by Gary Mintchell | Oct 4, 2024 | Generative AI, Operations Management, Software
Mainstream media, bloggers, and YouTubers join marketers with opinions and expectations surrounding Augmented (Artificial) Intelligence (AI) especially with the breakout of energy-guzzling Large Language Models (LLMs).
Despite the hype, I have seen a few actual applications of embedding an LLM into software applications. So, the product development engineers among us (I used to be one) must ask themselves—can we turn this into a product?
Well, a company called Tecton announced last month a platform expansion that is said to unlock the full potential of Generative AI in enterprise applications. They say that they empower AI teams to build reliable, high-performing systems by infusing LLMs with comprehensive, real-time contextual data.
Their argument for the limited adoption of LLMs thus far is “the unpredictable nature of LLMs when faced with dynamic business environments. This stems from LLMs’ lack of up-to-date, domain-specific knowledge and real-time contextual awareness. The true value of AI for enterprises lies in leveraging their unique, company-specific data to create customized solutions that are deeply connected to all aspects of their business.”
That is a valid point.
Tecton enhances retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) applications by integrating comprehensive, real-time data from across the enterprise. This approach augments the retrieved candidates with up-to-date, contextual information, enabling the LLM to make more informed decisions. The outcome is hyper-personalized, context-aware AI applications capable of split-second accuracy in dynamic environments. For instance, an e-commerce AI could instantly consider a customer’s browsing behavior, inventory levels, and current promotions to retrieve the most relevant product candidates, significantly improving recommendation quality and conversion rates.
Check out the details at their website.
by Gary Mintchell | Oct 3, 2024 | Operations Management, Software
Amazon stumbled into quite a business when it developed Web Services. Of course, Microsoft and Google entered the market proving it’s a real market. AWS has been gaining ground in the industrial software space. This news comes from PTC announcing that its Onshape business has announced entry into a Strategic Collaboration Agreement with Amazon Web Services (AWS).
The objective is said to accelerate the growth of its Onshape cloud-native computer-aided design (CAD) and product data management (PDM) solution. This collaboration will focus on advancing Onshape product enhancements, customer adoption programs, and artificial intelligence (AI) initiatives, all of which are aimed at helping product designers and engineers create new, high-quality products faster and more efficiently.
- The Onshape Discovery Program allows qualified users to try Onshape Professional at no cost for up to six months.
- Onshape AI Advisor will allow users to design products faster by cataloguing the Onshape resource library of text-based documentation and videos and answering questions or making recommendations during the design process. While designing, users will be able to type a question in simple, conversational language and the Onshape AI Advisor will respond with an answer or recommendation based on the resource library and provide links to additional information. The Onshape AI Advisor will run on Amazon Bedrock and is expected to be released by the end of 2024.
- CAD and PDM Conversion Tools will allow the expansion of the capabilities of Onshape intelligent data migration toolsets. These toolsets reduce the complexity of switching systems by preserving the parametric features and sketch information of CAD models during translation.
- Onshape Government option will deliver this security footprint to comply with The International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) and The Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) requirements.
by Gary Mintchell | Oct 2, 2024 | Automation, Robots
A little bit of Cobot news from Denmark. Universal Robots, the Danish collaborative robot (cobot) company, is now increasing the payload capacity on its new-generation, high-payload cobots UR20 and UR30, enabling customers to lift more at no additional cost.
The updates raise the total payload, including end-effector, to 25 and 35 kgs respectively when utilizing the cobot in top lift position. This is especially useful for palletizing applications and solutions.
The additional strength doesn’t require any new purchases and production updates can happen in just minutes. The increased payload can be unlocked by simply updating UR’s PolyScope software to version 5.19 or later. Within 2024, UR20s and UR30s shipped will automatically include the software needed to support the use of higher payloads.
by Gary Mintchell | Oct 2, 2024 | Automation, Security
Fluid would barely begin the description of the market for cybersecurity technology developers. Most news emanating from the sector concerns surveys on threats. People seem to move around often. As another example of that market, Dragos has acquired Network Perception, makers of NP-View, a network visualization platform for OT networks. Dragos notes in its release, “The acquisition will bolster the Dragos Platform with industry-leading OT network visibility along with compliance and segmentation analysis and reporting capabilities tailored to safeguard critical OT environments.”
