Experience the benefits of digitalisation for collecting useful operational data

The Fraunhofer Innovation Platform for Advanced Manufacturing is developing the Advanced Manufacturing Center (AMC) as part of the Advanced Manufacturing Program (AMP).

In the so-called ‘shop floor’ of FIP-AM@UT, a kind of test factory also known as the Advanced Manufacturing Center, various machines and demonstrators will be available to both Dutch and international companies. Here, companies can discover the benefits of digitalisation and test their innovation and digitalisation concepts in a realistic test environment before applying them on their own shop floor.

We see a need for an organised and structured connection between real and virtual assets, so that machines on and off the shop floor are connected to data systems such as PLM, ERP and CAD. Understanding how this data can be used in decision-making makes a clear difference within your company and can result in higher production capacity, lower costs and more effective production planning.

The main priorities of the AMC testbed are to demonstrate how different machines can be connected and to visualise operational information, so that the data can be used effectively. Because there is a wide variety of machines and IT architectures, it is important to investigate the feasibility of a general framework for connecting machines locally or remotely.

We can develop ‘what-if’ scenarios for using different machines in a digital environment. By combining real and simulated data, ‘personalised virtual dashboards’ can be created. These help companies to better understand and use their systems.