Hannover Messe 2018 Preview - Industry meets Logistics @ 4.0
Published on : Monday 30-11--0001
‘Integrated Industry – Connect and Collaborate’ is the lead theme of Hannover Messe 2018 – the world’s largest show of industrial technology. As over 150 journalists from all parts of the world gathered at the ‘New York’ Room of Hall 19 in the Hannover Exhibition Centre, Germany, on February 6th, the near zero temperature outside was forgotten with the warmth generated by the excitement caused by 38 companies offering a sneak preview of what to expect at the main event that will unfold over the last working week of April 2018 – 23th to 27th to be precise – for yet another annual ‘technovaganza’ of ‘Hannovation’.
In his opening address, Dr Jochen Köckler, Chairman of the Managing Board at Deutsche Messe, noted the record number of journalists present for the Preview, now in its seventh year. "The integration of automation technology, IT platforms and machine learning will take Industry 4.0 to the next level," Dr Köckler said, and pointed out how visitors from all around the world will now be able to experience the completely new forms of business, work and collaboration that are being made possible by an increasingly connected, digitally networked industrial landscape. “They will witness first-hand the benefits of integrated industry: enhanced productivity, future-proof jobs and exciting new business models," he added.
The 2018 edition of Hannover Messe is even more significant as from this year CeMAT – the leading event for intralogistics and supply chain management – will be co-located every even year, following the rapidly evolving trend of digital integration of industry, energy and logistics, in the wake of Industry 4.0. As productivity is rising and customisation becoming a norm rather than an exception, digitisation is equally important for logistics operations, which faces similar challenges in managing complex processes and making them more efficient. While the challenges of online retail are leading to innovative logistics processes to handle increasingly complex supply chains, in manufacturing, production and logistics processes are becoming ever more closely integrated through intelligent technologies as part of the ongoing quest to boost efficiency and flexibility and hence lower costs. At CeMAT, visitors will be able to experience the convergence of production and logistics for themselves.
The next important thing is energy in general, green energy in particular. While the world moves to electrical mobility, the question of availability of reliable power for all the charging points is assuming greater significance and that, coupled with the seamless integration of renewable power from wind and solar plants to the grid is presenting its own set of challenges. "Everyone's talking about the mobility transition, but the fact is, our power grids are simply not yet ready for the widespread use of electric cars," as Dr Köckler explained. The problem, according to the energy sector, is that electric mobility will result in much higher load peaks than are currently the norm. Moreover, eMobility won't be able to deliver on its eco-friendly and sustainability promise unless the power it uses comes from renewable sources.
Apart from CeMAT, the line-up of sector specific shows at Hannover Messe 2018 includes: Integrated Automation, Motion & Drives; Digital Factory; Energy; Industrial Supply; and Research & Technology.
VDMA roadmaps for Logistics
The Fraunhofer Institute of Material Flow and Logistics has prepared ‘Technology Roadmaps Intralogistics 2025’ for the VDMA Materials Handling and Intralogistics Association which will be presented to the professional visitors at CeMT 2018. The roadmaps point out specific development steps required to implement the vision of self-optimising intralogistics system. Dr Klaus-Dieter Rosenbach, Chairman of the VDMA Material Handling and Intralogistics Association and member of the managing board at Jungheinrich AG, Hamburg, offered the first impressions of the roadmaps during the preview. "Against the background of digital transformation, this is an urgent requirement for the further automation and ultimate ‘autonomisation’ of processes," said Dr Rosenbach. Intralogistics systems are not isolated solutions, but form an integral part of logistics and production processes. "That’s why it is so important to interconnect the various systems and enable them to communicate and work with each other," emphasised Rosenbach.
Sensor Intelligence
Intelligent sensors hold the key to successful implementation of Industry 4.0. Speaking at the preview on 'Sensor intelligence in the factory of the future', Dr Robert Bauer, CEO, SICK AG, mentioned how it is not just about a fully automated factory but one where human workers are integrated with autonomous machines with creative people – it is about man-machine cooperation. Each sensor and machine will be able to communicate at all times with all devices in the factory, as well as those in remote locations. The aim is to improve transparency, productivity, and profitability. Communication takes place at the local level (edge) or via the cloud.
As they move towards Industry 4.0, companies are facing the challenge of networking machines and overarching IT systems in production processes. The aim of this process is to gain an overview of all production and logistics processes along the entire supply chain, right through to order fulfilment and delivery to the customer. SICK AG, which according to Dr Bauer had a very successful year in 2017, invests 10% of its revenue on R&D. The company offers solutions today that can overcome the challenges of tomorrow, with intelligent sensors that collect data, evaluate it in real time, adapt to their environment, and communicate in the network, enabling a new level of flexibility – networked intelligence for efficient processes and reliable cooperation of humans and machines.
Partner Country – Mexico
Mexico is the partner Country at Hannover Messe 2018 – the first Spanish speaking country and the first from Latin America to get the honour. As the country’s northern neighbour is acting tough, from across the Atlantic new warmth is radiating towards country that is the world’s largest producer of flat screen TVs and 4th largest car exporter. What is more significant, Mexico, a country with USD 1.3 trillion GDP, is among the top 5 recipients globally in the aerospace sector.
“Mexico is one of the most sought-after investment destinations globally,” said S E Rogelio Granguillhome, the Mexican ambassador to Germany, speaking at the preview meeting. “During the current administration of President Pena Nieto, Mexico has received $163 billion, generating more than three million jobs in different economic sectors.” The ambassador also referred to President Nieto’s ambitious agenda of structural reforms that has already yielded satisfactory results to reduce costs, boost productivity and prepare the stage for sunrise industries.
Germany accounts for 40% of Mexico’s trade with the EU, which at USD 22 billion is more than the combined trade value of the next three top ranked EU economies – the UK, France and Italy. The Partner Country status will certainly boost this relation further, as from a mere 5 companies, the Mexican presence at Hannover this year is boosted to 150 exhibitors. Mexico will focus on Industry 4.0, energy, environmental technology, vocational training, start-ups and foreign investments, the ambassador noted.
Captions
Photo1: Dr Jochen Köckler, Chairman of the Managing Board at Deutsche Messe.
Photo2: Dr Klaus-Dieter Rosenbach, Chairman of the VDMA Material Handling and Intralogistics Association.
Photo3: Dr Robert Bauer, CEO, SICK AG.
Photo4: Ms Jyothi Joseph, Director, IED Communications, talking to Bernhard Mueller, Member – Management Board, SICK AG.
Hannover Messe 2018
Germany