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ARTC and SimTech

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MANUFACTURERS in Singapore are about to get another technology playground to help grow their business.

The Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) announced a new facility that allows companies to test more than 10 types of advanced manufacturing technologies.

Situated in the Advanced Remanufacturing and Technology Centre (ARTC) at Clean Tech Loop, the model factory will be fitted with virtual labs and simulation equipment. Businesses can test out new production lines and improve resource planning, before deploying any new technology in their actual operations.

This isn't the first model factory in Singapore. Previously, a similar facility was launched at the Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology (SIMTech).

The two model factories differ in their offerings. SIMTech's facility is aimed at companies on their first mile of technology adoption; the one at ARTC is targeted at companies in advanced stages of tech adoption.

Although the ARTC facility has a comprehensive suite of solutions, there is also a pool of engineers and researchers on site to help companies come up with solutions suited to their needs.

Some of the technologies available in the ARTC model factory include robotics and the Internet of Things (IoT).

This is in line with the Singaporean government's Research, Innovation and Enterprise 2020 (RIE2020) plan. Over US$2.3 billion is being poured in to develop research and technological capabilities in Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering (AME).

The Singapore government is hoping that the facilities will help support homegrown small and medium businesses to innovate, grow, and scale up.

"Disruptive technologies such as additive manufacturing, robotics are ushering a new era of manufacturing," said Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry Koh Poh Koon, in a report by Channel News Asia.

"These technologies will fundamentally change the way businesses operate, produce, and interact with their customers and their supply chain, leading to enhanced business models," he added.

Some firms have already started taking advantage of the initiative. One of them is local metal and machine servicing firm Abrasive Engineering.

The company is said to have used the facilities to test out a new digital process for monitoring machine health. It has since started integrating the technology into its machines and is expected to increase sales by 20 percent this year.

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Singapore to boost manufacturing industry with tech testing site

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MANUFACTURERS in Singapore are about to get another technology playground to help grow their business. The Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) announced a new facility that allows companies to test more than 10 types of advanced manufacturing technologies.

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By digitizing traditional manufacturing methods, companies are optimizing their supply chains, reducing development cycles, increasing efficiencies, and driving down costs.

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Digital manufacturing is rapidly changing the fundamentals of how products are developed, scaled and manufactured. By digitizing traditional manufacturing methods, including injection molding and CNC machining, and leveraging newer technologies, like 3-D printing, the industrial internet of things (IIoT) and artificial intelligence (AI), companies are optimizing their supply chains, reducing development cycles, increasing efficiencies, and driving down costs. The Fourth Industrial Revolution continues to gain traction and is completely changing the economics of manufacturing, for those willing to embrace the change that is.
It Makes Mass Customization Financially Viable
Empowered by connectivity and social networks, consumers are demanding more personalization than ever before. A Deloitte report noted half of consumers are interested in customized products and would be willing to pay more and wait longer if they could have an active role in design.

The move from mass production to mass customization has historically had high cost implications, but the balance is beginning to tilt. Digitization now offers opportunities for manufacturers to engage in automated customization in ways they could have never imagined. Flexible models, analytics, automation, and adaptive supply chains are opening new doors to personalized manufacturing.

Before they write it off as cost-prohibitive, manufacturers must consider the opportunities through a total cost of ownership approach. For example, while supply chain leaders have mainly focused on reducing the costs of components, each one of those components has its own inherent costs associated with tooling, front-end engineering and quality control. Digital manufacturing automates much of the front-end engineering associated with producing custom parts. Interactive design for manufacturability (DFM) tools offer an immediate analysis of part designs before they are manufactured, significantly reducing design risks (and potential rework costs) before production even begins. Digital manufacturing models also improve traceability throughout the manufacturing process via a digital thread that moves from 3-D CAD model to connected production floor to digital inspections and tracked shipping of final parts.