Dragos believes combining the network capabilities of the two companies will help organizations gain an understanding of their networks that was previously elusive from a single provider. They are now able to see which assets are connecting to which services in their critical networks, as well as which assets can connect to which services.
In the future, through the integration of NP-View’s topology and firewall rules analysis into the Dragos Platform, customers will be able to map their OT environment network topology more effectively, decide where to place Dragos Platform network sensors, map vulnerabilities to attack paths, and evaluate configuration and policy drift. The dual layer visibility into what assets are communicating and what communication paths are possible will be a powerful security and compliance view of the OT environment. NP-View’s network segmentation capabilities will enhance Dragos’s strong defense mechanisms against lateral movement by adversaries within OT environments.
by Gary Mintchell | Oct 1, 2024 | Automation, Commentary, News, Standards
This second in the series of posts on The Open Process Automation Forum concerns an in-depth analysis of a proposed system orchestration standard written by Harry Forbes of the ARC Advisory Group. This was written for Red Hat, but you can download a copy.
SYSTEM ORCHESTRATION FOR OPEN INDUSTRIAL AUTOMATION
ARC Whitepaper August 2024
Forbes looks at OPAF’s latest intention:
The Open Process Automation Forum (OPAF) recently announced its intention to base its System Orchestration O-PAS specification on the OASIS TOSCA standard. In the context of open heterogenous industrial automation systems, the term “System Orchestration” has a very broad meaning. It includes automated configuration, deployment, coordination, integration, and management of distributed systems and services. System Orchestration is essential for successfully managing complex software environments in modern, cloud-native application architectures. As industrial automation adopts these same architectures, it will also become critical for the industrial automation systems of the Future.
It has been too many years since that first meeting with OPAF leaders in Florida. I seem to remember that they had hired a consulting group (Nassim Nicholas Taleb notes that mathematicians begin with a problem and create a solution while consultants begin with a solution and create a problem) who had ties to the aerospace industry. The foundation standards came from there. I’m not surprised by this OPAF proposal.
Forbes continues:
Over the last 20 years in the IT and cloud computing space, many software tools have been developed and commercialized to serve these types of functions. These tools originated in open source, and several are now supported by commercial suppliers. Some have large installed bases in major enterprises. They also have large and active end user communities. They do not comply with a single standard, but rather support distinct Domain Specific Languages (DSL). During the same period, the vendor-neutral TOSCA specification has been employed in academic research and reportedly in some proprietary software in the telecom industry but has had negligible impact in commercial markets.
I side with Forbes in this preliminary conclusion:
Open automation supporters should leverage the large existing IT communities, human talent pools, and documented best practices that leading commercial products provide. While this precludes adopting a single standard, the OPAF could instead focus on carefully defining orchestration use cases for O-PAS systems, enabling end users to implement them with the commercial software that OT suppliers and industrial automation end users both prefer.
The entire whitepaper is worth a read.
by Gary Mintchell | Oct 1, 2024 | Process Control, Standards, Technology
I have two pieces of news regarding The Open Process Automation Forum. These came just as I was wondering if the organization had been making any more progress. I have unfortunately seen enough of these open automation standards attempts to wonder if this one will go much farther—especially given the maturity of the market.
This group started as a response to the high cost of upgrading automation systems in the field in the process industries. Where I see more opportunities would be in the discrete manufacturing area where the old trend of larger and more complex systems seem to be reversing to a more manageable size for the automation with the requirement to tie the systems to information networks.
My second piece, following this one, reports on an analysis of OPAF’s proposed system orchestration standard.
Philosophy aside, OPAF has made another step forward by launching the O-PAS Certification Program.
The Open Group Open Process Automation Forum (OPAF) has developed the O-PAS Standard, a standard of The Open Group, which uses existing and emerging standards whenever possible, making it a standard of standards. The standard enables the development of fit-for-purpose systems consisting of cohesive functional elements acquired from independent suppliers and integrated easily, via a modular architecture characterized by open standard interfaces between elements.
