useless. Being able to use a building’s performance data to augment operational efficiency, increase occupant comfort, and improve overall energy consumption so that the financial well-being of buildings can be sustained, is of paramount importance.

@SchneiderElec #PAuto #IoT

Have you a Percy Spencer in your operation?

Jonathan Wilkins, marketing director at obsolete equipment supplier EU Automation, discusses how manufacturers can use their dark data for commercial benefit.

In 1945, an engineer named Percy Spencer was testing energy sources for radar equipment in a laboratory, when he realised a chocolate bar in his pocket had somehow melted. Not long after, the microwave oven was born. In the manufacturing industry, it is also possible to make accidental discoveries; one avenue which is proving particularly fruitful is the use of dark data. 

The phrase ‘dark data’ is used to refer to information collected by a business but not used for any operational purpose. For manufacturers, the data can be collected during a production process or from business enterprise operations. The phrase is often met with a shudder due to a lack of understanding of what it is how it can be used. However, dark data doesn’t necessarily mean bad data.

In the dawn of Industry 4.0, fast moving manufacturing facilities have become increasingly data heavy environments, with information sourced from machine logs, equipment sensors and even social media and consumer demand. Data comes from a myriad of places – but not all of this data is used effectively.

In many cases, if analysed and integrated with the value chain, dark data can be used to make better decisions. Currently, data can be captured from such a wide range of inputs that the potential to make smarter and faster forecasts and decisions is rapidly increasing, as long as plant managers know where data it is stored and what to do with it.

Data relating to production information and consumer insight can be used to drive innovation or improve quality; this information can be used by designers and engineers to improve customer experience and product performance. However, not all data collected can be used to produce a meaningful result.

Good data vs bad data
Despite the potential benefits, not all data is worth saving as it can be expensive to store and maintain. If the data is customer related, risks can also arise from breaches and unauthorised sharing, damaging a business’s reputation. In some industries, such as pharmaceuticals, there are stricter requirements on the storage and formatting of data. If a pharmaceutical company had an issue with the storage or formatting of its clinical trial data, it could lose valuable insights and may be liable for any losses.

Dark data can offer manufacturers an untapped resource for potential insight, or may be a costly waste of space. To decide whether to make the most of the data or to erase it, companies first need to understand where their dark data is and where it has come from. For most manufacturers data is generated by either staff or equipment before it is stored and forgotten.

Percy Spencer

Enforcing data policies and training staff on the handling and analysis of data will help companies make better business decisions. If a new machine or system is added, the plant manager should consider what data it will accumulate and how this will be managed. Manufacturers should be aware of where data is coming from and what regulations specify they can keep.

Being more aware of where data is coming from and how it can be used can benefit manufacturers looking to make intelligent business decisions, as well as those who just want to save time and space. With diligent data analysis, who knows, you might even discover something as groundbreaking as the microwave.

@euautomation #PAuto #TandM

PICTIÚIRÍ: Industry 4.0 concept reviewed in Limerick.

EPLAN joined forces with ABB, DesignPro, Douglas Automation, Igus, Industrial Society of Automation (Ireland Section ISA), Omron, Panasonic, Prion PLM, Portalis, Rittal Ireland, Rockwell Automation, Siemens, SL Controls and Weidmuller to bring Industry 4.0 to the Limerick Institute of Technology.

More Pictures on Twitter.
The LimerickIT feed (4 pics).
Abb Feed (1 pic)
Other pics retweeted on Eplan UK Feed.

In the wake of the next industrial revolution, EPLAN hosted the event at The Limerick Institute of Technology with the aim of discussing the German concept, Industry 4.0. The event will allowed companies to understand what 4.0 means and how existing and near future technologies can help them move towards becoming a smart factory which ultimately produce machines and products that effectively talk to one another.

Industry 4.0 (Industrie 4.0) is a high-tech strategy adopted by the German government which promotes the computerisation of traditional industries such as manufacturing. The goal is to create intelligent factories (smart factory) that focus on cyber physical systems primarily consisting of communication technologies, software, senses and processes – all of which have the potential through cloud technology to communicate and interact with each other in an intelligent way.

The well attended event had over 150 registered to attend and many more came without registering.

These are some pictures to give a flavour of the event.

Busy associated exhibition area.

Professor Vincent Cunnane, President of LIT welcomes delegates!

Delegates await the next speaker.

