Learning content

Industry 4.0 and the IT/OT integration

To move comfortably within a 4.0 ecosystem, you need to understand the concept at the basis of Industry 4.0: Operational technology (OT) and Informational Technology (IT) convergence, which allows integration automation, communication and networking.

• OT refers to technologies used for monitoring and controlling device performance. For example, if you work in a factory that produces pasta, you may use systems providing data regarding the temperature, humidity, density or quantity. Hardware and software allowing the collection and display of such information represent the OT of the factory.
• IT refers to technologies used for data-centric computing, to software that serves the organisational process, such as e-mail, ERP systems, CMS etc. In IT, privacy and integrity of data are fundamental.

Thanks to the integration of Operational and Informational technologies, if you are part of an OT team in the oil and gas system, you will be able to access and monitor data remotely. If you are a doctor, IT/OT convergence gives you the chance for better patient analysis since it facilitates the share of patient information through more medical devices.

To make this possible all devices and objects need to be connected to an (Industrial) Internet of Things platform (IIOT) which integrates data from the different devices and applies analytics to share the most valuable information with applications built to address specific needs.

INDUSTRY 3.0

INDUSTRY 4.0

4.0 technologies – Part 2

If you want to be able to work with 4.0 technologies there are some additional aspects that you should learn. In this paragraph, you will find insights on the main technologies introduced at the intermediate level – IoT, Cloud Computing, Artificial Intelligence and Cybersecurity plus some additional innovations – Digital twin, Simulation and Edge Computing.

INTERNET OF THINGS (IoT)

Being IoT the essential element of Industry 4.0, it is necessary to know that it can be dived into three layers:

• The IoT devices: IoT devices include transducers, such as sensors - devices that detect, measure, or indicate any specific physical quantity such as light, heat, motion, moisture, pressure, or similar entities. Actuators act in the opposite way. For instance, in a smart room, sensors detect that there is no one in the room, while actuators are triggered to lower the temperature. Then the control system reports decisions to the management system with energy savings as a result.
• The IoT gateways: IoT gateways make the connection between smart devices and IoT platforms. They can be hardware, software or a combination of both.
• The IoT platforms: IoT cloud platforms enable IoT to function. On top of the types of IoT platforms, there are large generic platforms from vendors such as Microsoft, Google, Amazon, IBM and more.

CLOUD COMPUTING

Through Cloud Computing, as you learnt, is possible to store a large amount of data and access files everywhere and from any device. Now, you should know that exist different types of cloud computing and that their differences and relevant benefits can be summed up as follows:

• Public Cloud: a cloud service provider makes computing resources available to users over the public internet. Benefits: public cloud services are elastic and readily scalable.
• Private cloud: all cloud infrastructure and computing resources are dedicated to, and accessible by, one customer only. Benefits: easier way - or the only way - to meet the regulatory compliance requirements. A private cloud is recommended when you deal with confidential documents, intellectual property, personally identifiable information (PII), medical records, financial data, or other sensitive data.
• Hybrid cloud: a combination of public and private cloud environments. Benefits: gives the flexibility to choose the optimal cloud for each application or workload and to move workloads freely between the two clouds depending on the needs.
• Multi-cloud and Hybrid multi-cloud: use of two or more clouds from two or more different cloud providers (Multicloud) and use of two or more public clouds together with a private cloud environment (Hybrid multi-cloud) Benefits: they allow avoiding vendor lock-in, having more services to choose from, and guaranteeing more innovation.

If you are thinking of a career related to Cloud Computing (see Intermediate level) you should also know that there are different Cloud models: IaaS (Infrastructure-as-a-Service), PaaS (Platform-as-a-Service), and SaaS (Software-as-a-Service). To learn more click here

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI), MACHINE LEARNING, DEEP LEARNING

Machine Learning is a branch of Artificial Intelligence that enables computers to use algorithms to acquire skills usually associated with humans, such as recognizing objects and faces, identifying patterns and understanding language. On the other hand, Deep Learning can be considered a sub-field of Machine Learning since they differ in how each algorithm learns.

