Manufacturing is characterized by its intensive use of resources, high demands on raw materials, energy and waste management, making it one of the most struggling industry to achieve sustainable society and greener environment. As the planet heats up faster than predicted, , the transition to climate-friendly operations is becoming a priority for manufacturers. While the transition looks expensive, it may not necessarily be true if manufacturers choose to adopt an iterative digital transformation approach. 

Choosing the right technologies and effectively integrating them with legacy technologies leads to greater efficiency and productivity in the manufacturing process. At the same time, it doesn’t leave manufacturers with a large bill at the end. Instead, savings are made across the value chain by improving efficiencies with raw material, energy and labour usage at every step of the process.

Utilizing AI and Data is the path to sustainability

Advances in AI and IoT technologies have made manufacturing more measurable and efficient. It monitors various forms of waste, such as energy use, leaks, machine downtime and defects; and proactively identifies inefficiencies, often before human intervention is needed. With effective collection of data and analysis, efficiency enhancement can be achieved easily.

AI manufacturing tools can identify and act upon anomalies outside the range of human detection. For example, NEC’s System Invariant Analysis Technology (SIAT) tool can detect small changes in machine sounds that may indicate errors in machine operations and predict future breakdown.  Over the noise of the factory floor, this would be challenging for workers to notice but this AI predictive maintenance tool is designed to detect anomaly for future failures - even in the noisiest of factories. 

Digital transformation at the production line

Adopting new technologies in brownfield operations

Transitioning to sustainability within the manufacturing industry is inherently challenging. Despite the high willingness or ambition of industry leaders, achieving sustainability requires additional workload due to the complex layers of legacy hardware, security restrictions, IT infrastructure comprising their technology mix. 

Investments must drive iterative value and be incorporated into existing systems. Connecting manufacturing data with ERP solutions is the perfect example of these solutions with integration and optimisation baked into the very fabric of their output for sustainability. Giving a company-wide view of operations through integration of existing systems reduces the need for system replacement and improves corporate governance through better visibility.

Legacy systems - Getting more from past investments

Products such as NEC’s Obbligato enable manufacturers to connect data generated in the manufacturing process from product design to production, maintenance until disposal, and optimise product lifecycles, ultimately maximising longevity and reducing waste. These data also allow the visualisation of customer needs, in turn leading to new business models and unlocking its value.

For many manufacturers, better data management is the key to a sustainable transition since manufacturing products are required to report their entire lifecycle. Those advanced in their journey are embracing solutions such as the Data Fabric where generated data from heterogeneous data sources in whole value chain is shared and analysed with AI to provide better insights for more efficient operation including supply chain. 

A sustainable future for manufacturing

Legacy systems shouldn’t hinder progress to sustainability but interoperability must be considered when mapping the whole technology ecosystem. Only then can technologies such as AI and IoT can be utilised to transform resource-heavy industries by reducing wastage, using energy efficiently and increasing safety.

The value chain is where these multiple efficiencies converge and offer manufacturers the opportunity to build sustainability at every step of the production process.

NEC’s products and services achieve sustainability by digitising operations, reducing waste and automating carbon-heavy activities. Underpinned by robust cybersecurity, our technology provides a secure and continuous way to build smart initiatives for businesses and governments.

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