Industry 4.0 is gaining popularity due to rapid improvements made in the cyber-computing capabilities.

– Safar Mohammad Khan

Deputy General Manager- HDD, Apollo Techno Industries

What do you think are the latest ‘smart technology’ trends in the manufacturing sector, especially in the manufacturing of construction and mining equipment and what do you think is the impact of this on the manufacturing processes, enterprise value chain and supply chain?

Smart manufacturing is a technology-driven approach that utilizes Internet-connected machinery to monitor the production process to the supply chain management even to the customers through cyber physical systems. The goal of ST is to identify opportunities for automating operations and use data analytics to improve manufacturing performance.

Smart Technology in Manufacturing consists of industry 4.0 which is the new industrial revolution nowadays. The Industry 4.0 is already influencing sectors like HDD manufacturing/construction and mining equipment, supply chain management, construction, shipping etc. and shall impact all the aspects of our day-to-day activities.

Industry 4.0 is gaining popularity due to rapid improvements made in the cyber-computing capabilities in the last few decades. The gap between the virtual and the real world has narrowed by advanced technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT) and others so as to create an interoperable platform between Information Technology (IT) and actual physical operations. The term Industry 4.0 refers to the leveraging of cyber physical domains in association with latest technologies like AI, IoT, Cloud computing, AR, 3D printing etc. to enhance productivity. The Industry 4.0 is already influencing  our HDD  and other  road construction equipment sectors. Entire system is well connected with cyber physical systems, computer , network communications, big data and cloud computing etc. that also well connected with the supply chain management also. It is truly considered to be a disruptive technology.

Smart manufacturing technology with us at our Apollo plant integrates all the production systems and supply chain. Stages of production monitors itself, Cyber physical systems control and monitor physical processes, 3D printing and data analytics are well planned with our SAP which is well integrated systems with us. We have all devices connected in manufacturing plant, all distributors and suppliers are connected through wireless and internet. We are under the implementation of modeling, visulazation and simulation of manufacturing process possible using big data.

Mass customization, flexible production, increase production speed, higher product quality, decrease error rates, data driven simulations, better customers proximity, improved work life eventually the profitability are the main advantages of the  smart technology. This integrated system makes things well accurate with higher quality in an optimum time in our manufacturing process even in supply chain systems and makes the enterprise value high and more profitable eventually.

Can you elaborate on the manufacturing philosophy and production principles of your company?

We follow the right process, just in time (JIT) manufacturing philosophy in all our production units. We follow the philosophy of achieving the complete elimination of all waste in pursuit of the most efficient methods.

We follow the planning, direction and execution of production activities of HDD Machines. The ultimate goal of any production management solution is to convert a collection of raw materials into a finished product to the distribution (sales).

An efficient production management solution will also deliver products at the time they are required by the market at the lowest achievable cost. We have a successful production management solution requires the optimum utilisation of production capacity in order to reduce costs to a minimum.

We follow the shorter set-up times to speed up the fast production process. We do follow the small scale production principle according to demand. This results in lower set-up, capital and energy costs. Empowering employees – We divide workforce into small teams with the assignments and evaluate the efficiency . Teams are assigned leaders, and the workers within those teams are trained on maintenance issues, allowing them to deal with delays in the production process immediately. Pull production – we follow the JIT (just in time), this principle is aimed to producing goods according solely to the demand to the customer at any given time which eliminates unnecessary costs. We also involve supplier to understand the components and the raw material to integrate all the components of the production process led to number of benefits. We also provide training on machinery, inventory systems and set up procedures on shop floor.

How do these principles help in ensuring ‘zero defects’, ‘environment-friendliness’ and ‘safety’ in your production processes and supply chain? Brief us on the on-going / on-the-pipeline initiatives to make your manufacturing more sustainable?

We know that technically it is impossible to have zero defects. But based on the quality targets and customer requirements, we can set an acceptable quality level for the products and services. Zero defects are not a program, but it is a condition in quality management where the processes are streamlined, and wastage is controlled to ensure minimal waste. It is not a state which has zero wastage. Therefore, zero defects are not completely achievable. Still, the business takes the initiative to ensure that the quality standards are well-maintained and the defects are reduced to the possible extent.

We follow to keep all scientific elements to maintain the quality. Quality is important to assure that all the important factors of production are taken care of making way for good processes and procedures. We encourage the constant improvement to achieve the zero defect.

Our workshop, assembly lines are having adequate lighting to perform the work safely. Sufficient ventilation are provided in the cutting and welding areas, we have certain gadgets which controls the noise on the shop floor. Several equipments have been fitted to get rid from the harmful dust, mist, and fumes in our workshop. We adopt proper safety guidelines on the shop floor.

Below are the basic guidelines applied strictly :

• Only fully trained and authorized personnel should be permitted to operate machinery.
• Machine guards should not be removed, defeated or blocked while the equipment is in operation or when power is on prior to operating.
• Machinery should not be cleaned, lubricated or repaired while in motion. Before any maintenance work is attempted, the machine should be completely shut down. The control switch should be locked to prevent accidental starting and power should be disconnected prior to repairs.
• Oily rags, waste and other materials saturated with combustible substances should be disposed of in metal containers equipped with self-closing lids. These cans should be clearly marked for the disposal of oily waste materials only.
• Personnel should not wear loose clothing, long sleeves or neckties while working in the shop. Long hair should be tied back to prevent entanglement in moving parts. Gloves, rings and other jewelry should not be worn while working on moving machinery.

Sustainable manufacturing is the creation of manufactured products through economically-sound processes that minimize negative environmental impacts while conserving energy and natural resources. Sustainable manufacturing also enhances employee, community and product safety.

We are increasing operational efficiency by reducing the cost and waste. We are also trying to eliminate waste and we keep working on to eliminate or reduce pollution, recycling the waste, recovering energy, not to turn into the heat, saving the time are some initiatives to make manufacturing more sustainable.

To what extent has your company imbibed digital technologies on manufacturing and how have you been able to leverage the digital platforms / flexible and scalable technology in your manufacturing set up?

We as a manufacturer have accelerated the digital transformation journey by developing new technologies, such as AI tools, edge, data lakes, IOT, new connectivity standards, advance analytics, and robotics in our manufacturing capacity in our all HDD Units. We are in position to implement industry
4.0, fourth industrial revolution associated with data automation, data exchange and digital technology. We are in rigorous transformation in our manufacturing capacity. Industry 4.0 and the digitalization will be well implemented in all our machines and will be executed machine maintenance too that will help us to make flexible in our manufacturing capacity.

What do you think are the major challenges in replacing the legacy system with newer and smarter technologies?

We are facing the major challenges replacing the legacy systems such as exorbitant maintenance costs, data silos that prevent integration between systems, lack of compliance to governmental regulations, and reduced security, skilled and trained professionals are also lacked. We are also lacking the technical knowledge on time. These issues eventually outweigh the convenience of continuing to use an existing legacy system. We don’t have much knowledge on the legal and other compliance systems so that we can manage the risk factor. Legal compliance are required in an updated manner to us specially to manage data centres. Cyber law is not well known to us which is highly required to take care the intellectual property. We also feel for a new labor law required as per the Industry 4.0 and digitalization and concerns on cyber security also.

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