Interrelation among Ai, Machine Learning and Deep Learning

These are some of the many real-world applications of AI systems today:

• Customer service: online chatbots are replacing human agents, changing the process of customer engagement across websites and social media platforms.
• Speech recognition: many mobile devices incorporate speech recognition into their systems to conduct voice searches (e.g. Siri) or improve accessibility for texting.
• Recommendation engines: using past consumption behaviour data, AI algorithms allow discovery data trends that may be used to develop more effective cross-selling strategies.
• Automated stock trading: AI-driven high-frequency trading platforms make thousands/millions of trades per day without human intervention.
• Fraud detection: banks and other financial institutions can use machine learning to spot suspicious transactions

To know more go to https://www.ibm.com/cloud/learn/what-is-artificial-intelligence?lnk=fle

CYBERSECURITY

The connectivity of operational equipment in the factory or field (OT) exposes new entry paths for malicious attacks and malware. If your company is undergoing a transformation to Industry 4.0, it is essential to consider a cybersecurity approach that encompasses IT and OT equipment and carry out many efficient risks mitigation strategies:

• Conduct a cybersecurity risk assessment
• Examine the physical security of a business
• Minimize the attack surface (from web applications and software to employees)
• Establish network access controls
• Build an incident response plan
• Implement firewalls and antivirus software
• Create a patch management schedule
• Monitor network traffic continuously

SIMULATION AND DIGITAL TWIN

Digital twins are virtual replicas of processes, production lines, factories and supply chains, created by pulling data from IoT sensors. When a change is applied to a process, the simulation of the production process will help you test that change and find ways to improve capacity. A simulation typically studies one particular process and do not benefit from real-time data; on the other end, a digital twin can run any number of useful simulations in order to study multiple processes and can leverage real-time data.

Digital twins result to be success in particular with large-scale products or projects:

• Engineering
• Automobile manufacturing
• Aircraft production
• Building Construction
• Manufacturing
• Power utilities

To know more go to: https://www.altexsoft.com/blog/digital-twins/

EDGE COMPUTING

If you have to detect a safety or quality issue, this may require near-real-time action. In this case, the time needed to send data to the enterprise cloud and then back to the factory floor may be too lengthy, Edge Computing can help minimize this latency time. This is a typical situation where data analysis must be done to the “edge” - where the data is created. Moreover, staying near the source reduces security risks.

Benefits of Edge Computing:

• Unlock the potential of the untapped data that is created by connected devices
• Increase operational efficiency
• Provide faster, more reliable and consistent experiences for the customers
• Accelerate performance by analysing data locally

Example:

Bank services can leverage Edge Computing to shut off automatically an ATM that has been tempered so as to take immediate action and contact local law enforcement. This is possible thanks to the integration of AI image recognition software on the ATM machine itself. Edge Computing allows the analysis of the video feed in real-time saving the time and cost of transporting terabytes of video data to a centralized cloud for video analytics.

To know more: https://www.ibm.com/cloud/what-is-edge-computing

Agility techniques to implement 4.0 technologies

To achieve a deeper knowledge of 4.0 technologies you should be aware of the agility practices that a company, its leaders and its employees should adopt to work efficiently in the 4.0 ecosystem. First of all, remember that 4.0 technologies respond to precise trends within the market:

• Personalization of products with a highly flexible production;
• Inclusion of customers and business partners in design and value creation processes (see the Case Study);
• Connection of production and high-quality services, which would lead to so-called hybrid products.

Addressing these trends through Industry 4.0 requires a strategic and staged approach; it brings enormous organizational changes in terms of work setting, management, culture and dealing with customers and suppliers.

As explained in the Intermediate level, a 4.0 transformation can only take place within organisations that are agile in nature, that are supported by agile management systems and agile workforce. Here some of the practices for organisational agility identified by McKinsey (2017) that are essential in Industry 4.0.

For instance, when thinking about Logistic 4.0 it is necessary that:

• Cross-functional teams of business and technology people collaborate with each other constantly to achieve desired business outcomes;
• People across all levels and teams trust each other to act in the best interest of the organisation, its customers, and other stakeholders;
• Internally across units and levels, and externally with partners, people provide each other with continuous feedback;
• Technology is integrated with key processes, it is updated in shorter intervals of time, and automated testing enables continuous software releases.

