In Industry 4.0, there are way too many digital transformation options for businesses to keep up. Digital transformation at an organizational level is costly and difficult to implement for most SMEs. Therefore, considering the needs, goals, and budget of the organization, digitizing the existing assets to create digital assets and integrating them into the existing operation creates more instant benefits for digital operations and future digital transformations.
What are Digital Assets?
Basically, digital assets are valuable content that exists in a digital format. This includes files created in a digital environment and physical information from industrial digitization. Photos, audio, and videos are the common formats of digital assets. Advanced formats used in the industrial world are not limited to 3D representations, design files, drawings, data generated from operations and other technical files. Through industrial digitization, physical assets can be captured in digital format to be used in the digital environment.
How to Create Digital Assets from Industrial Digitization?
Digitize Parts
The production cycle involves components being put together in machinery, including tools and molds, to produce parts and products. These input and output elements that keep the production running can be defined as "parts." Digital assets from parts include high-level virtual information in photos and videos, to break-down, technical demonstrations in 2D and 3D drawings or CAD models, combined with technical information such as models, serial numbers, physical and operation parameters, to centralize your production asset for virtual inspection and analysis.
Digitize Places
The production environment consists of elements of "places", including buildings, plants, production lines, and all types of facilities. It can be digitized as drawings, profiles, 3D models, point clouds, and BIM models. In terms of planning, designing, constructing, operating, and maintaining buildings and diverse physical infrastructures, digitized assets can be used for design changes, plant asset updates, and clearance analysis simulated in computer software first before getting approval.
Digitize Processes
The intricate Industrial processes need extensive documentation for standardization, learning, and practice. Digitization of the industrial processes into digital assets eliminates paper documentation and constant checking and memorization of the processes. Digital workflows from today’s cloud-based, visual platforms, along with wearables, provide an instant boost in productivity as procedures are followed simultaneously while practicing the tasks. Workers can access digitized work orders, forms, and instructions; complete checklists; provide real-time data; and capture images and videos while on the go.
What are the Uses of Industrial Digitization?
Digital Asset Management (DAM)
Digital assets are a key component of Digital Asset Management (DAM), a solution that utilizes digital assets and streamlines operations in these key areas:
- Preserve physical and invisible assets by providing an accurate reflection of the assets
- Create a digital asset management system to allow internal teams, distributors, and global partners to quickly access and distribute complex asset information.
- Use asset information in financial, auditing, planning, marketing, and training
Build a Digital Twin
While digital assets can be created to represent the asset in the virtual sphere, a digital twin is created through the digital representation of the actual and potential physical assets, processes, people, places, systems, and devices. This virtual representation is used to understand or predict the physical counterpart, allow testing on the changes to be conducted virtually without risking the physical asset.
Integrate with Industrial IoT for Data Collection
To realize the full potential of Digital Twins, the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) is a key strategic tool to connect and trace the disparate systems within the operation cycle. From the vast amounts of sensors and data generated by thousands of machines and connected products, an Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) platform such as ThingWorx collects useful production data from operations. In a digital twin, the IIoT generates predictive analytics for asset status and detects anomalies before production or processes are impacted.
Automated Workflow Training in AR/VR
This generation of millennials and Gen Z will soon take over the workforce. Forbe's recent research shows 93% of millennials say modern technology is an important element of their workplace. As a part of Industry 4.0 technologies, extended reality seamlessly connects with digitization. AR and VR workflows can be created from digital assets with today’s easy-to-use software, such as Vuforia. With digital assets overlaid on workers' FOV, they can inspect the physical asset with the digital twin while staying hands-free with a hands-free wearable, such as RealWear Navigator 500 or Microsoft Hololens. Training this generation of "digital native" workforce has been made easier with guided workflow on XR devices. Research shows training materials are easier to produce in extended reality from digital assets, contributing to 50% faster training times.
How do wearable computers improve productivity
(Source: UpSkill.io)
References:
PTC, Top Use Cases for Digital Twin Technology to Drive Digital Transformation
RealWear, Accelerate Productivity and Generate ROI Wearable Computers RealWear
The Time is Now to Start Industrial Digitization!
Applied Precision 3D can support your digitization with our 20+ years of experience of digitizing parts, places and processes. Book a consultation with us to get you started.
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