IoT and the development of Industry 4.0 is urging industry experts to take advantage of the streamlined processes, data retrieval, and analytic capabilities engendered by such a development. With the collection and analysis of machine data now easier than ever, maintenance o equipment can be predicted by IoT-based monitoring systems.
Such predictive maintenance is possible because of the real-time transmission of data from machine sensors to cloud-based storage systems. The data alone isn’t enough to imagine maintenance strategies, but it is the analysis of this data that facilitates meaningful insights. This analysis is undertaken by machine learning algorithms, analytic programs and AI.
Think of how much more smoothly your business could operate if instead of trying to guess when machinery will require maintenance, you could leverage data and insights to make informed predictions?
Predictive vs. Preventative Maintenance
So, what differentiates predictive maintenance from the usual practice of preventative maintenance? The benefits lie in the real-time data transfer discussed above. Most importantly, employee safety can be increased by the IoT-enabled monitoring of machinery which allows managers to always ensure that operational conditions are safe and efficient. So if conditions such as vibration, temperature, contamination levels, voltage, or RPM become unsafe, these hazards can be identified and resolved before anyone gets hurt.
Not only can you increase the health of your employees with predictive maintenance, but also the lifespan of your equipment. Since irregular operational conditions are monitored, any components requiring maintenance or replacement can be assessed and maintained with unprecedented efficiency.
It’s also likely that any maintenance costs accrued will be lesser with preventative maintenance. This is because frequent monitoring and inspection reduces the event of total equipment failure which would hurt your wallet more than simple upkeep. Not only are costs reduced, but your profits are also accordingly increased. Why? IoT-enabled preventative maintenance protects you from machine failures which could potentially punish you with significant downtime, which reduces profitability.
How Does Predictive Maintenance Work?
Since predictive maintenance is able to monitor the conditions of machine components, it’s also able to predict and provide insights into which components need to be replaced most often and how many should be kept in your inventory at any given time. With such insights, you’re safe from equipment failure and from overspending on unnecessary parts. Again, we see that expenses are reduced when relying on predictive maintenance.
Although this discussion may lead you to imagine smart factories and other industrial settings, predictive maintenance and IoT-enabled monitoring can be an essential asset to many sectors. The restaurant industry, for example, could take advantage of predictive maintenance while also using IoT for customer-facing interactions. We can also think of how the idea of predictive maintenance could be applied to their food inventory. Rather than monitoring replaceable components, IoT can monitor ingredients in need of replacement or ordering. As such, it’s important to imagine how the capabilities of IoT can be utilized in a number of industries.
In reality, the potential applications of predictive maintenance technology are virtually endless. Fortunately, we’re experts in all sorts of industries who are adopting IoT solutions. If you’re interested in how IoT can streamline your performance, then consider contacting us at Evolution Data where we can inform you of the developments and advantages of IoT in regard to predictive maintenance solutions.