 

Dr Frances Hardiman, Head of Department Electrical and Electronic Engineering discusses the place of LIT in the engineering community.

EPLAN’s Ken Christie welcomes delegates and addresses his company’s place in Industrie 4.0.

Justin Leonard of Igus.

Micahel Gartz of Panasonic

Declan McDevitt of Siemens

Another view of the exhibition area.

@EPLAN_UK @LimerickIT #PAuto #Industry4

Future factory – a moderator’s impression!

Read-out was asked to moderate the automation stream at the National Manufacturing & Supplies conference held last week outside Dublin. (26th January 2016). In their wisdom the organisers selected “Future Factory!” as a title for this half day seminar and there were 11 speakers organised to speak on their particular subjects for about 15 minutes each. This was replicated in the the over a dozen different seminars held on this one day.

Long queues lasted well into the morning to enter the event!

We were a little sceptical that this would work but with the help of the organisers and the discipline of the speakers the time targets were achieved. Another target achieved was the number of attendees at the event as well as those who attended this particular seminar.
In all between exhibitors, speakers and visitors well over 3000 packed the venue. Probably far more than the organisers had anticipated and hopefully a potent sign that the economy is again on the upturn. Indeed it was so successful that it was trending (#MSC16) on twitter for most of the day.

Seminar
But back to our seminar. If you google the term Future Factory you get back 207million links, yet it is difficult to find a simple definition as to what it means. The term automation similarly is a very difficult term to define though the term in Irish “uathoibriú” perhaps is a bit clearer literally meaning “self-working.”

Good attendance at the Seminar

Background
The world of automation has changed to an extrordinary degree and yet in other ways it remains the same. The areas where it has experienced least change is in the areas of sensing – a thermometer is a thermometer – and final control – a valve is a valve. Where it has changed almost to the point of unrecognisability is in that bit in the middle, what one does with the signal from the sensor to activate the final control element.

From single parameter dedicated Indicator/Controller/Recorders in the sixties which transmitted either pnuematically (3-15psi) or electrically (4-20mA). Gradually (relatively speaking) most instruments became electronic, smaller in size and multifunctional. The means of communication changed too and fieldbus communication became more common to intercact with computors which themselves were developing at breaknech speed. Then transmission via wireless became more common and finally the internet and the ability to control a process from the computer that we call the intelligent phone. There are problems with these latter, internet/cellphone, of course. One is that the reach of the internet is focussed at present on areas of high population. Another is the danger of infiltration of systems by hostile or mischivous strangers. The importance of security protocols is one that has only recently been apparent to Automation professionals.

• Many of the presentations are available on-line here. The password is manufac2016

The Presentations
Maria Archer of Ericsson spoke on the enabling and facilitating IoT in the manufacturing industry. Diving straight into topic she drew on her experience of big data, e-commerce, media, cyber security, IOT and connected devices.

The second speaker was Cormac Garvey of Hal Software who addressed Supply Chain prototyping. The Supply Chain ecosystem is incredibly complex, usually requiring significant integration of each suppliers’ standards and processes to the manufacturer’s. Cormac will introduce the concept of supply chain prototyping, where easy-to-use, standards-based technology is used to wireframe out the entire supply chain ecosystem prior to integration, thus significantly reducing cost, time and risk on the project. This wireframe can then be used as a model for future integration projects.

Two speakers from the Tralee Institute of Technology, Dr. Pat Doody and Dr. Daniel Riordan spoke on RFID, IoT, Sensor & Process Automation for Industry 4.0. They explained how IMaR’s (Intelligent Mechatronics and RFID) expertise is delivering for their industrial partners and is available to those aiming to become a part of Industry 4.0.

Smart Manufacturing – the power of actionable data was the topic addressed by Mark Higgins of Fast Technology. He shared his understanding of the acute issues companies face on their journey to Business Excellence and how leveraging IT solutions can elevate the business to a new point on that journey.

Assistant Professor (Mechanical & Manuf. Eng) at TCD, Dr Garret O’Donnell,   explained how one of the most significant initiatives in the last 2 years has been the concept of the 4th industrial revolution promoted by the National Academy for Science and Engineering in Germany- ACATECH, known as Industrie 4.0. (Industrie 4.0 was first used as a term in Germany in 2011).

Another speaker from Fast Technologies, Joe Gallaher, addressed the area of Robotics and how Collaborative Robots are the “Game Changer” in the modern manufacturing facility.

