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EDITOR-IN-CHIEF DUKE WEATHERILL VIDEO PRODUCTION MANAGER MEDIA SALES DIRECTOR
GEORGIA WILSON JORDAN WOOD KIERAN WAITE JAMES WHITE
DEPUTY EDITOR PRODUCTION DIRECTORS DIGITAL VIDEO PRODUCERS SALES AND MARKETING DIRECTOR
RHYS THOMAS GEORGIA ALLEN SAM KEMP JASON WESTGATE
LAURA GARCIA DANIELA KIANICKOVÁ EVELYN HUANG
MANAGING DIRECTOR
TYLER LIVINGSTONE
EDITORIAL DIRECTOR PRODUCTION MANAGERS LEWIS VAUGHAN
HABBIE AMOS
SCOTT BIRCH OWEN MARTIN JACK NICHOLLS CHIEF OPERATIONS OFFICER
CREATIVE TEAM PHILLINE VICENTE MARTA EUGENIO STACY NORMAN
OSCAR HATHAWAY JENNIFER SMITH
MARKETING MANAGER PRESIDENT & CEO
SOPHIE-ANN PINNELL PRODUCTION EDITOR KAYLEIGH SHOOTER GLEN WHITE
HECTOR PENROSE JANET BRICE
SAM HUBBARD PROJECT DIRECTORS
MIMI GUNN JAMES RICHARDSON
JUSTIN SMITH KARL GREEN
 FOREWORD

All Things
Sustainability in
Manufacturing
The race is on! Manufacturers around the
world are ramping up their sustainability efforts.

From automotive and aerospace to consumer

goods, technology and consultants, the first six
months of 2021 have seen not only the private
“Organisations sector but the public sector and governments
need clear around the world ramp up their sustainability efforts.
Globally, manufacturers have set ambitious
and accessible sustainability targets for the next decade, with
support to many striving for carbon neutrality between 2030
identify priorities, and 2040. A full 10 to 20 years ahead of the Paris
manage risks Agreement target!
and confidently It is clear that technology and data will be critical
define sustainable to advance the sustainability agenda, with the
likes of LEGO, Honda, Hyundai, the UK, and Spain
strategies harnessing innovative technologies, and forming
to navigate collaborative partnerships, to drive the transition
disruption and to a greener future.
uncertainty” Particular focus for the manufacturing industry
Per Hong, Strategic currently is placed on the decarbonisation of the
Operations Partner industry, the electrification of the automotive sector
and leader of the (including the production of EV batteries), and the
study at Kearney adoption of a circular economy approach
to manufacturing and the supply chain.

MANUFACTURING GLOBAL MAGAZINE GEORGIA WILSON

IS PUBLISHED BY
georgia.wilson@bizclikmedia.com

© 2021 | ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

manufacturingglobal.com 3
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IBM

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Mastercard

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Thermo Fisher Scientific

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Creating Digital Communities

 CONTENTS

Our Regular
Upfront Section:
10 Big Picture
12 The Brief
14 Global News
16 People Moves
18 Timeline:
Sustainable mobility
20 Legend:
Ole Kirk Kristiansen
24 Five Mins With:
Richard Boocock

28
ABB Digital

46
Automation Beyond
Imagination

Digital Factory
Google Cloud, Realising
the Value of Digital

56
Fortinet
Digital Security,
everywhere you need it
 90
AI & Automation
Advanced Robotics 101

68
Smart Manufacturing
The Road to Smarter
Manufacturing with IoT

98
Bell Food Group
People, Not Systems

76 114
TripActions Technology
How one fintech company Could 5G be the missing
evolved for the future link for Industry 4.0 adoption?
Secure manufacturing,
everywhere you need it.
Protect the possibilities with Fortinet.

Prevent, detect and respond to cyberattacks

from the plant floor to the cloud.

Learn more at fortinet.com/manufacturing

122 146
PTC TXOne Networks
The Time for Digitalisation Reduce the threat
in Manufacturing is Now landscape for your ICS

160
MT Connect
Powering free speech
in the factory of the future

134 174
Top 10 Salzgitter Machinenbau
Manufacturing Taking the load in
Supply Chains global supply chains
BIG PICTURE

10
1 August
August 2021
2021
Manufacturing’s
Push for a
Sustainable Future
Texas, US
The latest sustainability report
from Capgemini Research Institute
reveals that manufacturers are
setting ambitious targets for 2030,
with 20% aiming to be carbon
neutral and 40% looking to have
100% renewable operations.
To achieve such targets,
manufacturers are boosting
their agendas by prioritising their
deployment of digital technologies
for sustainability (56%).

manufacturingglobal.com
manufacturingglobal.com 11
2
THE BRIEF
“The key for manufacturer’
ability to transform—despite
the ongoing pandemic—is
BY THE NUMBERS
With the potential to disrupt and redefine manufacturing,
their embrace of digital which aspect of the industry will stand to benefit the most
enablers and disruptive from Quantum Computing?
technologies”
Dominik Wee
25.5% 41.8%
Chemical
Process
Managing Director Global Discovery
Optimisation
Automotive, Manufacturing
and Energy at Google Cloud

1.8%


READ MORE
Other

“The jump from 4G to

5G is like comparing
a winding single-file 20.0%
A-road in the English
countryside to a multi-
10.9%
Supply Chain
Product
Development
and Design
lane German autobahn”
Steve Foxley Did you know?
CEO at the University of
63% of European parts manufacturers will invest
Sheffield Advanced
Manufacturing Research
between €100,000 and over €1mn in digitalisation
Centre (AMRC) over the next 12 months

READ MORE
READ MORE

Top Three Reasons for AI Adoption in Manufacturing

“As soon as businesses
Business continuity (38%), making employees more efficient
realise the full potential of
(38%), and being helpful for employees overall (34%)
IoT – from enabling efficiency
savings to delivering the READ MORE
needs of individuals – they
will transform everything
from design to production”
The Future of 5G in Manufacturing
David Sims 64% of organisations plan to adopt 5G-based edge
Solutions Sales Specialist at
computing services in the next three years to benefit from
Dynabook Europe
 increased performance, reliability, data security and privacy

READ MORE READ MORE

12
3 August
August2021
2021
  LEGO
LEGO expands its sustainable
manufacturing practices,
producing bricks from PET
plastics from discarded bottles.
LEGO has revealed its first
W
prototype that also meets its strict
quality and safety requirements.
A
Y
Manufacturing  NORTHVOLT
Northvolt raises US$2.75bn in
a Greener Future equity to expand its cell capacity
at its Swedish gigafactory to 60 U
P
When manufacturing a greener future, there
GWh. To date, the company
are a number of ways manufacturers can
has secured over US$27bn in
be more sustainable; one, in particular, is
contracts from the likes of BMW,
adopting a circular economy approach to
waste management. Fluence, Scania and Volkswagen.

So What is a Circular Economy? ROCKWELL AUTOMATION

Set to redefine the current linear model of Rockwell Automation acquires
production and consumption, a circular
economy focuses on sharing, reusing,
Plex Systems for US$2.22bn,
widening its capabilities to help
AUG21
repairing, remanufacturing, and recycling manufacturers to connect,
products and materials. The overall goal automate, track, and analyse
is to extend the lifecycle of products and their operations and connected

W
materials and reduce waste.
supply chains.

A
But Why is Waste a Problem?
 SMMT
Often waste is not accounted for and is
SMMT reports that up to 90,000
Y
therefore frequently overproduced.
This waste creates environmental jobs could be lost in the UK
problems such as greenhouse gas emissions car manufacturing industry
and damaged ecosystems. Waste can also be if the government doesn’t

D
costly for manufacturers during generation increase its support for electric
and disposal, as well as contributing to the car production to the levels of

O
rapid depletion of finite resources. Germany and the US.

W
How Can Manufacturers Transition
 AMAZON
to a Circular Economy?
Undercover footage from ITV

N
Make UK states that manufacturers should
revealed Amazon’s ‘destruction
look to understand flexible remanufacturing,
as well as how reverse logistics can be zone’ at the Dunfermline
harnessed to increase productivity. warehouse. The footage showed
Ultimately investing in a circular economy millions of unsold and/or
requires prioritising long-term goals, as well returned items being destroyed
as overcoming knowledge and cost barriers. each year.

manufacturingglobal.com
manufacturingglobal.com 13
4
GLOBAL NEWS

1 GLOBAL 2 UNITED KINGDOM

Automotive Industry: AMRC Develops Smart
Q2 2021 Results Factory Open-Access
Digital Architecture
As industries emerge
from the pandemic, the Designed by digital engineers
automotive industry so far at the University of Sheffield
continues to see positive Advanced Manufacturing
results in their Q2 results Research Centre (AMRC),
for 2021. Many, however, Factory+ provides manufacturers
report that the global with an open framework to
semiconductor chip shortage standardise and simplify the way
is stunting their growth. data is extracted, transported,
stored, processed, consumed,
and protected.

14
5 August
August2021
2021
 3 EUROPE
What is the European CEO
Alliance?

As a single driving force of 12

European companies in technology,
software, manufacturing, automotive,
energy, telecommunication, mining
and metals, the European CEO
Alliance furthers its efforts to reduce
greenhouse gas emissions and
achieve carbon neutrality.

5 SOUTH KOREA
Hyundai Signs Hydrogen
Fuel Cell Propulsion
Systems MoU
4 GERMANY
Marking a significant milestone
Porsche Calls for its Suppliers to for Hyundai Motor Company,
Go Green the automotive manufacturer
is actively looking to expand
Furthering its sustainability efforts to rescue its application of fuel cell
its CO2 emissions in its supply chain, system technologies into
Porsche calls for its suppliers to go green, other industries, including sea
using renewable energy exclusively for the vessels, railways and power
manufacturing of Porsche components. generation.
Those unwilling to switch will no longer be
considered for contracts with Porsche in
the long term.

manufacturingglobal.com
manufacturingglobal.com 15
6
PEOPLE MOVES
KAREN BETTS “I am delighted to have
been appointed as the
Food and Drink Federation's
FROM: SCOTCH WHISKY ASSOCIATION
new Chief Executive, to
TO: FOOD & DRINK FEDERATION (FDF) represent the huge range
of companies that keep
WAS: CEO
food on our tables and
NOW: CEO
make up [the] UK's largest
Joining the Food & Drink Federation (FDF), from manufacturing industry”
Scotch Whisky Association (SWA), Karen Betts
has been the CEO at the SWA since 2017.
Prior to SWA, Betts background has been in
Law, working in the Foreign, Commonwealth,
and Development Office for 16 years.
In joining the FDF, Betts will succeed Ian
Wright as CEO, who will be stepping down from
the role at the end of 2021 after seven years.
Commenting on her appointment, Betts
said: “these are rapidly changing times, with
challenges and opportunities for the industry to
grasp [...] I am looking forward to working with the
FDF's members, the FDF team, with government
and other organisations as we find the best
answers to these questions for all involved.”

16
7 August
August 2021
2021
 MARK
MARK ALBISTON
ALBISTON
FROM: GARIC
FROM: GARIC
TO: GARIC
TO: GARIC

WAS: OPERATIONS DIRECTOR

WAS: OPERATIONS DIRECTOR
NOW: CEO
NOW: CEO

Following the move of its existing CEO Nigel

Following the move of its existing CEO Nigel
Quinn, Mark Albiston - currently Operations
Quinn, Mark Albiston - currently Operations
Director at the company - has taken on the
Director at the company - has taken on the
role of CEO.
role of CEO.
Albiston - who has held various executive
Albiston - who has held various executive
leadership roles in his career - will lead
leadership roles in his career - will lead
the company into the next phase of its
the company into the next phase of its
development.
development.
“I am very pleased to have been asked
“I am very pleased to have been asked
to take the role of Garic CEO and am really
to take the role of Garic CEO and am really
looking forward to continuing the great
looking forward to continuing the great
LG TACKET
LG TACKET work we are all doing together. We have
work we are all doing together. We have
every opportunity to continue to grow our
every opportunity to continue to grow our
business, to continue with our focus on
business, to continue with our focus on
FROM: PPC colleagues and customers and to make our
FROM: PPC colleagues and customers and to make our
TO: DUPONT shareholders at Bibby Line Group proud,”
TO: DUPONT shareholders at Bibby Line Group proud,”
said Albiston on his appointment.
said Albiston on his appointment.
WAS: GLOBAL INTEGRATED OPERATIONS
WAS: GLOBAL INTEGRATED OPERATIONS
LEADER, SAFETY & CONSTRUCTION
LEADER, SAFETY & CONSTRUCTION
NOW: VICE PRESIDENT OF GLOBAL
NOW: VICE PRESIDENT OF GLOBAL
OPERATIONS, INDUSTRIAL SEGMENT
OPERATIONS, INDUSTRIAL SEGMENT

Joining PPC from DuPont, LG Tacket has

Joining PPC from DuPont, LG Tacket has
been appointed as Vice President of Global
been appointed as Vice President of Global
Operations, Industrial Segment.
Operations, Industrial Segment.
Tacket’s new role - which will come
Tacket’s new role - which will come
into effect 9 August 2021 - will see him
into effect 9 August 2021 - will see him
responsible for leading the company’s global
responsible for leading the company’s global
manufacturing, supply chain, engineering,
manufacturing, supply chain, engineering,
asset management and continuous
asset management and continuous
improvement activities.
improvement activities.
Prior to DuPont, Tacket has held various
Prior to DuPont, Tacket has held various
executive and leadership positions in the
executive and leadership positions in the
manufacturing industry at the likes of Valspar, '
manufacturing industry at the likes of Valspar,
Aleris International, Ticona, and Celanese.
Aleris International, Ticona, and Celanese.

manufacturingglobal.com
manufacturingglobal.com 17
8
manufacturingglobal.com 8
TIMELINE
THE ROAD TO
SUSTAINABLE
MOBILITY
Discover the history of the
automobile, from the first
petrol car to the production
of electric vehicles

First Diesel Engine

Invented by Rudolf
Diesel, the engine was the First Hybrid Car
first to confirm the fuel Ferdinand Porsche designed
consumption efficiency, with the world's first functional
26.8% of heat converted into hybrid car, the ‘Semper Vivus’
effective power. - Latin for ‘always alive’.

1886 1897 1900

First Petrol Car First Fully Electric Car The Electric Car’s Fleeting
Carl Benz submitted the While Robert Anderson built Success in the US
patent for his motor car, the first crude electric car While the early 1900s saw
dubbed ‘the birth certificate in 1832, it wasn’t until the two-thirds of vehicles on the
of the automobile’. The car late 1800s (1889-1891) that road in the US being electric,
ran for the first time in 1879. William Morrison developed this success was short-
the first successful lived following Henry Ford’s
electric car. unveiling of the Model T,
which was easy to refuel
and affordable.

9 August 2021
 Electric Car Production Ramps Up
60 years on from the short success of electric vehicles in
the early 1900s, production began to ramp up towards The Beginning of Tesla
the end of the century. Founded three years prior,
• General Motors in 1973 prototypes an urban electric car Tesla, in 2006, announced
• CitiCar produced 2,000 electric cars between 1974 and its plans to produce a luxury
1977, ranging 50 to 60 miles electric sports car with a
• General Motors released the EV1 - which quickly gained range of more than
a following - in 1996 200 miles.

1936 1997 2006 2010

First Diesel Car First Mass Production of First Commercially Available

Mercedes-Benz unveils the a Hybrid Car Plug-In Hybrid and Full
world’s first series-produced Toyota Motor Corporation Electric Car
diesel passenger car - 260 releases the first worldwide General Motors releases
D - at the International mass-produced hybrid car - the Chevy Volt, the first
Automobile and Motorcycle the Prius. commercially available
Show in Berlin. plug-in Hybrid. They were
followed by Nissan’s All-
Electric, zero tailpipe
emissions vehicle, the
Nissan LEAF.

manufacturingglobal.com
manufacturingglobal.com 19
10
LEGEND

OLE KIRK Job Title: Founder

KRISTIANSEN
Company: LEGO Group

Re-Defining Play, Re-Imagining Learning

However, in 1929 the Wall Street
stock market crashed. With a large
proportion of his customers being
from the agricultural industry,
Kristiansen was forced to reflect on
his business.
“I looked to the future with hope.
But within two months, my world
was tumbling. There was a crisis in
farming, but as we owed our living
to the smallholders and farmers,
we were also affected. We were
in a difficult time – but it was as

I
well that we could not see what
n his early years, LEGO founder lay ahead. During the summer, we
Ole Kirk Kristiansen faced his fair were asked to make toys for Jens W.
share of challenging crises and Olesen, Fredericia, and as we had
misfortunes, some of which had him no other work, we looked on it as a
on the verge of hanging in the towel. gift from God,” said Kristiansen in
What today has been named ‘toy his memoirs.
of the century’ twice could have At a crossroads, Kristiansen had
been a footnote in history. But how to choose between pursuing the
did it all start? manufacturing of toys or returning to
1916, aged 24, Kristiansen brought his old craft.
Billurd Joinery kick-starting his career In 1934, backed by The National
in carpentry and joinery. For many Association for Danish Enterprise
years, Kristiansen tried his hand at the Born (Landsforeningen Dansk Arbejde),
industry, transitioning from the likes 1891 Kristiansen pursued his career in
of doors, windows, and agricultural toys - despite facing opposition from
tools, to building larger projects family members - showcasing his
Died
such as churches, houses and farm wooden toys at the Danish trade fair
buildings, his dedication to first-class 1958 in Frederica. As such, the LEGO Group
quality craftsmanship driving him. was born.

20
11 August2021
August 2021
manufacturingglobal.com 21
12
LEGEND

Ole Kirk Kristiansen

History of the LEGO name: deciding that the

company should have a more catchy name than
Billund Maskinsnedkeri (Billund woodworking
factory), Kristiansen combined two Danish words LEG
GODT - meaning ‘play well’ - to produce the LEGO
name, placing emphasis on developing children’s
play, and focusing on quality. It was not until much
later that it was realised that LEGO in Latin means ‘I
put together’.

13 August 2021
“Only
the best
is good
enough”
Ole Kirk Kristiansen’s motto
remains central to the
company’s operations today

In 1942, following the death of his

wife, the outbreak of World War II and
a second workshop fire, Kristiansen
was ready to abandon the business.
But with his strong determination
and the help of Vejle Bank, it became
possible to build a new factory that
was much more modern and could
mass-produce the toys.

The Beginning of the LEGO Group

we Know and Love Today...
At the end of World War II, Kristiansen
began to find it increasingly difficult
to source quality beechwood for his
toys. Committed to new trends, and
despite initial opposition from his son,
Godtfred Kirk Christiansen, invested
in a plastic injection moulding
machine in 1947.
Two years later, in 1949, LEGO’s
first primitive bricks known as
‘Automatic Binding Bricks’ hit the
markets, laying the foundations for
the LEGO bricks that millions of
children (and adults too!) build and
play around the world.

manufacturingglobal.com 23
14
FIVE MINS WITH...

RICHARD
Q. WHAT IS YOUR EXPERIENCE
IN THE MANUFACTURING

BOOCOCK
INDUSTRY?
» I have spent almost 40 years
working in the manufacturing
industry, almost all of that
time working for a US-based
multinational speciality
Former Senior Vice President and chemical company. Starting as
a graduate chemical engineer,
Special Advisor to the Chairman I helped design, build and
at Air Products (Retired) operate production facilities
and then went on to lead various
businesses, as well as corporate
functions such as sustainability
and information technology. I
spent a lot of time working directly
with customers and, as a result,
developed a broad understanding
of other manufacturing
industries, ranging from refining
through steel making and metal
processing, glass manufacturing,
semiconductor chip fabrication,
food processing and many more!

