The progression of the Fourth Industrial Revolution or Industry 4.0 (IR4.0) has become a real concern in relation to workforce productivity in Malaysia in order for companies to remain competitive globally as well as in the region.
Industry 4.0 along with Industrial and Internet of Things (IIoT) refers to linking and connecting machines on centralised data management platforms, which in turn boosts the productivity and efficiency of these devices. IIoT and Industry 4.0 have enabled the possibility of developing ‘smart factories which can boost earnings while mitigating external global challenges facing the nation such as the impact of Covid-19 and of the Russia – Ukraine War along with supply chain shortfalls on the Malaysian economy.
Facets of Industry 4.0 and these technologies have been seen to enhance predictive maintenance or advanced levels of data storing and analysis have made it easy to predict potential system failures and damages. This allows workers to schedule equipment maintenance and repair at a convenient time, rather than waiting for a crisis to hit and then take measures which will just end up leading to higher unproductivity and inefficiency.
Big data analytics can allow businesses to study and analyse market trends associated with their products or predict demand, while AI can then help with inventory review and tracking of market pricing. This results in accurate demand forecasting, which eventually results in greater margins and an improved return on investments.
The utilisation of technology and automation in training have boosted productivity levels and performance. Phenomena like VR and AR allow employees to easily understand the processes and requirements of new businesses. Online training reduces the expenditure of the company and increases employee motivation and engagement.
It is necessary for all companies – large and small – to prepare for and embrace Industry 4.0. Technology to enhance all functions in businesses as an edge to enhance workforce capabilities and the nation’s development.
To this extent, BusinessToday spent some time speaking to Schneider Electric (Industries) Malaysia Sdn Bhd as a key player on their belief that they can empower companies to develop new capabilities to better support the digital transformation of its customers and working in partnership to strengthen business resiliency.
Schneider Electric Country General Manager for Malaysia and Brunei Eugene Quah, said in Malaysia, only 30% of local manufacturers are aware of the concept and practical benefits of The Fourth Industrial Revolution (IR 4.0), as seen in a study by TM One. This means that most manufacturers in Malaysia have yet to embrace digital transformation – even though it is the next frontier in business strategies today.
The greatest challenge here is to address the lack of understanding among stakeholders. Digital transformation requires a change in mindset. Hence, it is crucial for business leaders to understand the reason why we adopt new technology in IR4.0, and that is to drive sustainability and efficiency.
Fortunately, the journey towards digital transformation does not have to be a daunting one; in fact, it is often less painful than what business leaders may expect. The key is to begin by embracing a culture of innovation and starting small with incremental steps. In other words, this cultural shift must launch from the C-suite and be infused across every level of the organisation so employees are empowered for change to succeed in the transformation.
To better assist local businesses in adapting and adopting digital transformation, we at Schneider Electric bring energy management, automation, and deep domain expertise to the table. Our unmatched proximity enables us to better understand and guide our customers, every step of the way.
Humans power industries of all kinds, bringing irreplaceable skills like judgement, reasoning and imagination to the table. There’s no limit to what industrial workers can achieve when powered by intuitive, agnostic, and end-to-end software on their side. Digitally connecting workers to machines is just one of the many ways that industrial organisations can better connect people to their work. As businesses become more connected, they will gain valuable insights into their operations, driving higher levels of performance and as a result, be ahead of the game.
For instance, one of our smart factories in Batam, Indonesia, has been designated as an Advanced 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR) Lighthouse by the World Economic Forum. The factory in Batam has comprehensively deployed a wide range of Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) technologies including smart sensors, alarm prediction management, site benchmarking, and augmented reality to create an empowered workforce that has visibility into operations, maintenance, and Internal energy use. With the goal to reduce maintenance costs while increasing overall equipment efficiency, the factory is reporting a 44% reduction in machine downtime, a 40% increase in ontime delivery for customers as well as 21% energy savings per year.
We have also assisted Sanwa Group, Singapore’s plastic manufacturer to implement our Ecostruxure solutions in their factories to improve their efficiency and productivity. Through our collaboration, we enabled Sanwa Group to remotely monitor energy consumption, introduced wireless gateway for comprehensive IoT coverage of data monitoring, such as temperature, humidity, and pressure, centralised command station to remotely manage operations, as well as provide them with access to real-time data for high-level analysis to boost efficiency. As a result,
Sanwa Group significantly improved productivity with fully automated production cells and improved their business performance based on analysis of accumulated statistics and data.
We have also worked with a water utility player in Malaysia to fully automate its treatment plant, aligning with its Industrial Revolution 4.0 strategy. We implemented a highly reliable automation system and a centralised command centre integrating various sub-systems such as supervisory control, workflow and maintenance. This integrated solution allows the operator to have a detailed operational analysis and real-time visibility of critical events with improving responsiveness as well as remote diagnostics via digital tools and an integrated workflow system.
It helps the user to improve plant operation, increase workforce efficiency and ensure continuity of supply of treated water to its consumers, Eugene said.
Asked on the importance of Industry 4.0 on Malaysian companies, what would be the key advantages derived, Eugene said: “In 2021, the Malaysian government acknowledged that IR 4.0 is upon us with the launch of the National 4IR Policy. This policy aims to drive coherence to transform the socioeconomic development of Malaysia.
Fast forwarding to today, we see the need for Malaysia to quickly make the switch to embrace IR 4.0 technology as the global market becomes more competitive coupled with the predicted looming recession in 2023. By integrating IR 4.0 technologies, Malaysian businesses are able to stay competitive through:
• Productivity and efficiency: Industry 4.0 alleviates the scope of downtime and decreases the time utilised to complete the production process.
• Seamless compliance: Automated and integrated systems make it seamless for manufacturers to comply with any form of regulation with the help of automation.
• Cost-effectiveness: The industry witnesses an evident reduction in costs with the effective integration of all connected equipment and data management.
However, we understand that making the switch is not easy, and that’s where partnerships with industry experts come into play.
At Schneider Electric, we are proficient in software and hardware which has enabled us to construct an elaborative suite of solutions for Industry 4.0. As your digital partner for sustainability and efficiency to complement the workforce, our solutions can be deployed on the entire digital value chain for businesses to seamlessly transition to Industry 4.0.
