2019_march_Leanformazione

March 2019
LEANFORMAZIONE
The value of data

Dear colleagues,
The digital transformation has been one of the most widely discussed topics over recent
years. In the film Palombella Rossa, Nanni Moretti said “Words are important”, so as
our starting point let’s look at the definition in the Treccani dictionary: “Digitization: the
conversion of analogue information into a digital representation, by means of a device
called digitizer or analogue-digital converter”. What was once a purely technical term has
taken on an almost ideological significance, but what does digitalize a company actually
mean?
People often confuse digitization with automation but the latter actually goes back
hundreds of years and describes a process which was once wholly mechanical and did
not involve digital logic. Digitization, on the other hand, is all about data, information and
how it is made available. We are, therefore, talking about the speed, quantity and easiness
with which data becomes available. And it is here that digitization comes into its own, and
becomes a means for taking decisions and doing that fast. In this we see not only the
importance of technology as a tool for collecting and organising all a company’s data, but
we also appreciate the importance of people, because it is only people who can give real
value to this information. People’s sensitivity and real human skills allow us to get value out
of data and interpret it in such a way as to improve company processes and outcomes.
What’s more, if we remember that digitization also gives us a way of substituting paper,
then we are doing something important for the environment, too!
By making the most of the digital skills and know-how we acquire every day through our

interactions with touchscreens, tablets and smartphones, the digitization of the factory
can be quickly and easily understood by the modern worker … perhaps even ‘enjoyably’.
By way of comparison with previous industrial revolutions we can say that data is the
combustible fuel of the 21st century and data analytics are the engine.
The gathering of production data at Lima started a few years ago and the systems
employed, like the technologies they are based on, are constantly changing. All our
production plant is interconnected and so in the near future we might be mistaken into
thinking that machine operators typing away on their handsets are organising an evening
out with friends when they are actually communicating with the equipment in their charge.
Ilaria Bulfon
Supply Chain Analytics Engineer
Fabio Coccon
Supply Planning Manager
«Without data you're just another person with an
opinion»
(W. Edwards Deming)

LIMA LEAN ENTERPRISE
As we strive to create LIMA LEAN ENTERPRISE, the story of our journey of
restructuring continues with the implementation of the steps towards the
Digital Transformation.
This issue, which refers to the Excellent Supply Chain area, deals with this
topic.
VISION &
COMMITMENT
EXCELLENT
PEOPLE
EXCELLENT
BUSINESS
PROCESS
EXCELLENT
SUPPLY CHAIN

LEANFORMAZIONE
ORGANIZATION OF THE
BROCHURE
Training pill
which introduces step by step a principle or theme linked to one of the
four areas: Vision & Commitment, Excellent People, Excellent Supply
Chain and Excellent Business Process
Pilot project
on which we operationally applied what was explained in the Training
Pill
Recommended reading or film
with reference to the subject being discussed

LEANFORMAZIONE / 7
INDEX
8/ TRAINING PILL
THE SMART FACTORY
12/ PILOT PROJECT
DIGITALISATION AT LIMACORPORATE
16/ RECOMMENDED FILM
CONTACT

TRAINING PILL
THE SMART FACTORY
Industry 4.0 is the name given to the fourth industrial revolution, after those which were
founded on mechanisation, industrialisation and automation. Key elements include
interconnected Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS): smart components (machines, tools,
driverless transport, robots, etc.) all interacting with each other in a network of data
and services which exchange information and monitor themselves. Ever since the 2011
Hannover Fair, the term “Industry 4.0” has been on everyone’s lips: at first it referred
to a research programme but it is now used for supply chain (industrial value chains)
digitisation in general. The whole idea is surprisingly simple: machinery and parts
communicating with each other in a network of embedded computers, sensors and
actuators constitute a so-called CPS. So, the real innovation in Industry 4.0 lies in the
intelligent gathering and analysis of data.
According to one of the most advanced theories of the fourth industrial revolution, this
ability of machines to communicate with each other will, in the near future, mean that
production lines will have an almost self-diagnostic ability to identify and correct errors.
Indeed, in the smart factory machinery can detect the surrounding environmental
conditions, interact with each other and take decisions. Connectivity is the key element

LEANFORMAZIONE / 9
in this revolution and should be viewed as a competitive advantage deriving from the
availability of data, which itself becomes the driver for a company’s strategic decisionmaking.
If a company embraces connectivity, not only as a key technology in Industry
4.0, but as a critical success factor, we can understand the need to introduce IoT-based
solutions (the Internet of Things). Sensors installed in production lines are nothing new,
but what really sets the Internet of Things apart is the fact that these sensors are all
hooked up in a network. In this way, they become “smart”, interact with the outside
world and share data.
IoT optimises production processes, by allowing machines to talk to each other and
by interpreting the data which flows from them to produce predictive analyses of the
way the system is behaving and thereby improve performance. The ready availability of
real-time data from the factory means that we can constantly monitor production and
promptly solve critical issues.
These concepts are expressed well by the semantic difference between digitisation and
digitalisation. Digitisation is the ability to convert analog data to a digital format, which
immediately makes it easy to access, transfer and analyse. Digitalisation, on the other
hand, involves the way in which the data is analysed and helps us to better understand
company processes and how they can be improved.