1982
Joined Air Product.

38
Years at Air Product.

University of
Birmingham
& Henley
Business
15 August 2021
School
Education.
Q. HOW DO YOU SEE THE “I think this is a very exciting
INDUSTRY EVOLVING OVER
THE NEXT DECADE?
time for the manufacturing
» I think this is a very exciting time industry as the world
for the manufacturing industry continues to pivot to a
as the world continues to pivot
to a more sustainable future.
more sustainable future”
Sustainable products will bring new
opportunities for new technologies Q. HAS THERE BEEN A
and new techniques, industry 4.0 PARTICULAR ACHIEVEMENT
will bring yet more opportunities, THAT YOU ARE PROUD OF?
and an increased emphasis on » When I reflect back on my career
diversity and inclusion will give and think of all the projects I have
a broader cross-section of our been part of, plants I have helped
society the opportunity to enjoy a build, businesses I have helped to
career in manufacturing. start in new countries, I always end
up with the images of the teams that
Q. WHAT TREND ARE YOU I had the privilege to work with. As
MOST EXCITED TO SEE EVOLVE? a leader, I take pride in having built
» Industry 4.0, combined with successful teams which enable
real steps forward in increasing everyone to contribute and for some
diversity and inclusion in people to surprise themselves with
manufacturing leadership, what they are actually capable of!
is a combination that has
the opportunity to advance Q. WHAT INSPIRES YOU?
manufacturing in the 21st century. » I have always been inspired by a
desire to be part of something that
Q. OVER THE LENGTH OF YOUR can make the world a better place,
CAREER, WHAT IS THE BEST make the world a kinder place.
PIECE OF ADVICE YOU HAVE
EVER RECEIVED? Q. WHAT ARE YOUR FAVOURITE
»I have had the privilege of THINGS TO DO OUTSIDE OF
working with many wonderful WORK?
people over the years and picked » I spent many years of my life
up many different “nuggets” of travelling extensively for business,
advice, so it would be difficult to so my hobbies needed to be quite
pick just one. If I had to, I think it portable! Reading and listening to
would be to never lose sight of the music was obviously convenient. I
fact that we achieve our objectives am a big believer in lifelong learning
through people and that if you treat and that we should all try to learn
people well and with kindness, something new every day, even if it
together, you can move mountains. is just about ourselves.

manufacturingglobal.com 25
16
Top 100 Leaders
in Supply Chain
September 2021
To be announced at the
Procurement & SupplyChain
LIVE Event

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Creating Digital Communities
 COMPANY NAME

HEADLINE
EXAMPLE
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SO PLAY
BEYOND
AROUND
IMAGINATION
WITH IT

WRITTEN BY:
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PRODUCED BY:
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28 August 2021
 ABB ROBOTICS

manufacturingglobal.com 29
 ABB ROBOTICS

ABB's Robotics & Discrete Automation

business provides value-added
solutions in robotics, machinery and
factory automation to businesses
large and small: we discussed the new
ecosystem with Arno Strotgen

S
ince producing the world’s first
commercial, microprocessor-
controlled robot IRB 6 in 1974, ABB
has led the development of industrial
robotics. More than 500,000 ABB robot
applications have been installed across the
world, and not just in car plants where they are
$2.9bn
Revenue
now ubiquitous in every kind of production
facility. Of course the robot you see depends 11,000
entirely on the instructions it receives. Thus, Number of
Employees
ABB focuses heavily on digitalisation in this
article, which is applicable to industrial
automation as well as automation across 1988
Year Founded
multiple businesses and segments. Here too,
ABB is the pioneer, enabling the digitalisation of
automation for its customers.
COVID-19 threw a metaphorical spanner
into the works for less prepared manufacturing
enterprises. At the same time, it has been a big
stimulus to automation and robotics. During
the pandemic, ABB has been able to help
its customers by remotely monitoring their
robots, leading them through the use of tools
like Wizard remote access and RobotStudio®
offline programming software. As Arno
Strotgen, Group SVP and Head of Customer
Service and Digital Platform at ABB Robotics
& Discrete Automation says: “During the
pandemic the need for digitalisation has grown
even more. Our digital tools have helped our
customers when it became difficult to have
engineers on-site due to lockdowns and social
distancing requirements”.

30 August 2021
 ABB ROBOTICS

Arno Strotgen
Group Vice President,
Service & Digital
Platform, Robotics
and Discrete
Automation, ABB

manufacturingglobal.com 31
 ABB ROBOTICS

Title of the video

The power of partnership

Today's ABB started life as “During the their uptime and optimise
their businesses.” Where
a merger and has grown
through collaboration,
pandemic, innovation and startups
are concerned, a great
and collaboration remains
central to its strategy. “We
the need for example is the 'External
Innovation Challenge'
have to acknowledge that digitalisation that ABB Robotics

has grown even

we cannot be experts is currently running,
in all fields and that the working with startups and
partnerships we have
with other companies are more” technology companies
on the topic of Mobility,
crucial”, says Strotgen. “We Intuitive Interfaces
have strategic partnerships ARNO STROTGEN and Digitalization. The
with some of the leading GROUP VP, SERVICE & DIGITAL PLATFORM, ABB team received
ROBOTICS & DISCRETE AUTOMATION, ABB
technology companies almost 100 applications
such as Microsoft. By (from 29 countries),
combining Microsoft’s Azure intelligent out of which discussions were held with
cloud with ABB’s deep domain expertise and 45 companies, 11 of which were chosen to
innovation in manufacturing, we deliver end- develop proofs of concept and evaluations.
to-end digital solutions such as ABB Ability To serve its customers in more than 45
Connected Services, which currently enables countries, giving all of them the same level
more than 1,000 customers to connect their of support, ABB has invested heavily in its
robots to our cloud, helping them to improve digital processes landscape. “We have digital

32 August 2021
processes from start to end. For sales and field
service management we mainly use Salesforce. ARNO STROTGEN
This allows us to have a 360-degree view of our TITLE: GROUP VICE PRESIDENT,
customers and to put them in the centre of SERVICE & DIGITAL PLATFORM,
all we do. From service case management to ROBOTICS AND DISCRETE AUTOMATION
field service planning & execution to seamless INDUSTRY: ROBOTICS, AUTOMATION
customer interactions - with Salesforce we've
AND DIGITAL SERVICES
been able to digitalise our processes, gain more
control and transparency over the customer Arno is the Group VP of
journey, and respond quicker to customer Customer Service & Digital
requests and preferences”. ABB recognises Platform for the Robotics & Discrete
that innovation is stronger when collaborating Automation division, a unit with over
with partners and customers. The Robotics 1,600 service specialists located
and Discrete Automation business recently across 53 countries. He has over 26
joined the Open Manufacturing Platform, years experience in service, digital,
a consortium driving innovation across sales and general management. Before
manufacturing community and value chain, assuming his current position, he was
he adds. General Manager for ABB’s Robotics
When Brave Control Solutions became the Business in Spain. Prior to that, Arno
first Canadian company to win an ABB Value held several managerial positions in
Provider Solution Award (for developing a new Mexico and Germany .
process that introduces more customisation Arno has an MBA, from IMD
and flexibility into the construction industry) Lausanne in Switzerland and a
it underlined how ABB's systems integrator Bachelor of Science in Industrial and
partners can help to provide sector expertise, Systems Engineering from Tec de
says Strotgen. “We aim to couple their know- Monterrey in Mexico.
how with our products and support to offer
customers top-class solutions”.
The line between the commercial and
academic worlds is blurring, and ABB works
with several universities and R&D institutions
around the world on new applications for its
technology. A good example is ETH, the Swiss
Federal Institute of Technology in Zürich. ABB is
EXECUTIVE BIO

part of ETH’s “Robot X” programme, which aims

to train new talent and develop future robotic
technologies for different industries. ABB has
already been working with ETH to develop
robotic fabrication solutions for architecture
and construction, which has led to a joint
project between ABB, ETH and Schindler Lifts
to develop an AI-enabled robotic system for
building lift shafts.

manufacturingglobal.com 33
 ABB ROBOTICS

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 ABB ROBOTICS

thus, improving customer satisfaction”. “The

platform is also valuable in training new service
technicians”, he adds. In another partnership
venture, this time into the fast-developing field
of augmented reality (AR), ABB is running a
pilot in collaboration with Techsee, a company
that specialises in computer vision, AI, and AR,
with the aim of giving remote support to its
customers. “By simply sending our customers
an SMS, we establish a secure connection
to support them remotely with augmented
reality: this was very helpful in the pandemic.
When we couldn't physically visit them, we
could establish a quick connection with them
and then help them resolve their issues in a
“With Salesforce, we've truly smart way”.
been able to digitalise our
ABB Robotics: an open door to the future
processes, gain more control It will be noted that some of the examples
and transparency over the of collaborative innovation we have seen
are found in the construction industry.
customer journey, and This sector has been slower than many
respond quicker to customer to embrace automation, but now due
requests and preferences” to conditions caused by the pandemic,
climate change, and population shifts, it is
catching up fast, Arno Strotgen believes.
ARNO STROTGEN
GROUP VP, SERVICE & DIGITAL PLATFORM,
The pressure for more sustainable, carbon-
ROBOTICS & DISCRETE AUTOMATION, ABB neutral, and affordable housing is driving
this change and ABB is keen to develop the
Sharing knowledge among 1,600 service solutions the construction industry needs.
professionals is ciritcal to adding value to There are several ways in which robotics
our customers and ABB’s long-standing is quietly revolutionising construction. Apart
relationship with Empolis, delivers advanced from helping with the chronic problem of skill
knowledge management systems powered by shortages it can increase productivity and bring
AI. “With this tool, our employees always have new tech skills. Modular construction and other
the newest service documents at hand and examples of off-site fabrication bring huge cost
find the right case solution step-by-step, via and time benefits, and at the same time speed
guided troubleshooting”, says Strotgen.” This up the introduction of new materials, and
not only applies to our remote service, field technologies such as 3D printing. Reducing the
service and support operations, but also to our numbers of workers on-site and automating
customers as self service. Our primary benefit, some of the more risky operations will help
however, is that our overall resolution time solve that persistent bugbear of the industry –
for service cases has dropped substantially, worker safety.

manufacturingglobal.com 35
 ABB ROBOTICS

Though automation opportunities are

apparent in almost every business today,
when invited to suggest which markets
are likely to benefit most, Arno Strotgen
suggests five potential targets:

• New applications such as electric

vehicle (EV) manufacturing and
an expanded offering in machine
automation. Track systems, machine-
centric robotics, and vision are high
growth areas.

• Increased complexity of manufacturing.

The growth of e-commerce is creating
increased complexity in logistics,
for example, driving investment in
intralogistics automation systems
(integrating the processes that occur
within a company during product
handling). ABB is uniquely positioned
to support both end-customers and
integration partners in the logistics
industry with strong knowledge of
applications, modular solutions, and the
widest service and support network.

• Customer segments with limited or

“With Techsee, by no robotics and automation know-

simply sending our how. SMEs, healthcare, and of course

construction (see above) are all examples.
customers an SMS,
• Cobots (collaborative robots that work
we establish a secure alongside people) offer substantial scope
connection to support for growth due to their ease of use and
utility. They are especially attractive for
them remotely with small to medium enterprises.

augmented reality” • As data management delivers insights

that improve performance, productivity,
and reliability (and, for some industries,
ARNO STROTGEN
GROUP VP, SERVICE & DIGITAL PLATFORM, traceability), customers' reliance on digital
ROBOTICS & DISCRETE AUTOMATION, ABB services will continue to grow exponentially.

36 August 2021
 SMEs – YES, YOU CAN AUTOMATE SUCCESSFULLY!

The concept of a digital factory can be Arno Strotgen, SVP, and Head of Customer
daunting. ABB's research shows that Service and Digital Platform at ABB Robotics &
perceived complexity is a big issue of concern Discrete Automation, says:
for SMEs in particular. ABB is tackling this with * We see simplification as a very important part
its latest generations of cobots and Wizard easy of the digital journey
programming software, aiming to make cobots * Simplification is making robots easier to
easy to deploy and use for companies that install, program and operate.
have little or no experience in programming or * Simplification in a digital factory is about
operating robots. These are examples of how making robots easier to install, program, and
companies can take steps to build confidence operate. If robots are simple and intuitive to use,
and experience in automation by starting small for new users as well as experienced users, we
and tackling the easiest challenges first. Once can offset talent shortages. This is particularly
they have gained experience, they can then beneficial for SMEs, which often lack integration
move up to the next levels of automation to and engineering resources. They will benefit
tackle more difficult tasks. greatly from the scalability of robotics, grow
ABB's approach is to guide its customers with it and use the flexibility of automation to
wherever they are in the journey of adapt quickly to changing markets.
digitalisation and whatever it means to them. * We can manage increased automation
Digitalisation does not mean having to throw complexity with intuitive tools and offering
out everything you already have – instead, ease of programming that removes key entry
it is about finding the best ways to use new barriers to new users.
technology to augment what you already * Examples include lead through programming
have, identifying areas for improvement on our YuMi®, GoFaTM, and SWIFTITM cobots;
and finding ways to solve them. The digital Wizard easy programming on our cobots and
factory is flexible and means different things IRB1100 industrial robot, that enables users
for different people and companies. A digital to program a robot using pre-programmed
solution needs to range from digitalising and block-based programming, enabling even
synchronising single robots to having the complete novices to use a robot.
complete view and dashboard.
DID YOU KNOW...

A good example of how ABB technology can Our RobotStudio® programming software also
be used by a small manufacturer to open new allows robot installations to be created, tested,
possibilities is DB Shoes in the UK. Established and simulated in an offline environment, taking
in 1840, the company is using two ABB robots as the time, cost and disruption out of installing
part of its shoe manufacturing operation. Using and commissioning a robot or robot cell on the
the robots has given the company the flexibility factory floor. By using augmented reality one can
to expand its offering to make new styles of even visualize the robot solutions in the real-life
shoes and handle new designs in the future. production environment as a hologram.”

manufacturingglobal.com 37
 ABB ROBOTICS

“With Empolis, our employees

always have the newest
service documents at hand”
ARNO STROTGEN
GROUP VP, SERVICE & DIGITAL PLATFORM,
ROBOTICS & DISCRETE AUTOMATION, ABB

Readers will not find it hard to add to this

list! ABB's strategy is to be prepared for these
market openings while anticipating others.
“We plan to accelerate in existing segments
like automotive, drive new automation
solutions like machine-centric robotics
and flexible manufacturing, and leverage
our existing expertise within under-served
segments like logistics and healthcare that
generate pull-through for robots. Investing
and innovating in robotics for the service
sector is a key element of our growth strategy,
and our solutions will be indispensable
to these new customers. We are offering
modular and scalable solutions that provide
them with a proven performance they can
apply globally”.
So, ABB is expanding its portfolio of
products (e.g. track systems, cobots),
solutions (e.g. machine-centric robotics),
application cells and smart systems (e.g.
3D Quality Inspection). At the same time, it
is placing its software and digital portfolio
front and centre of its future strategy. “We
already monitor more than 9,000 installed
robots remotely, and are constantly adding
new digital services to our digital ecosystem.”
He also points, to ABB's flexible and digital
robot controller family - OmniCoreTM, best-
in-class when it comes to motion control
and path accuracy, while virtual realisation
through technologies such as Digital Twin

38 August 2021
manufacturingglobal.com 39
 ABB ROBOTICS

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40 August 2021
“We are offering
modular and scalable
solutions that provide
This can help to greatly reduce the time
associated with designing, installing,

them with a proven and testing a robot in a live production

environment. Another example is our
performance they PickMaster® Twin software, which can be
used to help model, test, and commission
can apply globally” robotic picking and packing lines”.
Robotics and digital transformation
When moving forward into robotic
automation, ABB can help companies
ARNO STROTGEN to simplify each stage, from design and
GROUP VP, SERVICE & DIGITAL PLATFORM, programming to operation and maintenance.
ROBOTICS & DISCRETE AUTOMATION, ABB
“We have the biggest service network of any
robot supplier, together with the ability to
will continue to improve commissioning remotely monitor the performance of our
time. ABB can enable its customers to customers’ robots in order to help identify
create a digital twin of their operations. “The problems before they escalate. We will
RobotStudio® offline programming tool work with the customer and go step by step
allows users to model, test, and refine a through their requirements, identifying the
robot or robot cell in an offline environment. best way to introduce digitalisation to their

manufacturingglobal.com 41
Empolis AI-powered
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42 August 2021
 ABB ROBOTICS

“We understand
what customers are
doing with robots
and can help them
do it better!”
ARNO STROTGEN
GROUP VP, SERVICE & DIGITAL PLATFORM,
ROBOTICS & DISCRETE AUTOMATION, ABB

robot programming. It's also important, he

says, to include the people who use the
technology at the design stage. “Workers can
often introduce short cuts into processes
that weren’t originally foreseen when the
production line was built. These could be
operation. This can include working with useful to know about when designing a
multiple stakeholders to gain a fully rounded digitalised solution.”
understanding of their business, what they In January 2021 ABB carried out a survey of
want to achieve and how to put a structure in 1,650 businesses. 85% of these confirmed that
place that will enable their aims to be met.”
Companies can choose where they start
their transformation. “We have solutions
throughout the value chain. We support our
customers with an ecosystem of software
tools along their automation journey starting
from commissioning and engineering,
through to operations, maintenance, and
service. We make digitalisation people-
friendly, for example with the collaborative
robots we spoke of earlier – you need
a solution that is scalable, while easy
enough for everyone to use.” This includes
regularly revisiting the scheme once it is up
and running to get feedback and identify
any additional areas for improvement.
Workers might request a simplified human-
machine interface (HMI), or need training
to sharpen their skills on areas such as

manufacturingglobal.com 43
 ABB ROBOTICS

HOW ROBOTICS IS TRANSFORMING THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY

ABB robots are being used by a number of timber in the prefabrication production line.
of companies worldwide that produce Three robotic systems are used, including several
modular prefabricated buildings and also 3D robots integrated with tracks. Operating in cells,
structures for building projects. In both cases, our the robots produce timber components according
robots are used in conjunction with digital design to designs created in Intelligent City’s Platforms
software to build exactly what the customer for Life (P4L) design software, enabling customized
wants, enabling a true design for manufacture structures to be built according to specific
approach where what you see is exactly what customer requirements.
you get. This approach will be increasingly vital ABB’s RobotStudio® offline programming software
in the future to transforming the possibilities for is used with Intelligent City’s P4L software to plan
what can be built, producing mass-customised, tasks and movements for the ABB robots. Every
more environmentally friendly structures at mass component gets its own file and can be simulated
production prices whilst also reducing waste and and executed directly.
maximizing profitability. Key benefits of using the robots include better
RobotStudio® offline programming and simulation production efficiency, a 38% improvement in
software is a very useful tool for helping customers project delivery times, and a 33% reduction in the
to see how they can use robots to optimize their cost of producing a modular home. Wastage has
production processes. It can be used to model a also been significantly reduced as the robots can
customer’s process to develop the best solution be used to optimize the production process to
for their requirements, saving time and cost and minimize off-cuts.
reducing commissioning and troubleshooting. Also in Canada,Brave Control is helping companies
in the construction industry to set up modular
Just a few examples: fabrication production lines. In 2021 Brave won the
ABB Value Provider Solution Award. The company
came up with CAD to Path software specifically for
the construction industry so that the manufacture
of unique assemblies — a chassis for hotel rooms,
mass timber floors, panel walls, plumbing — can be
adjusted depending on the constructor’s different
architectural and engineering requirements.
House of Design is an ABB Robotics Integration
DID YOU KNOW...

company and robotics value provider. It recently

Intelligent City, a company based in Vancouver, worked with Autovol on a fully operational and
Canada, has become an expert in off-site multi-unit housing factory. The factory floor is
construction of timber-built modules that can be approximately 400,000 square feet, with an
connected to produce buildings up to 18 stories adjoining office space of 30,000 square feet where
high. On the shop floor, ABB’s robots are used multiple extremely high-quality living units are
to process, handle and assemble large sections produced each day.

44 August 2021
 ABB ROBOTICS

the pandemic was game-changing for their

business and industry. The same percentage
already planned to introduce robotics, or
increase their use, over the next decade: the
pandemic only served to accelerate their
investment plans. “We are much more than
a robot company”. Arno Strotgen concludes.
“We are a technology leader and have

“Workers can
pioneered automation and digitalisation.
We help customers of all sizes increase their

often introduce productivity, quality & consistency, through

enhanced flexibility and simplification

shortcuts into of their processes. At ABB Robotics, we

aren’t just witnessing this transformation,

processes that we’re leading from the front. While robots

remain at the heart of our offering, today we
weren’t originally provide everything from individual robots
to application cells and smart systems. We
foreseen when also offer the benchmark in robot software

the production
and the industry’s broadest service offering
– all connected in a digital ecosystem to

line was built”

create enhanced value for our customers. We
understand what customers are doing with
robots and can help them do it better”!

ARNO STROTGEN
GROUP VP, SERVICE & DIGITAL PLATFORM,
ROBOTICS & DISCRETE AUTOMATION, ABB

manufacturingglobal.com 45
DIGITAL FACTORY

Realising the
Value of Digital
Google Cloud’s Dominik Wee discusses the value
of adopting digital factory practices and how cloud
platforms can help to realise value in manufacturing

F
WRITTEN BY: aced with the challenges of changing
GEORGIA WILSON customer expectations, an evolving
workforce, and increasingly urgent
sustainability imperatives, it is vital for
the manufacturing industry to address
important issues faced by their employees
and increase the digitalisation of their
manufacturing and supply chain operations.
Explaining that the impact of COVID-
19 has compelled manufacturers “to adopt
virtual collaboration solutions like Google
Workspace that enable productivity while
employees work remotely,” Dominik Wee,
Managing Director Global Automotive,
Manufacturing and Energy at Google Cloud
adds that, “worker safety is also more
important than ever, with smart technologies
on the shop floor that can visualise social
distancing protocols through the use of
vision AI, and factory reconfigurations can
then enforce safe distancing. At the same
time, advancements in the Industrial Internet
of Things (IIoT) and artificial intelligence
(AI) are reducing the cost of adopting new
manufacturing technologies.”

46 August 2021
DIGITAL FACTORY

manufacturingglobal.com 47
6 Ways Inventory Management
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For most businesses, the supply chain is not only the primary cost centre but one of
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This ebook examines the role of inventory management in each step of the supply
chain and share best practices for how businesses can use inventory management to
optimise and run a more profitable operation.

