Digitalization is not an end in itself - it is a crucial tool for tackling the constant challenges in the production world. These challenges occur increasingly and with growing complexity, leaving no time for lengthy project implementations. In Part 7 of our blog series, we show you how to quickly answer questions in your shopfloor based on data.

Overview Blog Series Connectivity & Machine Data:

1. OPC UA: Blessing or Curse for Industry 4.0?

2. Digitalization Dilemma: Work for the Data or Work with the Data

3. From Euromap, Data Blocks, and Harmonized Data

4. Data Harmonization, or: What is my Throughput?

5. How Edge Devices Can Avoid Becoming Security Gaps

6. No More Closed Systems

7. With ENLYZE and Grafana Ready for All Challenges in Production

8. The Key to AI in Production

The Solution: Short Feedback Loops and Quick Iteration

Companies must be able to respond quickly and effectively to challenges by developing solutions independently and gradually. However, the current practice in digitalizing plants often does not allow this. Many companies rely on solutions from machine or software manufacturers. These systems are usually directly connected to the machine and installed on-site (on-premise). Access is either via the control panel (HMI) or a nearby computer. Access from outside the machine network is rarely possible, making analysis at the machine or a cumbersome data export necessary.

The relevance of certain representations or performance indicators (KPIs) depends on the respective challenges. Adjustments can usually only be made by the provider. Therefore, if a new value, a different representation, or a new KPI is needed, this requires external collaboration. If the provider even makes these changes, the process is generally both time-consuming and costly.

So how does the combination of ENLYZE and Grafana stand out?
ENLYZE is responsible for the secure provision of data, while Grafana serves as the platform where the solutions are implemented. Access to the dashboards can be done through the browser. This enables working and access from various locations - whether directly at the plant, on a large screen in the hall, from the office computer, from home office, or even mobile. All these representation options are supported. If other representations are needed, the feedback loops are short and within the company. This allows for quick responses to new requirements or situations.

Why Grafana?
In Part 6, we discussed a number of tools that are suitable for this task. We at ENLYZE use Grafana for our process monitoring and have had good experiences with it. It meets our requirements for visualizations, and alerts can be set up very easily and sent via channels like email, Slack, and MS Teams. 

Does Grafana Infrastructure Need to Be Self-Hosted?

You do not need to worry about setting up and managing Grafana infrastructure with ENLYZE. We take care of hosting the instance so that you can fully concentrate on the use cases. However, there is also the option to use ENLYZE with self-hosted Grafana infrastructure.

Process Monitoring Against Skilled Labor Shortages

A common use case is the use of status dashboards in manufacturing. The shortage of skilled workers means that fewer employees are responsible for more machines. Traditional alarm systems such as lights and acoustic warning signals require those responsible to be in close proximity.

Through mobile devices or large screens in the production hall, the status of machines can be quickly recognized and interventions can be made if needed. Mobile notifications also help to draw attention to a machine at the right moment while other tasks can be accomplished. Employees gain more autonomy and can keep an eye on more machines at the same time. Additionally, it helps to keep the objective in sight when the most important metrics are always present.

If more machines or KPIs need to be displayed than can fit on one page, playlists can be set up. This allows for multiple dashboards to rotate through specified times and sequences. 

Early Detection of Problems

Early detection and resolution of problems is also possible with ENLYZE and Grafana. The dashboard should be tailored to a specific machine and reflect the most important metrics and trends. The typical target audience is production managers, and two aspects are the focus of the dashboards: the quick recognition of the current state and monitoring the long-term behavior of the machine.

The current state of the machine is quickly recognizable through the selected KPIs at the top left and in the lower part of the dashboard. Long-term changes are visible through the displayed time series, such as contamination causing a slowly increasing pressure. Alarms can be set up that send a notification to a Microsoft Teams channel when a threshold is exceeded. 

Multiple Locations at a Glance

The last example shows how machine data from multiple locations can be used for a high-level overview. The ENLYZE platform provides not only pure machine data but also the ability to calculate KPIs such as the OEE. These can then provide a quick statement about the productivity of a site or multiple sites together when combined with a graphical representation of the utilization of the machines.

Even More Use Cases

Every process has different critical parameters that must not be exceeded or fallen below. Custom dashboards and rules can be defined that the experts in your company know best. For maintenance, an overview focusing on motor speeds and gearbox temperatures could be set up. Energy management could benefit from custom energy dashboards that evaluate the effect of cost-saving measures. Or quality monitoring gets its overview of the most important quality characteristics and tolerances, allowing for quick assessments of whether a complaint was justified or not.

If you have been inspired by these examples and have more useful ideas for your company in mind, then we have achieved our goal with this blog post. The ability to implement ideas easily and not be dependent on lengthy software projects is not only a benefit for your company but also motivates your employees.