The need to go digital is clear, but how to do it? How can we make the most of the company’s existing potential? Visitors to the exhibition Successful Company of the 21st Century, which will be presented at the International Engineering Fair in Brno by the National Centre for Industry 4.0 in cooperation with the research workplace of the CIIRC CTU – RICAIP Testbed for Industry 4.0 in Prague – and the companies Siemens, T-Mobile, Česká spořitelna, DEL, SICK and the European Innovation Community EIT Manufacturing, will also find answers to these questions. The unique collaboration across the academic and commercial spheres in the field of digitalization of industry will allow representatives of companies to gain an independent view of themselves and also inspiration on what direction to take next.
The exhibition of the National Centre for Industry 4.0 and its partners already impressed trade fair guests last year. This year, on more than two hundred square metres on 10-13 October, it will present solutions for efficient, sustainable and innovative industrial production, which no successful company of the 21st century can do without. The joint exhibition project is the result of a number of years of previous successful cooperation and the long-term building of a functional ecosystem of the National Centre for Industry 4.0 and the infrastructure of experimental industrial testbeds within the RICAIP centre. Czech manufacturing companies and start-ups are thus offered assistance in adapting to the current economic conditions aimed at increasing their competitiveness.
„We don’t tell companies how many robots or modern machines they need to buy in order to be innovative. But the fact is that the use of modern technologies is already inevitable in industry, because they make processes more efficient , help companies adapt to unpredictable changes and fast production cycles or compensate for the lack of qualified employees,“ explains Pavel Burget, Director of the RICAIP Testbed for Industry 4.0, who prepared technological solutions for the fair in cooperation with partners. „We create a solution that fully meets the needs of companies. Thanks to the developed infrastructure, we can test them even before implementation and help companies avoid a number of problems or inefficient investments,“ adds Burget.
„At MSV 2023, we are not showing technologies, but real solutions as implemented in companies according to specific needs. We can help in each phase of the innovation cycle, i.e. from analysis of the situation and identification of opportunities to verification of the concept or testing before launching of operation. With the help of its functional connection to Czech and foreign projects and commercial companies , it is also possible to ensure financing or the final implementation of the project at the client. This will be especially appreciated by small and medium-sized businesses,“ says Alena Nováková, communications manager of the National Center for Industry 4.0, who also coordinates the joint presentation.
This year’s trade fair attraction will be a robotic cell demonstrating flexible modular production, using the example of scale models of batteries from electric cars in their process repairs for reuse. After disassembly and modification, car batteries can still be used elsewhere. This is not only an example of a sustainable solution, but also a project that is being implemented for the Slovak company ZTS in cooperation with DEL. During the fair, innovative solutions will be demonstrated in this cell. Visitors will see demonstrations of the use of a digital twin, virtual and augmented reality, data collection via 5G, data analytics and visualization, machine vision, and, of course, collaborative robotics. The important part is to use edge computing on the T-Mobile and Siemens platforms, which makes it possible to combine fast data collection and demanding calculations.
The robotic cell will be complemented by connected special workplaces where, thanks to SICK and T-Mobile technologies, workers will be trained in new technologies in augmented reality, or thanks to the digital twin of the cell realized in cooperation with the DEL, we will help in augmented reality to plan production and adapt it to changes . This cell, or digital twin , will be operated onof the so – called virtual start – up regime, which precisely in connection with virtual reality makes it possible to test various production scenarios without any intervention in real operation and thereby prepare for future changes in production, or simply adjust production to increase capacity. As part of energy sustainability, we will also monitor the consumption of energy and compressed air at the stand, use the data platform to visualize this data and suggest savings options. All this by using the fast and secure connection of the private industrial 5G network, which will be installed at the stand by T-Mobile, thanks to which it will be possible to try it virtually anywhere .
“Many companies and their representatives are still convinced that 5G technologies are currently still in the development phase and therefore unavailable. At the same time, the deployment of private 5G networks in industry is proof that this is no longer the case. They also often cannot imagine what the 5G network can do and what data and to what extent it can collect and process it in real time,“ says Luboš Lukasík, Director of the T-Business Division at T-Mobile. Siemens will present a comprehensive portfolio of solutions and products for fast, efficient and sustainable digital transformation.
„We will also present the Siemens Xcelerator platform, which facilitates the cooperation of companies in the field of industrial digitalization through a new generation of products built on uniform open standards. Czech companies and startups can join the partner ecosystem and use the new digital marketplace to reach customers from all over the world,“ František Podzimek, Head of Business Development at Siemens Digital Industries, describes the exhibition. The Siemens exhibition will also include solutions for maintenance including data analysis, using the potential of data from machines and equipment, technology for 5G data transmission and remote management or options for retrofits. An interesting feature is a demonstration of the use of industrial technologies in modern agriculture – the FRAVEBOT robot, which monitors the health of plants, in this case strawberries.
Thanks to the involvement of Česká spořitelna, fair guests will be able to get to know i financing options. Directly at the stand, representatives of the savings bank will show model examples of specific technology financing.
There will also be a demonstration of funding using currently available grants, especially for start- ups and small and medium-sized companies, for example through EIT Manufacturing, EDIH, and other international projects. Representatives of Česká spořitelna plan to provide interested parties with comprehensive advice aimed at strengthening the efficiency and competitiveness of companies.
„Our ambition is not only to support companies in the implementation of various innovative solutions, but especially to help them strengthen their competitiveness and added value. At the engineering fair, visitors will be able to get acquainted not only with financing options. They will also be able to do a DigiAudit to find out how they are doing with their own digitalization, and they will also be able to test for free how our consulting works, aimed at overall strengthening of their financial condition and competitiveness,“ emphasizes Pavel Kráčmar, Member of the Board of Directors of Česká spořitelna responsible for Corporate Banking.
„Connecting companies, universities and research institutions across Europe is the key to sustainable and prosperous industrial sector. The ecosystem centered around the National Centre for Industry 4.0 and EIT Manufacturing shows the concrete results of an open innovation community and offers the opportunity to engage and benefit from cooperation,“ says David Kameš , Senior Project Manager, EIT Manufacturing CLC East Vienna.
A robotic tap system will make the visit even more pleasant for the guests. We have also invited a number of experts from companies and academia, who will look at aspects of digitization and the introduction of innovations from different points of view as part of the accompanying program at Digistage.