On the other hand, if you work in Cybersecurity the degree of uncertainty is high, since things change rapidly and the knowledge acquired can quickly become obsolete. For this reason:

• People closest to where the work happens should have the authority to make decisions that affect the implementation of the activities;
• When a performance unit’s structure needs to be adapted or scaled to meet changing needs, decisions should be taken more rapidly.

Furthermore, to allow mass customization is essential that:

• People individually and proactively watch for and act upon changes in customers’ and the external environment;
• The organisation actively uses customers’ insights (formal and informal) to shape, pilot, launch and iterate on new initiatives and business models.

Finally, information transparency is essential for the proper functioning of the robots while rapid iteration and experimentation results are necessary with 3D technologies:

• Innovation is developed through fast cycles of field testing and learning from mistakes;
• Products are developed by prototyping using minimum viable products.

To sum up, the Agile methodology required in Industry 4.0 promotes teamwork, individual ownership, open communication, and self-governance; it encourages constant feedback from the end-user and working with changing requirements is one of its core tenets.

For further details go to: https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/how-to-create-an-agile-organization#/

Case study

LEGO: an example of an agile company

The LEGO company was on the verge of bankruptcy in 2004 mainly because of the misapplication of its digital transformation (digital media mishap and a lack of internal information flow).

Over the following decade, LEGO went back to its core value proposition:

• Restructuring its Enterprise IT system to greatly improve data sharing across the company and with third-party providers. Implementing APIs - Application Programming Interfaces - to bring in better services and simplify the user interface to give teams easier access to information and new tools to interpret data (See the glossary for further info on API).
• Crowdsourcing Product Design, giving the users the possibility to upload, vote, and allow LEGO to produce user-generated designs. This solution gave LEGO insight in market trends, it allowed be sure that the designs would satisfy the demand and connect to LEGO a more digitally attuned target.

Questions and answers

Q: How can I leverage Industry 4.0 technologies to know more about client’s demands?

A: If you own a car manufacturing business, for instance, you might want to know which optional components are the most popular. Using Internet of Things technology, you will be able to:

• Use sensors to detect which areas in a showroom are the most popular, and where customers linger longest;
• Visualize the available sales data to identify which components are selling fastest;
• Automatically align sales data with supply, so that popular items do not go out of stock.

Q: My company/the company I work with is thinking to undergo a 4.0 transformation. What are the first steps for successful planning?

A: These are the steps to move towards a 4.0 transformation:

• Explore the possibilities, informing about industry trends, modern technologies, and use cases;
• Hold a strategic planning session to identify opportunities to enhance competitive advantages with key technology and business stakeholders;
• Develop an integrated architecture that covers organizational structures, business processes, data, technologies, and risk management;
• Implement properly ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and other enterprise applications, networks, and supporting infrastructure. Once built your foundation, develop a realistic time-phased plan to deliver the future state;
• Develop detailed project schedules, budgets, and resource plans.

References

• IBM, https://www.ibm.com/topics/industry-4-0 (13/12/2022)
• IBM, https://www.ibm.com/resources/guides/edge-computing-industry-use-cases/?_ga=2.253641289.1700703186.1604322580-426485022.1603827631&_gac=1.128250238.1603918514.Cj0KCQjwreT8BRDTARIsAJLI0KLS1y8DDER7gLHCTEUaV6XB5cYwmhwwQC4Nf6l1JSqz5rA9W_MACQQaAmotEALw_wcB (13/12/2022)
• IBM Cloud education (2021) https://www.ibm.com/cloud/learn/what-is-artificial-intelligence?lnk=fle (13/12/2022)
• IBM Cloud education (2021), IaaS (Infrastructure-as-a-Service), PaaS (Platform-as-a-Service) , and SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) (13/12/2022)
• McKinsey (2017) https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/how-to-create-an-agile-organization#/ 7^th Feb. 2023

Additional resources

https://www.ibm.com/watson/stories/humana - Artificial Intelligence for improving customer services, a female led example

https://www.altexsoft.com/blog/digital-twins/ - Further information regarding Digital Twin

https://www.ibm.com/cloud/what-is-edge-computing - Further information about Edge Computing

i-SCOOP | Digital business and transformation hub – Learning material to know more about each 4.0 technologies