Thinking in solutions that are future-proof

Various developments are taking place around smart customization, cyber security, automation, robotics and drive technology. This offers companies many opportunities. The key is to make the right choices so that business can flourish. Marc Vissers and Edwin Dobbelsteen share their experience and give a look behind the scenes at Lenze. 

"Smart customization is one of the most important issues facing the industry today," begins Edwin Dobbelsteen, sales manager for the Netherlands at Lenze. "We live in a world that is volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous. Therefore, it is essential to design your products and processes smartly so that you can offer customer-specific end products at competitive prices. Smart customization leads to the development and launch of new tools that make it possible to take into account the DNA of the end user from the starting point. From drawing sheet to end result, including maintenance and service and life cycle management. Nowadays, everything is connected. Therefore, starting at the basics is important to achieve smart customization."

Looking Ahead

Equally essential is looking ahead. Where do you want to be by 2030 and beyond? And what exactly do you want to automate? "Automation continues to grow in importance, in part because of a growing shortage of technicians. But automation can be done in many ways: at the axis level, at the cloud level or somewhere in between. This means you have to decide where you want to deploy your knowledge, as the intellectual property of a machine is increasingly in the software. Lenze offers a wide range to support companies in making the right choices and choosing the right solutions." 

Sustainable

Marc Vissers, Marketing and Communications manager at Lenze EMEA-West adds: "If you look at our portfolio, we can provide drive lines and components as well as PLCs and cloud and digitalization solutions. We offer both OT and IT services and bring them together as required. It is important for companies not to buy products, but to think in technologies that are future-proof. We do the same ourselves. Take sustainability. There is no choice anymore but to bring sustainable products to the market. For example, we recently launched the o450 MDR (motor driven roller for conveyors). A completely different concept that can be integrated into existing conveyor systems. Thanks to its design, about 30% less active material is used in the motor and about 30% less rare earths are used than in conventional magnets. This makes the motor less sensitive to volatile rare earth prices while the system contributes to sustainability."

Out of the box

"We are taking a different approach to innovation," Dobbelsteen continued. "The industry invests in IE motors, but we go for IE++, indicating that we want to make bigger steps. This sometimes requires thinking out of the box and applying new concepts." Vissers gives one last example. "Margins in mechanical engineering are under pressure, but digitization offers new opportunities. With the right knowledge about your machine's data management, you can develop new lucrative business models. In this too, we have been supporting companies for several years. For example, we have launched a digital platform (Nupano) that enables machine builders to embrace IT developments without the need for specialized software or programming knowledge."

OT and IT

Global developments lead to technological changes, but they also create a different approach within your company and within your supply chain. Vissers: "It is our job as a partner in the chain to tell this message, but also to bring the machine builder and end user along with us in this change. Training institutes are currently working hard to deliver both OT and IT students to the job market, but it will take some time before sufficient expertise is built up to bridge the gap between OT and IT in the market. Having conversations with the market and trainers is necessary to get new generations to high levels."

During the in-house event The Pace of Automation - drive the opportunities in 's Hertogenbosch, from September 24 to October 4 next, Lenze will discuss these topics with the market. It will show there the opportunities to innovate. Read more in the article "We bring people, market and technology together".