On Thursday November 13th, PROFIday Netherlands took place. 150 industrial visitors found themselves in the Evoluon in Eindhoven. The 23 participating PI Netherlands members organized a wonderful day, where visitors were able to attend an educational program. With the varied program, there was something for everyone. See the full report here.
Representatives from the Chamber of Commerce, Frank Kramer and Tom Bouws provided the opening. As co-authors of the report “Smart Industry”, they informed visitors of the opportunities in Smart Industry. We must not confuse Smart Industry with Industry 4.0; they are related to one another, but not the same.
The definition “Smart Industry” was defined as a high degree of flexibility in production. Examples from the consumer world include the smart thermostat Anna, 3D printing components, and customized cabinet production. They also highlighted a number of industrial applications, such as the integration of sensors in a forklift, a solution for automatically monitoring a refrigerated display, and also a self-learning robot. In all cases, sensors and the exchange of information played a leading role. For the industrial market, the introduction of Smart Industry is a conversion for businesses, where new revenue models can be introduced.
‘Smart Industry’ plan
The Tuesday before the PROFIday, the Smart Industry Action Agenda was presented to Minister of Economic Affairs Henk Kamp. A small summary of this was covered in the talk at PROFIday. Leading in this plan is to secure all existing knowledge, accelerate the establishment of Field Labs (practical test centers of companies and research institutions investigating automation, flexible manufacturing and zero defect production, big data, and customer intimacy).
After this general introduction Rob Hulsebos made the connection directly to industrial networks. “Let’s not reinvent the wheel” was the message to the Chamber of Commerce, “but use the knowledge of industrial communication which is already far with development.” As a networking expert, Rob Hulsebos described his vision of industrial networks in 2020.
Important topics were standardization, Industry 4.0 / Smart Industry, Internet of Things (IoT), TCP / IP V6 migration, cyber security, and the cloud.
After the first break the group was divided into three rooms, each with a different topic. Within PI, Jaap Westeneng of Endress+Hauser, Walter Stoops from Pepperl+Fuchs and Theo Bervoets from Auma organized a joint presentation about the integration of HART into PROFIBUS DP. Step by step questions were answered; How do we integrate HART devices in PROFIBUS and PROFINET networks? How can we customize the existing installation that is guaranteed for the future and how we get access to HART and PROFIBUS devices and what can we do with them?
IO-Link
On the PROFIday there was a lot of attention on IO-Link, an international standard according to IEC61131-9 guidelines which uses a three wire connection and M12, M8, and M5 connectors. IO-Link also belongs to the PI organization, which ensures a large number of suppliers that support the protocol. That IO-Link is a wonderful addition to industry 4.0 was told by Marcel Vennemann from Turck. Peter Wienzek from ifm Electronic also explained the basics of IO-Link. Afterwards, Edwin Slot directly showed this in practice through a demonstration not only with components from ifm but also other members.
Safety
Safety was also a topic due to its criticality for massive movements, like bridges, harbor cranes, and conveyors. Components in applications must be able to come to a guaranteed stop or at least realize a safe speed. Otto Waagmeester from SEW-Eurodrive gave a concise explanation on why certain controls are preferred.
Signal quality
Many members were present with components that contribute to signal quality. Quality was a subject that was well represented at PROFIday NL. First, Charles Preeker from Weidmüller gave the visitors a checklist on how to create the best possible network. Maurice Felten from Felten Wire & Cable Solutions gave the crowd advice on how to convert signals from copper to optical fiber. Finally, Sjoerd Hakstege from Phoenix Contact and Eric Leijtens from TE Connectivity gave presentations on wireless and contactless connectivity (respectively).
Bart Pape from Systeme Helmholz discussed troubleshooting and diagnostics while Bas de Koningh gave a number of tips to set up a proper PROFINET infrastructure.
Robust and proven
There was also plenty attention for the PROFIBUS, as people are not always searching for the latest innovations in a conventional market. Often this means an investment in a proven technology so a talk with a basic explanation of PROFIBUS also attracted plenty of attention. PROFIBUS has enough features to go on for decades. The possibilities were shown in a workshop from PROCENTEC, whereby specific failures can be searched and resolved in a network.
It was a day full of discussions and the visitors were enthusiastic about the lectures, workshops, and knowledge sessions. With enough room for questions within the program, it was a successful day. In addition to a successful day we as PI Netherlands can contribute to Smart Industry with knowledge by bringing companies and end users together.