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 DIGITAL FACTORY

“The key for manufacturers'

ability to transform—despite
the ongoing pandemic—is their
embrace of digital enablers
and disruptive technologies”
DOMINIK WEE
MANAGING DIRECTOR GLOBAL
AUTOMOTIVE, MANUFACTURING
AND ENERGY AT GOOGLE CLOUD

However, there continues to be a large

percentage of manufacturers who struggle
to move beyond pilots and fail to scale
new technologies into the production line.
Wee attributes this to a lack of “special
About Dominik Wee, Managing skills required to implement and use these
Director Global Automotive, technologies in day-to-day operations.
Manufacturing and Energy at That is one of the reasons we are focused
Google Cloud on bringing solutions to market that do
not require any additional skills to use and
My name is Dominik Wee, I am the are easy to get started with.”
Managing Director of Global Manufacturing
and Industrial at Google Cloud. I am Why is it Important to Embrace
responsible for Google Cloud's global Digital in Manufacturing?
business with companies in this sector, “The manufacturing industry hasn’t yet
including industrial goods, automotive OEMs benefited from cloud and AI technology
and suppliers, electronics, energy, to the same extent as other verticals,”
and aerospace. explains Wee, but this is something that
Google Cloud hopes to change.

manufacturingglobal.com 49
DIGITAL FACTORY

Industry Insights: Addressing the 'new normal'

in manufacturing

“By optimising
manufacturing “The key for manufacturers' ability

operations, a digital to transform—despite the ongoing

pandemic—is their embrace of digital
factory unlocks enablers and disruptive technologies.
According to our research, three-fourths
new capabilities of surveyed manufacturers (76%) revealed

from existing that the pandemic has caused their

companies to increase the use of digital
assets, allowing enablers and disruptive technologies such
as cloud, AI, data analytics, robotics, 3D
companies to printing/additive manufacturing, Internet

pursue new growth

of Things, and augmented or virtual reality.”

opportunities” Creating a Digital Factory

In its simplest form, a digital factory is
created “when manufacturers use
DOMINIK WEE advanced technology to enable new
MANAGING DIRECTOR GLOBAL
AUTOMOTIVE, MANUFACTURING business processes and unlock value,”
AND ENERGY AT GOOGLE CLOUD explains SAP and Google Cloud.

50 August 2021
 DIGITAL FACTORY

Google Cloud and its Role in

the Manufacturing Industry

At Google Cloud, we are focused

on industry solutions that help our
customers improve efficiency, reduce cost,
and capture new market opportunities.
Manufacturing is one of Google Cloud’s
priority industries, and we have invested
heavily to create dedicated solutions that
accelerate digital transformation, digitalise
By embracing digital factory practices, the customer journey, and also optimise
the average manufacturer can benefit from: operations and product development.
• 5 to 10% improvement in production As part of their digital transformation
volume/ direct production initiatives, manufacturers have begun
• 20 to 30% savings in logistics-related costs making significant investments in cloud
• 10 to 20% savings in energy costs and AI technology. At Google Cloud, our
• 10 to 30% reduction in support portfolio of products and solutions—
function costs along with our ecosystem of partners—is
Impacting everyone within a helping manufacturers drive innovation
manufacturing organisation, capturing and operational excellence across the value
the full potential value in the digitalisation chain. Many manufacturing companies,
of manufacturing “is largely dependent including Siemens, Kaeser Kompressoren,
on utilising advances in technology to Ingersoll Rand, and others, use Google Cloud
enable new ways of working. Roles and to analyse vast quantities of operational data,
responsibilities for all employees, from reduce infrastructure costs, and reduce time-
the C-suite to machine operators and to-market for their new products.
quality technicians, will shift in the digital Dominik Wee, Managing Director Global
manufacturing journey,” explains SAP and Automotive, Manufacturing and Energy at
Google Cloud. Google Cloud

manufacturingglobal.com 51
DIGITAL FACTORY

“The manufacturing
industry hasn’t yet
benefited from cloud
and AI technology to
the same extent as
other verticals”
DOMINIK WEE
MANAGING DIRECTOR GLOBAL
AUTOMOTIVE, MANUFACTURING
AND ENERGY AT GOOGLE CLOUD

Google Cloud’s Services for

the Manufacturing Industry

Google Cloud solutions like AutoML

Edge enable manufacturers to
detect defects and monitor quality control
and factory safety. LG CNS is leveraging
this technology to create manufacturing
intelligence solutions that detect
defects in products on the assembly line.
Manufacturers can use BigQuery dashboards
to improve forecasting and monitor supply
and demand. Swiss Steel was able to improve
procurement and efficiency while improving
supply chain workflow through leveraging “By optimising manufacturing
Google Cloud. By working with partners operations, a digital factory unlocks
like SAP, manufacturers can combine their new capabilities from existing assets,
operational and business data at scale to allowing companies to pursue new
build intelligent, connected digital factories. growth opportunities. In a digital factory,
Southwire, a leading manufacturer of wire regional managers, business unit leaders,
and cable, tools and components, chose SAP and other manufacturing executives are
on Google Cloud as it was able to improve empowered with real-time, accurate
performance, reliability, security and data on manufacturing operations to help
scalability of its SAP environment. make more informed decisions. Knowing
Dominik Wee, Managing Director Global where to make which products, deciding
Automotive, Manufacturing and Energy at where to expand or reduce capacity, and
Google Cloud identifying lower or higher-performing

52 August 2021
 DIGITAL FACTORY

1. Data access: Data silos and legacy

IT infrastructure are an area that has
challenged manufacturers due to the
systems that do not share information
with one another or provide a holistic
view of the operations.
2. W orkforce training: It’s incredibly
important to train existing shop floor
talent on how to effectively leverage
digital technologies. This became evident
during the pandemic. It’s crucial for
technology to be made with ease of use
in mind so that the existing workforce can
adapt to the digital world.
3. Vendor landscape: Manufacturers are
challenged with selecting vendors
to partner with when shaping their
transformation journeys. Companies
are often overwhelmed by the variety of
solutions in the marketplace and must
be thorough in the selection of vendor
partners. At the same time, they are
looking to build a comprehensive digital
ecosystem with solutions that work well
together without complex integrations.
4. Initiative prioritisation: Due to innovations
and the pace at which technology is
evolving, executives struggle to prioritise
projects and investments. Lack of
prioritisation and innovation governance,
facilities will all be possible with the right paired with low investment budgets,
information made available through the can often lead to competing projects
digital factory. By augmenting the human and a divided perspective amongst the
workforce, manufacturers can improve leadership.
overall quality, throughput and cycle time,
for example,” says Wee. Overcoming Challenges:
The Use Case for Cloud Platforms
Adoption Challenges Faced Those in the industry that are deploying
By Manufacturers digital factory practices are applying cloud
Asked to reflect on the current challenges technologies to address core business
for manufacturers when it comes to driving challenges, such as reliable operations,
the adoption of digitalisation, Wee breaks it inventory tracking and management, supply
down to four key areas: chain optimisation, intelligent production

manufacturingglobal.com 53
DIGITAL FACTORY

54 August 2021
 DIGITAL FACTORY

“Advancements in the Industrial Internet

of Things (IIoT) and artificial intelligence
(AI) are reducing the cost of adopting new
manufacturing technologies”
DOMINIK WEE
MANAGING DIRECTOR GLOBAL AUTOMOTIVE,
MANUFACTURING AND ENERGY AT GOOGLE CLOUD

control, digital quality, energy management,

and workforce productivity and safety.
Collaborating with Siemens, Google
Cloud aims to address such challenges with
the help of cloud technology, to optimise
factory processes and improve productivity
on the shop floor. “By combining Google
Cloud’s data analytics and AI/ML capabilities
with Siemens’ Digital Industries Factory
Automation (SDIFA) software, manufacturers
will now be able to harmonise their factory
data, run cloud-based AI/ML models on
top of that data, and deploy algorithms at
the network edge to manage everything,
including predicting the wear-and-tear of
machines on the assembly line,” says Wee.
By bringing operational data into the
cloud, organisations can break down data
silos, “enabling greater visibility, connectivity
and insights across the operations,” explains
Wee, who adds that “purpose-built solutions
which leverage the cloud also reduce the
complexity for end-users.”
Ultimately, “the cloud offers the
potential for a more comprehensive digital
ecosystem with significantly reduced data
and infrastructure costs, plus increased
performance, simplicity, and scalability
across IT environments. Moving to the cloud
is an important way businesses can optimise
their technology spend and find new
efficiencies,” concludes Wee.

manufacturingglobal.com 55
 FORTINET

56 August 2021
 FORTINET

DIGITAL
SECURITY,
EVERYWHERE
YOU NEED IT
WRITTEN BY:
WILL GIRLING

PRODUCED BY:
GLEN WHITE

manufacturingglobal.com 57
 FORTINET

58 August 2021
 FORTINET

Rick Peters, CISO, explains why

cybersecurity is a continuous journey
and how Fortinet can help keep businesses
secure in the post-COVID world

F
rom an outsider perspective, one
might imagine that cybersecurity
has been a primary component
of every company’s strategy since
the beginning of the digital era. And
yet, recent headlines demonstrate how much
progress is still needed across the board.
Founded in 2000 by CEO Ken Xie and
headquartered in Sunnyvale, California,
Fortinet has established a reputation as being
a protector of small, medium and large-scale
enterprises, and government institutions
globally. Driven by a vision of the future in
which the digital world is always safe and
trustworthy, it has played an indispensable
role in the evolution of cybersecurity with
a suite of solutions that are among the industry’s
most popular. This comprehensive and
complementary portfolio prioritises integration
and automation to yield self-healing, faster,
and more efficient operations across cloud,
networks, and mobile environments. In short,
Fortinet enables organisations to thrive.
Additionally, Fortinet espouses a philosophy
that recontextualises cyber resilience as
a journey, not a destination. As such, it
recognises that IT and OT systems might change
structurally over time but the need to keep
them protected remains constant. Sustained
protection of the cyber physical landscape and
business innovation is achieved by integrating
Fortinet’s cutting-edge Security Fabric with
Rick Peters, the technology alliance ecosystem to match
CISO today’s threat landscape. We spoke with Rick

manufacturingglobal.com 59
 FORTINET

Security-Driven Networking for

a Hyperconnected World | Cybersecurity

Peters, Chief Information Security Officer,

Operational Technology (OT) North America,
“YOU HAVE TO
to learn more.
Having spent almost four decades at the
ALIGN YOUR
US National Security Agency (NSA) in a variety VALUES WITH THE
of managerial and executive roles, it is safe to
say that Peters knows what constitutes strong CUSTOMER’S AND
cybersecurity system defences. During his
long tenure, he was able to gain credentials,
DETERMINE HOW
experience, and insight into what it takes to THEY’RE TRYING
TO SOLVE THEIR
successfully launch a business in cyberspace.
“I had the luxury of experiencing and executing
missions from both the offensive and defensive
sides. Post my IC career, I felt that whatever was
MOST IMPORTANT
next professionally needed to be a departure
from working in the government, and private
PROBLEMS”
industry afforded such an opportunity.” It
RICK PETERS
wasn’t long before Peters joined the Fortinet CISO,
team in early 2018. FORTINET

60 August 2021
 FORTINET

RICK PETERS
TITLE: CISO
INDUSTRY: COMPUTER &
NETWORK SECURITY
LOCATION: UNITED STATES

Mr. Peters brings to the Fortinet

Operational Technology Critical
Infrastructure team more than 37 years
of cybersecurity and global partnering
experience working across foreign,
domestic, and commercial industry
sectors at the National Security
Agency (NSA).
As Fortinet’s Operational
Technology North American CISO,
he delivers cybersecurity defense
solutions and insights for the OT/
ICS/SCADA critical infrastructure
environments. Prior to Fortinet, Rick
led development of cyber capability
across Endpoint, Infrastructure,
and Industrial Control System
technologies at the agency.
Previously, Rick also served as
an executive leader supporting the
Information Assurance Directorate
at the NSA. Earlier in his career, he
served in a broad range of leadership
and Engineering roles including
Chief of Staff for the NSA Cyber Task
Force and a five-year forward liaison
EXECUTIVE BIO

charged with directing integration

of cyber and cryptologic solution
for US Air Force Europe, Ramstein
AFB, Germany.

manufacturingglobal.com 61
 FORTINET

“I DISCOVERED THAT IT WAS A ‘SOLUTIONS

FIRST’ ORIENTED ORGANISATION AND
THAT GOT ME EXCITED”
RICK PETERS
CISO,
FORTINET

Sharing a mutual desire to expand OT • Broad visibility and protection across the
cybersecurity, Peters spoke with Fortinet’s entire attack surface
leadership and was impressed by what he
found: “I discovered that it was a ‘solutions • Integrated and unified security that closes
first’ oriented organisation and that got security gaps and reduces complexity
me excited. If you glance at Fortinet’s
patent wall, you naturally realise it’s not • Automated and context aware, it
just talking about innovation, it’s executing affords faster time to prevention
development to achieve it,” he recalls. and efficient operations
At the centre of this is Fortinet’s Security
Fabric- the industry’s highest-performing With security taking on increasing
cybersecurity platform, powered by FortiOS, prominence within critical infrastructure
with a rich ecosystem. Conceived as for Energy and Utilities, Manufacturing,
a framework to enable both digital innovation Transportation, and digitally connected
and protection from cyber threats, this building sectors, possessing expert
platform incorporates three key attributes: knowledge and comprehension of the

62 August 2021
 FORTINET

sector’s evolution is critical. “You can employ FortiGate technology, a “next-generation

cutting-edge technology, but you also need firewall,” fully capable of accommodating
to be committed to understanding the the secure remote access requirements and
industrial environment. You are working highly adaptive cloud environments that
with asset owners who have unique goals have gained greater favour since the events
and a different perspective on what it of 2020.
means to protect the cyber-physical,” In fact, the COVID-19 pandemic amplified
says Peters. Furthermore, he identifies two an entirely new security environment
other qualities that put Fortinet ahead of challenge: circumstances made remote
its competition: speed and a transparent, working a necessity to maintain business
ecosystem-driven approach that mitigates continuity, simultaneously expanding
latencies and data loss. At the heart of this is organisations’ surface area for attack and
FortiOS, the foundation of the Security Fabric instigating a shift away from on-premises
and what Peters considers to be a true “game business as the primary means to sustain
changer.” Delivering transparency, scalability, operations. In this new paradigm, which is
and sub-second response times, it employs still far from reaching a state of equilibrium,

manufacturingglobal.com 63
 FORTINET

Fortinet is positioning itself as a guide for

“new normal” security decision-making.
“It's all about building trust,” states Peters.
“You have to align your values with the
customer’s and determine how they’re trying
to solve their most important problems.” In
his view, there is no denying that data has
become one of the most important assets
of the 21st century - the near-ubiquity of
Internet of Things (IoT) devices and the
mounting viability of 5G are testaments to
this, and as executives continue to collect
ever-larger volumes of information to assist
with operational optimisation. Maintaining
a focus on enabling safe and continuous
OT operations, Fortinet strives to identify
and remediate threats in a way that inspires
confidence and helps clients build robust
security track records.
Fortinet aspires to “get out in front” of
cyber threats at all times, a goal it achieves
through endpoint detection and response
and pre-/post-event analysis. The Fortinet
Security Fabric enables the company to
break down risks into manageable segments
while still maintaining total visibility,
therefore preventing customers from
missing the big picture in the middle of an
attack. “What we’re doing is flipping the granular elements of security without
script,” adds Peters. “If I were to sit down obscuring the whole, is a clear departure
with a board today, I would probably try from cybersecurity’s highly reactive prior
to convince them to behave as if they've incarnations. Peters believes that new
already been compromised, because it’s best-practice standards should coalesce
highly likely that it will happen at some point on the idea of “zero-trust access” - “I think
in time. It could occur simply by employee we have to insist on earning trust in 2021.”
error in accepting malware through an email. Several notable instances of ransomware
We've certainly heard many instances of attacks in the US confirm the formidable
that over the last couple of years.” Moving security challenges that modern businesses
forward, he is confident that Fortinet will are facing. However, even here, Peters
continue to enable even greater threat suggests a cultural solution that Fortinet can
visibility wherever the customer needs it. offer: stop thinking about the ransomware
The company’s highly adaptive and “payload” as the last event in a chain. “The
proactive approach, which captures attacker has probably undergone a period

64 August 2021
 FORTINET

FORTINET - KEY STATS

• Stock symbol: FTNT (IPO October 2009)
• 500,000+ customers
• 6.8 million units shipped
• 776 patents issued; 211 pending
• 8,615 employees
• US$2.59bn = 2020 revenue
• US$3.09bn = 2020 billings

of reconnaissance and figured out how to

“I DISCOVERED THAT distribute their payload. In a distributed

IT WAS A ‘SOLUTIONS
attack, like those witnessed in recent
instances of supply chain exploitation,

FIRST’ ORIENTED a payload is used to attack a broad range

of targets and then exploit them based on
ORGANISATION opportunity and vulnerability.”
A multidimensional problem-solver,
AND THAT GOT Fortinet believes in instilling a reliance on

ME EXCITED” people, processes, and technology to secure

IT and OT systems. “We’re advocating for
the commitment of cybersecurity education
as a means of improving situational
RICK PETERS
CISO, awareness and realising the power of a well-
FORTINET informed employee as an asset instead of

manufacturingglobal.com 65
 FORTINET

2000
Year
founded

8,615
Number
of employees

$2.59B
FY2020
Revenue

66 August 2021
 FORTINET

“COMPLACENCY IS THE ENEMY IN THIS

BUSINESS BECAUSE YOU’LL NEVER REACH
THE END DESTINATION; CYBERSECURITY
IS JUST A CONTINUOUS JOURNEY”
RICK PETERS
CISO,
FORTINET

a liability.” It is the company’s belief that, - we're not omnipresent - but I think our
through education and awareness of the offering [via partnerships] allows us to be so
role they can play, employees will naturally much more agile and effective working with
bolster cyber defences. “Of course, that's organisations and businesses of all sizes.”
not perfect,” clarifies Peters. “The human However, commitment to the journey
element is always going to offer of cyber resilience is, has been, and will be
a compelling reason to improve cybersecurity Fortinet’s enduring focus. Peters explains,
beyond present capabilities.” This takes the “Too often, leaders get trapped believing
conversation not only back to the utility of they can just commit a set amount of
“zero-trust access” but also behavioural- resources to a particular problem and then
based endpoint security. “[The latter] raises consider the issue to be resolved with a
the bar by recognising threats and learning point solution. In today’s business world,
from them. It gives you not just cyber whether you're in IT or OT, that approach
resilience but a thorough comprehension amounts to becoming complacent.”
of what's going on. I think that's really Fortinet is combating this culture
important: We never want to become through cutting-edge technology and a
complacent. Complacency is the enemy determination to help others consider
in this business because you’ll never reach cybersecurity in a new way. This, Peters
the end destination; cybersecurity is just hopes, will grant customers a level of cyber
a continuous maturation.” resilience they can trust indefinitely, as
Looking ahead, Peters suggests that Fortinet will share an equal dedication
2021 will symbolise a year of growth for the to their organisational objectives. “Our
company, both financially and in the ongoing message is that resilience comes through
evolution of the Security Fabric. With the size persistence and the ability to continually
of its initiatives in the North America, Europe, grow and mature in the solution space. Let's
and Asia-Pacific regions doubling in the last make sure we're protecting that which is
12 months alone, it’s clear that Fortinet has most important to our businesses so that
achieved a truly global appeal. Moreover, we can remain sustainable and viable, not
it will be capitalising on the power of just this year but a decade from now.”
partnerships to expand its problem-solving
capabilities. “No one is solving [security]
problems alone. We can't be everywhere

manufacturingglobal.com 67
SMART MANUFACTURING

The Road to Smarter

MANUFACTURING
WITH IOT
68 August 2021
 SMART MANUFACTURING

As investment grows in IoT, Dynabooks

and Ericsson talk us through the current
trends, use cases and challenges,

D
alongside its importance in the industry

WRITTEN BY: espite being one of the hardest-

GEORGIA WILSON hit industries of COVID-19,
facing slowed economic activity,
reduced demand, and the inability
to cover on-site jobs remotely,
“manufacturing executives remain optimistic
as the COVID vaccine roll-out raises hopes for
a return to some kind of normal later this year,”
says David Sims, Solutions Sales Specialist at
Dynabook Europe.
Over the last year, Gartner research has
shown that manufacturers in response to
the outbreak have “invested in IoT faster
than expected,” says Kyle Okamoto, General
Manager of IoT at Ericsson, in order to weather
the disruption, “to reduce spending, increase
employee safety, improve output and create
new revenue streams. Lockdowns and travel
restrictions mean businesses have adapted
to get things done remotely and find new
ways to interact with customers. Product
manufacturers (OEMs) are the major drivers of
IoT adoption. In fact, Gartner expects that by
2022, 75% of OEMs will use their IoT solutions
to sell new services or consumable offerings to
their customers.”
While it’s difficult to determine the length of
time it will take for manufacturers to recover,
Sims emphasises that “it’s likely digitalisation
- focused on facilitating greater efficiency
and automation of production - will drive
manufacturing’s return to profitable growth.”
Echoing Sims' words, Okamoto adds, “we’re
seeing strong trends among manufacturing
companies to digitise their business processes,
both in connecting their sites and connecting
their products.”

manufacturingglobal.com 69
Unlock Your
Problem-Solvers’
Superpowers
with TwinThread.
Find out how: twinthread.com
 SMART MANUFACTURING

“As soon as businesses

realise the full potential
of IoT – from enabling
efficiency savings to
delivering the needs of
individuals – they will
transform everything
from design to production”
DAVID SIMS,
SOLUTIONS SALES SPECIALIST, DYNABOOK EUROPE

How IoT is Being Used in the Manufacturing Industry

From wearable technology to digital twins and From themselves as the coffee machine maker
predictive maintenance, IoT can be deployed in to the machine operator to the venue owner
a number of ways to help manufacturers make and finally to us as coffee drinkers.
their operations smarter; Okomoto lists some • Grundfos: Connecting their factory floors
of the ways Ericsson has helped manufacturers with private 5G networks as well as rolling
enable IoT in their operations: out connected pumps around the world with
• ABB: digitalising their ‘powertrain’ has led to cellular technology. With predictive analytics,
smart services, while remote monitoring has Grundfos can determine not only when a
made workplaces safer and more energy- pump may need to be replaced but also how to
efficient. Unplanned downtimes and operating optimise the flow and delivery of water. These
costs have dropped by up to 70% and 30%, analytic capabilities have put them in a position
respectively, while asset lifespans and to evolve their business from selling pumps to
system efficiency have increased by up to selling them with maintenance as-a-service.
30% and 10%. “IoT in manufacturing will continue its forward
• Stanley Black & Decker: in conjunction with momentum with the proliferation of 5G (public
Deutsche Telekom, solar-powered connected and increasingly private), AI, cloud and edge
water pumps have been deployed in rural computing, leading to new use cases – e.g.
India, resulting in a reliable and sustainable human-machine interaction on the factory floor
water supply that makes it possible for farmers and service personnel out in the field interacting
to increase annual crop production by three with consumer/product end-users through AR/
times and sell excess solar energy to the VR. We can also expect to see greater impacts of
government for extra incomes. data analytics when disparate systems along the
• WMF Group: with Swisscom, their connected supply chain become more integrated, leading
coffee machines are bringing new values to to truly seamless visibility across the supply
all ecosystem players along the supply chain. chain,” says Okamoto.

manufacturingglobal.com 71
SMART MANUFACTURING

Microsoft Azure IoT manufacturing solutions

The importance of IoT and how “One of IoT’s great strengths is that it
manufacturers can drive smarter operations generates huge amounts of data which can
When it comes to driving smarter then be used to make smarter decisions.
manufacturing operations with IoT, Using tools like artificial intelligence (AI)
Okamoto breaks down the benefits and machine learning (ML) in conjunction
into three categories: means manufacturers can leverage insights
1. Agility: this includes not only operational from collected data to increase efficiencies
flexibility and efficiency but also and speed up the rate of development,
responsiveness to demand/market while at the same time reducing errors and
changes and shorter time-to-market. ensuring the highest quality of production,”
2. Advanced operations: automation with says Sims.
data analytics to reduce production errors, “While IoT in the manufacturing industry
provide predictive maintenance, and has been on the cards for some time now,
improve worker safety, for instance. it will see renewed importance as we
3. Intelligence: timely insights to make emerge from the pandemic,” says Sims,
decisions on both day-to-day operations who further explains that by introducing
and on new products/services/business newer concepts alongside AI and ML, like
models to grow revenue. edge computing solutions, manufacturers

72 August 2021
 SMART MANUFACTURING

Challenges for IoT

Adoption in Manufacturing

Challenge 1: Security
This is a top concern for all industries,
not just manufacturing. More connected
devices equal more attack risks. Cellular
technology outperforms other connectivity
technologies as it has a built-in security
mechanism based on the proven 3GPP
standards. Plus, our global IoT Accelerator
platform has a global core network that has
built-in security solutions around threat
detection and mitigation and traffic analysis,
ensuring we prioritise security for our
enterprise customers and telecom service
provider partners.

