Automation enabling technologies

Presentation of the four “itinerant” Forums that ANIE Automazione and Messe Frankfurt Italia will be organizing in 2019 to review software, machine vision, mechatronics and remote control. A well-attended round table acted as a prelude to the topics that will be discussed during the events in question.  By Maurizio Cacciamani

The collaboration between ANIE Automazione  and Messe Frankfurt Italia continues in 2019, in the shape of four Forums, two of which new: the Industrial Software and Smart Vision Forum will in fact accompany the well-established Mechatronics and Telecontrol Forums.
As stated by Fabrizio Scovenna, Chairman of ANIE Automazione, these events have proved to be an important tool to broaden the knowledge of enabling technologies and to summarize the moments of discussion, «confirming the ability of Italian industry to perceive, register and spread innovation». During the presentation, Scovenna also wished to voice the members’ fears on the lack of information (at least at the time of the event) relating to the continuation of the Industry 4.0 plan introduced by the former Minister Calenda. «A plan - he underlined - that has had the merit of consolidating investments in order to “rejuvenate” the national machine yard, which registers an average age of 12.8 years. A plan that should not only continue, but should even be granted more resources to allocate to cloud structures, cyber security, Competence Centers and, aboveall, training».

The round table “Forum technologies seen by users”
In introducing the Round Table, Marco Vecchio (Secretary of Anie Automazione), anticipating the topics that will be dealt with in the Forums, wished to emphasize how automation vendors are now emerging from a so-called “product logic” to embrace an integrated vision of solutions; in parallel they face the market in a macro-sectorial way, since the solutions studied for a single sector can be proposed with the necessary adaptations to other situations.

The panel discussion was attended by Marco Gagni Industrial New Project and Optimization Manager of Artsana Group who spoke about the implementation of sensors and vision for quality control in the four plants of the group, known to the public for the Chicco brand. «We have chosen not to proceed with one big project, but to implement many small ones to improve product quality, flexibility and to recover productivity. The secret of success? Knowing your production process very well, to eliminate any problems».

Marco Cesana, Bayer’s Head of Engineering, spoke about the Garbagnate plant, one of the first nine in the world and the only one in Europe according to the Factory of the Future research of the World Economic Forum (which analysed a thousand Industry 4.0 factories). «The Garbagnate site serves as a test area for all the plants in the group. To achieve our goals we have acquired external skills, which were lacking in the company, in particular scientists, mathematicians and computer scientists, to develop Apps that everyone can use. The implementation of IOT systems has allowed us to automatically optimize operating sequences even in the event of urgencies, and to equip the operators with goggles to accelerate the format change via augmented reality». The involvement of those who work in the plant, excluding no-one, is fundamental.

Fabio Marelli, Director of Metropolitane Milanesi’s Operation Milan Water Supply, after illustrating the many fields in which the company operates, showed how the installation of battery and fibre optic sensors has increased the available data (from 12 to 100,000 per day), allowing engineers and IT experts to check the system’s leakages, to improve water quality, save energy and plan maintenance. «We chose to create a system based on mathematical algorithms rather than artificial intelligence, and the choice was dictated solely by the objectives we set ourselves».

Luca Vallati, Machine Vision System Manager of Stevanato Group, talked about how the production systems used by the pharmaceutical industry in the packaging departments will evolve thanks to vision systems that are increasingly high-performance in terms of speed, resolution and intelligence. «In 2019, we will insert artificial intelligence into all vision systems. In addition, the companies in the group will be able to use AI thanks to a central server, the platform and the network we are now implementing. All will be able to collect images and analyse subjects even in complex scenarios».
 
For Fabio Galliano, Technical Director of Bottero, «Internet 4.0 is the fundamental tool for producing 6-700 glass containers a minute while guaranteeing total quality. Glass is a “poor” material and produced in a difficult environment, where data collection is in turn difficult and can only take place when the container has cooled completely. With the solution chosen we anticipated the control, analysing the process data on the basis of which we are able to understand in advance whether there are anomalies in the products; at the end of the production, with a single reading, we collect 50 controlled data that confirm what is expected. The biggest risk? Collect a lot of data but get very little information from the plant».

Review of mechatronics skills in Italy
The study performs an annual focus on the sector’s entrepreneurial fabric, with the aim of investigating the capacity for innovation in the Italian mechatronics and automation industry.
During the 20 November event, Professor Gruosso presented the results of the research conducted by the Milan Polytechnic, this year dedicated to Piedmont. Gruosso firstly presented the characteristics of the sample (about 6,000 companies using mechatronic technologies), the trend in turnover (only the large companies have clearly exceeded the pre-crisis turnover, while the others have only managed to recuperate it, Ed.) as well as investments in R&D (61% of the sample invests more than 5% of turnover).
He then focused on the advantages obtained with the introduction of Industry 4.0 technologies (greater openness to the market, increase in sales, tax breaks, product differentiation, energy efficiency, reduction of waste, reduction of cycle times, professional growth of employees), but also on the problems encountered in the implementation, which he summed up in limited skills, development time, integration, lack of vision from customers and poor receptiveness on the part of the principal markets.
«In terms of their sector supply chain - concluded Gruosso - the companies have highlighted situations where, as suppliers, they have had to deal with technologically more advanced customers or customers with very little skills at all. In any case, the research showed that Industry 4.0 is an opportunity to improve the quality of human resources, exploiting the great potential of innovation». .

I quattro Forum: linee essenziali
Francesca Selva (Vice President of Marketing and events of Messe Frankfurt Italia) presented the four events, highlighting the significance of the collaboration that has been underway for years with Anie Automazione.

• On 6 February 2019 the first edition of the “Industrial Software Forum - The evolution of software technologies in Industry 4.0"  will take place in Milan at the Museum of Science and Technology, with insights on Smart Manufacturing, Virtual Manufacturing and Augmented Reality, Intelligent and Connected Product and Industrial Cyber Security. As in all the Anie Automation forums organized by Messe Frankfurt, an exhibition area dedicated to software and IT products is planned. A model will also be presented to estimate the ROI related to an investment in industrial software (from an ANIE Automation study made by the University of Pisa, the University of Florence, and the Sant’Anna University of Pisa).

• The Smart Vision Forum (Bologna, 25 June 2019) is born out of the collaboration between AIdAM (Italian Association of mechatronic automation) and ANIE Automazione. Vision systems are among the technologies considered enabling for smart manufacturing and are not only used in manufacturing but also in other sectors. The forum will focus on the future of machine vision and the impact that artificial intelligence will have on these systems.

• The 2019 Mechatronics Forum, which will be held in September in Tuscany, will be an opportunity for machine builders, system integrators and end users in the region to meet the suppliers of the most innovative technological solutions available on the market. This year too will also see the “The mapping of mechatronic skills in Italy”, dedicated to the host region, promoted by the Forum and carried out by Professor Giambattista Gruosso of the Milan Polytechnic.

• The Telecontrol Forum will take place in the Fortezza da Basso in Florence (23 and 24 October 2019) and is the biennial traveling exhibition-conference, promoted by the Telecontrol Group, Automation and Supervision of the ANIE Automation Networks. The lead thread will be “Telecontrol Made in Italy. Digital transformation: business models and skills”, where the main topics will be cloud structures, artificial intelligence, augmented and virtual reality, 5G and communication protocols, information security, network efficiency, sustainable mobility and smart city.