PETpla.net Insider 01+02 / 2017

TRADE SHOW REVIEW PET planet Insider Vol. 18 No. 01+02/17 www.petpla.net 32 A smart step forward with Agility 4.0 What’s new about Industry 4.0? The beverage market is changing fast. With distribution looking for more customised delivery methods and increased responsiveness, and with people showing different consumer behaviours that influence their purchase decisions, the packaging industry needs to find new ways to improve line operations in terms of speed, efficiency, flexibility and versatility. To move toward the era of Industry 4.0, the concept of the smart factory has become an important and much-discussed topic in manufacturing, highlighted by the trend for an increasing use of automation, cyber-physical equipment and computerised systems for the acquisition and processing of data. At BrauBeviale 2016, Gebo Cermex showcased their advanced- products system programme called Agility 4.0 which is a vehicle aimed at helping producers achieve all the benefits of Industry 4.0. PETplanet Insider took the opportunity of talking with Ludovic Tanchou, Vice President of Strategy, Products and Innova- tion of the Sidel Group business unit, Gebo Cermex, who has worked in the group for 16 years. With Agil- ity 4.0 Gebo Cermex is bringing the smart factory to life. This programme incorporates all the essential ele- ments required to build up or improve a plant in accordance with Industry 4.0 opportunities. A series of live demonstrations to highlight the different elements that collectively help producers to shift from mass production to mass customisation were shown on the company’s booth at BrauBeviale 2016. An expert guide was available to drive visitors through the Agility 4.0 programme that as Ludovic Tanchou explained is based on five pillars. 1) Virtual factory: From initial virtual design right through to logistics With virtual reality customers have the opportunity not only to simulate but also to model their own produc- tion concept which is a key to control- ling costs. Customers need the ability to both visualise and forecast, so that they can make all the right deci- sions and thus keep their Operating Expenditure (OPEX) to an absolute minimum. With this tool it is possi- ble to optimise capital expenditure (CAPEX) and return on investment (ROI). Additionally, the “Asset Utilisa- tion” ensures - via simulation - that the system can be optimally put into operation. This increases the chances of a successful project execution, as well as improving safety, operability and ergonomics. 2) Smart factory: Machine, system and data intelligence including robotics and communicating hardware The second pillar is about imple- menting “Smart technologies” to obtain a more agil production model. With Agility 4.0, Gebo Cermex pro- vides a range of advanced solutions aimed at improving performance of equipment and packaging lines, as well as operators’ safety and effi- ciency in the long term, including easy to use robotics and cobotics, together with a new cognitive Human Machine Interface (HMI). 3) Connected factory: State-of-the-art digital connectivity and simulation With the Gebo Cermex Agility 4.0 the connected factory has become reality as the programme delivers a highly flexible model of operations which ensures high performance Ludovic Tanchou, Vice President of Strategy, Products and Innovation of the Sidel Group business unit, Gebo Cermex