Challenge 2: ROI
Businesses need to justify investments and
realise returns, and to that end, we have

“One of IoT’s great developed business calculators to help

enterprises quantify the benefits of IoT so
strengths is that they can embrace change with confidence:
Manufacturing calculator. For instance, we
it generates huge can demonstrate that the payback period

amounts of data
for using AR in manufacturing is less than
three years.

which can then Challenge 3: Technology Fragmentation

be used to make Technology fragmentation with many

moving parts to consider, including
smarter decisions” chipsets, devices, networks, platforms,
applications – all of which need to be
orchestrated appropriately with simplicity
DAVID SIMS,
SOLUTIONS SALES SPECIALIST, and governance. As this environment scales,
DYNABOOK EUROPE having simple and API-driven capabilities to
manage this ecosystem is where Ericsson’s
IoT platform is focused.

manufacturingglobal.com 73
SMART MANUFACTURING

can “gather, analyse and redistribute vast

data sets and assist in turning them into
actionable insights. Particularly beneficial
for the sector, it also offers a solution to
relocate data processing closer to the
IoT device at the edge of the network,
eliminating lag and therefore reducing
incidences of network-related failure.”
Ultimately IoT will have an important
role to play in the manufacturing industry
both now and in the future. “As soon as
businesses realise the full potential of
IoT – from enabling efficiency savings to
delivering the needs of individuals – they
will transform everything from design to

David Sims
TITLE: SOLUTIONS SALES SPECIALIST
COMPANY: DYNABOOK EUROPE

I’m a Solutions Sales Specialist for

Dynabook, with over 22 years of
experience in the telecommunications
industry, successfully selling complex
solutions and services. I am recognised
for providing best in class technical and
sales expertise across a broad range of
technologies, including mobility, IoT,
security, cloud, fixed/converged networks
and managed services.
Prior to working at Dynabook, I held
various roles in the telecommunications
industry at Vodafone, Huawei and Nokia.

74 August 2021
 SMART MANUFACTURING

Kyle Okamoto
TITLE: GENERAL MANAGER IOT
COMPANY: ERICSSON

I am Kyle Okamoto, General

Manager of Ericsson IoT, which is
focused on a global platform providing
connectivity management that makes
cellular connectivity easy to use for
enterprises around the world. I have a
fun job of turning business concepts
into realities as we power innovation and
modernisation across multiple industry
verticals, making connectivity easy,
unlocking intelligence around devices
and the network, and simplifying market
adoption of IoT.

production. Not to mention the impact

the COVID-19 pandemic has had on
everyone’s daily lives and how introducing
technologies like IoT will enable seamless
plant operations while keeping employees
protected with fewer people on site. 
“Digital transformation obviously
doesn’t come without extra investment,
and the manufacturing industry has been
on the cusp of a new digital-first era for
some years now. However, while a lot
of manufacturing organisations have
embraced digitalisation to date, the
pandemic may serve as the catalyst for
more wide-scale adoption in this area,”
concludes Sims.

manufacturingglobal.com 75
 TRIPACTIONS

HOW ONE FINTECH

COMPANY EVOLVED
FOR THE FUTURE
WRITTEN BY:
JOANNA ENGLAND

PRODUCED BY:
JAMES WHITE

76 August 2021
 TRIPACTIONS

manufacturingglobal.com 77
 TRIPACTIONS

Example of
an image caption

78 August 2021
 TRIPACTIONS

For TripActions, the challenge of the pandemic

sent innovation into overdrive—and positioned
the company as a global leader in travel and
spend management

T
he pandemic may have irrevocably
changed the worldwide business
climate, but some companies have
managed to turn adversity into opportunity,
by making agile changes that drive innovation.
That’s exactly what happened at TripActions,
the leading international corporate travel
and spend management platform, said
Robin Gandhi, the company’s SVP of Product
and Payments. Since the onset of the
pandemic, a series of strategic expansions
has transformed TripActions from a travel
management company into an end-to-end
travel and spend solution—and a respected
trailblazer in the fintech space. “While it’s
been a difficult time for us in the travel
industry,” he explains, “we’ve been able
to really innovate and prepare for our
customers to get back to normal.”
Here’s how TripActions has positioned the
company for the future.

Pandemic expansions
As disruptive as the pandemic has been, it’s
what companies have spent this period
focusing on that will define how well they
perform moving forward. TripActions has used
the time to create innovative new functionality,
improve existing functionality, and plan for
what comes next. On the travel side of the
business, this includes releasing enhanced
notifications for health restrictions, finding
more seamless ways to repurpose unused
travel credits, and building functionality to
easily enable group and event travel so remote
teams can meet more easily.

manufacturingglobal.com 79
 TRIPACTIONS

The Modern Era of 'No Expenses'

with TripActions Liquid ™

That shift to a more remote workforce book flights, stay in hotels, take Lyfts, buy
also hastened change on the payments and food, drinks, and go out on team outings.
expense side of the business, says Gandhi. That's a big shift that finance teams need
“We recognized the acceleration of digital to think about.”
payments and the need to capture both
travel and non-travel spend in real time.” The launch of TripActions Liquid
After all, a distributed and remote These were just some of the goals for
workforce requires employees to shift their TripActions LiquidTM—a fintech solution
spend to spot purchasing transactions purpose-built for enabling spending to
(for things like office supplies and digital happen digitally, seamlessly, and without
subscriptions) and make more business putting the company at risk.
spend decisions on their own. CFOs and The larger goals of TripActions Liquid
controllers want to give their employees have been focused on two areas that are
the ability to make these decisions without especially important to finance teams right
losing control and visibility over where and now: saving time and saving money. Digital
why employees are spending. payments can reduce the time it takes for
This remote workforce will also expand finance teams to review and reconcile spend
travel spend scenarios for trips like manually, says Gandhi, so they can focus
headquarter visits or team meetings. “You on strategies to drive the business forward.
have employees like engineers who almost TripActions Liquid is also an essential
never travelled pre-pandemic, who are now tool for tracking where spend is happening.
going to be flying three to four times in a CFOs and controllers are hyper-focused
year,” says Gandhi, “and they will need to on ensuring that there is clear visibility on

80 August 2021
 TRIPACTIONS

ROBIN GANDHI “One of the key

TITLE: SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT OF
PRODUCT MANAGEMENT AND PAYMENTS reasons for
INDUSTRY: COMPUTER SOFTWARE TripActions’
LOCATION: UNITED STATES success has
Robin Gandhi is the Senior
been our laser
Vice President of Product focus on user
Management and Payments. He leads
the product, engineering, design, and
experience”
operations efforts for TripActions'
Liquid offering, the next-generation ROBIN GANDHI
SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT OF PRODUCT
spend management solution.
MANAGEMENT AND PAYMENTS,
Prior to TripActions, Robin headed TRIPACTIONS
Adyen's global issuing offering as well
as acquiring and partnerships for North
America, working with the global card
schemes, banks, financial institutions,
and third-party partners that make
omnichannel commerce possible for
their merchants across the globe. He
has a strong payments background,
having come to Adyen from Digital
River World Payments.
In addition, Robin has over 10 years
in management consulting, having
EXECUTIVE BIO

spent time at Accenture and Mitchell

Madison Group. He also founded his own
firm, Broadroots Consulting, which was
acquired by the New York-based agency,
Converseon. Robin holds an MBA from
the top-ranked INSEAD business school
in Fontainebleau, France.

manufacturingglobal.com 81
 TRIPACTIONS

and control is pretty powerful—not only for

me as a user, but also for my finance team.”
Another money-saving benefit of tech-
forward solutions: a reduction in fraud.
With so many businesses relying on remote
workers and online commerce solutions
during the pandemic, the opportunities
for hacks and breaches have skyrocketed.
Gandhi believes that context-driven data,
coupled with artificial intelligence (AI), is the
most efficient way to monitor transactions,
secure data, and avoid attacks.
That’s why the company built TripActions
Liquid with AI functionality. “We can notice
trends that could indicate fraudulent
behavior more quickly, so companies can
stop bad actors and keep company funds
safe,“ he points out.
AI can also use receipt and merchant data
to better categorise spend and improve how
transactions are classified, making it more
seamless for employees and finance teams
to reconcile without manual intervention.
every penny, says Gandhi, and they need the
detailed level of information—in real time— Customer centricity
that tech-forward solutions can provide. A focus on the user lies at the heart of many
“Knowing the exact state of the business business strategies these days, especially in
in real time can allow companies to make fintech. For TripActions, customer centricity
better financial decisions,” he says.
With the digitisation of payments “While it’s been a difficult
and people located all over the world,
a lot of spending (that’s not T&E and not
time for us in the travel
procurement) can happen with a virtual industry, we’ve been
card. TripActions Liquid allows a company able to really innovate
to generate a virtual card for a single
and prepare for our
vendor that the company can refill with
a certain amount of money every month, customers to get back
quarter, or year. to normal”
Gandhi explains, “As an example, I can
get a single purchase card for my NetSuite
membership that renews every year for ROBIN GANDHI
SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT OF PRODUCT
$5,000 and only works with that vendor. MANAGEMENT AND PAYMENTS,
Tracking spending with that kind of visibility TRIPACTIONS
 TRIPACTIONS

is not just essential to its strategy, but a core

component of the company mission. Gandhi T&E FRUSTRATIONS
believes this philosophy has been a game
changer for the company. According to a TripActions survey,
He explains, “One of the key reasons for businesses are experiencing these
TripActions’ success on the travel side has common frustrations in managing
been our laser focus on user experience. their T&E
From the beginning, we always believed that
we needed to create delightful experiences 41% cited chasing receipts
DID YOU KNOW...

for the end customer.”

TripActions Liquid grew from the same 29% cited time wasted in reconciliation
philosophy. “Whether the user is the
employee submitting the expense, the 26% said they had no visibility into
manager reviewing the expense, or the real-time spending
finance team approving and reconciling the
expense,” says Gandhi, “we want to ensure 4% said they had no payment audit trail
that we’re providing the best possible
experience for everyone.”

manufacturingglobal.com 83
 TRIPACTIONS

2015
Year founded

1,200+
Number of employees

50+
Markets globally

5,000+
Corporate customers

84 August 2021
 TRIPACTIONS

“Knowing the exact state of

the business in real time can
allow companies to make
better financial decisions”
ROBIN GANDHI
SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT OF PRODUCT
MANAGEMENT AND PAYMENTS,
TRIPACTIONS

Employees have also traditionally disliked

doing expenses because the process was
more focused on getting the expenses into
the ERP rather than improving the overall
experience. “That experience is what we’re
changing, by completely eliminating the idea
of expense reports, and it’s why we’re seeing
such high interest in our offering.”

Strategic partners
Such developments would not be possible
without the close collaboration of strong
partners, and TripActions has strategically
constructed its network using a multi-
pronged approach. The first step involved
building an infrastructure that could support
a seamless, user-friendly experience to
handle the complex processes involved in
spend management.
 TRIPACTIONS

Powering In-Person Connections to Move

Businesses Forward | TripActions

Most of these solutions didn’t exist five moment an employee swipes a card. “We
years ago. But recently, a number of great can immediately check on a few things,”
fintech infrastructure companies like Stripe, says Gandhi, “such as where the employee is
Plaid, and Modern Treasury have changed located, based on their travel booking and the
how we think about issuing, acquiring, and location of the merchant; who the employee
bank integrations. “It’s helpful to have access is with, based on their calendar; and what that
to these offerings as we reinvent the idea employee is allowed to spend, based on their
of expense management as we know it,” policy.” With Stripe, these checks happen in
Gandhi says. milliseconds as transactions occur, allowing
the TripActions system to make approval
Strategic partnerships decisions dynamically, instead of setting
TripActions partnered with Stripe as the controls beforehand.
issuer processor, a key component of the Having a global card network also helped
system. Having a modern issuer processor TripActions reach customers and secure
allows decision making to occur at the transactions. The company uses the Visa

86 August 2021
 TRIPACTIONS

“Every tech-forward network, offering full coverage wherever

TripActions customers are located and
company now has allowing instant provisioning of cards to
mobile devices.
an opportunity Gandhi explains that the final piece is the

to be a part of the
bank connectors, for which TripActions uses
Plaid and Modern Treasury. “They enable

fintech ecosystem” us to connect directly into employee bank

accounts, to pay them back instantly for
reimbursements in policy, and to pull personal
ROBIN GANDHI card transactions for reimbursements,” he says.
SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT OF PRODUCT
MANAGEMENT AND PAYMENTS,
TRIPACTIONS Thinking ahead
Over the next five to 10 years, Gandhi
predicts that more companies will leverage

manufacturingglobal.com 87
 TRIPACTIONS

a similar multiplayer approach to convert more efficient, as processes and transactions

a non-financial service business into a are much better tracked. “At the core, digital
fintech product, with the goal of providing payments infrastructure through fintech
a richer overall customer experience. enables companies to better monitor where
“Every tech-forward company now has and when money is being spent in real
an opportunity to be a part of the fintech time—and for what purpose.”
ecosystem, by leveraging the tools being But at the heart of any successful
built by these infrastructure companies,” enterprise today, he emphasises, is a great
Gandhi says. user experience built on top of best-of-
The problem-solving solutions that breed fintech infrastructure. “In our case,
fintechs offer are also making companies we built a killer user experience on top

88 August 2021
 TRIPACTIONS

“Combining multiple technologies across

a single product vision means we can
eliminate the very concept of expenses”
ROBIN GANDHI of our own proprietary travel inventory
SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT OF PRODUCT infrastructure.”
MANAGEMENT AND PAYMENTS, It has proved to be a winning combination.
TRIPACTIONS
While other travel companies are struggling,
TripActions has diversified into offerings
that simplify processes for the customer
and provide swift solutions. “When you take
what we can do with travel bookings and
combine it with what we’re building around
payments and expenses, the result allows
us to bring end-to-end, real-time spend
visibility to a company at a level that very
few others can provide.”
He continues, “Combining all of these
technologies across a single product vision
means we can eliminate the very concept
of expenses, from submission to approval
to reconciliation.”
All of these changes add up to limitless
opportunity, says Gandhi. The travel side
of the business will be essential, because
hybrid and remote work will result in
more employees travelling more often for
company and team meetings.
And the spend management side of the
business will be just as important: With
employees coming to the office less often,
TripActions Liquid offers them ways to make
business decisions on their own—without
putting the company at risk.
“Between our travel and payments
business, we’re thinking of all of these
things,” says Gandhi, “and we’re excited
about the new normal.”

manufacturingglobal.com 89
AI & AUTOMATION

90 August 2021
 AI & AUTOMATION

ADVANCED
ROBOTICS 101
Manufacturing Global deep dives into
the application of advanced robotics in
the manufacturing industry
WRITTEN BY:
GEORGIA WILSON

C
ompared to their counterparts So What Makes Robotics
- conventional robotics - the Technology ‘Advanced’?
capabilities of ‘advanced robotics’ BCG defines advanced automation as
provide manufacturers with “superior “decentralised intelligence that allows
perception, integrability, adaptability, and devices and equipment to make decisions
mobility. These improvements permit faster and take actions autonomously, without
setup, commissioning, and reconfiguration, human intervention.” BCG adds that the
as well as more efficient and stable technology consists of four core elements:
operations,” explains BCG. 1| Holistic data models (digital twins):
As such, manufacturers that are providing a digital representation of
implementing ‘factory of the future’ and products and the production system.
‘industry 4.0’ strategies are deploying “Production equipment (such as
advanced robotics as an essential part of advanced robots) can access the models
advanced automation. Those embracing to, for instance, plan the required path
advanced robotics are benefiting from on the fly.”
enhanced plant structures and processes, 2| Cloud-edge infrastructure: to shift
increasing productivity and flexibility in the computational power and storage to
factory and along the supply chain. “Analysis the production network’s edges, bridging
found that using advanced robots can IT and operations technology. “It allows
reduce conversion costs by up to 15%, and producers to collect data and transfer
combining advanced robotics with other it to cloud services for processing. In
technologies, process enhancements, and addition, it enables processes on the
structural layout changes can yield savings shop floor to adjust autonomously to
of up to 40%,” notes BCG. environmental changes.”

manufacturingglobal.com 91
THE ULTIMATE
PROCUREMENT
& SUPPLY CHAIN
EVENT
SEPTEMBER
28th - 30th
STREAMED LIVE FROM
TOBACCO DOCK LONDON
EARLY BIRD TICKETS HERE

A BizClik Media Group Brand Creating Digital Communities

 AI & AUTOMATION

“ADVANCED ROBOTICS WILL

BRING FLEXIBILITY INTO
AUTOMATED PROCESSES”

SEBASTIAN ELMGREN,
PORTFOLIO MANAGER FOR SMART Why Should Manufacturers
MANUFACTURING AT ERICSSON Adopt Advanced Robotics?
With the current advanced robotics market
3| D
 ata processing technologies: to convert value in manufacturing totalling US$16.6bn
data of varying size, type and velocity in 2020, which is expected to rise a further
into meaningful information. “Recent US$2bn to US$18.6bn in 2021, it is clear that
advances in data processing technologies the digitalisation of operations is providing
allow producers to continuously optimise value for global manufacturers.
processes (such as path planning).” Some of the many benefits that can be
4| W
 orkflow control system: to synchronise gained from adopting advanced robotics in
all tasks that humans or equipment manufacturing include:
perform. “Efficient management of • Perception: compared to conventional
the entire workflow requires the digital robotics, advanced robots harness natural
connection or integration of both language processing, computer vision,
machines and human workers. Workflow and sensors to improve autonomy,
control system configurations are likely to dexterity and precision. As a result,
evolve from centralised architectures into advanced robotics can complete more
decentralised ones.” complicated tasks.

manufacturingglobal.com 93
AI & AUTOMATION

“TO ADDRESS THE FULL

SCOPE OF DECISIONS,
A COMPANY MUST
DEVELOP A HOLISTIC
TARGET PICTURE OF THE
FACTORY OF THE FUTURE”
BCG

• Integrability: with service-oriented • Productivity: similar to efficiency, with

architectures, improved connectivity, access increased flexibility and real-time problem-
to holistic data models, and interface and solving capabilities, advanced robotics can
programming improvements, advanced increase productivity.
robotics are quicker to set up and require • Safety: using advanced sensors and low
less time to learn to perform tasks. latency communication, safety is significantly
• Adaptability: advanced data processing improved with advanced robotics due
and cloud services allow advanced robots to their better understanding of their
to learn and autonomously adapt to environments and their ability to adapt and
environments to improve workflow. react to events.
• Mobility: harnessing machine learning and • Quality: with the use of network sharing data,
computer vision, advanced robotics are able advanced robotics reduce silos, making it
to autonomously guide themselves through easier to identify quality issues and track
environments. down the root cause.
• Efficiency: by augmenting advanced robotics • Agility: independently adapting, advanced
into complex tasks, flexible automations can robotics allows production operations to
help to reduce costly changeover times and be more agile without time-consuming
improve efficiency. preparation.

