Page 9 - Metroid Mag - November 2016_Neat2

METROID MAG 9

INNOVATION
4

TRENDS IN

MANUFACTURING

Amid an increasingly globalised economy, manufacturing in Australia in recent
years has faced some very difficult times. In order to survive, manufacturers need
to invest in and drive technological innovation in every part of their business.
Let’s have a look at some of the main trends in manufacturing innovation and
technology today.

1. IoT and data-driven analytics 2. Customisation 3. Robotics
The Internet of Things (IoT) is a concept which Manufacturing, particularly in developed Industrial robots have been around since the
describes how everyday physical devices and countries like Australia, is no longer about 1950’s. But robotics today is more advanced
objects can be connected to the Internet, to mass production. Consumers expect a and intelligent than ever - from flexible robots
relay information about themselves. more customised, tailored product to that can be easily ‘re-trained’ to perform new
In a manufacturing context, the implementa- suit their needs. Successful manufactur- tasks, to robots designed to ‘co-work’ with
tion of IoT can enable real-time visibility into ers have leveraged this shift in consumer humans (known as cobotics). Still, particularly
every stage of your production process; it can thinking and offered a customisable in Asia, robots continue to take the place of
monitor and track the movements of staff, raw product or ‘experience’ to their custom- factory workers - Foxconn earlier this year
materials and finished products; the IoT con- ers - and they’re reaping the benefits in replaced 60,000 workers with a number of
cept can even be the kernel of a completely increased sales and customer loyalty. industrial robots.
new product or service you can offer the mar-
ket. Pure data collection is not enough: lead-
ing manufacturers are leveraging computing
resources to analyse vast volumes of collected
data, in view of recommending and implement-
ing process changes to optimise production
capacity and efficiency.

Baxter is an industrial robot developed by Rethink Robotics
that can be ‘trained’ to do tasks rather than programmed.

4. 3D printing
3D printing, or additive manufacturing, is the
process whereby a 3D shape can be ‘printed’
by building up layers into a pre-determined
shape, using materials such as plastics,resins
or even metals. It’s a disruptive technology
which many manufacturers are particularly us-
ing in prototyping: a prototype part or assem-
bly can be 3D-printed at a fraction of the cost
or lead time of a conventionally manufactured
part.

According to NCTA, the number of internet
connected devices will exceed 50 billion by 2020.

Not every innovation trend is suited to every manufacturer. But it’s
critically important to analyse your current operations and how
you can ride the technology wave to keep ahead of your
competition and keep your customers loyal. Lab22 at CSIRO offers advanced 3D printing services
in materials such as sand, titanium, aluminium, etc.