It seems a long time ago now since various malware attacks on the operational layer changed the security landscape and highlighted vulnerabilities in the de-facto automation architecture. However, as we move along the road towards Smart Manufacturing with a view to improving efficiency, productivity and reliability of supply using the principles of Industry 4.0 and the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), the subject of cyber-security is becoming arguably even more important.

To assist manufacturers, Omron has launched its i-Automation programme, which is intended to provide manufacturers with a consistent, reliable way of ensuring they can meet both consumer demands and the changing needs of industry.

Some 1,700 automation providers from all over the world are expected in Nuremberg on 27 - 29 November 2018.

According to a recent Gartner report, “By 2022, more than 50 percent of Industrial IoT analytics will be performed at the edge, up from less than 10 percent today.” With this growth comes the need for easier ways to ensure the availability of applications that run critical operations at the edge and collect and process data.

Multiple building services at a London free school are being managed from a single control system, following the use of modular I/O from WAGO.

Recent developments are opening new opportunities and catapulting the industrial robot arm into a journey around the production environment.

Most manufacturing companies are constantly balancing the desire to improve production against the return on the investment required to achieve that improvement. Industry 4.0 has the promise of facilitating great improvements. However, as with many emerging technologies, there is a shortage of expertise and experience.

This article shows how valuable manufacturing production line downtime in the pharmaceutical industry can be reduced by ensuring predictive maintenance of tablet making machinery using Harting’s MICA industrial computing platform.