94 August 2021
 AI & AUTOMATION

Overcoming Adoption Challenges

“From my perspective, communication is

the key challenge here-both on the shop
floor as well as between the shopfloor and
different IT systems. On the shopfloor,
connectivity needs, on one hand, to be
flexible enough to match the flexibility of
the robots, but on the other hand, it needs to
The value of advanced robotics and be stable and secure enough to support the
the role it plays in the connected industrial use cases. Robots in the future will
factory of the future draw data directly from many different data
With most manufacturers recognising systems to fulfil their tasks; this puts new
the significant role advanced robotics requirements onto IT security to ensure that
will play in the factory of the future, many the connectivity is not open to new threats.
functionality types, including multi- “Wireless connectivity is the key for the
speed usage, mobile applications, and shopfloor communication to provide the
robotic kitting, are expected to become flexibility needed, and I see 5G bringing the
increasingly important. According to BCG, perfect match of flexibility, stability and
“approximately 70% of survey respondents security. When it comes to the IT security
describe these functionalities as very part, I think it is important not to try to
relevant to their future production.” expand the existing office network into
With the potential to transform factory the factory but to build a separate network
processes, manufacturers believe that optimised for the conditions and needs in
advanced robotics will be the necessary the factory.”
tool to address increasing complexities in Sebastian Elmgren, Portfolio Manager
the industry. “Advanced robotics will bring for Smart Manufacturing at Ericsson

manufacturingglobal.com 95
AI & AUTOMATION

Smartest Factory Automation That

Shocked The World

flexibility into automated processes as well

Myth Busters: Top Three as making it possible to automate what
Misconceptions About could not be automated before, opening up
Advanced Robotics for mass-customisation of products,” says
Sebastian Elmgren, Portfolio Manager for
1. Adding advanced robotics to my existing Smart Manufacturing at Ericsson.
processes will give me all the benefits. Adding to his comments, Elmgren says:
No, you need to find new ways of “I see that advanced robotics will open up
working to make use of all the benefits. more generic factories [in the future]. With
the full potential of advanced robotics, a
2. It is only about the robots. factory could almost produce any product.
No, you need to think about the This will remove the need for product-
whole system. specific factories, moving production
closer to the customers shortening the
3. It is something for the future. logistics chains. It would also lower the
No, the technology is here today to bar for new companies to start producing
start using, and you should not wait. their products, making it possible to
buy production as a service rather than
Sebastian Elmgren, Portfolio Manager [making] large investments in dedicated
for Smart Manufacturing at Ericsson means of production.”

96 August 2021
 AI & AUTOMATION

“70% [OF MANUFACTURERS]

EXPECT ADVANCED
ROBOTICS TO BECOME
A VERY IMPORTANT
PRODUCTIVITY DRIVER
IN PRODUCTION AND
LOGISTICS BY 2025”
BCG

With 52% of manufacturers expecting “To address the full scope of decisions,
advanced robotics to “become one of the a company must develop a holistic
most important drivers of productivity target picture of the factory of the
improvement by 2025,” current applications of future. This vision should encompass the
the technology are largely found in production, implementation of multiple automation
logistics, quality and maintenance. “70% [of technologies, including advanced robotics,”
manufacturers] expect advanced robotics to comments BCG.
become a very important productivity driver in To result in the successful adoption of
production and logistics by 2025. Participants such technology, manufacturers need to not
also expect to see significant productivity gains only identify quantities, lot sizes, product
in quality and maintenance,” said BCG. variations, and plant layout and processes
but take into account the business context
Best Practices for the Future and the implications of implementing such
of Robotics Adoption technology, creating a clear and holistic
When it comes to adopting advanced implementation roadmap.
robotics in an organisation, BCG explains Manufacturers should also look to build
that it “extends beyond capital investments,” organisational competencies and design
adopting advanced robotics affects many the system architecture, as well as test and
aspects of a manufacturing company’s collaborate on pilot projects, to rapidly scale
business model. up successful solutions in the pilot stage.

manufacturingglobal.com 97
 BELL FOOD GROUP

PEOPLE,
NOT SYSTEMS
WRITTEN BY: PRODUCED BY:
HARRY MENEAR MIKE SADR

98 August 2021
BELL FOOD GROUP

manufacturingglobal.com 99
 BELL FOOD GROUP

100 August 2021

 BELL FOOD GROUP

Sven Friedli, CIO of Bell Food Group, talks

AI, Machine Learning, Video Analytics, and
how to make tech serve the business’ needs.

A
t its heart, every digital
transformation - no matter
what sorts of flashy technology
you employ - needs to serve
the interests of the business.
Sven Friedli, Chief Information Officer at Bell
Food Group, can’t stress enough the fact that
“People, not systems, make the difference. If
you don't have clever people who understand
how your technology works, you're not going
to benefit from it. If you don't have people
working hard to understand what the business
needs, not just which technologies are the
coolest, you'll never end up with a good result.”
Friedli joined Bell Food Group in October of
2020, taking on the significant task of driving
digital adoption and transformation across
the multinational meat and convenience
food production company. One of the major
challenges inherent to the role, he explains,
is that Bell Food Group’s scale (last year, the
group sold over half a billion kilos of food,
including more than 300mn kilos of meat,
poultry and seafood and nearly 200mn kilos
of convenience products) is matched only by
the diversity of its business units. It's quite
a challenging prospect, given all our different
locations and sites, all operating with different
technologies. The Group grew quite fast over
the past 10 years, so there are a lot of newly-
added companies that Bell Food owns, each
with their own IT environment,” he explains.
“My job is to ensure that all these systems stay
up and running, find clever harmonisations
that fulfil our business needs in the future
Sven Friedli, CIO and today, and drive a step-by-step digital
of Bell Food Group transformation of the company as a whole.”

manufacturingglobal.com 101
BELL FOOD GROUP

SVEN FRIEDLI
TITLE: CIO
INDUSTRY: FOOD PRODUCTION
LOCATION: SWITZERLAND

Passionate manager with 15+

years of experience in it, telecom,
enterprise architecture, manufacturing and
organisational development. Before Sven
entered Bell Food Group he spent the past
12 years in the telecom industry.
He started his career studying
computer science and business
economics at the university of applied
science in Bern and worked for a startup
in software development. Within
Swisscom, Sven first was responsible for
several managing roles in the enterprise
business group, mostly focusing on
managing and delivering IT projects and
telecom services.
Over the last five years he was
responsible for the strategic direction
guiding architecture, technology, and
innovation within Swisscom.
Since October 2021, Sven
has been managing the
“IT'S IMPORTANT TO
IT of Bell Food Group. SHOW OUR INDIVIDUAL
He has to keep the BUSINESS UNITS
balance in order to
master the increasing WHAT THESE NEW
complexity in IT, TECHNOLOGIES CAN DO
FOR THEM IN TERMS OF
EXECUTIVE BIO

to ensure the daily

7/24 operation of
the company, and EFFICIENCY, STABILITY,
to make sensible use AND TRANSPARENCY”
of the opportunities of
digitisation for Bell
SVEN FRIEDLI
Food Group. CIO,
BELL FOOD GROUP
 BELL FOOD GROUP

Title of the video

Founded in 1869 by Samuel Bell, the Efficiency, Stability and Transparency

once-small Swiss meat processing firm The potential benefits that Friedli hopes the
has grown into a truly pan-regional player, adoption of cutting edge technologies like
with operations in 15 countries throughout video analytics, artificial intelligence (AI),
Europe, from Spain to Romania. “We offer machine learning (ML), and cloud-based
products ranging from meat and poultry business intelligence (BI) solutions can
to charcuterie and seafood. We are also deliver are - he stresses - firmly contingent
in the convenience sector, so we produce on an IT department that truly understands
everything from salads and sandwiches to and works to serve the needs of Bell Food
ready-made pasta, soups, and so on,” says Group’s business functions. In order to get
Friedli. “We have about 12,000 employees individual business units to support and
working across our 63 locations, as well embrace new technologies, Friedli is a keen
as a huge network of suppliers and sales advocate of the personal touch.
partners in both the food industry and the “Since I started, I've been meeting a lot of
IT sector who help us fulfil the needs of different people and visiting a lot of different
our customers.” sites. You'd better believe that I have filled

manufacturingglobal.com 103
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important than ever. Gross margins, material costs, stock on
hand, or simply the right pricing. The CSB-System enables you to
manage your food company based on key performance indicators,
so you can always have an accurate picture in complex situations.

Find out more about the CSB solutions

www.csb.com
 BELL FOOD GROUP

“EACH PROJECT PETER ETTRICH

IS DIFFERENT, TITLE: HEAD OF DEVOPS CENTRE CSB
AND WE NEED INDUSTRY: FOOD PRODUCTION

TO BE FLEXIBLE” LOCATION: SWITZERLAND

Peter Ettrich started his career

PETER ETTRICH
HEAD OF DEVOPS CENTRE CSB, over 30 years ago with the first
BELL FOOD GROUP implementation and support of the ERP
System CSB at a meat and sausage
out an incredible number of forms to get factory in south Germany.
back and forth to where I've been needed After a few years, for the first time he
over the past seven months,” he laughs. connected his professional life with Bell
However, he readily admits that two Food Group and ended up taking care of
COVID-19 tests a week and a life lived CSB Systems at various Bell’s locations.
almost perpetually on the road are essential The next step in his career was CSB
if he is to effectively drive Bell Food Group Switzerland, where he worked as a
towards its digital transformation goals. Project Manager and CSB Consultant
“It's important to show our individual for national and international CSB
business units what the new technologies Customers.
we are exploring can do for them in terms 5 years ago he joined Bell Food
of efficiency, stability, and transparency,” he Group again. His previous experience
explains. “In the food industry, digitalisation and participation in many international
makes it much easier to show our customers projects allowed him to take on the
exactly where our product came from, position of Project Manager and Team
which kind of farmer is contributing the Leader. Additionally, starting this
year, Peter became the leader of the
DevOps Centre CSB, and
is responsible for the
CSB Applications in
19 of Bell’s factories
throughout
Europe.
EXECUTIVE BIO
BELL FOOD GROUP

ANABELLE KLUSMANN
TITLE: HEAD OF APPLICATION
LIFECYCLE MANAGEMENT
INDUSTRY: FOOD PRODUCTION
LOCATION: SWITZERLAND

Drives strategic digitalisation at the

Bell Food Group and is enthusiastic
about innovations and process optimisation.
Anabelle successfully completed her dual
studies as a Bachelor of Science in Business
Information Technology at the Bell Food
Group in 2010 where she started as a project
assistant. She then became responsible for
the group’s SAP Solution Manager as a Test
Manager, and was later promoted to Head
of Test Management.
With the implementation of more
and more ALM scenarios within
the SAP Solution Manager, such as
Solution Documentation, Change and
Release Management, and IT Service
Management. She continued to expand
her area of responsibility, and was later
promoted to Head of SAP ALM. This
formed the basis for the Service Now
project, which will become the
new IT service management
solution for the Bell ingredients to it, what kind of quality product
Food Group at the end it is, and so on. Using a mixture of business
of 2021. In addition intelligence (BI) solutions, data warehousing,
to the SAP Solution and other technological innovations, we're
EXECUTIVE BIO

Manager scenarios able to bring information about our business

and the ServiceNow together and, on the one side, leverage it to
project, Anabelle improve production and, on the other side,
is responsible for give more transparency to our customers.”
SAP Basis and SAP These business-driven solutions are the
Authorisation as result of Friedli and his team’s tireless efforts
Head of ALM to reposition Bell Food Group’s IT function
since April 2021. into an organisation wholly focused on
understanding and meeting those needs.
 BELL FOOD GROUP

“WITH THE NEW IT SERVICE

MANAGEMENT TOOL WE
CAN ACHIEVE OUR GOAL
TO REDUCE COSTS AND DRIVE
STANDARDISATION”
ANABELLE KLUSMANN
HEAD OF APPLICATION LIFECYCLE MANAGEMENT,
BELL FOOD GROUP

manufacturingglobal.com 107
 BELL FOOD GROUP

“In the past, our organisation was a bit

more technology-focused, but I've changed
that structure to be completely business-
oriented. The different tech units - ERP
solutions, networking, and so on - are
always supporting the business. Now, we
put the business units at the centre of the
organisation,” says Friedli. Taking ERP as an
example, he notes that “lots of different
ERP solutions can fulfil your needs. Lots of
cloud solutions can help you reduce costs
and drive standardisation,” but he can’t
stress enough the importance that, “no
matter what you decide to go with, you really
understand the business needs that your
technology is meeting.”

Total Ham-sparency
Spanning 65,000 square metres, staffed
by 120 full-time employees, and capable

108 August 2021

 BELL FOOD GROUP

NORA HERTZSCHUCH
TITLE: HEAD OF ADMINISTRATION
& INFORMATION
INDUSTRY: FOOD PRODUCTION
LOCATION: SWITZERLAND

As a trainee, Nora joined the Group

in July 2008. She completed a 3-year
apprenticeship, during which she was able
to move through a different department
every six months. At the end of her training,
Nora decided to stay in IT. In the IT Services
department, she was first an employee until
2017, when she became the Deputy Head
of the department. Her main focus here was
on IT controlling, training and administration
of the Bell Food Group's SharePoint,
procurement of IT material resources and
support of the ITSM tool.
In October of 2019, she took over
the position as Junior SharePoint
of producing 5,000 metric tonnes of raw Administrator/Data Services in which
ham (including the highly-sought after she focused more on SharePoint
Jamon Ibérico variety, from a very specific administration in the area of infrastructure
and ancient breed of Iberian pig), Bell and identity access management.
Spain’s factory southwest of Madrid is At the end of 2020, Sven Friedli
one of the key production facilities for the requested her for the IT
company’s raw ham revenues in Europe. Administration & Information
“It's a very delicious and expensive area, which she took over in
product, being produced at scale,” says February 2021. Due to the
Friedli. “We're talking up to a million hams wide range of tasks, which
hanging in our warehouses in Fuensalida include the management
EXECUTIVE BIO

as they dry and cure.” With different of IT staff planning and the
breeds of pig being turned into different IT line budget, SharePoint
grades of ham, which are then cured administration and
and hung for different amounts of time, the sub-project
depending on their quality and intended management request
certification, the execution of thousand- management,
year-old traditional methods in an the work is very
industrial environment at scale can be versatile.
a challenging one.
 BELL FOOD GROUP

“IT IS INCREASINGLY IMPORTANT

TO BE WELL-NETWORKED ACROSS
OUR MANY LOCATIONS AND
TO WORK CLOSELY TOGETHER”

NORA HERTZSCHUCH
HEAD OF ADMINISTRATION & INFORMATION,
BELL FOOD GROUP

“In the past, the company didn't really

have an accurate, comprehensive view of PARTNERING FOR SUCCESS
their production process,” Friedli explains.
“For example, when they used to do Partners
inventory, it used to take them weeks and “I'm still learning lots about my new
weeks to count all their hams. Now, we've partners. Some I knew in the past;
introduced an end-to-end supply chain some I'm still getting to know,” Friedli
solution that tracks the whole process, reflects. He adds that, because mutual
from buying the pigs to selling the ham. understanding of key goals, needs and
All the information and data is now in one capabilities is so essential to a strong
system throughout the whole process, partner relationship, “it's important
so their inventory is a one-click process, to have a few but strong partners.”
checking revenues is a one-click process.” He continues: “In difficult situations -
The project has been a massive success, and they're always difficult situations,
helping Bell Spain to solve pain points believe me - you have to act in a way
in their production process through that works for both you and your
technology - an achievement that Friedli partner. So, for me, it's important to
emphasises was only possible due to the be transparent, open and honest with
fact that “lots of time was taken by the IT your partners and ask for help when
team, by consultants, down at Bell Spain you need it.”
to understand what kind of problems the Since he admits he is still relatively
DID YOU KNOW...

business was facing and how they could new to Bell Food Group, Friedli
be solved with technology.” explains that asking for help is a big
He reflects: “We took the time to part of his problem solving process.
understand the steps involved in “I'm asking for help, asking my
production, what kinds of reports the partners how their technologies,
company needed to better understand capabilities, and experience can help
that process, and how best to generate me drive better business outcomes
useful data from the different steps of the for Bell Food Group.”
production cycle.”

manufacturingglobal.com 111
 BELL FOOD GROUP

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112 August 2021

 BELL FOOD GROUP

“PEOPLE, NOT
SYSTEMS, MAKE
THE DIFFERENCE”
SVEN FRIEDLI
CIO,
BELL FOOD GROUP

The Road Ahead

Digital transformation is, as anyone overseeing
a digital transformation is quick to tell you, an
involved and unending process. Friedli is proud
of the progress made so far, but readily admits
that some elements of the business have a ways
to go. “In some areas, we're really advanced.
We're using machine learning, predictive
analytics and a whole load of other cutting
edge technology for example to optimise our
supply chain and production planning. In others,
Video Analytics for a Better Chicken Nugget however, we still definitely have a lot more of
Now, at Bell Food Group’s ham production our journey ahead of us,” he says.
sites as well as in other factories As he settles into his role, meeting with
throughout Europe, video analytics - different business units, learning the ropes,
backed by powerful AI and ML tools - are and finding the pain points that technology can
helping further improve the production soothe, Friedli explains that “First, I'm working
process. “With video analytics, we can to fully understand the business’ needs so that
capture every important step of the I can help use technology to meet those needs
production process and determine in real as best as possible.” Once those needs are fully
time whether each individual ham-slice understood, he continues, “My second major
meets the right quality standards," Friedli goal is to clearly define the digital transformation
explains. “We do the same thing at our journey that the company is on - to really
factories that process chickens. Based on understand which technologies, whether that's
things like size, color and structure, our automation, analytics, or something else to use.
video analytics can determine whether It's important to have a clear goal. There are so
which part of a bird ends up as chicken many technology trends happening all at once
sausage nuggets or stays, uh, chicken- that it would be very easy to do lots of cool stuff,
shaped as part of better quality products.” but if we don't focus, then we will never see
At this point, Sven and I both agreed the benefits of those technologies reach the
that we were reaching levels of hunger business. Having a clear strategy is essential.”
that weren’t conducive to a quality
interview, and steered our discussion
towards the future.

manufacturingglobal.com 113
TECHNOLOGY

114 August 2021

 TECHNOLOGY

Could be
the missing link for
5G Manufacturing
Global speaks
to Steve Foxley,
CEO of AMRC, to
get to the bottom

INDUSTRY 4.0 of this question

adoption?
WRITTEN BY:
GEORGIA WILSON

L
eading the 5G Factory of the Future have for manufacturing,” says Steve Foxley,
(5GFoF) consortium, the University of CEO at the University of Sheffield Advanced
Sheffield Advanced Manufacturing Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC).
Research Centre (AMRC) is embarking on its This Government funded project includes
innovative 5G journey as an active industrial key global players and multiple SMEs in the
research programme. industry - BAE Systems, IBM, aql, Digital
“We’re hugely proud to be leading the Catapult, Miralis and MTT – the AMRC’s
way on this flagship project driven by our role in the consortium is to integrate the
team in Lancashire at AMRC North West. 5G technology within a manufacturing
We want this programme of research to be context. Currently, the AMRC is testing the
a beacon for the potent role that 5G can 5G technology through a number of use

manufacturingglobal.com 115
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 TECHNOLOGY

5G Smart Factories

“The jump from 4G to cases. “These include real-time closed-loop

manufacturing processes, digital twins, hybrid
5G is like comparing and mixed reality spaces, factory ecosystem
management, remote asset monitoring.
a winding single- The AMRC North West brand new building
is also going to be a smart-building and low
file A-road in the carbon demonstrator where 5G will serve

English countryside the fundamental connectivity requirements,”

adds Foxley.
to a multi-lane So Why is 5G Important in Connected
German autobahn” Factories of the Future? Could it be the
Missing Link to Advance Industry 4.0?
“5G is much more than a simple replacement
STEVE FOXLEY
CEO, AMRC for Wi-Fi or cable,” explains Foxley. “5G
builds a new paradigm for connecting factory
equipment with intelligent computational
units. The unprecedented high bandwidth
and low-latency characteristics offered
by wireless technology breaks numerous
barriers faced by industry.”

manufacturingglobal.com 117
TECHNOLOGY

“5G builds a new paradigm

for connecting factory
equipment with intelligent
computational units”
STEVE FOXLEY
CEO, AMRC

What is the AMRC?