O-PAS certified products allow end users to build open, interoperable, and secure systems with products from multiple suppliers, offering greater flexibility in obsolescence management, system upgrades, and technology infusion.
Jacco Opmeer, Co-Chair of the Open Process Automation Forum at The Open Group and Principal Automation Engineer at Shell says, “Certification provides the credibility that the fundamental qualities open systems will bring are measurable, and this will support the realization of many of the values the Open Process Automation Forum has been promoting.”
Hideki Murata, head of the Systems Integration Planning Dept. at Yokogawa Electric Corporation, commented, “Yokogawa welcomes the O-PAS Certification Program as this will allow us to officially certify our products designed for the O-PAS Standard. We expect the program will accelerate the development of the O-PAS ecosystem by enabling end users to select certified products with confidence. This will help the industry move forward with open, interoperable, and secure products and systems.”
Within the O-PAS Standard, there are Profiles that define the various segments of the architecture. The O-PAS Certification Program is based on these Profiles and for each Profile, the Supplier must attain independent verification of its claims of conformance. The Connectivity Framework and the Global Discovery Server Profiles are currently ready to be certified against, and The Open Group is anticipating that more Profiles will be available by the end of the year.
by Gary Mintchell | Sep 30, 2024 | Events, Manufacturing IT, News, Software
I think I’ve been to all twelve Inductive Automation Ignition Community Conferences in Folsom, CA. It’s possible I missed one. They are always enjoyable. It’s truly a community where people share ideas and show success stories. The partner ecosystem for Ignition consists of strong, smaller, innovative companies and creative systems integrators.
To quote from the press release, Now in its twelfth year, the Ignition Community Conference (ICC) brings together industrial professionals from around the world to network, collaborate, and learn more about Ignition — an industrial automation software platform for SCADA, HMI, IIoT, MES, and more — and the ecosystem of technology solutions that work with it.
Highlighting the first day, executives Colby Clegg and Carl Gould previewed the release of Ignition 8.3. Yes, the last version was 8.1. This is a significant update even further integrating with IT technology. Founder Steve Hechtman explained to me when we first met 20 years ago how Ignition was built from the ground up to be IT friendly—unique for a SCADA application. They continue the tradition.
The update, scheduled for January 2025 release, features a redesigned Gateway user interface said to be faster, more intuitive, and easier to navigate. Upgrades to the Ignition Perspective Module include integrated drawing tools, a flexible form generation component, and the ability to design applications for offline use.
Another upcoming feature called Event Streams will allow users to map event data from sources to handlers, giving them new ways to push, transform, filter, and batch data. Also included are a new, public historian API and a new Power Historian that’s embedded in the Ignition platform, along with many other new features, and will be actively supported for five years after its release.
System integrators who leverage the Ignition platform to create exceptionally innovative and successful projects, are featured with Firebrand Awards. This year’s awards featured these applications.
NeoMatrix Inc., which helped Lucid Motors implement a real-time factory information system that provides data on manufacturing performance to enable data-driven decisions, optimize processes, and improve overall operational performance.
Deloitte, which implemented a modern SCADA/MES system, realizing Goodman Fielder’s initiative to enhance production efficiency and replace manual processes at their three largest bakeries.
IDOM, which implemented a real-time automation orchestrator for the entire production process at the pharmaceutical company Cinfa, including a Unified Namespace that allows applications to exchange information in a decoupled architecture.
Saint-Gobain CertainTeed, which deployed the Vision Module-based FaCTory+ MES solution, which pulls in production orders from SAP, tracks 24-hour performance, compares current and previous production runs, and more.
Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, which created a library of standardized objects with heavy use of User Defined Types (UDTs), allowing it to easily monitor and control a large-scale experiment analyzing the properties of neutrinos.
Madkour Group, which built a system providing real-time data from remote locations and reporting and analytic tools for the National Project for Developing the New Valley in Toshka, which aims to reclaim vast desert areas as part of Egypt’s overall plan to cultivate three million acres in total.
