Machine tool in-depth diagnostic solution

As manufacturing undergoes a digital transformation accelerated in no small part by emerging technologies including cyber-physical systems,and the Internet of Things and Services, opportunities are arising for manufacturers to increase their competitiveness by ensuring maximum machine uptime.

 

That is the ambition of GF Machining Solutions Customer Services’ new rConnect technology - a communication platform that operates across and integrates the company’s Milling, EDM and Laser technologies.

 

rConnect provides evidence of how the GF Machining Solutions is pioneering the Industry 4.0 vision of the smart Factory of the Future.

 

The first phase of rConnect is Live Remote Assistance (LRA).

 

This facility enables customer-authorised remote assistance - and therefore connects the customer with a local diagnostics centre and the GF Machining Solutions plants…in real time.

 

LRA allows Customer Services to inspect a machine tool remotely with diagnostics performed by a GF Machining Solutions technician or the customer. Any resulting maintenance intervention that may be required is performed on site by a service engineer.

 

Clear customer benefits with LRA

 

The LRA customer cockpit is the user interface for the machine operator or Production or Operations manager.

 

The LRA enables direct access to GF Machining Solutions’ digital services and supports the customer in his/her daily machine tool maintenance activities. (For example, the LRA provides an overview of all maintenance activities due/pending and customers can view current status messages and call up machine tool performance reports.

 

The customer benefits of LRA are clear: faster diagnosis and interventions when machine issues arise, significantly less machine downtime and, consequently, improved and continuous productivity.

 

With LRA, information can be shared between the customer and GF Machining Solutions via audio, video, chat, whiteboard, file transfer, screen sharing, and system access etc. All interactions are logged, and a record is created.

 

Behind rConnect and LRA is an instant virtual private network allowing highly secure access to the machine…certified with TÜViT Trusted Product Certificate.

 

The best value delivered by LRA and rConnect is a direct result of GF Machining Solutions’ commitment to customers and its long Industry 4.0 partnerships with leading European research institutes including the University of Birmingham (UK), the University of Geneva (CH), the Swiss Federal Technical Institute in Zurich, RWTH Aachen University (DE), and the Fraunhofer Institute (DE, the machine tool industry’s most in-depth remote machine tool diagnostic solution.