The University of Sheffield Advanced
Manufacturing Research Centre
(AMRC) is a leading facility for translational
research. We work with businesses to help
them build better products and processes,
drawing from academic research. We are
celebrating our 20th year in 2021 - 20 years With the use of 5G being a hot topic to
of making industrial products in aerospace, in discuss, the scale of the shift to 5G is both
energy, in automotive, in construction better unprecedented and significant. “The jump
than they otherwise would be and therefore from 4G to 5G is like comparing a winding
supporting the wider economy whether at single-file A-road in the English countryside
the local or national level. to a multi-lane German autobahn,”
We have transformed the site on which says Foxley.
we operate in South Yorkshire from a “Fewer corners equals less latency,
scene of de-industrialised scarring and and faster information flows (up to 250x
conflict to a globally renowned research faster with a theoretical 1ms). The speed
and development facility, thriving with represents the bandwidth, where the
collaboration. We have acted as a magnet to 60mph national speed limit is compared
a cluster of global manufacturing companies with as fast as you are comfortable going.
that employ some 2500 people on the Or, in this case, up to 10Gbps, 10x more than
Advanced Manufacturing Park. Alongside the previous 4G/LTE speeds. The number
our work in South Yorkshire, we now have of lanes represents one of the biggest
operations in Samlesbury in Lancashire and enhancements of 5G, which is network
Broughton in North Wales, where those slicing. This allows (as with the autobahn)
regions have asked us to support their parts of the network to go at different
regional manufacturing ambition. speeds, latencies, ranges and have different

118 August 2021

 TECHNOLOGY

security. Finally, there is the number of cars connect hundreds of devices. 5G provides
that you can fit on the road, and more lanes us with that capability.
means more cars. In the case of 5G, this is • Low latency: the ability to reduce the
1 million devices per km2 in comparison latency of data, capture, analysis and action
to only 4,000 with 4G. Taken together, this to a few milliseconds means that real-time
represents a significant uplift in capability control can become a reality.
and opportunity for the manufacturing • High reliability: gone will be the days of the
community; our role is to explore the signal dropping off or of losing connectivity
potential and to highlight the areas that as you move around the shop floor.
require further work,” adds Foxley. • Improved productivity and end-to-end
traceability of data: access to better data
What Are the Benefits of 5G more quickly means that quality can be
for Manufacturers? improved, and through improved quality,
Understanding what makes 5G different to 4G we can take out the rework loop, leading
from a technical point of view, Foxley explains to improved productivity as well as
the benefits of 5G for manufacturers from a reduced waste.
practical application viewpoint: • Advanced technology adoption: the
• Improved connectivity: as the number capability to deploy other advanced
of devices on the shopfloor continues to technologies such as the Internet of
increase; we need the ability to potentially things (IoT).

manufacturingglobal.com 119
TECHNOLOGY

“The very nature of 5G allows the computer

components to come closer and tightly
coupled to the industrial processes”
STEVE FOXLEY
CEO, AMRC

120 August 2021

 TECHNOLOGY

The Future of 5G in Manufacturing Operations

When it comes to adopting technology,
Foxley emphasises that new technology
often brings fresh challenges. “For 5G, there
are several challenges that through this 5G
Factory of the Future programme we are
looking to explore for the benefit of the UK
manufacturing community.
“The most significant challenge the
AMRC is experiencing among manufacturers
Steve Foxley, CEO at is demonstrating the Return on Investment;
the University of Sheffield at this point, like many new technologies,
Advanced Manufacturing we need to build the evidence and working
Research Centre (AMRC) knowledge so that the technology can drive
improvements in business performance
My name is Steve Foxley. I’m the Chief we anticipate.”
Executive at the University of Sheffield Beyond this, he also highlights the skills
Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre. gap, different deployment models, potential
I’ve led the AMRC since the beginning of 2020. machine interface bottlenecks, and the
Prior to joining the AMRC, I was a member shortage of 5G terminals as other key
of the Executive Management Board of challenges to overcome in the industry.
Siemens plc. During my time with Siemens, However, AMRC’s 5GFoF programme
I held various senior roles in the UK, Austria aims to break down and analyse every part
and China. of the 5G deployment to overcome these
challenges. “We have already gathered a
significant knowledge base and skill sets;
therefore, we can offer help to resolve
problems faced by manufacturers at various
levels, whether strategic decision making,
deeper assistance with the technology, finding
suppliers, or cost-benefit analysis,” says Foxley.
Looking to the next 12 to 18 months,
Foxley concludes: “We are expecting to
see a larger number of suppliers for the
infrastructure, devices, and software
services. The very nature of 5G allows the
computer components to come closer and
tightly coupled to the industrial processes.
That means we can expect to see some
market disturbances; for example, larger
software vendors will try to enter the
manufacturing sector, which will drive greater
competitiveness amongst the actors.”

manufacturingglobal.com 121
PTC
The Time for
Digitalisation
in Manufacturing
is Now
WRITTEN BY:
GEORGIA WILSON

PRODUCED BY:
JAMES RICHARDSON

manufacturingglobal.com 123
 PTC

James (Jianjie)
Zhang

124 August 2021

 PTC

PTC’s James (Jianjie) to help our customers capture the value

of this industrial digital transformation at
Zhang, VP of Market enterprise scale.”

Development, discusses Contemplating the current landscape

of the manufacturing industry, Zhang
the importance of comments that there are “several things

digitalisation for that really stand out. If you talk with

manufacturing executives, there are really
manufacturers and the three things on the top of their radar. The
first one is maximising the throughput while
future for digital factories keeping the CapEx and OpEx as low as

J
possible; this is about improving efficiency
oining PTC in 2018, James Zhang, VP and operational productivity. That’s the first
of Market Development describes thing that is becoming really important as
the organisation as a fast-paced and demand changes and disruptions rise in
innovative company driven by its mission the supply chain. It has never been more
to help industrial companies to create important for manufacturers to maximise
value for themselves, their customers, and their throughput and efficiency.”
the world. At PTC, Zhang is responsible “The second thing we hear again and again
for the strategies and go-to-market of its from our customers is the agility, flexibility and
smarter connected operations solutions. resilience of their supply chain. Personalisation,
“This is where we help our customers to customisation and consumer power are really
make the factory of the future a reality. making agility and flexibility across the whole
So headquartered in Boston (US), we have supply chain and manufacturing operations
been helping industrial companies over the a necessity. It is no longer an option. The
world to better design, manufacture and third trend we are seeing a lot these days is
serve their customers and their products,” sustainability. Again and again, we are not only
says Zhang. hearing this from the bottom or middle; we
“If we look at industry in relation to new
technology adoption, we are really seeing “Since COVID, there
has been a clear trend
more and more companies adopting new
technologies like the internet of things
(IoT), augmented reality (AR), and analytics that companies are
from proof of concept to a production
deployment at larger enterprise scale. So accelerating their digital
this is a really important moment for the
industry, and meanwhile, at PTC, everything
transformation”
we are doing with our portfolio, our solution
strategy, our customer engagement JAMES (JIANJIE) ZHANG
VP MARKETING DEVELOPMENT,
approach, our go-to-market model, and PTC
how we collaborate with our ecosystem is

manufacturingglobal.com 125
 PTC

Title of the video

“We have the

“One final thing we are seeing is the
labour/skills gap. This is pretty common in
privilege of working the manufacturing industry across the world
whether you are looking at well-developed
with hundreds of or developing areas.”

companies and The Time for Digitalisation is Now

thousands of factories “Before COVID-19 digital transformation
was thought of as ‘really cool, with a lot of
all over the world to interesting technology, but not that urgent’.

help them to transform But since COVID, there has been a clear
trend that companies are accelerating their
their operations” digital transformation. They are moving
from the pilot stages to actual production
deployment. I think this is because it
JAMES (JIANJIE) ZHANG
VP MARKETING DEVELOPMENT, is clear that those who adopted digital
PTC transformation during COVID had much
stronger resilience than the ones who didn’t.
are hearing the sustainability discussion at the I believe this is a big factor why this trend is
boardroom level. There are not only regulation accelerating now,” explains Zhang.
requirements today, but also there are “In general, I would say there are roughly
more pressures from the investors and from 30% of manufacturing companies already
customers directly.” on the journey to adopting digital capability

126 August 2021

 PTC

at enterprise scale. For most of these

companies, a digital transformation strategy JAMES (JIANJIE) ZHANG
is a central programme at the corporate TITLE: VP MARKETING DEVELOPMENT
level, driving the adoption of digital INDUSTRY: COMPUTER SOFTWARE
capabilities across the entire production
LOCATION: MASSACHUSETTS
network. Then there are roughly 40%
of companies started their journey. They
have done the pilots, the studies, and now James Zhang is the Vice
because of COVID and the pressures on President of Market Development
their operations, they are accelerating their of Connected Operations Solutions at
transition from pilot to enterprise adoption.” PTC. James works to build and deliver
Taking the overall operations of a high impact solutions for factories of
manufacturing organisation into account, the future that incorporate PTC’s
Zhang highlights that there are four things industry-leading IoT, Analytics, AR and
that are most important in the factory: PLM technologies. His responsibilities
“machines, people, processes, and placings include prioritizing market problems,
(what is where and when).” pursuing product-market fit and
“So what we are seeing here is that working directly with customers
digital transformation is really helping and partners to scale industry 4.0
manufacturers optimise these four elements, transformations. Prior to joining
making machines perform better and PTC, James was a Director at Fujitsu
making people do their jobs better with a America’s Business and Application
much smarter approach. Meanwhile, it also Services organisation where he
helps to improve the process efficiency of served as a subject matter expert
their entire operations.” on the Industrial Internet of Things
“We call it ‘double-digit impact’ in and a business leader of Digital
operational metrics, for example, the quality, Supply Chain and
the overall equipment effectiveness (OEE), Manufacturing
and labour productivity. This improvement in practice.
operational metrics really helps companies
to drive the bottom line and also help them
EXECUTIVE BIO

1985
Year founded

$1.5 Bn
Revenue

10,000+
Number of employees
 PTC

“Digital
transformation
can impact
all aspects of
operations to
improve machine
performance,
people
performance,
and process
efficiency”
JAMES (JIANJIE) ZHANG
VP MARKETING DEVELOPMENT,
PTC

128 August 2021

 PTC

on the balance sheet as well. For example,

some companies we have worked with have
improved their OEE between 5% and 20%.
“So that percentage really, if you translate
that into throughput and capacity, for those
where the demand is much higher than their
capacities, they can quickly ramp up their
productions and meet customer demands.
For those who are under pressure to reduce
the conversational cost, this double-digit
improvement on OEE for capacity can help
them to do that as well. So again, this is really
where digital transformation can impact all
aspects of operations to improve machine
performance, people performance, and
process efficiency when and where there
is most impact, which eventually translates
into double-digit impact and into financial
benefits.”

Making Manufacturing Smarter

Discussing the ways in which technology
is helping to make manufacturing smarter,
Zhang says that “the internet of things (IoT),
augmented reality (AR), digital platforms,
and analytics are all enablers. PTC is an
industrial leader of IoT and AR. So we have
the privilege of working with hundreds of
companies and factories all over the world
to help them to transform their operations.
There are hundreds of use cases, but there
are a handful that are really powerful.
“The first one is, I would say, a must-have
for all digital transformation initiatives in
factories, which we call digital performance
management. Not only is this the most
popular, most powerful, and most valuable
use case by itself, but is also a foundation
for a company’s digital transformation
journey. Digital performance management
allows the whole organisation from top to
bottom access real-time actionable insights
to identify, prioritise, and analyse problems

manufacturingglobal.com 129
 PTC

PTC: HELPING OUR CUSTOMERS

When it comes to customer committed, the next critical stage is to

engagement at PTC, Zhang explains prove the value in the selected site. It is
that at the company, there is a common not only about installing and configuring
blueprint consisting of three stages. the software on the shop floor, more
importantly, coaching frontline workers
1 | Plan value: “this is where we come in, to leverage the real-time insights to
work with our partners and customers to inform and influence their daily jobs and
get alignment with their business strategy run machines and processes in a more
and business priorities. Are they trying efficient and reliable way. The key of this
to increase throughput? Improve service stage is to validate the value hypothesis
level? Or reduce conversional operating you defined in the plan value stage, and
cost? Based on the business priorities, make what you did in the selected pilot
we work with partners and customers to site a template that you can roll out
define the transformation value roadmap. quickly to another 20, 50 sites”
Most of time digital performance
management is a no-regret starting point 3 | Scale value: “at this stage, PTC,
and the best use case to get started” customers and partners will streamline
and execute parallel implements while
2 | Prove value: “with the program continuously refining and optimising the
designed and the organisation program’s design”

DID YOU KNOW...

130 August 2021

 PTC

ThingWorx Industrial IoT Platform

and implement the countermeasures, Explaining what he means by this, Zhang

measuring the results, standardising and uses LEGO as an analogy. “If you think about
rolling out the closed-loop problem solving one box of LEGO, there are maybe 300 bricks,
across production networks. The second is and you can assemble them into whatever
the combination of AR and IoT for labour you want to build - a car or a plane. A platform
productivity. In doing so, organisations can approach was similar to this. It is so powerful
improve their ability to train or upskill their that it has all the bricks there to achieve the
employees and better perform their daily desired outcome. However, today we know
job from the assembly, quality inspection what our most impactful use cases are - digital
to maintenance. The third is predictive performance management, labour productivity,
maintenance and condition-based predictive maintenance, and condition-based
maintenance that really helps to improve maintenance. So at PTC, we have been building
machine availability and improve the return ready to deploy solutions for these high-value
on assets.” use cases. So, if you think about it this way,
coming back to LEGO, you now not only have
The Evolution of Manufacturing a box of bricks, you have a motor, you have
Technology at PTC pre-built components that allow you to build
In just three short years, Zhang has seen more complex models at a much faster speed
the manufacturing industry and PTC rapidly and more importantly because they are all
evolve. “In my time at PTC, technology has proven with double-digit impact, you can now
moved from a platform only to solutions get these transformational impact across your
plus platform.” own production networks.”

manufacturingglobal.com 131
 PTC

“The second big evolution is the “Eventually, digital platforms

‘SaaSification’ of cloud technology. Circling will become the foundation for
back to organisations moving from the
companies to scale up and scale
pilot stage to enterprise-scale, three things
matter: the impact, speed, and scale.
out different capabilities across
Cloud for sure is a great enabler of digital the production network and the
transformation scale and speed. It brings value chain, enabling capabilities
much better customer experience, much that were not possible before”
lower Total cost of ownership and much
more scalable architecture” JAMES (JIANJIE) ZHANG
VP MARKETING DEVELOPMENT,
Factories of the Future PTC
Looking to the future of manufacturing

132 August 2021

 PTC

factories, Zhang reflects that “if you look agile. They will also enable factories to do
at a factory of the future, a key thing here things that are simply not possible with
is how you can bring this digital capability analogue systems, such as predictive
through the whole production network so maintenance and predictive quality.
that this digital capability can be leveraged Eventually, digital platforms will become
by not only 10 people, but by 1000s the foundation for companies to scale and
workers all over the world. That's really upskill different capabilities across the
where you will see the transformation.” production network, enabling capabilities
“In that concept, digital platforms, IoT, that were not possible before.”
and AR not only bring speed and scale but
will become the digital foundations for
the factory of the future. Digital platforms
will make factories more robust and more

manufacturingglobal.com 133
TOP TEN
10

MANUFACTURING
SUPPLY CHAINS
WRITTEN BY:
GEORGIA WILSON

Following the release of Gartner’s

Supply Chain Top 25, Manufacturing
Global takes a look at the Top 10
from the manufacturing industry

134 August 2021

 TOP TEN

F
aced with social and environmental 1. Integrated and purpose-
challenges, fluctuating demands, driven organisations
disruption, and accelerated 2. Customer-driven business
digitalisation, supply chains around the transformation
world have been hit with some of their 3. The digital-first supply chain
biggest challenges yet following the
outbreak of COVID-19. In this Top 10, we take a look at
Emerging from the pandemic, Gartner Gartner’s Supply Chain Top 25,
identifies three key trends that are being identifying the manufacturers who
adopted by those who are “effectively have excelled in these three areas.
navigating the post-pandemic landscape
through excellence in supply chain
management”:

manufacturingglobal.com 135
TOP 10

10
Nike
Founded: 1964
CEO: John Donahoe
Believing that “collaboration is

09
key to raising the bar on industry
standards, working conditions and
issue remediation,” Nike is committed
to improving standards, monitoring
working conditions and providing
sustainable remediation. AbbVie
“Today, we are working with a Founded: 2013
wide range of partners, including CEO: Richard A. Gonzalez
our suppliers, other businesses,
governments, multi-stakeholder Working “with the future in mind”,
organisations, unions, civil society AbbVie is committed to supply chain,
organisations and others to address risks sustainability, agility, and visibility.
and to strengthen the resiliency and Like many other organisations
capability of our supply chain,” says Nike. today, AbbVie has been faced with the
challenges presented by COVID-19.
To combat these challenges, AbbVie
has been working to incorporate real-
time transportation visibility into
their strategy to improve agility and
improve its customer experience.
Purchasing goods and services from
over 56,000 suppliers, AbbVie - via its
Sustainable Supply Chain Programme
- is also committed to working with
its supplier network to ensure quality,
compliance and social responsibility.

136 August 2021

 TOP 10

08
Alibaba

07
Founded: 1999
CEO: Daniel Zhang
Helping businesses to transform the way
they market, sell and operate, Alibaba
provides the technological infrastructure L’Oréal
and marketing reach to help merchants, Founded: 1909
brands, and other businesses operate CEO: Jean-Paul Agon
more efficiently.
Recognised for its agility, digital
When it comes to Alibaba’s own supply transformation and performance
chain, the company is committed to: in sustainability, L’Oréal has been
Demonstrating leadership in supply operating for more than 100 years in
chain sustainability - in particular the cosmetics industry.
integrating a closed-loop recycling Driven to accelerate its supply chain
system into its operations transformation, L’Oréal focuses its
Innovating customer to manufacturer efforts on three key areas: agile beauty,
product design to improve efficiencies services beauty, and digital beauty.
Developing platforms that enable “We are very proud of this renewed
real-time management of supply chain recognition that encourages us to go
operations further and to continue accelerating
our Supply Chain’s transformation,”
“We do not pursue size or power; we says Francisco Garcia Fornaro, Chief
aspire to be a good company that will last Supply Chain Officer at L’Oréal, who
for 102 years. We aim to build the future emphasised that the achievements
infrastructure of commerce,” says Alibaba. and transformation strategy “are all
made possible thanks to the strong
commitment and incredible drive of
our teams.”

manufacturingglobal.com 137
Help us in the search
for the Top 100 Leaders
in Supply Chain

NOMINATE NOW NOMINATE SHARE CELEBRATE

A BizClik Media Group Brand Creating Digital Communities

 TOP 10

05
Intel
Founded: 1968
CEO: Patrick P. Gelsinger
Responsible, resilient, and diverse - Intel’s
global supply chain strategy is driven
by these three words in order to create
technology solutions for its customers
that “unleash the potential of data.”

Four Core Areas Intel Is Committed

to Tackle in the Supply Chain Include:
Combatting slavery and human

06
trafficking
Responsible minerals sourcing
Reducing environmental impact
Increasing diversity in the supply chain

PepsiCo “Through leadership and collaboration

Founded: 1965 with our suppliers, stakeholders, consortia,
CEO: Ramon Laguarta and fellow travellers, we are accelerating
responsible standards and accountability
As one of the biggest Food and Beverage across industries,” says Intel.
manufacturers in the world, PepsiCo
is committed to efficiency, high-
quality raw materials and outstanding
suppliers in its supply chain.
Being increasingly focused on its
investment into digital tools and
advanced technologies, PepsiCo strives
to have a more collaborative and
integrated supply chain to distribute
products to the market depending on
product characteristics, local trade
practices and customer needs.

manufacturingglobal.com 139
TOP 10

04
Nestlé

03
Founded: 1866
CEO: Ulf Mark Schneider
Defining itself as “an aligned, agile,
and adaptable organisation that is Schneider Electric
committed to delivering results, not
Founded: 1836
only within [the] supply chain but
also in support of overall business
CEO: Jean-Pascal Tricoire
priorities," Nestlé is committed to
investing in its global supply chain. Against the backdrop of what has
been a significantly tough year for
Key Focus Areas for Nestlé Include: most organisations, Schneider Electric
Demonstrating its strength in ESG has strived to continue on its mission
and leadership to deliver its Sustainable Connected
Investing in reducing package waste 4.0 Strategy.
Adapting to new business models and Combining people, processes and
improving its end-to-end supply chain technology, the company has developed
a unique supply chain strategy - built
“Supply chain professionals at Nestlé on three key trends tailored, sustainable
play a critical role in ensuring quality and connected 4.0 - that is both good
products reach our customers and for the company and the planet.
consumers. To achieve this, we “It’s truly an honour to be held in
collaborate with the commercial teams such high regard by our supply chain
to develop the demand forecast and peers globally. Leveraging our supply
with our suppliers around the world to chain strategy, STRIVE, we managed
ensure responsibly sourced materials,” to demonstrate resilience during
says Nestlé. a challenging year,” says Mourad
Tamoud, Chief Supply Chain Officer,
Schneider Electric.

140 August 2021

02
TOP 10

Johnson & Johnson

Founded: 1886
CEO: Alex Gorsky
Starting out as a “simple partnership among
three forward-thinking siblings,” Johnson
& Johnson (J&J) sits today as one of the
largest healthcare companies in the world.
Leading the life science industry, the
company’s leadership, operational strength
and innovative expertise has helped it to not
only navigate the challenges of COVID-19 but
rapidly scale its operations to manufacture
an effective vaccine against the virus.