All of the winners’ and finalists’ project submissions, including videos and written case studies, can be viewed in the online ICC Discover Gallery.
The event sold out once again packing about 900 people into the Harris Center in Folsom. Inductive Automation made the difficult decision to leave their home of the past 12 years and move to the SAFE Credit Union Convention Center in Sacramento, California. Located in downtown Sacramento, about 30 miles from Folsom, the SAFE Credit Union Convention Center is a fully remodeled, state-of-the-art venue with over 240,000 square feet of space, and within walking distance of many hotels, restaurants, and entertainment options.
During the Closing Keynote session on September 19, Project Manager Nick Barfuss made a surprise announcement that Inductive Automation will soon launch a unified, browser-based interface for end users, integrators, and IA staff and distributors.
Known as Inductive Automation Workspaces and launching in 2025, the new interface will streamline the Ignition sales process with self-service or assisted-service modes, and empower organizations to access and manage their licenses, support plans, roles, and organizational structure.
Workspaces will launch with features for creating organizational units; creating and sharing estimates, quotes, and orders; managing licenses and support plans; making purchases in local currency; and more.
During the Closing Keynote session, Co-Directors of Support Services James Hunt and Marcus Bellamy announced that Inductive Automation will be extending its software support hours by nearly 50 percent in Q1 of 2025. The two leaders explained that the company is adding more support engineers at its offices in the US and Australia, which will expand the support hours from 6 AM to 5 PM PST to 6 AM to 11 PM PST.
During the Main Keynote session, Chief Technology Evangelist Travis Cox discussed the tenth anniversary of Inductive University, the free online industrial automation training platform that the company launched during ICC 2014.
Cox said that Inductive University (IU) has become one of the company’s most popular training resources and has seen fantastic growth. Since launching a decade ago, IU has had over 10 million video views, almost 8 million tests (known as “challenges”) have been taken, over 100,000 user accounts have been created, and 30,000 Ignition credentials have been earned. Cox also said that these IU numbers represent hundreds of thousands of people who have gained new knowledge that helps them turn their ideas into reality.
During the Closing Keynote session, Co-Directors of Support Services James Hunt and Marcus Bellamy gave a glimpse of what lies ahead for IU, saying that their team will be adding over 70 new videos to IU in 2025, as well as adding learning paths that are specific to skill level.
by Gary Mintchell | Sep 30, 2024 | Workforce
The Human Factors and Ergonomics Society features research into such things as how humans focus on displays and controls, how humans work to lift, reach, and twist in various occupations. The Society has been mostly academic, but Susan Kotowski, outgoing President, has led an initiative to reach out to practitioners fostering joint collaboration into research.
The sessions I attended explained research using video-based experiments evaluating tools such as exoskeletons that might alleviate any of a variety of work-related injuries.
I thought maybe I would meet engineering grad students, but Kotowski told me members of the Society hold a variety of titles and jobs, usability, goal, jobs, tasks, processes, fit to person using them, designing to people, span every industry, cognitive and physical.
The conference was dubbed ASPIRE, which is both an appropriate word and a letterism standing for Advancing Systems and Practices through Innovation, Research, Education.
I mostly attended sessions in the Occupational Ergonomics track. Some of the research focused on hands—the best way to grip, move, assemble tools and parts. Other research focused on exoskeletons. The goal is to reduce muscular/skeleton injuries and repetitive lifting injuries.
Much of the research turns out to not be practical. Seeking more collaboration with industry will help focus research into more useful channels.
Talking with researchers in the hall, I was told that exoskeletons have so far been oversold. They are OK for straight lifting, but if the subject is also given a cognitive task problems ensue. Further, any movements other than straight, say requiring twisting or turning, are not viable.
by Gary Mintchell | Sep 26, 2024 | Manufacturing IT, News, Organizations
My long-time colleague Julie Fraser is still at it. I remember the room where the Manufacturing Enterprise Solutions Association International (MESA) announced its first Metrics That Matter study. It was 2006.
