IIoT Tech Turbocharges IT/OT Convergence in Smart Manufacturing

  

Smart manufacturing C-suite execs are enjoying greater organizational collaboration and productivity, as the previously siloed realms of information technology (IT) and operations technology (OT) begin converging. Turbocharging the profitability of IT/OT convergence and industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) technologies is enhancing and improving business processes, controls, and insights. IT/OT convergence success, however, depends on highly informed decisions at the following three levels of technology deployment:

• Platform level - Empowering a comprehensive IIoT and IT/OT tech/user platform
• Cloud level - Managing and accessing cloud applications
• Ecosystem level - Implementing and managing ecosystem partnerships

Keep reading to learn more about leveraging the power of IIoT tech on three critical levels for turbocharging your organization's IT/OT convergence. We'll also cover considerations for deploying IIoT tech in Zone 1 smart manufacturing areas.

IIoT Tech Turbocharges IT/OT Convergence in Smart Manufacturing

IT/OT convergence seeks to resolve the pressing need to incorporate data from operational technology into the digital realm of information technology. The concept of IT/OT convergence originated years ago. However, the historic segmentation of OT and IT systems into separate realms of corporate management means they each evolved separately, with significantly different protocols and architectures. Innovative advances in IIoT tech and smart data analytics are finally bridging the divide between CIOs and COOs. This offers standardized networking protocols for communicating OT data to IT systems for universal data integration, storage, management, and analysis. These advances are turbocharging the current momentum of IT/OT convergence, optimizing data from the full spectrum of organizational assets. And this includes frontline equipment and processes into industrial-level, enterprise-wide business intelligence. A successfully designed and implemented IT/OT platform leveraging IIoT tech provides valuable organizational cost savings and many other benefits. These benefits include greater access to innovation, productivity optimization, improved safety, collaboration, decision-making, agility, resilience, and sustainability.

The 3 Key Levels of IIoT Tech Deployment

In the following sections, we'll explore the three key levels of IIoT technology deployment for turbocharging IT/OT convergence in smart manufacturing operations, even in Zone 1 locations.

1. Platform Level

Requirements include designing, implementing, and managing a comprehensive IIoT and OT/IT-integrated technology platform. Successful value creation from IT/OT convergence requires a solid platform for developing and managing applications, storing and securing fundamental data, running analytics, and generating advanced visualizations, insights, and predictions.

2. Cloud Level

Deployment needs include analyzing, implementing, and managing cloud-based governance, partnerships, and access to innovative products and services. This offers advanced IIoT tech available at the ecosystem level and it migrates selected in-house functions and processes to cloud-level applications.

3. Ecosystem Level

At this level, deploying IIoT tech solutions requires selecting appropriate use cases based on company KSIs and value-creation opportunities available from the cloud-partner ecosystem before migrating applications to the cloud. Upon making appropriate selections, ecosystem-level requirements include managing ecosystem partnerships and contracts.

Deploying IIoT Tech in Zone 1 HazLocs

Because standard smartphones, sensors, and other electronic devices can create sparks, they aren't legal in manufacturing operations that involve potentially combustible materials or atmospheres. Deploying IIoT tech in Zone 1 hazardous locations (HazLocs) requires purpose-built, certified intrinsically safe (IS) electronic devices. Fortunately, there's a wide spectrum of cost-effective, game-changing IS solutions for deploying IIoT tech for smart manufacturing in Zone 1 locations.

Aegex Technologies Offers Enterprise-Scale IIoT Tech

Level up your Zone 1 smart manufacturing operations to enterprise-wide business intelligence with state-of-the-art Aegex digital tools powered by industry-leading Aegex Technologies. Turbocharge your IT/OT convergence with our purpose-built, globally certified IIoT tech solutions. You can have an entire ecosystem of world-class IT applications, AI-based analytics, and secure Microsoft Azure Cloud connectivity. Our NexVu IoT sensors transmit data to aegex10 mobile tablets fully converged and optimized into bankable business intelligence. And these enterprise-scale IoT platforms have full integration with advanced OT machine-learning protocols. If your organization is considering IT/OT convergence, leverage Aegex Technologies' industrial expertise and state-of-the-art IIoT tech solutions for all levels of smart manufacturing success, even in Zone 1 HazLocs. Contact us here to learn more.