Factory-X: Value Creation Potential of the Data Economy
Part 2 - A look at the use cases
The use of data as a key resource for digital transformation offers enormous opportunities within a data economy. This blog article is dedicated to the various aspects of real industrial practice.
Within the scope of the use cases defined for Factory-X, a distinction is made from use case to use case as to whether data is shared horizontally or vertically. Data moves horizontally along the supply chain and vertically via the respective store floor processes. Factory-X develops a central and connecting concept for these data flows or use cases.
Factory-X covers a total of eleven use cases with different content. Six of these eleven use cases are discussed in more detail below, while the remaining five are presented in a subsequent blog post.
Collaborative Information Logistics
The collaborative, logistical control of information flows enables the cross-platform exchange of information and data via standardized B2B interfaces. This possibility reduces the costs of manual information procurement and at the same time optimizes the breadth of information procurement options. In essence, it is about creating the interoperability of services.
Modular Production:
Modular production has set itself the goal of simplifying the production setup. This is to be made possible by intelligent, semantically correct machine performance and decentralized process controls. The aim is to improve the orchestration of process steps via a data economy. Another advantage is the fast and error-free feeding of production resources into the production process. The result leads to greater flexibility and resilience in the production process.
Traceability:
The traceability of products and services plays an increasingly decisive role in the context of the prevailing "track & trace" options. This primarily involves the traceability of products and the documentation of this process. With this in mind, the complete product data is recorded in order to ensure complete transparency in the data flow of the supply chains.
Circular Economy:
The circular economy, better known by the technical term "circular economy", combines the idea of efficiency with an awareness of sustainable business practices. This involves the so-called "R's": refurbishing, remanufacturing, and recycling machines and individual components. This allows the life cycle of a product to be extended and sustainability targets to be met.
Manufacturing as a Service - On Demand Manufacturing:
Sharing networked production facilities and manufacturing infrastructures for on-demand manufacturing enables small and medium-sized enterprises to become part of a large infrastructure.
In this context, the aim is to optimize order management and the underlying marketplace-like processes. This use case creates targeted links between supply and demand and reduces costs. It is also possible to generate and monitor qualitative data models.
Information Update and Change Service:
As part of information management, updates to information and software solutions are shared transparently and consistently. This enables the permanent management of future end devices and the automation of update services. This use case requires close cooperation between the machine manufacturer, the product supplier, and the factory operator, as the core information and updates circulate in this composition. Standardized information processing also supports regulatory requirements such as the EU Cyber Resilience Act.
The use cases of the initiative explained above describe the first five of the eleven Factory-X use cases. In the third part of our blog series, we will give you an insight into the five other defined use cases of the initiative.
As an associated partner, Arvato Systems is one of a total of 57 partners, including 47 joint partners and 10 associated partners from industry, research and associations in the Factory-X joint project, which is funded by the Federal Ministry of Economics and is a pioneering project for the industry., SAP our strategic and long-standing partner, and Siemens have taken over the project leadership of the initiative.
Johannes Fuhrmann is Head of Strategic Business Development at Arvato Systems. In this role, he is responsible for the portfolio and product development for the manufacturing industry. His focus is mainly on the topics of digital twin, digital administration shell and the development of shared data ecosystems in the industry. Prior to his career at Arvato Systems, Johannes Fuhrmann held various relevant positions within the manufacturing industry. For example, he worked as a Senior Consultant for Industry 4.0 at Deloitte Consulting and as Head of Digital Operations and Business Development at VELUX. Johannes Fuhrmann completed his studies at the University of Warwick with a Master of Science (MSc.) in Information Systems Management. He also holds a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Technical Business Administration from the Hamburg University of Applied Sciences (HAW Hamburg).
Written by