The industrial sector is once again facing a massive upheaval. In a similar way to past challenges posed by such sweeping transformations as mechanization, industrial mass production and finally digitalization, Industry 4.0 promises to be another monumental milestone – a fourth industrial revolution. The third is still running its course, as the overwhelming proportion of the value adding process is taking place in already existing industrial plants.

There is no single definitive definition of what Industry 4.0 actually is; its path and its content remain hazy, and the approaches envisaged by the different industries to putting the meat on the bones of this new industrial revolution vary widely depending on the requirements. Despite these differences, there is at least a general consensus that the success of Industry 4.0 will depend decisively on system communication and on effectively processing the flood of data.

The influence of the internet on production is causing the real and the virtual worlds to gradually merge. What may already be a new reality for some sectors has not yet been fully embraced in the day-to-day business of others, for instance the manufacturers of complex machinery. “Behringer 4.0 is well on the way”, is how CEO Christian Behringer sums up the position of the Kirchhardt-based sawing machine manufacturer, which is experiencing ever more efficient, troublefree interaction between its sawing systems and customer systems.

Behringer 4.0 – for customers worldwide

Both as regards optimizing its own internal processes and also in terms of providing support for its international customer base, Behringer GmbH took early action to position itself for the impending upheaval. The demographic transformation taking place in the industrial nations played a key role in this process and still continues to do so. A shortage of skilled labour, and a dwindling working age population coupled with an ever rising output are forcing industry to re-think and restructure. As reliable partners in the field of custom sawing and material flow solutions, Behringer customers from a whole range of industrial sectors are already making use of tomorrow’s technologies to process their orders with the aid of smart control systems and fewer operators.

Dynamic handling processes using transport management system

A variety of characteristics can be integrated into sawing plants to facilitate handling for customers around the world. “We envisage particular potential in the field of control systems”, adds the CEO. These systems are intuitive in terms of their operation, and ideally are able to detect and signal operating errors or implausible parameter combinations, by checking entered material, saw blade or cutting parameter data, for instance. With its Transport Management System (TMS), the company has already taken a decisive step towards achieving a high level of system flexibility. TMS functions dynamically and takes care of smart navigation of the girders through complex plants. It seeks out the most sensible, fastest or shortest route to the order picking location, depending on the wording of the order. The system is connected online to the production control, enabling deadline-controlled dynamic material flow and process-controlled dynamic routing.

From product identification to product intelligence

The steel trade and steel production sectors are increasingly making use of what has become a tried and tested technology in our everyday lives, for example in the retail world, using systems such as barcodes or RFID to identify and assign products. This type of identification system can facilitate the routing of products through a complex plant system controlled by the TMS.

The next and imminent stage in this progression will be product memory, in other words the reading, writing and documentation of information. It will be possible for batch or origin-related information to be added to articles such as sawn offcuts to ensure traceability. The identifiers can also contain information about subsequent processing steps. The leap from this to product intelligence is only a short one. Intelligent products will be equipped with their own microprocessor which is capable of responding independently to changes in the product environment or carrying out its own self testing and reporting the results. This will mean a significant labour saving in terms of quality control.

Behringer 4.0 – inter-communication between machines

For machines, storage systems or production planning systems to be capable of worldwide networking, they need to speak a common “language”. Sawing machines should soon have the capability to exchange information, no longer reporting errors but correcting them largely independently and making available their data in real time. From today’s perspective, communication between the components of a value-adding chain is neither standardized nor seamless. The use of different communication and program software often impedes the smooth exchange of data. “A lot would already be technically feasible, if it weren’t for the problems surrounding the use of interfaces and if the systems only spoke the same language”, conclude the experts at Behringer.

Evaluation of real time data

To allow the enormous flood of real time data to be utilized, it needs to be traceable and manageable for users. This would entail the systems only making available information which is actually relevant – in the simplest, fastest and most context-specific possible way and adapted to the relevant situation. Using internet-based services, the data can be processed and used in control processes. This makes production sequences and supply chains more efficient, and results in enormous advances in production as well as savings in terms of materials, human resources, machines and tools.

The in-house modification of processes in line with the Industry 4.0 vision means networking the entire logistical chain from incoming goods through storage to production and order picking. EPR systems laid the foundations for this already years ago. Further developments need to follow. The ability of the production to control itself independently in what is being termed the “flexible factory” will inevitably lead to changes in production. “In terms of software, the limitations of the factory hall will be overcome to increase the efficiency of the entire supply chain on every level of action, for instance production control and corporate resource planning”, explains Christian Behringer.

Data security and functionality

“Important aspects when it comes to production system networking are reliable functionality and data security. Over the 90 years our company has been in business, this is something we have never lost sight of. Nothing will change in this respect with Industry 4.0”, he clarifies. With increasing process interdependency and interaction across networks which transcends global corporate boundaries, control over the growing complexity can only be achieved through information processing. The completely autonomous factory may still be a vision for the future which faces not only a number of unresolved technical challenges but also a variety of reservations – not least legal ones. Nonetheless, within the foreseeable future these processes will have to be planned for and system support provided when it comes to taking the necessary decisions.