Leveraging the Power of Real-Time Data Visualization

Ken Myers, Solutions Manager Gene Hancz, CMM Product Specialist

Industry 4.0 and Smart Manufacturing Today’s manufacturers are under pressure to be more flexible, reduce downtime and costs and increase efficiencies. In addition to making new investments in production and technology, data-driven manufacturing companies are responding to these pressures by leveraging the capabilities of artificial intelligence (AI), the industrial internet of things, (IIoT), cloud computing technologies and innovations in smart measurement and quality data management systems—resulting in greater visibility into their operations. AI is already transforming manufacturing by outperforming humans in its ability to provide insights that inform timely, data-driven decisions and productivity improvements. In some operations, AI looks for conditions like idle equipment or scheduled maintenance in order to make decisions about reassigning parts measurement. AI can also leverage inspection results for decisions...

Bringing QA to the Point of Production

Ken Myers, Solutions Manager Gene Hancz, CMM Product Specialist

Challenging the Measurement Status Quo Today’s manufactured components are more complex than ever, with more parts diversity, more model year changes and tighter tolerances than ever before. This is driving a need for increased quality control and the implementation of Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing (GD&T) and other metrology processes into the manufacturing process. And, with demands to produce parts even cheaper and faster, manufacturers are taking a new look at where the components measurement process should happen. Traditionally, components manufacturers have relied on a measurement process in which skilled operators use computer-controlled equipment to validate randomly selected parts in batches, usually post-production and offline in a quality laboratory or other controlled environment. Sometimes referred to as “tailgate measurement,” this process can be problematic. When the...

Looking Beyond the Model‐Based Enterprise

By Larry Maggiano, Senior Systems Analyst Mitutoyo America Corporation

Today’s factory intelligence is the collaborative orchestration of people and machines. By blending intelligence from multiple sources, factories are truly becoming smarter. But it’s not just about the machines. Rather, people are improving machines through a true partnership that turns human experience into smarter machines. This shift marks a re‐orientation to a thought process that’s more natural to people. After decades of working with 2D blueprints, designs and dimensioned drawings, factory intelligence leverages 3D models that are easier for people to comprehend and use. Plus, many people find more satisfaction in intelligent factory work that challenges them to manage relationships among machines, rather than repeatedly working on a single piece in a line. In smarter factories, people direct machines to adjust for shifting customer requirements and...