Combining these capabilities can significantly reduce tooling costs for specialty parts and low-volume production runs. It's changing the economics of customization and enabling manufacturers to tap new revenue streams that were previously unattainable. Now that the traditional barriers are falling, manufacturers can seek a competitive advantage by responding to consumer demands with more iterative development, shorter development cycles and more frequent innovation.

Digital manufacturing is also enabling manufacturers to bring products to market sooner, and do it in lower, limited runs much more economically than before. For example, medical startup Invoy Technologies was launching a brand-new weight-loss device to market, and with minimal demand predictability, did not want to commit to mass production right out of the gate. Instead, Invoy turned to digitally-enabled, low-volume injection molding, a cost-effective way to mitigate risk and bring brand new products to market sooner.
It's Changing the Economics of Product Design and Manufacturing
Digital manufacturing is enabled by multiple manufacturing methods, but one area that has really grown has been industrial 3-D printing. Over the past decade, additive manufacturing technologies have really grown from hobbyist applications to industrial-grade equipment capable of producing engineering-grade, end-use components.

Many major OEMs have come to the table and are helping move additive beyond prototyping to actual production. GE has been rapidly expanding its additive manufacturing business with new applications for the oil and gas, medical, automotive and aerospace industries. HP is also using its own technology in its supply chain to reduce costs and boost speed to market for its Multi Jet Fusion printers. And last year, the FAA gave Boeing approval to use 3-D printed titanium parts in the construction of its 787 Dreamliner.

Additive manufacturing not only enables the creation of new products but is also influencing design. For example, if an engineer had complete design freedom for a heat exchanger, how might he or she design it to accomplish the cooling step and reduce overall costs for the manufactured product? Redesigning the interior channels to cool the air more effectively might enable them to make a smaller exchanger and reduce process and material costs. They might also look to 3-D printing to consolidate and reduce the number of components and individual processes involved in their creation. Therefore, the real benefit of additive is really in the design freedom and assembly reduction, which unlocks tremendous opportunities in designing what previously was just un-manufacturable.
It's Reducing Maintenance Costs and Downtime
Manufacturers know the uptime of their equipment is critical, but many continue to use a reactive run-to-failure approach. It not only creates unnecessary risk but leaves money on the table. A study by Infosys found while more than 80 percent of manufacturers realize machine learning can enhance maintenance, less than 20 percent have instituted any productive maintenance capabilities. In fact, many manufacturers are still relying on manual analysis and using outdated systems on Excel spreadsheets.

With today's capabilities, there's no reason to rely solely on time or use-based schedules and human-controlled checklists. Inexpensive, connected sensors can collect data, run it through complex algorithms and uncover trends and concerns unidentifiable to humans. This enables them to more accurately predict when a component of their manufacturing process will fail.

It can be difficult for some to break from old ways, but planned and anticipated maintenance activities are far more efficient than reactive maintenance due to unplanned problems. Capital investments in software as a service (SaaS) solutions and sensors are minimal when factoring in the reduction in production downtime.

The technology and opportunities are already here. Digital manufacturing can bring new opportunities, new markets, and new levels of efficiency and cost reduction never thought possible. But, one first has to be willing to adopt the new way of thinking that digital manufacturing requires.

I have been President and Chief Executive Officer at Protolabs since February 2014. Prior to joining Protolabs, I served as President and Chief Executive Officer of... MORE

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Digital Is Changing The Economics Of Manufacturing

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Digital manufacturing is rapidly changing the fundamentals of how products are developed, scaled and manufactured. By digitizing traditional manufacturing methods, including injection molding and CNC machining, and leveraging newer technologies, like 3-D printing, the industrial internet of things (IIoT) and artificial intelligence (AI), companies are optimizing their supply chains, reducing development cycles, increasing efficiencies, and driving down costs.

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Singapore’s vibrant ecosystem of technology suppliers and adopters makes it the hub of choice for companies seeking manufacturing solutions for the rapidly growing Asian markets.

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Making a world-class impression at Hannover Messe 2018

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