Ways in Which J&J Helped

Navigate the Pandemic:
Leveraging its manufacturing network,
“In the wake of COVID-
J&J’s medical device company - Ethicon - 19, it's organisations
in partnership with Prisma Health, used 3D with the strongest
printing to make and distribute VESper™
Ventilator Expansion Splitter at no cost supply chains that
going from concert to launch in 10 days. have been able to
Repurposing its supply chain, J&J
converted its manufacturing lines around ensure people around
the world to produce hand sanitiser, the world continue to
donating its products to health and
community service workers. receive access to the
When demand for Tylenol doubled products they need to
stay safe and healthy”
in certain markets, J&J ramped up its
production of critical medications, running
sites 24/7 to produce and ship at all times. Johnson & Johnson

manufacturingglobal.com 141
THE ULTIMATE
PROCUREMENT
& SUPPLY CHAIN
EVENT
SEPTEMBER
28th - 30th

STREAMED LIVE FROM

TOBACCO DOCK LONDON

A BizClik Media Group Brand

Confirmed Speakers Include:

Sheri Hinish
IBM

Ninian Wilson
Group Procurement Director & CEO,
Technology Procurement Director
Vodafone Procurement Co Sarl

Jim Townsend
Chief Procurement Officer
Walgreens

Mark Bromley
Director of Sourcing, Supplier Management
Mastercard

Chris Shanahan
VP Global Procurement
Thermo Fisher Scientific

EARLY BIRD TICKETS HERE

Creating Digital Communities

manufacturingglobal.com 143
TOP 10

#SafeHands Soaps Production

“During times of
disruption, these
companies continue
to lead by example
and provide advanced
lessons for the supply
chain community”
Mike Griswold, vice president team manager
with the Gartner Supply Chain practice.

144 August 2021

Colgate-Palmolive
Founded: 1806
CEO: Noel R. Wallace

Number one on our list is

Colgate-Palmolive.
Focused on transformation, Colgate-
Palmolive’s supply chain strives to
be ahead of the curve, harnessing
customer segmentation strategies
and new business models, as well
as investing in advanced digital
technologies. Such enhanced
capabilities have helped the company
to continue to grow, becoming more
resilient, agile and efficient.
Not only does Colgate-Palmolive
look to transform internally, but
the company is also committed to
reducing its impact on the environment
and openly shares its innovations with
third parties, such as its recyclable
plastic tube - a world first.

manufacturingglobal.com 145
 TXONE NETWORKS

146 August 2021

 TXONE NETWORKS

Reduce
the threat
landscape
for your ICS
WRITTEN BY:
JANET BRICE

PRODUCED BY:
JAMES RICHARDSON

manufacturingglobal.com 147
 TXONE NETWORKS

“If you have a profitable

manufacturing business, you
will be targeted by hackers”
Dr. TERENCE LIU
CEO OF TXONE NETWORKS,
VICE PRESIDENT OF TREND MICRO

148 August 2021

 TXONE NETWORKS

TXOne Networks delivers

convenient and reliable
cybersecurity for the era
of IT-OT convergence

I
f you have a profitable manufacturing
business, you will be targeted by
hackers.” This is the stark warning
given by Dr. Terence Liu, CEO of
TXOne Networks and Vice President
of Trend Micro. For more than two decades
Liu’s single-minded pursuit has been the
eradication of cyber risk to industrial control
systems (ICS).
During a year in which we saw
ransomware attacks on both the Colonial
Pipeline, which supplies 45% of the US
East Coast’s fuel, and JBS Foods, the
world’s largest meat supplier, President
Joe Biden has released a call to action
for large-scale improvements to ICS
cybersecurity - a call which has been
answered by TXOne Networks.
Speaking from his office in Taipei, Taiwan,
Liu discusses the importance of adaptive
cybersecurity for ICS shop floor protection
and shows how this can be achieved from
network to endpoints with maximised
operational integrity for both legacy and
modernised assets.
Cybersecurity is the practice of protecting
systems, networks, and computer
programs from digital attacks in which
hackers seek to change or destroy sensitive
information, extort money from targets,
or disrupt business activities. Hackers are

manufacturingglobal.com 149
 TXONE NETWORKS

Approaching Risk: Defending Against the Rapid

Rise of OT-Focused Ransomware Attacks

becoming increasingly innovative in “Our solutions are natively designed

their targeted attacks on OT systems, to fit a manufacturer's needs and special
which is why TXOne Networks works environments. They fit seamlessly into daily
with global manufacturing clients operations, becoming part of standard
from a wide range of specialisations operating procedures. Cybersecurity is
including smart factories, the oil and fabricated into your daily operation. It's not
gas sector, healthcare, and other critical like an IT security product being put into OT
infrastructure sectors to ensure there are – this is why manufacturers adopt TXOne
no disruptions to critical missions. products on their shop floor and in their
plants,” commented Liu.
Mitigation of cyber risks “We listen to the needs of leading
Since their founding in 2019, TXOne has manufacturers and critical infrastructure
focused on using customised technology operators to develop the best actionable
to mitigate cyber risk in connected approach to OT cyber defence. This allows
industrial settings. us to create customised technology that

150 August 2021

 TXONE NETWORKS

Dr. TERENCE LIU

TITLE: CEO OF TXONE NETWORKS,
VICE PRESIDENT OF TREND MICRO
INDUSTRY: CYBERSECURITY
LOCATION: TAIWAN

Dr. Terence Liu is the CEO of

TXOne Networks, a subsidiary
company of Trend Micro. TXOne
Networks brings pragmatic and practical
OT cyber defence to the industrial world
by integrating Trend Micro’s security
technology and Moxa’s ICS hardware
and experience. As a vice president
of Trend Micro, Liu also
leads Trend Micro's
Network Threat Defense
Technology Group, where
he focuses on developing
and marketing
distributed security
solutions across the
telecommunication
infrastructure
by leveraging
new-generation
goes beyond traditional security tools to telecommunication
mitigate the complex challenges of securing technologies like
modern work sites. Software Defined
“Given that ICS environments are layered Networks (SDN) and
and composed of a variety of equipment Network Function
in different operating systems, TXOne Virtualisation (NFV). Prior
EXECUTIVE BIO

Networks offers both network-based and to this Liu was the CEO
endpoint-based products to secure the OT of BroadWeb. He defined
network and mission-critical devices in a its DPI licensing business
real-time, defence-in-depth manner. and led profitability for five
“Both IT and OT can have comprehensive years in a row. BroadWeb
visibility of ICS assets, protocols, control was acquired by Trend Micro
commands, risks, and threats. The goal is not in October 2013.
only to maximise ICS protection, but also
to keep the business and operation running

manufacturingglobal.com 151
Smart Factory.
Smart Defense.
Digital Security
for Manufacturing.

Manufacturing is a lucrative target for

cybercrime. As a large industry with valuable
data and a growing IoT attack surface,
your data is of direct value to hackers.

Learn more
 TXONE NETWORKS

Securing Critical Infrastructure:

Lessons Learned from the Colonial Pipeline
Ransomware Attack

even when security is threatened. Hackers “The cybersecurity world has fundamentally
will pick the most profitable manufacturer changed. Prior to COVID-19, a manufacturer
or enterprise to attack. If your business is could rely on physical help for the machines
profitable and successful sooner or later on their shop floor. Now, such help is delivered
they will come for you. You need to be through remote diagnostics which may have
prepared and protected.” to be accessed through the internet.
“When you open the door to that
Heightened risk from pandemic technician, you also open the door to hackers
According to Liu, the current pandemic has – actually, it's the same door. If hackers
shifted the security landscape considerably decide to target your company, they’ll
and introduced many new risks leaving the return again and again trying to find a way
door wide open for malicious adversaries. into your network, and if they’re successful
then not long after that the key to your door
“When the hackers get into will be available for sale on the internet.
the system, they have the Another group of hackers will leverage that
information to get into your system, implant
ability to cause a catastrophe ransomware, exfiltrate sensitive data, and
or even cause injury – this demand money for its return.”
makes cybersecurity much “Manufacturers need to think more about
more important” the process of creating protection, and how
to have a secure way for your vendors or
technicians to be able to access your system.
Dr. TERENCE LIU
CEO OF TXONE NETWORKS, That's a challenge for companies who don't
VICE PRESIDENT OF TREND MICRO have a good defensive strategy in place.

manufacturingglobal.com 153
 TXONE NETWORKS

Portable Security™ 3 TXOne ICS

makes it easy for ICS Cybersecurity
owners & operators to Deployment
scan for malware on Architecture
standalone computers

154 August 2021

 TXONE NETWORKS

In-depth Data Breach Analysis of Critical

Infrastructure in the Asia Pacific Region

“Since the pandemic, manufacturers need Three TXOne Network solutions

to think about how they’re making their for ICS environments:
systems more automated. As new technology
makes factories more automated, we don't 1. Endpoint protection
need as many technicians or employees Modern work sites usually need to
on site – but that automation also makes accommodate legacy endpoints in their
cyber attacks easier to conduct. Added operational environment, which must be
convenience and control for personnel is able to interconnect and work with their
turned into added convenience and control different assets.
by intruders. When the hackers get into “Traditional antivirus is not designed
the system, they have the ability to cause a for the ICS environment – constant virus
catastrophe or even cause injury – this makes signature updates depend on an internet
cybersecurity much more important.” connection while intrusive file scans take
Research into cyber threats is crucial to up a lot of processing power and can easily
educating the public and strengthening the interfere with operations,” comments Liu.
defensive tools that help combat threat “ICS endpoint protection requires a
actors and attacks. TXOne Networks is different spectrum of consideration. Security
supported by R&D and security research must never jeopardise routine operation,
teams based in their US and Taiwan offices, slow down computation, or delay decisions
as well as business development managers made in the factory production process.”
and subject matter experts working all over TXOne Networks offers adaptive, all-
the world. terrain ICS cybersecurity solutions in the

manufacturingglobal.com 155
 TXONE NETWORKS

TXOne Networks: Reduce the threat

landscape for your ICS

form of different endpoint suites that secure a safe, reliable work environment even for
both legacy systems and modern devices the most sensitive or essential technologies,
in a variety of work site environments, keeping the operation running,” said Liu.
customized with input from leading “Virtual patching shields unpatchable or
specialists in each vertical. legacy devices and network segmentation
mitigates risk by making the network
2. Network defence fundamentally more defensible while advanced
Cyber attacks can spread through an OT ICS protocol-based trust list profiling gives
network lightning-fast, creating a catastrophe granular, highly-detailed control over assets.
with a price tag numbering into the millions These have been worked into industrial-grade
of dollars. Unpatched and legacy assets are ISIPS (Internal Segmentation IPS) appliances
usually essential to operations, and they require purpose-built for any business intention.”
specialised protection that safeguards and
maintains productivity. 3. Security inspection
“TXOne Networks’ adaptive ICS cybersecurity Continuity of security inspections is integral
solutions are specifically designed to create to a modern work site defense plan. “Without

156 August 2021

 TXONE NETWORKS

routine security inspections personnel, user-friendliness is tailored to the fast-moving

process, and technology are all vulnerable,” needs of ICS environments and fits in the palm
comments Liu. “The correct solution for of your hand.”
scanning and clean-up streamlines the
necessities: supply chain security auditing, Partnership with ATOS
inspection of all devices that visitors bring TXOne Networks began as a joint venture
on-site, and checkups for air-gapped assets. by “cyber giant” Trend Micro, which has
“TXOne Networks’ Trend Micro Portable more than 30 years of experience in cyber
Security 3 offers a USB form-factor easy for defence, and Moxa, who provide industrial
non-experts to use, with LED lights that show networking products.
the inspection result after scanning Windows “Having Trend Micro and Moxa on board
or Linux devices. To eliminate the shadow OT, allows us to leverage their technology and
asset information will be collected during every knowledge so that we can create ideal
scan and sent to the central management solutions for operational environments,”
console where it’s easily reviewed and archived. said Dr. Liu. Commenting on their partnership
This installation-free device’s portability and with ATOS, Liu said: “Our host, ATOS, has a

manufacturingglobal.com 157
 TXONE NETWORKS

QUICK FIRE QUESTIONS:

Dr. Terence Liu, CEO of TXOne Networks,

Vice President of Trend Micro

Why should a smart factory adopt TXOne

Networks solutions?
“Manufacturers should adopt TXOne
Networks solutions because we offer native
cybersecurity technologies developed for
manufacturers and critical infrastructure
operators to make sure they can be
seamlessly integrated into your operation.”

What do you consider to be the biggest

cybersecurity threats in 2021/22?
“Targeted ransomware and double extortion
are two of the biggest security threats right
now, and potentially devastating supply
chain attacks will be one of the main attack
methods during the next two years.”

What is the biggest mistake a company

makes when looking at cybersecurity?
“A company should be able to segment their
infrastructure into small networks, have
streamlined routine inspections, and make
sure their east-west traffic is clean.”

What technology are you most excited about

in the future when it comes to enhancing
cybersecurity?
“ Artificial Intelligence and machine learning
will be significant technologies for creating
more manageable workflows and reducing
alert fatigue in SOCs (Security Operation
Centres). We also expect increased accuracy
from XDR (Extended Detection and Response)
platforms to ensure early breach detection and
that the ideal response is chosen.”

158 August 2021

 TXONE NETWORKS

“Our solutions are natively designed

to fit a manufacturer's needs and
a spatial environment. They can
seamlessly fit into the operation and
become the standard procedure”
Dr.TERENCE LIU
CEO OF TXONE NETWORKS,
VICE PRESIDENT OF TREND MICRO

fantastic relationship with Trend Micro. pace of development for some start-ups it
“We work closely with ATOS, who have had set off a significant increase in the need
partnered with us to make our products for OT cybersecurity.
available in Europe.” “Our competitive advantage is that
our solutions are natively designed for
Competitive edge the world of OT and the ability to work
“I think TXOne Networks is in a very unique with a full modern control system – our
situation,” said Liu. “When companies began competition takes their IT-based product,
trying to do industrial cybersecurity, they puts it into ruggedized hardware and calls
started from providing asset management, it OT security, but to us there is a huge
because if you founded a cybersecurity difference. OT stakeholders need solutions
company for OT 10 years ago people didn’t specially adapted to their environments
have the anxiety that they do now – they just and daily work. This is especially true for
wanted visibility. the different OT verticals, which often have
“TXOne Networks was founded in 2019 different mission-critical needs. Our ability
at the right time, when the spotlight was to adapt to the potentially fragmented
shining on OT. Cybersecurity has three OT environment and provide OT-native
stages – you find, you identify, and then cybersecurity products is our main
you protect. We’ve focused on providing difference,” said Liu.
streamlined, ICS-tailored protection to our
customers,” said Liu, who admitted that
while the pandemic may have slowed the

manufacturingglobal.com 159
 MT CONNECT

160 August 2021

 POWERING
FREE SPEECH
IN THE FACTORY
OF THE FUTURE
WRITTEN BY: PRODUCED BY:
JANET BRICE JAMES RICHARDSON

manufacturingglobal.com 161
 MT CONNECT

“Data is the new oil in a factory”

according to Dr Stephan Biller, CEO of Advanced
Manufacturing International and Board member of
MTConnect, which drives seamless communication
between manufacturing devices

T
he factory of the future will depend on “Key performance indicators (KPIs) in a
seamless communication between factory include productivity, quality, costs,
devices, and this is exactly what not- on-time delivery, sustainability, and safety.
for-profit organisation MTConnect MTConnect’s tools will create a seamless
Institute is offering. environment and resilient future which will
“Data is the new oil in a factory,” said Dr help reduce energy, such as water or heating,
Stephan Biller, CEO of Advance Manufacturing and improve the sustainable footprint of a
International (AMI) and Trustee of MTConnect, factory,” said Biller.
who outlines how the company is helping
to create connected factories through In essence, MTConnect is building its success
their common device language and on the following attributes:
communication. • Simple
MTConnect is an open, royalty-free standard • Free
that provides a semantic vocabulary for • Open
manufacturing devices. In practice, it is used • Powerful
for factory floor monitoring, Overall Equipment
Effectiveness (OEE) calculation, predictive MTConnect has been developed by
analytics or maintenance, manufacturing the industry and supported by AMT – The
cell integration, scheduling and routing, and Association for Manufacturing Technology
Enterprise Resource which is focused on
Planning (ERP) integration.
“The factory of the
“The factory of the promoting the MTConnect
Standard. “As a member
future depends on stronger future depends of the board of trustees,
communication among on stronger I help guide the decision
devices, speaking freely communication making of what standards
which is what MTConnect to develop next,” said
offers,” said Biller who among devices, Biller who was recently
pointed out the systems speaking freely, which elected to The National
allow machines within is what MTConnect Academy of Engineering
manufacturing to know
what other machines are
can offer” (NAE) in recognition of
professional excellence
doing - whether they are in engineering. He was
on-site or thousands of DR STEPHAN BILLER elected for leadership
CEO OF ADVANCE MANUFACTURING
miles away in another part INTERNATIONAL AND TRUSTEE and advancement
of the US. OF MTCONNECT of manufacturing

162 August 2021

 MT CONNECT

manufacturingglobal.com 163
 MT CONNECT

MTConnect: Powering free speech

in the factory of the future

technologies and innovations based on “We wanted to create a standard that

IoT and digital data. every machine could use. So, the data
Since the first initial specification was and communication protocols were not
published in 2007 the standard has been proprietary to that company but were
adopted by more than 400 companies and the same. That would allow the users of
research organisations including automotive, the products to easily integrate them into
aerospace, medical, as well as software their IoT platform. The access to data from
developers, system integrators. Today, the users of those machines is what is
MTConnect helps shop floor monitoring advantageous to their customers and the
and control. producers of those machines,” said Biller.

“We wanted to create Advantages of using MTConnect include:

a standard that every • Widely adopted
• Easily implemented
machine could use, • Installed on new and legacy equipment
so the data and • Many new devices MTConnect is built-in

communication protocols Supporting all of this is the MTConnect

were not proprietary Institute community which is continuing to
to that company” grow its open-source libraries, free agents
and adaptors for new and legacy machines.
Biller highlighted a new agent is now
DR STEPHAN BILLER
CEO OF ADVANCE MANUFACTURING available to modernise and streamline
INTERNATIONAL AND TRUSTEE OF MTCONNECT performance on any device.

164 August 2021

 MT CONNECT

DR STEPHAN BILLER
TITLE: CEO OF ADVANCE
MANUFACTURING INTERNATIONAL AND
TRUSTEE
COMPANY: MTCONNECT
INDUSTRY: TECHNOLOGY

Dr. Stephan Biller is the CEO

and Founder of Advanced
Manufacturing International, a
not-for-profit that aids Small and
Medium Manufactures with their
Digital Transformation. Prior to that
Focus on SMEs he was the Vice President of Product
MTConnect has been offering seamless and Offering Management for AI and
connectivity since 2007, with Biller’s IoT at IBM, the Senior Technology
company AMI focussing on small and Director and Chief Manufacturing
medium enterprises (SMEs). Biller points out Scientist at General Electric and
that 98% of US companies have less than 500 a Tech Fellow and Global Group
in their workforce, so they are determined Manager at General Motors. He
to help these smaller manufacturers who holds a Dipl.-Ingenieur degree
are the backbone of the economy. from RWTH Aachen, Germany;
“Manufacturing helps with the fabric a Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering
of our society - every manufacturing job and Management Sciences from
produces about four other jobs, and this Northwestern University; and an
statistic extends to seven jobs for the auto MBA from the University of Michigan.
industry in Germany. Everybody counts, He is a member of the National
but I think we can all agree that it's quite Academy of Engineering.

2008
EXECUTIVE BIO

year MTConnect
was founded

4
Number of
Employees

$6K
Revenue
 MT CONNECT

“Where data is playing a

role, it is becoming the
enabler of Industry 4.0”
DR STEPHAN BILLER
CEO OF ADVANCE MANUFACTURING
INTERNATIONAL AND TRUSTEE
OF MTCONNECT

significant for the infrastructure of the and fosters interoperability for the factory,”
community and I think this is the class we said Biller from his office in North Carolina.
need to help,” he said.
“There are significant benefits to Cross-factory learning
integrating digital manufacturing MTConnect systems not only drive
technologies and processes into communication within the factory but can
manufacturing operations. I look forward have devices ‘talking’ in different parts of
to helping our customers, particularly SME the world creating cross factory learning.
manufacturers, harness the vast potential “If you fix a problem on one site, you
of digital manufacturing to transform their can take those learning and transfer them
companies,” he said. to the other site. MtConnect helps us to
“All the decision-making is going to be standardise between different factories on the
data-driven in some cases with the humans communication protocols, and that allows for
in the loop, in many cases without. It will be cross factory learning.
sustainable, flexible, and agile. It reduces the “You could even think about extending
cost and complexity of system integration this to cross-company learning. Imagine if

166 August 2021

 50,000
devices use
MTConnect

50
countries use
MTConnect

400
companies have
signed up to be
members of
MTConnect

13
years since
first release

1000’s
of software
solutions

300
machine builders,
integrators and end-users
developed the system

companies would be willing to share data, not this, decipher it and try to figure out how to
their intellectual property, of course, but on integrate it with their databases and their
the process side, they may be willing to do that infrastructure,” he commented.
and then you would have learned from one “Now, with MTConnect, they are
company to the next. I am very excited about already trained in this. It’s always the same
those possibilities.” communication protocol that allows us to
get to a plug-and-play environment where
Seamless connectivity with open-source we just connect the machines, connect
Biller pointed out that MTConnect not the data cable or connect to the wireless
only provides the connectivity but also infrastructure, and you’re up and running. It's
trains the engineers in the factory and a very seamless way for companies to get the
helps to monitor the processes. data off the machines.”
“In the past, you would buy machines
from all sorts of outstanding companies and Data is the new oil in a factory
would have their proprietary communication Commenting on how MTConnect uses
protocol. Your engineers would have to learn analytics, Biller said: “You immediately

manufacturingglobal.com 167
 MT CONNECT

“By making the data know the speeds, feeds, and process
parameters of a machine. That’s incredibly
more accessible, helpful in developing an understanding if

which is what
something goes wrong and then improving
on it not to make the same mistake again.

