industry 4.0 / smart factories solar array on manufacturing plant roof
Power resilience:
mitigating the risks and reaPing the rewards of a net zero industry 4.0
Industry 4.0 and the move to smart factories represent huge opportunities for British manufacturing, through increased productivity and greater connection across processes and throughout the supply chain. However, as we move towards net zero, and in the current climate where energy crises are top stories on every news bulletin, there are evident risks. Here, Alastair Morris, chief commercial officer of Powerstar, considers the question of power resilience. In an ever-more automated and digitised world, he looks at options for balancing Industry 4.0 with a net zero future.
in a recent study by autosys industrial solutions. these include 35 to 40 per cent improvements in asset utilisation; 35 to 40 per cent reductions in equipment downtime, and a massive 65 to 70 per cent improvement in overall productivity. data harnessing across all production processes; the use of feedback loops to automatically improve processes; the interconnectivity of production equipment and data to other business processes all contribute to increased productivity potential. however, alastair morris, chief commercial
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officer of Powerstar, notes,“this rapid progress in digitisation is not without risk. energy disruption has always been a threat to productivity in factories and manufacturing plants across the uk, impacting on profitability. the office of national statistics estimates that the current cost of downtime in British manufacturing equates to £180 billion, each year. the increasingly
he striking operational and productivity benefits for manufacturing from this latest phase in the industrial revolution are detailed
interconnected nature of industry 4.0 means an even greater requirement for a stable and uninterrupted power supply. it’s common for manufacturers to protect critical equipment or processes using a traditional uPs - an uninterrupted power supply that protects isolated, individual equipment. But the increased interconnectivity that underpins industry 4.0 means this will no longer be a viable solution. the traditional uPs that would have kept a production line running will be wholly inadequate, as all of the equipment feeding the line - the robotics, the software necessary throughout the production cycle, right through to dispatch systems - all of these will require the same level of energy supply security and uninterrupted power.” the question of power resilience has been at the
fore, recently. as last month showed, an essentially wind-free september led to a significant reduction in power generated through renewables. given the shift to net zero, both the legislative imperative and the public push for carbon emission reduction, the
national grid is anticipating a five-fold increase in energy demands in the coming years. last year, 40 per cent of British power came from renewable sources and the department for Business, energy & industrial strategy is predicting an increase to 58 per cent from renewable sources by 2027. yet renewable energy is an inherently inflexible source of power when compared to traditional fossil fuels. add to this the increasing electricity demand due to the public and private sector shift towards net zero and a national grid that admits its infrastructure is ageing and becoming less than fit-for-purpose. the balancing act between industry 4.0 and a carbon neutral economy is a problem which manufacturers must consider to maintain productivity and profitability and truly reap the rewards of smart factories. the focus, then, will need to be on power resilience, and on implementing a future-proof energy management strategy. looking at the current and growing impact of net zero, morris comments,“the uk’s
continued on page 16... factory&handlingsolutions | octoBer 2021 15
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