8:00 AM ET:

"ROI and Justification for Smart Manufacturing"
Luis Gólcher, IPG

Smart Manufacturing enables manufacturing facilities to remain competitive on a global scale. Justifying MES/MOM implementation is a critical step for manufacturers looking to advance their projects. Justification involves reasoning behind the project and typically includes assessing factors such as regulatory requirements, market demand, organizational needs, technological advancements, competitive pressures, and potential return on investment.

This lecture explores the two-dimensional space of project justification: Strategic Intent and Financial Return. Strategic Intent is defined within the context of the organization's primary goals, while the key considerations for Financial Return are discussed. A business case is presented to facilitate discussion.

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9:00AM ET:

"Sustainability - Ideas to Start the Journey to a Green Factory"
Alejandro Araque, Rockwell Automation

Big complexity, high investment, long time projects, stakeholders and sponsors engagement, results?. Those are common concerns when companies start to talk about sustainability. Let’s review some facts and topics that could be useful for you and your teams when deciding to start the journey to green manufacturing.

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10:00 AM ET: "How and When Will GenAI Impact Smart Manufacturing?"
Joanne Friedman, Connektedminds Inc.
David Hinkler, Thermofisher

If you're still questioning how and when GenAI will impact smart manufacturing, be concerned—that transformation is already underway. Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) and other forms of AI are  set to revolutionize smart manufacturing by enhancing predictive maintenance, supply chain optimization, quality control, and human-machine collaboration. Using Gartner's AI Maturity Model is just a starting point; however this session outlines the progressive stages and timelines for GenAI and other forms of AI  integration. Initial stages involve proof-of-concept projects, advancing to broader operational integration, and culminating in full-scale adoption influenced by technological advancements and regulatory readiness. Early adopters are in the initial stages, with broader implementation expected within one to three years. Manufacturers must adapt and strategically progress through the maturity model to fully leverage GenAI, ensuring competitive advantage and operational efficiency. Certainly, here are five questions this session with attempt to address:

1. What specific facets of smart manufacturing can GenAI enhance, where are we headed?

2. How might the timeline for the widespread adoption of AI in smart manufacturing be accelerated and influenced to address real-world manufacturing problems?

3. What are some early applications of GenAI in smart manufacturing, according to the latest trends in the industry?

4. Why is it critical for smart manufacturers to adapt to emerging GenAI and other AI technologies?

5. What is the anticipated timeframe to hyper-scale GenAI in the smart manufacturing sector?

6. What are AI Risks and Rewards?

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11:00 AM ET:

"The OT Security Standard IEC 62443 – A deeper view for plant operators and system integrators"
Karl-Heinz Niemann, Ph.D., University of Applied Sciences and Arts in Hannover – Institute for Sensor and Automation Technology

8:00 AM ET:

"How Intelligence Emerged in my Computer and How that Impacts People, Sustainability, Productivity and Growth"
Christoph Wust, Ford Motor Company (retired)

Information Technology (IT) is rapidly evolving from a technology to the science of Digitalization. Where “Data Processing” and “Electronic Data Interchange (EDI)” were the enablers of the past, we now see fully integrated Digital-Twins between business partners as well as new applied Digitalization methods like chatGPT or SORA enabling new and exciting business cases.
This presentation will NOT focus on IT technologies. However, it will enable non-IT business experts to understand the journey and development of IT enablers and how they can be applied to the business goals like sustainability, productivity and growth.
The Applied Digitalization enables new and fundamentally changed business processes which affects people on all levels. It appears that changes towards Digitalization are perceived different and come with new “people” challenges. Young “digital natives” work and think different then “digital immigrants” who did the job for the past 20 or 30 years who challenge why Digitalization is required now.
The EMEA MESA team ran a number of workshops in World Café style This presentation will give a quick summary of the highlights and findings.

