Maintenance Technology October 2016 - 39

INDUSTRIAL INTERNET OF THINGS

IIoT Strategies Paying Off
For Manufacturers

recent study from Genpact Research
Institute, New York, reveals that funding
for IIoT manufacturing initiatives is well
underway and that by the end of 2016,
two-thirds of manufacturers expect to be using
connected technology. Half of the manufacturers in
the survey said they have been using IIoT sensors
and related technology for at least a year.
Connected devices that help improve asset
management and boost reliability are here to stay.
Recent posts on maintenancetechnology.com/
iot reveal several pilot projects and case studies
involving asset-management initiatives, including
compressed air and transmission substations at
American Electric Power (AEP), Columbus, OH.
The driver for the AEP project has a familiar
ring: aging assets and changing dynamics. In this
example, however, AEP also needed "better criteria
(data benchmarking) to [justify replacing] these
assets for energy regulators," according to Jeff
Fleeman, vice president at BOLD Transmission, an
AEP subsidiary.
While energy regulators controlled the purse
strings in this instance, the application shows how
a "predictive" business outcome moved this project:
reliability for customers through stable delivery of
high-voltage electricity to substations. See this case
study at bit.ly/mtiot001.
Some manufacturing executives are still wrestling with IIoT strategies and business outcomes.
According to the Genpact survey, "only 25% believe
they have a clear IIoT strategy, while 24% are happy
with [their strategy's] current execution."
Power producers, such as AEP, have seen the
benefits of "low-hanging fruit" pilot projects that are
an extension of third-party maintenance services
with mature digital solutions. Other industries, such
as wastewater, pulp and paper, and machine OEMs,
are also getting into the act.
A recent co-presentation at the ARC Forum
in July 2016 by Mitsubishi Electric, Atlanta, and
the Schaeffler Group, Germany, highlighted three
applications involving these industries and their
move to condition-monitoring systems.
These applications include a sensing system,
a device, and an entire production line being
connected to a cloud-based network. The wasteOCTOBER 2016

water case study details the return on investment
and overall costs for a new condition-monitoring
system for pump gearboxes at a German utility. Four
months after installation, the company identified
a $3,680 savings by eliminating gearwheel defects.
Also, the process avoided a gearbox overhaul and
loss of service.
In the paper-mill application, personnel at a
Mitsubishi HiTec Paper mill added 26 vibration
sensors to better monitor a cooling system for its
four-story, coated, thermo-sensitive paper system.

Mitsubishi cloud-based system

Grant Gerke
Contributing Editor

The illustration shows
the components
of the cloud-based
system used in the
Mitsubishi-Schaeffler
applications.

After installing the sensors, at a cost of $28,630,
the paper manufacturer avoided three failures,
service loss, and machine damage, resulting in an
$11,790 savings. As a result, the technology is being
implemented in a second plant.
The third application involves a
bearing-production line at a facility of
worldwide automotive supplier Schaeffler.
The company wanted to better monitor
machine conditions and to maintain
quality levels with a fully integrated
systems approach. This included transferThe Internet of Things is
ring the data to SAP Enterprise Resource
changing the maintenance
Planning software with robust networking
and reliability world. Keep
solutions that include analog-to-digital
up to date with our ongoing
gateways for plant-floor-level sensing.
coverage of this exciting use
Schaeffler personnel described the ROI
of data and technology at
as "priceless" and are implementing the
maintenancetechnology.com/iot.
system in other plants. The presentation
can be downloaded at bit.ly/mtiot002. MT
MAINTENANCETECHNOLOGY.COM | 39

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Maintenance Technology October 2016