Industry 4.0: the factory of the future by Thales
Mechanisation, mass production and automation have already brought us three industrial revolutions.
Today, a fourth revolution is upon us — Industry 4.0 —with cyber-factories set to transform production methods, make manufacturers more agile and boost demand for innovative services. Thales is taking the lead in helping companies through this major transformation.
The concept of Industry 4.0 was first introduced at the CeBIT digital technology show at Hannover, Germany in 2011. It heralds a completely new way of operating factories that unlocks the power of web technologies and interconnected production systems, enabling machines, systems and products to communicate between themselves and with the outside world. What for? To make manufacturing cheaper, more efficient and more environmentally friendly. And to create new products and services based on smart systems capable of collecting, storing, managing and analysing vast quantities of information from sensors of every kind.
Cybersecurity: a major challenge
Such a promising development is not without a degree of risk. Transitioning from silo-based operations to the open model of Industry 4.0, with its interconnected industrial systems and the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), means opening the door to systems with an intrinsically low level of security. The associated risks may be considerable, ranging from commercial data confidentiality (manufacturing secrets, intellectual property theft, etc.) to protection of people and property in relation to critical activities.
To allow industry to benefit from the most innovative technologies, Thales offers a complete range of solutions and services to support the secure end-to-end digital transformation of production systems. Our solutions encompass data acquisition directly on the shop floor (via secure IIoT solutions), data processing and display at human-machine interface level, secure cloud storage and Big Data analytics for predictive maintenance and other applications. With this full range of capabilities, Thales is helping to improve industrial processes by integrating leading-edge technologies that are "Secure by Design".
AR and VR: 360-degree reality from Thales
With our insider’s perspective on the challenges of manufacturing, we can help other industrial operators get the very most out of the digital transformation. Thales supplies custom-tailored augmented reality solutions that help improve industrial processes by making operations faster and more efficient, providing context-sensitive support as well as real-time traceability, delivering new services, and optimising travel costs. In every sector of industry, Thales’s augmented reality (AR) solutions make sure each and every operation is performed just right, making operators more efficient and keeping them safer at the same time.
As a supplier of advanced transportation solutions around the world, for example, Thales has developed the concept of the “connected operator” to keep maintenance operations running even when specialised resources are not available locally. Personnel carrying out maintenance in the field can be equipped with a web-enabled tablet, or with connected augmented reality glasses that allow them to view data in real time superimposed over their field of vision. Guided remotely by an expert throughout the task, they are able to resolve problems quickly, effectively and at lower cost. It's kinder on the environment too, because experts no longer need to travel to the site. This high-added-value solution is just one of the many new service opportunities in an Industry 4.0 environment – and it brings Thales another way to stand out from the competition in transport markets around the world.
Fully immersive virtual reality (VR) technologies are ideal for training personnel to work in difficult or harsh environments. The exact working conditions can be reproduced in detail, so operators can be trained before production lines have even been built. Personnel are fully prepared for on-site work when the time comes, without any of the risks associated with training on real equipment. In the space sector, for example, operators can use virtual reality to train in safety practices and complex procedures for satellite assembly. In transport, energy, space and every other safety-critical market, Thales develops practical solutions that support customers in their digital transformation.
As a world leader in cybersecurity, Thales offers a range of Secure by Design solutions for Industry 4.0. Built around the very best in digital technologies — virtual reality, augmented reality, Industrial Internet of Things, secure cloud computing, Big Data analytics and more — they help industrial operators to improve their production and maintenance processes, boost their competitive performance, and offer genuinely distinctive products and services.
Find out more:
Competitive transformation: reinventing information systems on thalesgroup.com
Welcome to “Thales’s Reality” 360, a video showcasing our VR and AR solutions
AR/VR ready for the real world on thalesgroup.com
The Internet of things on thalesgroup.com
From Big Data to smart information on thalesgroup.com
A winning combination of sensors, cloud computing, Big Data analytics and smart algorithms is transforming the whole approach to industrial production. Thales offers industrial operators a unique set of skills and capabilities:
- Proven expertise as a complex systems integrator;
- World-class expertise in cybersecurity: data protection, secure networks, security operations, mobile security, secure cloud computing, cybersecurity consulting and evaluation, etc.;
- Comprehensive Big Data capabilities to support the operational needs of customers (management of Big Data infrastructure, as well as Big Data analytics and Visual Analytics to leverage data value).
- Capability for open innovation and collaborative development with customers.
Thales focuses on three main areas: augmented reality for remote assistance, augmented reality for task supervision, and immersive simulation.
- Augmented reality for remote assistance, or real-time access to remote experts. All sectors stand to benefit from these applications, from manufacturing to maintenance & repair, especially for the most complex tasks.
- Augmented reality for industrial assembly, particularly when operations are complex or involve precision tasks, such as in the IT and aerospace sectors, which are our top priorities.
- Augmented reality for maintenance, since all machinery today requires lengthy checking procedures. Tasks are recorded by the operator's glasses, so supervisors can ensure that nothing is forgotten or overlooked.
- Virtual reality for serious games, a new approach to computer-based simulation and an effective way to transfer skills, train users in real-world conditions and enhance risk prevention.