'Use machine data? Just get to work!'

Data can be worth gold, provided it is used in the right way. Jeroen Broekhuijsen, who works at TNO Digital Factories, will tell more about how machine data can be used optimally during the PROFI day (22 November in the Basilica in Veenendaal).

Broekhuijsen: “I want to convey several messages to my audience during my lecture. The first and most important is: get started! I often visit companies that find it too complicated or have ‘no time’ to take a good look at machine data. And six months later they say exactly the same thing. So come out of your shell and start doing things.”

According to the TNO researcher, there are significant growth opportunities: “There are enormous opportunities for your company when using machine data intelligently. You can start offering new services instead of selling outdated products. You can also become more innovative compared to your competitors.”

Broekhuijsen explains this further: “If you can also make machine data valuable to your customer, your machine becomes more valuable. Who wouldn’t want that? Yet many people find it difficult to take that step. Because it takes a while before you discover the exact value it can bring to your customers. Many companies still want a ready-made solution with a bow around it.”

He gives an example: “A company we work closely with states: every percent of production improvement equals half a million euros in additional turnover. It's that simple. By getting better information from your machines, you can also achieve that percent. A pitfall for many companies is that they make a living from offering service. But you can also make a living from delivering value. A completely different business model. Making such a change as an organization is a big thing. Think about it carefully.”

And a lot of data is already available unnoticed, says Broekhuijsen: “There is already a lot of data in a machine. Only we don't use it, because the goal was not to use this data for other purposes. For example, nowadays it is very topical what the power consumption of a machine is. OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness) is also very important. So measure the number of operating hours and the number of products produced and measure the power consumption.”

During his lecture at PROFIdag, Broekhuijsen will delve deeper into his practical experiences with machine data. Do you want attend this lecture? Register for free for a visit PROFIday.