Dr. Hassan Kaghazchi of the University of Limerick and Profibus spoke on PROFINET and Industrie 4.0. Industrial communications systems play a major role in today’s manufacturing systems. The ability to provide connectivity, handle large amount of data, uptime, open standards, safety, and security are the major deciding factors. This presentation shows how PROFINET fits into Industrial Internet of Things (Industrie 4.0).

Maurice Buckley CEO NSAI

The CEO of NSAI, the Irish National Standards Authority, Maurice Buckley explained how standards and the National Standards Authority of Ireland can help Irish businesses take advantage of the fourth industrial revolution and become more prepared to reap the rewards digitisation can bring.

The next two speakers stressed the impact of low forecast accuracy on the bottom line and how this coulbe be addressed. Jaap Piersma a consultant with SAS UK & Ireland explained that low forecast accuracies on the business performance is high in industry but with the right tools, the right approach and experienced resources you can achieve very significant result and benefits for your business. Following him Dave Clarke, Chief Data Scientist at Asystec, who mantains the company strategy for big data analytics service development for customers. He showed how are incredible business opportunities possible by harnessing the massive data sets generated in the machine to machine and person to machine hyper connected IoT world.

The final speaker David Goodstein, Connected Living Project Director, GSMA, described new form factor mobile SIMs which are robust, remotely manageable which are an essential enabler for applications and services in the connected world.

All in all a very interesting event and useful to attendees. Papers are being collected and should be available shortly on-line.

It is hoped to do it all again next year on 24th January 2017- #MSC17.

See you there.

@NationalMSC #MSC16 #PAuto #IoT

Big data analytics poised to change maintenance services models.

The landscape of business opportunities in the manufacturing services sector is expected to increase 1.5 times by the end of 2020

The advent of the Internet of Industrial Things (IoIT) has triggered an influx of technology-oriented services such as cybersecurity and advanced maintenance. This has dramatically widened business opportunities in the manufacturing services sector. As integration with information and communication technologies (ICT) such as big data analytics and cloud-based platforms will form the crux of next-generation manufacturing services, solution providers are developing a portfolio of services that address security and operational improvement as well as maintenance and support.

Services 2.0: The New Business Frontier for Profitability is part of the Industrial Automation & Process Control Growth Partnership Service program. As part of the IoIT research portfolio from the industrial automation and process control practice, this study offers a detailed assessment of key manufacturing service opportunities from an application, technology and market stand-point. The study strategically examines the transition of service models and explores the different applications of IoIT technologies, including niche segments such as plant, industrial data, security and asset/process optimisation.

New analysis from Frost & Sullivan, Services 2.0: The New Business Frontier for Profitability, finds that the paradigm of service strategies will shift from corrective to preventive and predictive maintenance services over the next five years.Effective utilisation of predictive analytics can optimise costs and eliminate unplanned downtime, which are highly attractive benefits for manufacturers. They offer complimentary access to more information on this research.

Big data analytics is poised to change the maintenance services models across the manufacturing sector. The investments for establishment of robust maintenance and support service model by leveraging the big data analytic concepts is the critical factor for the high growth rate (CAGR 9.1%, 2014-2021). “In line with the emerging trend of IoIT, manufacturing services are also evolving into a connected ecosystem supported by a single control centre,” said Frost & Sullivan Industrial Automation and Process Control Senior Research Analyst Srikanth Shivaswamy. “The demand for interoperability and maximum transparency across multiple products and processes is lending credence to the concept of connected operations.”

Such extensive integration will entail high costs for manufacturing units. The convergence of ICT with conventional services will require sophisticated platforms, further raising initial capital expenditure. However, the deployment of advanced process controls and smart communication systems will boost efficiency and compensate for the steep investments.

Strengthening cyber security infrastructure, a recent addition to the framework of industrial services, will be vital for the uptake of IoIT-based modules. Innovations in investigation, threat detection and self-aware platforms will be critical.

“Overall, solution providers will be rated on one of two factors,” stated Shivaswamy. “Customisation of service models to match the needs of end users or the capability to migrate to a different service model in alignment with a new end-user process, product or solution.”

Delivering these competencies will allow services providers to mine lucrative prospects in under penetrated resource-based production industries. The availability of cost-effective solutions will lure small- and medium-scale manufacturers to implement IoIT-based systems, thus completing the shift from traditional to managed services.