Reinventing Manufacturing

and predictive analytics. By continuously changing the
way we work, we are better able to take action and to
understand how well our processes are working inside
the factory. As part of GE’s Brilliant Factory strategy,
it is building the Digital Thread from product design
through the supply chain and is leveraging the latest
technologies to optimize operations in real time.
Capitalizing on 3D modeling tools, sensors, controllers,
robotics, pillar software such as Product Lifecycle
Management (PLM), Enterprise Resource Planning
(ERP) and Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES), as
well as using its Predix platform for machine data cloud
connectivity, security and manufacturing analytics, GE
is “digitally-enabling” its operations and gathering
hundreds of gigabytes of data to gain new insights into
how its machines are operating and how its processes
are working on the factory floor. GE is also monitoring
its vast distribution network and inventory supplies in
ways never done before. The results have been incredibly
impactful—driving increased productivity, reduced
costs, reduced cycle time and improved quality. One of
GE’s Brilliant Factory sites in Greenville, South Carolina
has estimated that more than $100 million in benefits
have accrued over a 3-year period by building the
Digital Thread from model-based engineering through
sensor-enablement on the factory floor. As part of the
Digital Thread strategy, GE will increase their machines
and materials connectivity by 400% in 2016. Connecting
the Digital Thread and utilizing the data in new
ways is the foundation for making factories of the
future brilliant.
As one can imagine, when machining a part, drilling a
hole or putting new materials together, a great deal
of important data that was previously out of reach can
now be collected. Being able to transmit that information,
store that information, figure out which data
points are important, and then do the analysis has been
a huge step change in enabling the Brilliant Factory. It
is a commitment to combing operational technology,
the Industrial Internet, and the continuous changing of
the way we work, to put the right solutions at the right
places at the right time.
As GE sees things, it is just starting to scratch the
surface. The opportunity to apply new types of analysis
to factories arrived over the last three or four years,
especially with the emergence of the Industrial Internet
and the ability to handle data sets on a very large scale.