Manufacturers have new ways to orchestrate and consume industrial data
As connectivity and computing power continues to spread throughout industrial enterprises, the availability of data has revolutionized how companies solve issues and adapt to changes. But producers continue to be challenged by the complexity of making data useful at the right place and time. They also lack in-house expertise for data management from the device through the cloud.
Rockwell Automation has a stated goal of enabling advanced analytics for manufacturing. Project Scio is the next step along that continuum. To make decisions when and where they matter most, a Project Scio platform reduces hurdles to unleashing information. The platform opens access to ad-hoc analytics and performs advanced analysis by pulling structured and unstructured data from virtually any existing source in the enterprise. It can also intelligently fuse related data, delivering analytics in intuitive dashboards – called storyboards – that users can share and view. Users then have the ability to perform self-serve drill downs to make better decisions, dramatically reducing the time to value.
“Providing analytics at all levels of the enterprise – on the edge, on-premises or in the cloud – helps users have the ability to gain insights not possible before,” said John Genovesi, vice president of Information Software, Rockwell Automation. “When users gain the ability to fuse multiple data sources and add machine learning, their systems could become more predictive and intelligent. Scio puts analytics to work for everyone. The scalable and open platform gives users secure, persona-based access to all data sources, structured or unstructured. And a configurable, easy-to-use interface means that all users can become self-serving data scientists to solve problems and drive tangible business outcomes.”
Key attributes of Project Scio include the following:
Device Auto-Discovery: Manually mapping software to each plant-floor device can be a time-consuming and error-prone process. The platform can auto-discover Rockwell Automation devices and tags, as well as third-party device data, to save time and help reduce risk. Additionally, the auto-discovery process gives users access to more detailed information than is typically available through manual mapping, such as device name, line location and plant location.
Leave Isolated Analytics Behind: Rather than leave data at its source and take database snapshots, the platform brings data into a centralized location and can continually refresh that data. Additionally, connections to data sources only need to be established once. This connection allows users to create custom analytics and refresh them at their preferred rate without the support of a data scientist.
Flexible Machine Learning (ML): Use the right ML algorithm for the right use case. The Project Scio platform is configurable to support many industry-leading algorithms, including SparkML, MLLib and Python.
Closed-Looped Analytics: Using either ML or predefined settings, the platform can monitor operations and automatically trigger control adjustments if processes start to fall outside allowable parameters. This can help users optimize control, improve product quality and consistency, and reduce scrap and waste.
Applications Marketplace: Rockwell Automation will introduce an applications marketplace for applications developed in-house and by third parties. The ability to access any data source and create custom analytics for each user’s application is a central feature. However, users can also take advantage of pre-engineered FactoryTalk Analytics applications from Rockwell Automation. These applications allow users to monitor common KPIs, such as OEE and quality, in a standardized way and without any configuration.
Open Platform: Industrial producers cannot be expected to rip and replace all their legacy control and information systems before gaining value from analytics. This scalable and open-architecture platform is designed to be extended to a full ecosystem of IIoT data sources. The quick connection to the full range of systems that feed data into a Connected Enterprise includes controllers, MES software and edge devices.
In addition to these Information Solutions, Rockwell Automation offers a full range of Connected Services which helps provide customers the ability to ensure network integrity, security, infrastructure design and maintenance, and remote monitoring of equipment including predictive maintenance. These services can help customers with every aspect of their Connected Enterprise journey, including developing an IIoT infrastructure and strategy, and providing remote monitoring and analytics.
