What's Holding UK Manufacturing Back In Adopting IIoT Tech?

Dave Oakes, PowTechnology CEO was at Transform Industry’s Digital Manufacturing Summit last week. It was a fascinating event, sharing and discussing trends and advances in manufacturing digitalisation & full of real examples, showing how innovation has driven performance & competitive advantage.

We asked him for his thoughts, following the event:

"Last year the focus was largely visionary, examining future technologies. This year, there was a noticeable shift in focus and a tangible sense of frustration that the UK is less digitally ready than similarly developed nations. This was supported by the World Economic Forum's Smart Industry Readiness Index.

Leading from that, there was a recurring theme that, whilst the technology largely exists to support manufacturers in reaching corporate objectives … far more support is needed to assist cultural change. Many organisations and their people are simply not understanding the benefits or are overwhelmed by perceived barriers.

There is wealth of statistics out there explaining the barriers to adoption. Make UK reported that:

• 46% manufacturers point to a lack of technical skills
• 41% mention integration and data challenges
• 38% cite high costs

In my opinion, there is a greater challenge to overcome. 36% of manufacturers offered negative workplace culture as a reason for resisting digital practices!

Ultimately, there is a significant element of the UK workforce that either can't see the benefits or believe that those benefits will come at a personal cost to themselves. 

The first three elements mentioned above are relatively easy for PowTechnology to help with.

Lack of Technical Skills

We offer a wide range of IIoT solutions, both ready-made and customised. The vast majority have been developed as plug and play. We can preconfigure hardware before it even leaves our premises and reconfigure remotely if something needs to change. Most of our customers will find our telemetry devices easier to use than a mobile phone! Just add sensors and power and see your data immediately in our secure cloud.

Data Integration Challenges

For those who want to integrate that data into another cloud- maybe something application specific, like inventory management software or a maintenance portal, it’s not a problem! Our MetronView offers a simple API, to get that data stream wherever you need it.

High Costs

As for cost … you don’t need to start with a fully automated smart factory to see the benefits. Often, just monitoring a few key parameters can help you avoid breakdowns and compliance incidents and show you where processes can be improved. We’ve seen payback in as little as 48 hours!

And Now For The Real Challenge ... Cultural Change!

Changing workplace culture has long been accepted as one of the thorniest issues in corporate management. In these challenging times, perhaps the benefits need to be shown more clearly. Current global economic and political factors dictate that digitalisation is now a necessity to avoid losing out to the competition.

My own experience suggests that manufacturers should focus more on the cost of NOT remotely monitoring assets. These can be significant, impacting all areas of business performance. I've been listening to customers experiences for over 30 years. These are the top ten reasons they discuss for embracing digital manufacturing, which I have illustrated with case studies on our web site.

The Top Ten Reasons Our Customers Give Us For Wanting To Embrace Digital Manufacturing

1 Reduced/Eliminated Downtime

If an asset fails or experiences issues without being monitored, it can result in unplanned downtime, leading to direct revenue loss.  Downtime often disrupts critical business operations, causing delays, missed deadlines, and reduced productivity.

This is illustrated by our CG Godfrey case, where our remote monitoring solution generates alarms for high level, mains power failure & pump failure on pumping stations. User -defined alerts mean that timely maintenance visits can be made, offering exceptional standards of service to customers, who are mainly district council. More here.  

2 Lower Maintenance Costs

Without remote monitoring, problems are often discovered only after they become significant. This kind of reactive maintenance usually leads to more expensive repairs or replacements. Unexpected failure requires sending personnel to inspect and troubleshoot issues, which can be costly compared to proactively addressing problems remotely.

A good example is our Fuel Link case study. Fuel Link have used our telemetry kit is numerous installations. This case involves a Scotch Whisky distillery. The product is high value and in strong demand, especially for export. Stoppages are costly and restarting involves time and wasted human and raw material resource. Our kit has eliminated stoppages caused by kerosine run-outs. More here.

3 Increased Asset Lifespan

Assets that aren't remotely monitored may be running inefficiently or experience unnoticed stress or overuse, leading to premature deterioration and reduced lifespan. 

A super example of this is our Angel Trains case study, where multiple parameters are monitored to assess engine condition. Data is used to inform maintenance programmes and modify processes to avoid future issues. More here.