The Manufacturing Enterprise Solutions Association International (MESA) is working with Tech-Clarity, Inc. on the next iteration of its long-standing Analytics that Matter research program. Formally launched during the MESA Smart Manufacturing NOW virtual event, this research will review manufacturers’ progress in performance metrics and analytics and explore the value manufacturers and producers can gain from using artificial intelligence (AI).
MESA and Tech-Clarity will conduct a survey to understand the goals, challenges, and successes companies have for their analytics and AI initiatives. They will share the findings in a research report, infographic, and webinar during the first half of 2025. The survey will be open for manufacturers’ responses later in 2024. To date, the program has three sponsors: Aegis Software, Epicor, and GE Vernova. The program is capped at six sponsors, so additional sponsors are welcome. For more information about sponsorship, please contact Julie Fraser at Tech-Clarity, [email protected].
Making Analytics and AI Matter is the continuation of an 18-year MESA initiative focused on uncovering the value of analytics through an online survey of manufacturers and producers worldwide across process, batch, and discrete industries. Tech-Clarity, MESA, and the sponsors will collaborate to develop the survey. The 2024-25 study continues work that began in 2006 under Julie Fraser’s guidance. This round extends it to reflect the growing role of not only metrics and analytics but AI and generative AI in manufacturers’ success.
Fraser will again lead the research program, supported by MESA’s Knowledge Committee and Analytics Working Group. Some questions will be based on previous MESA Analytics studies so the team can analyze trends and progress. In the last study, industrial analytics showed the quickest time to impact among various IT projects, and more respondents had live advanced analytics projects in 2022 than in previous surveys. New questions will focus on the impact of GenAI, what types of analytics work best where, and what helps AI to deliver its full value in production companies.
MESA’s International Knowledge Committee and Analytics Working Group Chair Chris Monchinski of InflexionPoint says, “We have seen the value of this analytics research over the years. It shows progress in manufacturers’ technology use and business understanding. Now, we will explore both traditional metrics and analytics and the uptake of the newest AI and GenAI technologies to deliver manufacturing insights. MESA’s Analytics Matter podcast has supported these topics for several years. Now, we will have new quantitative research to understand where the value lies.”
“Manufacturers have long known there is more they could do with their data. This research aims to demonstrate what they are doing to analyze their data to create actionable insights and high-value improvements from descriptive, diagnostic, predictive, and prescriptive analytics and current AI approaches. MESA Members and study sponsors will get invaluable learning from sharing experiences,” Tech-Clarity’s Vice President of Research for Operations and Manufacturing Julie Fraser remarked. “We are grateful for the sponsors who have already stepped up to ensure this industrywide research can continue in this time of rapid progress in AI and looking forward to welcoming a few more sponsors to the team.”
MESA conducts this study with a research partner every few years. In November 2024, look for a press release inviting manufacturers and producers to take the survey. Then, in 2025, we will announce the release of the findings report, infographic, and webinar. MESA members and sponsors will have special access and rights to these survey deliverables.
Tech-Clarity is an independent research firm dedicated to making the business value of technology clear. We analyze how companies improve innovation, product development, design, engineering, manufacturing, and service performance through the use of digital transformation, best practices, software technology, industrial automation, and IT services.
Manufacturing Enterprise Solutions Association (MESA) International has been helping the global manufacturing community use information technology to achieve business results through premier educational and research programs, best practice sharing, and networking since 1992. MESA is a 501(c)6 not-for-profit trade association. The Manufacturing Enterprise Solutions Association (MESA International) is a global community of industry thought leaders actively driving business improvement through the effective application of technology and best practices.
by Gary Mintchell | Sep 26, 2024 | Marketing
Satire marketing can be a dangerous thing. Attacking a competitor or failing to find humor can kill the vibes. Consistent humor not derogatory toward any particular group but only toward a way of doing business that most everyone knows lacks awareness can be quite effective.
When Quickbase marketers showed me the first sample of its “Status Co” marketing campaign, I shuddered. But they carried it off well including using it as the theme of the IMTS stand. It’s humorous while poking fun at a variety of backward ways of managing data and operations.
Here’s a link to one of the LinkedIn posts. Check them out for an example of cute marketing staying just on the right side of the line.
