Multi-location - digitization: the vaccine that the metal industry needs

This situation has turned the trend for digitization that we spoke of a few years ago into a matter of urgency and an obligatory task for those industries that want to be able to look to the future with optimism. We are aware that factories are facing a situation which is, at times, complicated and the downtime caused by the pandemic doesn’t help... or does it? Being able to react and be resilient in order to overcome crisis situations should be part of any business’ everyday life.

The industrial sector stands out as being one of the main economic driving forces in many countries and also one that applies the latest technologies to its productive processes. It has never been more evident that we must dig deep and accelerate the change in the way that we work in order to face possible future events.

It’s time for factories to get to work and rethink their business by implementing resilience strategies and putting their trust in the tools that are available to all. Digitization, along with IT and multi-location, are two of them. Separately, each brings its own benefits, but combined they allow us to face challenges more effectively and implement measures to reduce the impact, better preparing the industry to transform a situation that appears to be a threat into an opportunity.

But what motivates companies to multi-locate their production and what are the ideal conditions for doing this? Why is it a good formula to follow and what should be taken into account by any factory, regardless of its size? The common response to all of these questions lies in the change in scenario implied by the modification of dynamic production and the search for solutions that enable competitiveness and the profitability of each company to be increased. The metal transformation sector is not immune, and neither should it be, to this praxis.

However, and as noted earlier, talking about multi-location also implies doing so with technology and innovation, the automation of processes, the cloud, IoT/IIoT and artificial intelligence, smart data, manufacturing execution systems (MES) for controlling processes and ERP, the ability to adapt and quality, and the one who acts first will gain in competitive advantage and will be able to add a differentiating factor to their production. Ultimately, talking about multi-location implies talking about Industry 4.0 and more intelligent ways of organizing production. The multi-location - digitization binomial has been celebrated as one of the best business strategies in order to compete globally and, the way that production is currently contemplated, one would not be possible without the other.

At Lantek, our aim is to prevent production from stopping and for the metal and sheet metal transformation industry to be able to manufacture in a better, more intelligent, efficient and sustainable way. This is the mantra that is etched into our minds and that motivates us to keep innovating and contributing with our developments in streamlining and increasing the flexibility of production.

Allowing the manufacturing processes to be managed and optimized with real-time control of all of the different activities taking place at the production plant, regardless of its location, making it possible to balance the workload between the factories, even if they are in different locations, according to the demand, implies a boost in the organization’s efficiency and productivity levels, guaranteeing first class client support and reducing costs.

Thanks to technological innovation, factories, machines and processes can be interconnected and coordinated via the cloud, making it possible to satisfy the integration requirements between companies and/or manufacturing plants, promoting uniform and standardized processes and the improvement of productive processes. This allows our industry to be better prepared when it comes to reacting to changes quickly and smoothly in order to provide maximum value for clients while using minimum resources.

Surviving the current turning point and discussing the future in order to build a more intelligent industry. will only be possible by combining and supporting latest generation working methods, reviewed economic and business models and even corporate cultures that are fitting and in accordance with present times. Would you like nonstop production?

The aim is for companies in the metal sector to be able to transform their productive processes in order to be more competitive and profitable, regardless of the location of their factories. For this reason, our road map involves continuing with the task of optimizing and developing innovative proposals that help to achieve the goal of uninterrupted production.