No big data without sensor technology - SICK enables Industry 4.0

At the Hannover Messe Industrie (HMI) 2015 trade fair, SICK AG showcased itself as a technology driver in the field of Industry 4.0 and presented its entire range of sensors and sensor solutions for industrial applications. Taking four examples from the areas of flexible automation, safety, track and trace, and quality control, SICK will demonstrate its solutions expertise for the field of Industry 4.0.

Flexible automation requires variable framework conditions. Manufacturing plants must be flexible and must adapt to individual customer requirements. With high product variance but ever-smaller quantities, intelligent components (smart sensors) must be able to adapt and control themselves.

The key driving force in the field of safety is the interaction between humans and machines, taking into account ergonomic and safety considerations. Central issues include the role of humans in the production systems of the future and how sensor technology can support and protect them.

Vertical integration is the keyword for track and trace. The traceability of products during complex manufacturing and logistics processes stands at the forefront of this field. Production and transport logistics merge together through to the customer and necessitate transparent commodity flows, so that decisions can be made more quickly.

Increasing quality standards and the need for efficient use of resources require autonomous error detection by means of extensive product and production data. In the field of quality control, reliable and unambiguous identification of goods in the production process and supply chain is a vital prerequisite for efficient, autonomous control.

Sensor intelligence enables Industry 4.0

Industry 4.0 and the Internet of Things will change the industrial process. Thanks to cloud computing, products and machines can exchange information between themselves. The industrial process will be controlled in a decentralized and dynamic manner and will no longer be organized centrally from the factory. Intelligent, reliable sensor technology is therefore indispensable when facing the challenges of Industry 4.0. The exchange of manufacturing, product, and logistics data enables almost complete transparency over the entire value chain. The data supplier – the intelligent sensor technology – plays a crucial role here. SICK shows what is already possible and is working with its customers to actively shape the major changes that are on the way.

HMI offers key platform for future trends

After a six-year absence, SICK AG will once again be appearing at the HMI this year. In 2008, the company decided that it would not appear at the HMI from 2009 onward and chose to focus instead on user-oriented trade fairs in order to address its customers. Over the last few years, however, the focus of the HMI has shifted to future technological trends which are relevant to SICK. This includes the subject of Industry 4.0 in particular, which will once again be the leading theme of the fair.

SICK is one of the world's leading manufacturers of sensors and sensor solutions for industrial applications. Founded in 1946 by Dr.-Ing. h. c. Erwin Sick, the company with headquarters in Waldkirch im Breisgau near Freiburg ranks among the technological market leaders. With more than 50 subsidiaries and equity investments as well as numerous representative offices, SICK maintains a presence all around the globe. In the 2013 fiscal year, SICK had more than 6,500 employees worldwide and achieved Group sales of EUR 1,009.5 million.