Enabling smart factory interoperability 

Industrial manufacturing, and the global regulatory system, will face significant challenges as we move towards fully connected, self-organising intelligent factories. Standing on the threshold of Industry 4.0, a new regulatory framework is therefore required, which adapts and evolves as smart manufacturing moves towards maturity.

The main cornerstone of Industry 4.0 is the convergence of enterprise IT and operational technology (OT). New generations of complex networks are being created as the boundaries between these two areas, previously largely separate, become increasingly indistinct, and IoT devices and new automation technologies are rapidly introduced. The challenge for machinery end users is to maintain secure functioning of their automated processes, while protecting their networks from unauthorised access or even attack. The challenge for global regulatory authorities is to catch-up with this new technological tidal wave, introducing compliance and certification requirements that meet industry’s business and safety needs.

The road to autonomy

Today, manufacturing lines depend on human supervision and decision-making to optimise operations. The production devices of tomorrow’s smart factory will be able to interpret their environment and autonomously react to it. 

Technology components can theoretically be combined to form a mature smart factory in the vision of Industry 4.0. However, each manufacturing device enters the production line with its own set of proprietary interfaces. In other words, the components each speak a different language. A new regulatory framework and certification approach will therefore be needed, which supports the smooth and dynamic interoperability among odd components. 

The solution is an electronic reproduction – a so-called ‘digital twin’, or ‘administration shell’ of each physical component. The digital twin contains the complete set of parameters of its physical sibling, as well as adaptive algorithms for decentralised self-optimisation and safety measures. Acting as an intermediary, the digital twin functions as a standardised interface between the smart components, facilitating flawless interoperability and delivering a dynamically reconfigurable system.

Ensuring compliance

Currently, industrial automation is a consolidated reality, with approximately 90 per cent of machines in factories being unconnected. These isolated and static systems mean that product safety (functional safety and security) can be comfortably assessed.

However, the connected world of Industry 4.0’s smart factories adds a new dimension of complexity in terms of machinery safety regulation challenges. IoT connects people and machines, enabling bidirectional flow of information and real-time decisions. Its diffusion is now accelerating with the reduction in size and price of the sensors, and with the need for the exchange of large amounts of data.

As we prepare for Industry 4.0, it is vital for the shifting landscape of risk to be taken into account. A smart factory will see reduced risk in several areas, such as fewer worker injuries as machines take over hazardous tasks. However, the increasing number of physical and digital interfaces, including interconnected devices controlled by intelligent dashboards, introduces a new set of vulnerabilities, risks and liability issues. Based on its complexity, a dynamically reconfigurable system requires a regulatory framework that delivers an integrated approach to safety assessment.

These flexible system architectures and self-configuring systems of Industry 4.0 will call for a new, modular method of certification that delivers integrated support for machinery end users as they progress towards Industry 4.0. The key benefit of modular certification is the major cost and time savings it contributes to the operation of adaptive self-configuring Industry 4.0 production systems. 

Our experts are therefore developing a modular certification scheme for smart factory components, addressing issues such as interface standards, interoperability, functional safety and IT security. Such a safety and security methodology represents the final crucial requirement necessary to realise the vision of tomorrow’s smart factory.