Not only is the entire production landscape becoming, but it’s being converted at a speed not noticed in more than a generation. An undeniable look shows a very different sector than it was just two years ago, before the pandemic.
Here, Wes Sylvester, vice president of Cisco Industry Solutions Group, explains the demanding production situations this update has created and how corporate supplies respond to their production customers.
Few sectors or corporations have emerged unscathed from the turmoil of the past two years; in fact, many companies are still dusting off and dealing with the consequences of events like COVID-19 and Brexit. In addition, the existing geopolitical turmoil in Ukraine has put increased pressure on already strained supply chains and energy costs have skyrocketed. And this before contemplating the need for all brands to reduce their impact on the environment.
The existing clash in Eastern Europe has also noticed a backlog of cyberattacks, which were already expanding exponentially with complicated malicious attack vectors. One of the disadvantages of adopting technology, IoT, connectivity, and virtual transformation dynamics is that by expanding the number of connected devices within a company, factory, or factory, the more it builds the domain of vulnerability to attacks.
Netpaintingss are now more complex than ever. They are complex in factories where brands seek to integrate legacy devices into netpaintingss for which they were never designed. Add to that new hybrid paint environments, which increase the manufacturer’s virtual footprint beyond the 4 factory walls, and potentially have a lot of access issues for bad actors. And of course, when the pandemic hit, brands had almost no time to implement new security responses or collaboration tools, and attach old devices from the factory to networked paints. “There is no greater risk to a manufacturer than cyber risks,” Wes says. “The attack surface is at the production site and reaches the painter and the machine.
“Manufacturers are more vulnerable cybernetically today than at any other time. Solutions that have higher production power can also serve as a gateway for bad actors on the network, if they are not well protected. All it takes is a weak link to let in a bad actor. If a manufacturer doesn’t have physically powerful security, it’s not about whether it will suffer a breach, but when.
The large influx of knowledge within production operations is related to digitalization; a key detail of Industry 4. 0. The metrics and knowledge at manufacturers’ fingertips can now give them an idea of the power and lack of power of their production lines.
However, just having access to this knowledge is not enough. A common word that is discussed when talking about knowledge is that it is “the new oil. “This trust is a bit wrong. When oil is stored and not used, at all times it has an intrinsic value, unlike knowledge. Data is only valuable when it’s used. ” The challenge is to know what brands are doing with this information. And how can they leverage it for real-time decisions that reduce downtime?Wes adds. In addition, brands cannot overlook the importance of having the right skills to leverage the available knowledge and reap the benefits.
As far as skills are concerned, current production is older than at any time since the Industrial Revolution. Baby boomers are retiring, the average age of a production employee in the UK now exceeds 50 and there are not enough younger professional staff. generations in production to update them.
Since the pandemic, we have also noticed the wonderful resignation of young professional staff leaving their jobs for jobs of choice. In other words, there are more jobs available in production than professional staff to fill them. Wes continues: “Knowledge shows that only about 3 and a half million production jobs will want to be filled over the next decade. Two million of them will not be. And that’s why Cisco invests in higher education systems that take steps to exercise the next generation of professional staff. .
Another huge challenge for brands right now is, of course, sustainability. New regulatory needs require brands to minimize their carbon footprint. A May 2020 through Cisco Sweden showed that shifting 15-30% of external meetings to a virtual form would result in around $2. 4 billion for $4. 7 billion consistent with the year and a relief in carbon emissions of 550,000 tonnes.
Finally, time constraints are sharper than ever for brands. Not only do they face the aforementioned demanding situations related to supply chains, curtain availability, and energy costs, but the profile of B2B consumers has also replaced and is beginning to reflect the B2C Model. There are now expectations of same-day delivery, real-time order tracking, customization options, convenient return logistics, and a seamless experience on mobile, web, and in-store – all points that were once exclusive to the consumer.
Therefore, costly downtime will be a major challenge for brands. Time is cash and for every second, minute or hour a production line is offline, you can charge the manufacturer millions. it means brands want to do more with less by leveraging a secure network infrastructure to provide answers like factory analytics to improve plant performance,” Wes adds.
One of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic has noticed production groups expanding and dispersing around the world. Travel restrictions meant that video calls replaced flights and visits, radically changing the way organizations communicated; not only with your consumers and suppliers, but also internally.
In some cases, groups and departments work separately, so brands want to use collaborative responses that only allow, but actively encourage, a culture of co-creativity and communication.
Leng d’Or, for example, is a global snack manufacturer founded in Spain. Following the COVID-19 outbreak and shutdown, the company needed a solution that would allow it to identify a new production line in New Jersey (from its base in Europe). “They used Webex Expert on Demand, which is a collaboration solution that leverages augmented reality headsets from generation partners, such as RealWear or Google Glass,” wes says. “The factory staff in New Jersey wore those helmets, equipped with a camera, and collaborated with designers and engineers in Barcelona showing them exactly what they were seeing. Together, they can create a solution. Now that it has improved, Leng d’Or estimates that its total is still 30-40% lower thanks to this solution. »
Wes explains that there is a great diversity of products available, however, there are necessarily 3 key spaces that brands want to pay attention to:
Networking: Digitization cannot take a position without a strong network infrastructure in place. In the end, this will enable video and mobility in the workshop, knowledge gathering and research for consulting decision making and the use of appliances to reduce operating costs. This can come with Cisco Meraki technology, there is a wide portfolio of responses available that come with switches, routers, personal 5G, SD-WAN and more.
Collaboration: These are the teams that keep staff connected to each other. These answers come with Webex and Webex Expert on Demand, which leverage RealWear headsets from Cisco’s generation partners. Ultimately, those responses ensure business continuity, employee productivity, and can decrease reaction times and fix.
Security: Last but not least, there is security. Manufacturing is sometimes among the five most attacked industries. A physically powerful security solution is needed to protect critical business, customer and vendor data, and strict regulatory compliance. Cisco’s portfolio of security responses provides the entire network with visibility, to come with OT assets and legacy equipment, integrates security into plant workflows and operations, and enables segmentation across factories to the macro point to protect individual areas, lines, and equipment and devices.
“Cisco has been a trusted advisor to global brands for more than two decades,” Wes continues. “We have a holistic approach to manufacturing, from moving frames to the cloud, or from the factory to the carpeted spaces. Together with our ecosystem of solution partners, we help brands build the right netpainting infrastructure that allows them to leverage key knowledge metrics, power their workforce and operations.
“We don’t look at all brands the same way. We know they are all different and have other challenges. We tailor systems and responses to satisfy brands anywhere in their virtual transformation, solving their business challenges. If they’re in a position for synthetic intelligence and device learning, that’s what we’re going to give them. If you’re just starting your virtual adventure and want a core network infrastructure, that’s where we’re going to start.
“Not all brands are in the same position in their virtual transformation: some are obviously virtual natives and are in a position for synthetic intelligence and complex analysis. Others are testing the water and want help creating a secure network that allows for some of the critical responses. of modern manufacturing, as collaboration tools. We work with brands on this spectrum, helping them to be more agile and resilient. »