Industry – Interview

Interview with Engelbert Westkämper

Westkämper: There are several building blocks. The first step is a geometric image—a replica of the factory that can be scaled from coarse through medium to fine. The second step is a dynamic representation of what's happening in the factory. And the third step is modeling and simulation at the process engineering level. The digital factory gives planners and designers tools they can use to optimize production sites or to run through a planned change in advance. R&D scientists, planners, suppliers and operators can use the same database as others in the company, such as engineers and consultants. We can implement changes much faster because a number of experts can work on a task at the same time. This cuts costs, because it ensures consistency and data correctness. And, of course, simulation makes it possible to optimize things with greater precision.

Doesn't this approach produce an incredibly large volume of data?

Westkämper: Of course it does. That's because we're dealing with many things that have a life cycle. A factory building normally lasts 30 years, but it doesn't stay the same for 30 years. Machines and systems have an average life span of ten years; in some cases only five years. Something is always being changed. If the digital replica is to remain up-to-date at all times, you must be able to track each change on the computer at any time. Creating nothing more than an image is simple. But if you want to make engineering changes—say a major modification or an expansion—you've got to get into the details of the electronics and down to the last nuts and bolts. These different perspectives are necessary because many experts participate in the process. They all want the latest information, and that's what makes the job so difficult.

Is a lack of standards part of the challenge?

Westkämper: Some standards already exist. But so far they haven't been consistent. What's more, older equipment must also be integrated. But more often than not, the problem is that machine documentation isn't available or doesn't reflect the current status. For instance, it may not tell us if and when repairs or modifications have been made. Because of this it is difficult to tell how long it will take to assemble and store the missing data. This is one of the critical factors that will determine whether or not it will be possible to implement the digital factory within the next five years.

What can be done today to collect the missing data efficiently?

Westkämper: It won't take long to create great 3D images. Present-generation CAD systems can handle that. We're working on various scanner technologies that will enable us to scan factories with a laser. That will give us the ability to produce images from a distance of 50 to 80 m. But sooner or later the machines or systems themselves will have to supply their information. At that point plug-and-play will have entered the industrial world. What's more, we'll be able to watch the action in the factory as it happens.

Westkämper: Well, yes, it was. But we didn't have enough computing power to visualize the action at real-time speeds. Today we're using virtual reality (VR). Virtual reality lets us visualize movements and processes—and move around in the factory. But the challenge isn't to visualize fantasy worlds, it's to see things as they really are in operation. And to do that we need appropriate models and programs.

Aren't VR displays costly?

Westkämper: No. VR displays can now be created on ordinary PCs. However, we would like to represent machine controllers—in other words, their programs—in these images as well. Only in this way will it be possible to subsequently interact with processes. Now that's really a tall order, because the graphic representation alone is very complicated. After all, we're dealing with a situation in which vast volumes of data are changing very rapidly. But the greatest challenge is to represent an entire factory this way, complete with all its robots.

When do you expect this concept of the digital factory to become reality?

Westkämper: In all probability, the digital factory in the form I've just described—including the technological models—won't come into being before 2010. But there's no doubt that it will be used across the board by all industrial companies—especially when the issue is planning, optimizing, or resolving logistics issues. However, this new type of factory will also be capable of handling conversions and upgrades.

You mentioned plug-and-play. What would that require?

Westkämper: First and foremost, consistent standards in information systems and in the way machines and systems communicate with each other. Penetration of electronic components into our factories still has a ways to go. Machines must become more intelligent as well as being capable of self-organization and self-adaptation. Only then will it be possible to endow individual components with pertinent information, to read the data remotely and, by the same token, to perform remote upgrades and maintenance. Ultimately, the key question is this: Will humans also be able to interact with machines?

Do you expect remote maintenance and diagnostics to become commonplace?

Westkämper: To some extent they're already available today, and you can add remote service to that. But we're moving a step beyond that. We want to be able to optimize and, if necessary, rectify processes from anywhere. In my opinion, so-called teleoperations—that is, the monitoring and technical support of machines and systems, perhaps verging on remote operation—will experience massive growth in coming years.

How can safety be ensured and misuse prevented?

Westkämper: Security issues and the protection of know-how are new issues in this context, but they can be resolved. This isn't about operating power plants remotely. In manufacturing there are many systems that pose no safety risk. We can use the new technological opportunities to create virtual workstations and new ways of increasing output.

What exactly does a virtual workstation look like?

Westkämper: We're using VR here to replicate the processes that go on in the factory. This approach enables us to recreate entire systems as well as details (such as measured values) and to project them onto a large surface. This interface enables experts, even from a remote location and across long distances, to interact very simply and make changes in parameters, control settings, sequences and processes. At Expo 2000 in Hanover, we demonstrated that this is possible and we're currently pushing ahead to speed up developments in this area. We intend to further explore this area in order to learn how far we can go, and what benefits these new technologies may provide. One aspect is making systems and machines Web-capable so that they can be accessed via the Internet.

Does this mean that factories will eventually be operated by robots that communicate with each other and work together?

Westkämper: What will basically happen is that automation will progress in all areas. But that's nothing new. In production units in Germany, for instance, the number of robots in use has increased by between 5 and 8 % annually. But that number is likely to actually decline if the next generation works twice as fast or can be used even more flexibly. Technological development, simulation and optimization will result in performance increases of about 30 to 40 % over the next ten years. About half the present number of machines will then be able to achieve the same result. Consequently, factories will continue to become smaller, and the number of jobs is sure to decline.

When everything we've been discussing is accomplished, will there still be a place for people in tomorrow's factories?

Westkämper: Humans will always be involved in designing, developing, operating and engineering industrial facilities. In the words of Frederick Taylor, human beings will become scientific managers who apply knowledge and methods to optimize operations. As we reach for the limits and even strive to surpass them, we'll always need people. Only humans can understand the relationships between facts and meanings. As a result, industrial jobs will continue to call for ever more highly qualified employees.

Interview conducted by Evdoxia Tsakiridou