„Smart Engineering and Production 4.0“

Digitization in switchgear engineering

The Smart Engineering and Production 4.0 technology network of EPLAN, Rittal and Phoenix Contact at Hannover Messe 2018 (Hall 8, Booth D28) will provide specific answers to the question of how to achieve end-to-end digitization of industrial engineering and production processes. A remarkable live demonstration using the example of a switchgear installation will show visitors what highly automated manufacturing based on a batch size of 1 looks like. In their role as technology drivers, the companies will be showcasing the latest results of work to develop an administrative shell specifically for switchgear engineering. The aim is to enable Industry 4.0 software systems, plant and machinery to communicate. Monheim/Herborn/Blomberg, 12 March 2018 – In Europe alone, around a million large enclosures are brought into circulation every year. The Smart Engineering and Production 4.0 (SEAP 4.0) technology network of EPLAN, Rittal and Phoenix Contact – the three leading solution providers in engineering and enclosure system/automation technology – will employ an actual use case to demonstrate specific solutions for significantly boosting productivity in switchgear engineering.

From digital article to smart manufacturing

A total of six stations will illustrate the key processes – from engineering and manufacturing all the way through to testing. The various topics along the value chain include digital provision of component data in the form of a digital article, the engineering process that creates the enclosure’s digital twin, and both conventional and smart manufacturing operations working with the data of the digital twin. An augmented reality application will show how much quicker and easier it will be to test and certify installations in the future. The possibility of such digital pre-certification of switchgear in the future will be explored with support from the German Commission for Electrical, Electronic and Information Technologies (DKE).

Enhanced productivity for SMBs

The technology network’s primary goal is to highlight improvements in productivity resulting from Industry 4.0 for switchgear engineering SMBs in particular. An important basis for this is the creation of manufacturer-neutral standards for data and data communication. These standards will improve interoperability between the different systems from the areas of engineering, materials management, production planning and production. The technology network is using standard information models and communication protocols – such as those provided by AutomationML and OPC UA – for communication. A semantic description is also required to implement Industry 4.0 concepts. Technology network participants are working on an administrative shell specifically for switchgear engineering as part of the openAAS (open Asset Administration Shell) project initiated by the ZVEI (German Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers’ Association). This will enable Industry 4.0 components – the “assets” – to interact directly. “Our technology network highlights the potential of end-to-end digitization and the networking of configurators, engineering platforms, production plants and digital assistance and test systems – for SMBs and large companies alike,” says Maximilian Brandl, Chairman of the Management Board at EPLAN and Cideon. Dr Thomas Steffen, Managing Director Research and Development at Rittal adds: “Our particular focus lies on developing manufacturer-neutral data description and interface standards along with appropriate communication protocols.” Roland Bent, member of the Executive Board at Phoenix Contact, provides the following summary of the technology network’s goals: “A semantic description of the properties and options of the software systems, plant and machinery involved in the administrative shell is required to clarify what the data being exchanged means and is saying. EPLAN, Rittal and Phoenix Contact are actively driving and shaping the development of this technology and incorporating the results in SEAP 4.0.” Digital sets of item data, end-to-end engineering and virtual prototypes will be used at the technology network’s trade fair booth to demonstrate the smart interaction of engineering and manufacturing based on the example of switchgear engineering. This will mean visitors can experience innovative Industry 4.0 concepts live. ©Rittal GmbH & Co. KG, March 2018