TRAINING PILL: THE SMART FACTORY
Sensors installed on machines are an example of digitisation: they gather data on the
way the machine is working. Data analytics software, on the other hand, is an example
of digitalisation: it analyses a wide range of data in order, for example, to predict potential
machine malfunctions.
Digitalisation allows us to develop ways of improving and innovating and in turn means
that we can enhance all company processes. This is known as Digital Optimisation.
Digital Transformation, on the other hand, refers to the route taken by the company to
improve its processes, its value proposition and its outcomes as a result of digitalisation.
This might involve, for example, supplying the customer not only with the product, but
also with technologies which make it easier to use.
The digital transformation is not limited only to the internal processes: the next step can
be the integration of suppliers or end customers processes. Industry 4.0 is a wide topic
and includes many disciplines and different ways of implementation.

Steps towards Digital Transformation
LEANFORMAZIONE / 11

PILOT PROJECT
DIGITALISATION AT LIMACORPORATE
On walking through any of our production areas, you are sure to have noticed digital
devices designed to gather and display data relating to production flow.
Most of the CNC machines in our Villanova and Segesta plants are equipped with Totem,
the system which Lima has chosen to enable the digitisation described above. Totem
collects all the main data from the machine (machine uptime and downtime, alarms,
parts produced, etc.) and sends real-time production reports to the MES (Manufacturing
Execution System), better known at Lima as “Nicim”, the software which monitors and
manages production. The operator only has to perform a limited number of operations
which cannot be done automatically, such as starting a new work-cycle or stopping for
maintenance work. It is also possible to automatically load a new machine program for the
item which is going to be worked and it allows the operator to view the updated work plan
for the machine in question.
This automatic collection of machine data provides very precise, real-time information; this
allows the operator, by means of the Totem touch-screen, to have access to data such
as the cycle time for each piece produced, so that he/she can monitor efficiency and spot
any potential problems within the process.

LEANFORMAZIONE / 13
Information which can be accessed on the Totems installed in the CNC department
In departments where the machines cannot be directly interconnected, tablets and
monitors allow operators to generate production progress reports, access all data
regarding a specific work order and see the plan and the sequence of work cycles in the
department.

PILOT PROJECT: DIGITALISATION AT LIMACORPORATE
Information which can be accessed on tablets or monitors
Either way the presence of on-board devices gives operators easy access to all the
information they need. Production data reports are of key importance because they show
exactly where each work order is in the production cycle and allow us to give a precise
estimate of the workload and any backlogs present in the various departments. The Lima
experts who produce and manage the indicators are already working on the development
of analytical software which will make available all the data collected and attempt to
produce specific interpretations according to the varying needs of whoever is trying to get
answers from the data.
On the facing page is shown an example of data analytics which displays production
indicators.

LEANFORMAZIONE / 15
Another important project which is currently in progress is the digitalisation of work orders.
At the moment these are paper-based and follow the tray containing the pieces right
through the production process. In order to digitalise the work orders, we will need:
✓ a software program which collects and analyses the data from quality control
✓ an application which handles the progress and approval of the various phases and
displays the drawings
✓ a program which handles the filing of all the production documents and makes it easy
to access all data regarding traceability.
This year we will already see the implementation of the first prototypes for the digital
compilation of the control plans and the statistical analysis of measurement data.
A paperless system will make the process faster and more streamlined and will always
make the latest versions of the documentation available to the operator.

RECOMMENDED FILM
CONTACT
The film we are recommending for this issue is
Contact by Robert Zemeckis (1997). Scientist Ellie
Arroway discovers a signal from the star system Vega
and is chosen to go into space to make contact with
the extra-terrestrials.
The steps which Ellie takes to decode the alien
messages and to make contact with them can be
applied to data analysis:

LEANFORMAZIONE / 17
The steps are:
✓ be a good listener: first of all collect the relevant data;
✓ eliminate background noise: ignore any irrelevant information from the body of
data collected;
✓ approach the problem from different angles: in order to get full value from the
data, look at the figures from a variety of different angles and viewpoints.

We know that innovation and change can be disconcerting, and digitalisation is certainly
no exception. Adopting it in a production facility can invite criticism. Every day we see
that when models of excellence, like Apple or Google, Amazon or VAR (Video Assistant
Referee), have been introduced, we tend to take these “tech commodities” so much for
granted that we refuse to accept even the slightest malfunction. But, as novelist Madeline
Hunter said....
“Any growth requires a temporary
loss of security”
(Madeline Hunter)

LEANFORMAZIONE / 19

Limacorporate spa
Via Nazionale, 52 - 33038 Villanova di San Daniele - Udine - Italy
Tel.: +39 0432 945511 - Fax: +39 0432 945512
E-mail: info@limacorporate.com
www.limacorporate.com
March 2019