Start each day at SOUTHTEC hearing from keynote presentations featuring industry experts in the SME ZONE. Keynote speakers will focus on an incremental approach to IIoT for manufacturers, the economic outlook for manufacturing, and the impact of advanced technologies on manufacturers.
Don’t miss these keynote presentations in the SME ZONE at SOUTHTEC – add them to your calendar today!
Tuesday, October 22
Incremental Approach to IIoT for the Small and Medium Manufacturer
George Barnych, Advanced Manufacturing Consultant, B3 Technical Services
Hear from George Barnych an independent consultant currently developing a new manufacturing automation cell concept at the University of New Hampshire’s John Olson Advanced Manufacturing Center. Barnych has developed a low risk entry option for small and medium manufacturers wanting to adopt IIoT and automation and is currently integrating an industrial scale CNC machine tool and robotics demonstration of the concept at UNH. The keys to the concept rely on a multi-use CNC layout, an open standard based IIoT system that connects directly to machines and PLCs and a newly developed, no cost, open source cell controller capable of lights out automation.
Most manufacturers agree that digitally connected systems and machines will determine who survives in the coming decades of data-driven analytics and automation. The toughest decision is knowing how to get started. With so many options and so many products, it’s difficult to know if you’re making the right long-term choices, however, waiting is not the answer. The key is to first invest in a standards-based IIoT “backbone” that enables two-way communication between systems in a manner that synchronizes all the data with respect to time regardless of whether the systems are proprietary, home grown or open source. The two-way communication not only enables data collection for analytics and machine learning but serves as the command structure for controlling automation at the cell level. Once the backbone is installed, each individual manufacturer can tune their data driven systems to ideally suit their operations regardless of specialty or diversity.
Wednesday, October 23
Successfully Navigating in a Shifting Economy
Alan Beaulieu, President and Principal, ITR Economics
With a reputation as an accurate, straightforward economist and author, Alan Beaulieu has been delivering award-winning workshops and economic analysis seminars in countries across the world to thousands of business owners and executives for the last 25 years. He will provide a practical and insightful guide on increasing profits through business cycle changes.
US and global economic trends are shifting, and uncertainty is growing. Observing those shifts, understanding them and setting realistic expectations for the remainder of 2019 and for 2020 will empower attendees to be keenly aware of the changes taking place in the economy and in their marketplace. Alan Beaulieu will talk about industry trends, labor, tariffs, tax law, interest rates, Modern Monetary Theory, and the growing need to invest in technology. Thinking and planning for changes before they become a reality is key to being successful throughout the business cycle. Attend and learn from Beaulieu what leading indicators are predicting, what this means for budgets and cash planning, and what you can do about it. He will also take a closer look at the 2020s and the opportunities and potential problems that may occur.
Thursday, October 24
Industrial IoT and Big Data: Keeping your Plant at the Sharp Edge of the Tool
Christopher Saldana, PhD, Associate Professor, Georgia Institute of Technology
Hear from Dr. Christopher Saldana an associate professor in the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering at Georgia Institute of Technology. His research has been supported by a number of industry entities and government agencies (e.g., DOE, DMDII, NIST, ARO, NSF, DARPA, ARL, etc.).
Sensors are changing our world everywhere. Broad band connectivity makes the data from these sensors available at our fingertips. A similar scenario is evolving in the manufacturing sector, where sensors are used throughout manufacturing operations and on virtually all manufacturing systems and equipment. This talk discusses the availability and utility of sensors on the manufacturing floor, and how such information is being used to improve productivity, quality and profitability via integration into cyber physical systems in the digital manufacturing sector. The presentation will also provide some insight into the direction that sensor utilization is heading in the manufacturing workspace, and the types of opportunities and value propositions that they will enable in the very near future. This new area will revolutionize manufacturing operations from the production floor to the global supply chain, and there is no end in sight in terms of the opportunities and benefits.