4 Increased Efficiency

Without real-time data, it's difficult to optimise asset performance. Overuse, underuse or improper handling can decrease overall productivity. Energy consumption can go unchecked, leading to higher utility costs for machinery, HVAC systems or other equipment.

There are few cases to choose from here, but United Unities is a good one. Condition monitoring on CHP engines identify maintenance issues, with improved efficiency increasing both cost savings from heat production and income from energy sales. More here.

5 Reduced Safety and Compliance Risk

Failure to detect issues early can lead to accidents, breakdowns or hazardous situations that can jeopardise employee and public safety. On top of that, many industries we work with have regulatory standards regarding asset maintenance, safety and environmental impact. Without monitoring, you risk non-compliance and the resulting penalties.

The Bonner case on our website describes how the data provided by PowTechnology’s IIoT kit ensures that only compliant wastewater is discharged, whilst supplying reliable evidence of compliance with environmental legislation. More here.

6 Increased Opportunity For Predictive Maintenance

Remote monitoring systems typically provide predictive maintenance capabilities, which help identify potential failures before they happen. Without such tools, businesses rely on less effective, reactive maintenance, which increases costs. Data helps organisations analyse asset trends and make informed decisions on upgrades, replacements, or improvements.

Our Trans-Auto case is great example here. PowTechnology’s digital transformation solution delivers data/alarms on temperature, pressure, level, flow, vibration, oxidation, water ingress and particulate contamination. That reduces operating costs by optimizing and extending service intervals, enabling early identification of maintenance needs and eliminating breakdowns. More here.

7 Improved Customer Satisfaction

Asset failures or inefficiencies can affect product delivery times or the quality of service, negatively impacting customer satisfaction, harming reputation and potentially leading to lost business.

Our Speedy case is a super illustration of a business differentiating themselves on service, winning customers by protecting them from costly delays and gaining a valuable additional income stream at the same time. More here.

8 Easy Scalability

As a business grows, managing assets manually becomes more difficult. Without effective asset management, scaling operations can lead to inefficiencies and difficulty maintaining quality.

Greenchem is a shining example of the scalability of our kit. We have worked with them for over a decade, during which time they have expanded operations to become one of Europe’s largest AdBlue®. producers and distributors. They now use evolutions of the same PowTechnology technology to supply thousands of customers, from over 40 production facilities around Europe and Brazil.

This is actually a pet theme of mine. You don’t have to start big. You can derive great benefit from small-scale intelligent deployment of IoT kit.  Benefit can be gained from monitoring just a few key parameters … Level, temperature, vibration.... Start simply, see the benefits of that data and then scale up! More here.

9 Closing Data Gaps For Decision Making

Remote monitoring in businesses delivers valuable performance data to help make informed, data-driven decisions about asset usage, replacement, and future investments.

Our Ardent case describes PowTechnology developing a smart fuel tank to monitor fuel usage and prevent abuse. Customers can now automate fuel ordering, plan fuel deliveries and avoid run-outs. A big bonus is authorised dispersal, where users identify themselves and the asset being fuelled. Data identifies theft, which was a big issue on quiet construction sites at weekends and also fuel management and maintenance issues. More here.

10 Efficient Resource Allocation

Visibility of asset health avoids employees using time to inspect or address non-urgent issues and prevents unnecessary stockpiling or shortages. 

Here, PowTechnology's Henkel case study is an ideal illustration. Our bespoke IIoT solution uses edge-processing to remotely monitor multiple elements within the packaging process. One outcome of this process is to optimise hot melt glue dispense, ensuring enough is used to maintain quality but that it is not overused and wasted, compounded over hundreds of thousands of cardboard boxes. More here.

In Conclusion

What's holding back UK manufacturing in adopting IIoT technology? I firmly believe that there are too many negative impacts on a business to ignore digital manufacturing, but I do understand that we have an obligation to offer a customised and compelling rationale. Experience suggests that some businesses, especially those without instrumentation specialists just don’t know where to start. 

It's our responsibility as IIoT professionals to clearly illustrate that you don’t need to start with a fully automated smart factory to see the benefits. We have plenty of evidence to support the fact that monitoring a few key parameters can help you avoid breakdowns and compliance incidents and show you where processes can be improved. 

PowTechnology can work with you to identify where a few tweaks could make the biggest impact.

Please come to us with your applications and enquiries. We will always do our very best to help!”