Hexagon’s Manufacturing Intelligence division has launched a new digitalisation solution, Digital Factory, to help manufacturers build accurate digital replicas of their plants. It enables manufacturers to optimise floor plans and quickly pivot production lines, and prepare for smarter and more sustainable future factories with open interfaces that enable digital twins of shop-floor assets. Such solutions could save a global manufacturing company millions of pounds a year by avoiding costly mistakes and offering a 50% reduction in travel costs and on-site training. 

Hexagon addresses this issue through its expertise in: reality capture and surveying equipment; software to visualise, explore and simulate scenarios in 3D; and high-productivity cloud-native collaboration workflows. Digitalisation technologies are a proven technology with over two decades of use in civil infrastructure, architecture and public safety. However, their potential has yet to see full realisation in the manufacturing space, where significant disruption now requires manufacturers to rethink their production equipment and use of space.

According to research, 32% of manufacturers believe that outdated or ineffective manual processes and workflows are barriers to productivity and collaboration. Digital Factory is a future-ready alternative to traditional factory planning that enables manufacturerstoramp up productivity and increase efficiency in remodelling, preventing costly mistakes. It also empowers more efficient collaboration between manufacturing and operations teams from anywhere in the world. The core of the solution is improved access to up-to-date data in immersive virtual environments that reflect reality, addressing a major barrier that smart factory initiatives face today. 

Hexagon offers complete workflows to ensure manufacturers achieve the maximum value, from scanning the factory and processing the data into actionable 3D models for various applications, to managing the data in the cloud.

More information www.bit.ly/4eiiB3J

“ProTube Enterprise is the Manufacturing Execution System [MES] developed by our Software Division for production management of BLM Group’s tube processing, cutting and bending machines, with an awareness of the ever-increasing importance of software in the development of advanced manufacturing solutions,” says Paolo Benatti (pictured), technical director of BLM Group’s Software Division. “Now, the system is being extended to embrace sheet metal processing. ProTube Enterprise therefore changes its name and becomes Prometheus, keeping the fundamental aspects unchanged: a single communication interface with the customer’s ERP, a single order and job management system, a single planning system, and a single monitoring dashboard.”

The extension of production management to sheet metal laser cutting represents a major step forward in offering integrated solutions. Through a single management system, the customer has a complete and unified view of all production processes, regardless of the technology used. This allows for greater flexibility and ease in the planning and execution of jobs. Through the communication interface, enriched for unified tube and sheet metal management, the customer can interact directly with orders, monitor production progress, manage any rejects by preparing corresponding completion orders if necessary, and receive notifications in real time.

“Thanks to Prometheus, the customer can constantly monitor the status of the machines, control production in real time, and intervene promptly in case of any problems such as redirecting production from a machine stopped for maintenance to another,” says Benatti. “With Prometheus, the user does not perceive the technological differences of the various

connected machines, but rather a same management mode for all plants, which facilitates the operator.”

More information www.blmgroup.com