MTConnect does, “Data is the new oil in a factory. There is

some truth to that saying because data is
we are getting to an now improving manufacturing operations,

environment where
predicting when machines are going down,
helping to improve or detect problems, as
you really get this well as improve long-term systems quality
and throughput.
plug and playoff” “Where data is playing a role, it is becoming
the enabler of Industry 4.0.
“By making the data more accessible, which
DR STEPHAN BILLER is what MTConnect does, we are getting to an
CEO OF ADVANCE MANUFACTURING
INTERNATIONAL AND TRUSTEE OF environment where you get this plug-and-
MTCONNECT play. A manufacturer can install a machine and
get the data right away, which is very helpful,

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168 August 2021

 MT CONNECT

QUICK FIRE QUESTIONS:

Dr Stephan Biller, CEO of Advance
Manufacturing International
(AMI) and Trustee of MTConnect

What does a factory of the future look like

with MTConnect?
“All the decision-making is going to
be data-driven in some cases with the
humans in the loop, in many cases,
without humans in the loop. It will be
sustainable, flexible, and agile.”

How will this benefit a manufacturing

company? “AMI and MTConnect will
help a manufacturer on that journey to
the digital transformation because it
allows you to collect the data in a very
inexpensive way and then use that data
instead of having the engineers in the company to make better decisions for throughput,
go through manuals to learn the proprietary quality, cost, and fulfilment, which is the
and communication protocols. KPI in every factory.”

Digitisation - driven by the human touch What technology are you most excited
Despite the focus on digital transformation, about in the future? “Many people talk
Biller admits the human aspect is critical to about Artificial Intelligence (AI), but I
its development. “It is vital that the people would expand on that to AI and real-time
who are using these tools help to install system optimisation driven by cloud, 5G
them and even contribute to developing and IoT.
them as this gives them ownership.
“You must start with the basic data Is AMI planning to expand into Europe?
collection, then maybe the visualisation of “As the name suggests, AMI (Advanced
the data, and move to decision support, a Manufacturing International) is a global
DID YOU KNOW...

little bit more analytics, then you get two company, so we are currently working
optimisations, and only finally you get to with another consortium called European
automation of decision-making, and you Institute of Innovation & Technology
need to do this at the right space speed. It’s (EIT) to transfer and share technologies
critical everyone in the factory knows what is across the Atlantic. MTConnect is
going on and that you provide an opportunity already in Europe providing standard
for feedback. communication interfaces to many
“If you don’t bring the people along in the machine tools.
digital journey, you will fail.”

manufacturingglobal.com 169
 MT CONNECT

“Digital “Digital transformation is something

manufacturers should consider, or they will

transformation be left behind. Start small, with something

important, but start now. It’s critical because
is something it helps you to reduce costs and improve
revenue as you become more transparent for
manufacturers your customers - a game Amazon is winning

should really co
right now - and you can only win.

nsider, or they will

MTConnect and AMT
The MTConnect Institute is a subsidiary of

be left behind” AMT, and together they are on a mission to

create open standards and foster greater
interoperability between devices
DR STEPHAN BILLER in manufacturing.
CEO OF ADVANCE MANUFACTURING “MTConnect is sponsored by AMT, which is
INTERNATIONAL AND TRUSTEE OF a membership organisation for manufacturers,
MTCONNECT
big or small,” said Biller. His company AMI is
even providing a year-long free membership

170 August 2021

 SPOTLIGHT ON ADVANCED
MANUFACTURING
INTERNATIONAL

Advance Manufacturing
International (AMI) is a subsidiary
of The Manufacturing Technology
Deployment Group (MTDG) located
in Clearwater, Florida, USA and was
founded in August 2020.
Dr Stephan Biller was appointed as
its CEO. AMI is a sister, not-for-profit
company to the National Center for
Defense Manufacturing and Machining
(NCDMM) to support MTDG’s long-
term growth strategy within the global
advanced manufacturing industry.
AMI aims to accelerate the digital
transformation of Small and Medium
Manufactures through ultralow-cost
easy-to-implement digital products,
a membership program through the
Smart Manufacturing Leadership
Coalition, and workforce development
Biller, after career stints with
in their Smart Manufacturing Leadership General Motors, General Electric and
Consortium, to get SMEs going on their digital IBM, brings to AMI more than 20 years
transformation. “We're planning to continue of experience in analytics, Artificial
this and give a free membership to any small Intelligence, Internet of Things (IoT),
or medium manufacturer who's buying our additive manufacturing, and digital
product so that they can freely exchange about manufacturing, for which he has
the use of that particular product. recently been elected to the National
“It can be difficult for SMEs to share this type Academy of Engineering.
of information, but if we can achieve this, we
can all get better,” said Biller.
“I am interested in helping small companies Smart Manufacturing Leadership Coalition
as I think there is a big need. Consortium, that is helping us to get a group
That is why we my company, AMI, is together, with SMEs, so that they can help
selling a product that is very basic but ultra each other.”
cost-competitive. It's simple enough for
people to operate it. We are AMI is helping Virtual launch for Advanced
to not only give them a product but also Manufacturing International (AMI)
educate the workforce. We have AMI Reflecting on starting a company at the
also has a membership programme, the height of the pandemic in September 2020,

manufacturingglobal.com 171
 MT CONNECT

SNAPSHOT OF MTCONNECT

Is MTConnect software?
No. The standard defines data tags and the
behaviour of a software agent.

What is the standard used for?

There is no one target use case. Any application
that benefits from a normalised, pre-defined
vocabulary of terms will benefit from the
MTConnect standard. In practice, it is used
for factory floor monitoring, OEE calculation,
predictive analytics or maintenance,
manufacturing cell integration, scheduling and
routing, and ERP integration.

How do I use MTConnect?

Most manufacturers using MTConnect buy
machines, software, and systems that support
the standard. Devices require a software
adapter to translate native registers/data tags to
the vocabulary defined in the MTConnect spec.
Most users will only access their device data via
another application (OEE software, MES.)
“Manufacturing helps
with the fabric of
our society”
Where can I get it?
Current and archive releases of the standard
are free and publicly available here. Free, open-
source developer tools are on GitHub. DR STEPHAN BILLER
CEO OF ADVANCE MANUFACTURING
Do I need MTConnect if I’m already INTERNATIONAL AND TRUSTEE
OF MTCONNECT
using another protocol (OPC, Profinet,
Modbus, SCADA)?
Terms defined in MTConnect are specific to Biller said it was an interesting endeavour. “At
discrete manufacturing and intended to carry AMI, we had to build all these relationships
useful real-world semantic meaning. That virtually, which was a bit more challenging.
vocabulary is created, vetted, and agreed upon by But one of the things we did, and still do, is call
industry stakeholders with domain expertise. For a daily scrum of the team, so we all meet up
applications where uniform semantics are already and talk for 30 minutes, and then off we go.
defined, the additional semantic definitions from “But as the US is now well ahead in terms of
MTConnect may be unnecessary. vaccinations, I am now starting to visit clients,
which is very exciting because I can get to

172 August 2021

understand their problems. We can then start “Whenever you install IoT devices, you have
to build a strategy and pave the way for their to worry very much about bad actors who
factory of the future.” try to stop you from doing what you want to
Commenting on AMI’s competitive do. I recently saw this first-hand at my home
edge, Biller said it came down to just three in North Carolina when we almost ran out of
things, simplicity, low cost, and being a fuel due to a cyber attack. So, whenever you
non-profit organisation. do an IoT installation, you have to think about
“AMI is a non-profit organisation, so we don't cybersecurity, and we have partners, like
have to worry about stock price, stockholders StrongKey, that work with us on that.”
and profit margins. We provide simple, ultra- Biller pointed out the power of working
low-cost solutions - so our competitive with PhD students at the universities. “This
advantage comes down to those three offers the combination of our experience and
things. We then train people and also have a young, fresh minds. I believe that you don’t
workforce development programme.” throw away old knowledge; you enhance
it with new knowledge and take a hybrid
Focus on cybersecurity approach when it comes to modelling, AI,
Biller pointed out that AMI is working and data.”
very closely with universities, and they
have a partner called StrongKey that
is helping out on cybersecurity.

manufacturingglobal.com 173
 SALZGITTER MACHINENBAU AG

174 August 2021

 SALZGITTER MACHINENBAU AG

TAKING
THE
LOAD IN
GLOBAL
SUPPLY
CHAINS
WRITTEN BY:
JANET BRICE

PRODUCED BY:
THOMAS LIVERMORE

manufacturingglobal.com 175
 Bespoke load handling equipment from
SMAG is the one-stop-supplier for the
world’s top 10 ports and in construction

P
einer Grabs “is a brand name in every worldwide and a reported sales volume of
harbour on the planet,” according to €300 million.
Rainer Veith, the CFO of Salzgitter SMAG uses its expertise in metal and
Maschinenbau AG (SMAG), as he explains heavy steel construction in combination with
how the acquisition and the development hydraulics and electrical engineering. The
of the grabs product range resulted in SMAG three pillars of the business include:
becoming an international brand. • Load handling equipment - includes grabs
PEINER SMAG Lifting Technologies (PSLT) and spreaders
is a subsidiary of SMAG, the worldwide • Process technology - system solutions are
leading manufacturer of grabs and lifting used for the industrial extraction of sugar
equipment that are critical to the flow of • Special mechanical engineers - mobile
global supply chains. drilling, mobile mining machines and
SMAG is renowned for its problem-solving mobile antenna masts
skills, bespoke products and close relationship Veith points out that process engineering
with the customer, which are cited by Veith in the sugar industry is another component
as three reasons for its global success in load of SMAG’s growing portfolio. “In 2018, SMAG
handling equipment, process engineering and acquired 94 per cent of the BMA, the well-
special machine construction. known market leader in process engineering
“The secret of our success is that SMAG when it comes to sugar refineries. They have
evolves with the times and re-invents itself double-digit million Euro projects around
- resilience is in our DNA,” said Veith, who the world and are definitely an asset for the
joined the German-based company just entire group.”
after its centenary celebrations in 2019. “We
now have a brand name that is known across
the globe.” “You will see the
Today, through its subsidiaries, SMAG is
the world market leader in the manufacture
giant P (for PEINER
of grabs used in global transport, waste AG) in every harbour
management and agriculture. Other divisions
include process engineering, special vehicles on the planet”
and mobile antenna masts.
The group, which employs 2,000 people, RAINER VEITH
has dedicated manufacturing facilities in CFO AT SALZGITTER MASCHINENBAU AG
(SMAG)
Germany, China and India, 27 locations

176 August 2021

 SALZGITTER MACHINENBAU AG

Rainer Veith, CFO at Salzgitter

Maschinenbau AG (SMAG)
 SALZGITTER MACHINENBAU AG

Title of the video

Pronounced problem-solving
According to Veith, SMAG’s role in the

“The secret of our

market is based on the company’s
pronounced problem-solving skills, superior,

success is that standard-setting products, high global sales

power and global service.

SMAG evolves “We are close to the customers because

we do not have serial production or that
with the times many standardised products, as we focus on
bespoke vehicles, grabs and refineries. So, we
and re-invents must be close to the customer, we must listen,
and we do listen to the customer and to their
itself - resilience needs as this is absolutely key,” said Veith.

is in our DNA”
“We have the whole range of grabs from
the very small to the biggest ones, but most
of our competitors have focused on one
RAINER VEITH niche type of grab. By offering this complexity
CFO AT SALZGITTER MASCHINENBAU AG of grabs, we jeopardise a little bit on our
(SMAG) economies of scale, but we must stay close
to the customer and listen to their needs in
order to be a one-stop supplier to them.”

178 August 2021

 SALZGITTER MACHINENBAU AG

RAINER VEITH
TITLE: CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER
COMPANY: SALZGITTER
MACHINENBAU AG (SMAG)

Rainer Veith trained as a banker.

In 1996, he graduated from the
University of Paderborn with a degree
in business administration. He later
completed a degree at WHU / Kellogg
with an MBA.
Veith began his professional career
as a trainee at Robert Bosch GmbH in
the USA, Germany, France and Italy.
Veith took on management tasks
for E.ON and Uniper. He then worked
as General Director and CFO for the
Bilfinger Group in Lyon, France.
Veith was appointed to the SMAG
management board in 2019 and is
Grabs and spreaders responsible for finance, controlling,
One of the major milestones for the group human resources, procurement and IT.
came in 1986 when it acquired the grab
technology division of PEINER AG. Its range of
products includes bulk cargo and container
handling as well as special hoists. Key areas
of action are ports, ships, manufacturers of
cranes and construction machinery, steel
mills, waste-to-energy plants and recycling/
scrap handling industries.
Based on the proven PEINER product
EXECUTIVE BIO

design, PSLT's factories in Salzgitter

(Germany, Headquarters), Shanghai
(China) and Chennai (India) develop and
manufacture lifting equipment for any cargo
handling application.
Six years ago, PSLT added spreaders for
container handling to its portfolio, which
are used in ports and terminals worldwide.
The new subsidiary RAM SMAG Lifting
Technologies Pte Ltd, headquartered in
 SALZGITTER MACHINENBAU AG

“Shrinking core
expanding
periphery - this
is how my MBA
professor Ranjay
Gulati described
strategic alliances,
and I think it is
true today”
RAINER VEITH
CFO AT SALZGITTER MASCHINENBAU AG
(SMAG)

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180 August 2021

 SALZGITTER MACHINENBAU AG

Singapore, manufactures the products under

the brand RAM Spreaders in Changshu (China).
“We are the industry leading grab
manufacturer,” said Veith. “Some of the
grabs can be up to 30 - 45 cubic meters in
volume, and one grab can weigh up to 18-22
tonnes - so this really is a dream for big
kids captured in adult bodies - they are the
coolest products,” said Veith.
The group's customers include
shipping companies, port companies,
port crane, mobile crane and construction
machinery manufacturers, as well as
manufacturers of special vehicles, European
defence forces, mining and drilling
companies and sugar factories.

A century of engineering excellence

Salzgitter Maschinenbau AG dates back
to 1919 when Anton Raky, engineer and
pioneer of modern drilling technology and
STRATEGIC ACQUISITIONS oil production, founded the Anton Raky
company, deep drilling in Salzgitter.
Acquiring the grabs product range The foundation stone for SMAG was laid
from PEINER AG helped SMAG expand in 1937 when the Salzgitter Group took over
into an international brand. SMAG also the factory for the construction of drilling
acquired BMA in 2018, a market leader for the machines. In 1986 the company acquired
process engineering of sugar refineries. the gripper product range from PEINER
In 2015 NSL in Singapore and Salzgitter AG and, over the years, expanded it into an
Maschinenbau AG merged their spreader international brand.
and grabs divisions as part of a joint venture Jürgen Bialek who has been with PSLT for
under the leadership of PEINER SMAG Lifting 51 years and was pivotal in building up the
Technologies GmbH (PSLT). This is one of the successful grabs business not only in Salzgitter
world's leading manufacturers of grabs for but in the Asian companies as well said during
handling bulk goods and for board cranes. the 100th anniversary: “..50 years of Peiner
This merger resulted in the world's grabs – they are like a part of my family.”
largest group of companies for load
handling equipment in the field of bulk Modern procurement
goods and container handling. The Commenting on the subject of
partnership enables the group to exploit procurement within SMAG, Veith said:
even greater market potential in addition “Procurement is for me a leading edge
to the port equipment sector. when it comes to value creation. It would be
utterly wrong to see only the transactional

manufacturingglobal.com 181
 SALZGITTER MACHINENBAU AG

FUTURE STRATEGY

SMAG wants to expand its position

in the market as the world's leading
provider of grabs and spreaders for efficient
freight handling.
It is relying on the growth market of
maritime freight traffic. For this, SMAG
can fall back on many years of experience
in metal and heavy steel construction
and on independent competencies in
construction, production and assembly. The
local presence in the large volume markets
(China, India) is being expanded.
In addition, SMAG is focusing on
expanding its presence in the global mining
technology market with a focus on drilling
technology underground and above ground,
as well as building special vehicles for mining
and process industries, such as steelworks.
SMAG’s corporate strategy is geared
towards sustainable and profit-oriented
growth.

part of procurement, but my staff has to “Procurement successes are easier

challenge traditional views and tendering and less painful than staff changes, and for
practises and constantly look for better new technologies, procurement is a driver
sourcing options. Do not underestimate of innovation.
indirect procurement but see it as the “Leadership by CFO facilitates
best chance for savings. For example, independence, but is not absolutely
SMAG: Purchasing volume per annum in necessary; it can be any C-Level person who
Germany approximately €100m, of which is seriously backing procurement,” he said.
indirectly €20 million, of which 10 per cent
saving equals €2 million, which would be Competitive edge
equivalent to a reduction of 30 FTEs. Veith cited the group’s competitive
“For me, the core elements of value advantage as having a strong
creation are sales, procurement and infrastructure with a production network in
production. Other departments are all several countries, plus it is built on a long
important, but if one of the three core tradition of being able to evolve with the
elements fail, every company is at risk of times and re-invent itself, “which is crucial
insolvency in the medium term. in today’s climate”.

182 August 2021

 SALZGITTER MACHINENBAU AG

“We have a great production network is a great asset, which few middle-sized
with facilities in separate countries from German companies actually have.”
our headquarters here in Salzgitter and Commenting on how SMAG continued
our process engineering in Braunschweig to operate during the pandemic, Veith, who
(Brunswick) Lower Saxony. We also have started with the company in November
production facilities for grabs in Chennai, 2019, said he was fortunate enough to travel
India, and the production facility for to India and Singapore to see the facilities
spreaders is in the greater area of Shanghai, before restrictions were in place.
China, with headquarters in Singapore. “We switched to Zoom or Team meetings
“We are a very global network. As a and adapted our facilities for increased
middle-sized German company with a sales health and safety, but apart from that, our
volume turnover of €300 million, we can supply chain has been very stable. We see
leverage this production network and the transportation costs going up, but overall,
sourcing possibilities that [go] along with we have not had any shutdowns due to lack
that. Also, to have a construction base with of supplies, which [proves] our business
very skilled engineers in India, and also here model works and that our supply chains
with our traditional construction in Germany, are very stable.

manufacturingglobal.com 183
 SALZGITTER MACHINENBAU AG

“Some of our most important

customers are the leading
OEMs in the crane industry”
RAINER VEITH
CFO AT SALZGITTER MASCHINENBAU AG (SMAG)

“In India, Russia and America, our is how my MBA professor Ranjay Gulati
industry was deemed as system-relevant, described strategic alliances, and I think it
so we came out of shutdown early, and our is true today,” said Veith. “This allows the
affiliates quickly caught up to reach and company to focus on the core tasks and look
exceed budgeted revenue levels. Overall, outside of the periphery for help with R&D
our sales did not suffer any consequences or innovations they do not have the capacity
from the pandemic. We have been fairly for such as digitalisation, robotics or Artificial
unharmed and remained robust throughout Intelligence (AI).
the crisis, which is good news.” “We do not have the in-house capabilities
to develop AI, and we would not, but it
Evolving ecosystems does make sense that we invest. We need
“Shrinking core expanding periphery - this to partner with suppliers [and] companies

184 August 2021

 SALZGITTER MACHINENBAU AG

QUICK FIRE QUESTIONS

How are you using AI or machine learning or “I think that the group has evolved quickly
big data, and what possibilities do they bring with its mergers and acquisitions over the
to the future of SMAG? past five years. It’s now time to consolidate,
“We are doing this already, especially at to improve our efficiencies and continue to
BMA, in process engineering. We plan to grow organically.”
ramp up our efforts in coordination with our
customers, and we'll pick up speed in the SMAG has been operating for more than 100
near future.” years - how would you sum up the secret of
your success?
What plans do you have for the future - will “During the past century, we have evolved
you be opening in a new country, or are there with the times and have re-invented
new acquisitions in the pipeline? ourselves - resilience is in our DNA.”

manufacturingglobal.com 185
 SALZGITTER MACHINENBAU AG

LIFE OUTSIDE THE OFFICE WITH

RAINER VEITH, CFO AT SMAG:

What did you enjoy about life in

Worcestershire, UK?
A more relaxing way of life in the shadow
of the Malvern Hills and living by the
River Severn in the UK.

What country do you want to visit?

Paris, France to play in the European
Senior Golf Championships.

What is your favourite cuisine?

French

What is your most precious possession?

My family

Favourite movie?
Pirates of the Caribbean

What advice would you give to a young

Rainer Veith?
Do what you love most and then work
hard for it.

“Our larger grabs can have up to 30-45 cubic

meters in volume, and one of those grabs
weighs 18-22 tons - so this really is a dream
for big kids captured in adult bodies - they
are the coolest products”
RAINER VEITH
CFO AT SALZGITTER MASCHINENBAU AG
(SMAG)

186 August 2021

 SALZGITTER MACHINENBAU AG

€300
million
Group Sales Volume

2,000
Number of
Employees

27
Locations
Worldwide

1919
Year Founded

who have that intelligence and knowledge. developments in the market. It’s very important
We need to develop our ecosystem even for us that the process is seamless and easy,
further to get ready for the challenges of the and this is what Open Systems provides for us.
next decade.” “In order to be successful in the future,
Veith cited the importance of their we have to be a bit more modern, younger,
“seamless” partnership with Open Systems dynamic and more diverse. We have to
and comments on how ecosystems today drive lean management and operational
help a company. excellence. This is definitely something that
“Open Systems is a crucial partner for is already underway and will be the key for
SMAG as we use them for data exchange future success, said Veith.
with our Asian affiliates. It works really well,
and it's vital for us to work together on the
exchange of information about production and

manufacturingglobal.com 187
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