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9:00 AM ET:

"How Do I Select The Right MES Solution?"
Jim Molter, Komatsu Mining

You’re told you need an MES. Where do you start? here are hundreds of MES solutions on the market. As the lines between ERP, MOM and MES blur that only complicates things.

Unless you feel really lucky don’t select the first one you find but, on the flipside, don’t get stuck in analysis paralysis. I’ve been through the MES selection process several times over the course of my career. I’ve seen mistakes being made, and I’ve made mistakes on my own. I’ve seen what works and I think I have learned something along the way.

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10:00 AM ET:

"What Does it Take to Gain and Sustain Value from AI in Manufacturing? Experiments and Lessons Learned"
Julie Fraser, Tech Clarity
Dave Noller, Virginia Tech 
Jan de Nijs, Lockheed Martin - Aero
Will Spears, Sonoco

Panel discussion of use cases for various forms of AI in manufacturing. Panelists will share ideas and experience of where they have used AI, and when other analytics such as optimization, simulation, heuristics, or statistics work well. This session will include examples of what works and what doesn’t work from the panelists’ experience.
Join this session to hear:

• Where have we seen success with AI in manufacturing?
• What are the challenges?
• What is the key to AI programs that can scale up from PoC to wide-scale production?
• How do you sustain and support AI over time?
• What is the governance structure to manage AI appropriately?
• What does it take to get beyond initial hype to real business value?
• How to craft a data strategy as the foundation for success.

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11:00 AM ET:

"MOM: Digital Warfare in the World of Battery Manufacturing"
Martin Strempel, iTAC Software AG

The battery industry is rapidly evolving to meet growing demand for more affordable and efficient batteries. Companies that can master complex production processes and embrace digital transformation will have a strategic advantage. This presentation will explore how Industry 4.0 and Smart Manufacturing are driving innovations in Manufacturing Operations Management for battery manufacturers, allowing for real-time traceability and AI-assisted data-driven decisions to improve quality and reduce scrap.

8:00 AM ET:

“Grow, Transform, Consume, Compost: Genera’s Vision for Sustainability.”
Tim Tunkel, Genera

Genera Energy, based in East Tennessee, is dedicated to “ReGenerate the Earth™” by providing sustainable fiber products for the growing single-use compostable market. This initiative began as a research collaboration with the University of Tennessee and has evolved into a vertically integrated system that supports local farmers and markets to produce high-quality products for responsible consumption.

Our vision starts in the field, where purpose-grown fibers are planted, raised, and harvested. These fibers are then processed into packaging, consumer products, and other bioproducts. Once used, these products are designed to be composted, returning nutrients to the Earth.

Genera is proud to be the largest fully integrated domestic producer of non-wood fiber and fiber products. With our latest capital expansion, we are experiencing exponential growth and significantly increasing our supply of our sustainable products to meet market demands.

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9:00 AM ET:

"Rockwell Automation's Smart Manufacturing Journey"
Ken Marapese, Rockwell Automation

Take a look at how Rockwell Automation implemented MES as the backbone of their Digital Transformation. We will explore how Rockwell implemented this strategy at 20 + sites worldwide.

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10:00 AM ET:

"DataOps at Scale"
Lau Skovgaard, Cognite

Only by scaling innovative use cases across multiple sites can companies generate real business impact. This presentation will center on the key DataOps capabilities necessary to do so and give a brief overXview of some of the use cases that Celanese, one of the US's largest chemicals companies, has deployed.

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11:00 AM ET:

"Leveraging Digital Interventions for Sustainable Manufacturing : Grasim industries Journey towards smart and Eco-efficient Operations"
Surya Valluri, Aditya Birla Center

Grasim Industries, a flagship company of the Aditya Birla Group, has evolved from textiles to a diversified leader in sectors like Cellulosic Fibres, Paints and Chemicals. Committed to sustainability, Grasim is recognized as a top sustainable company in its industry. This presentation will showcase how early-stage digital interventions are driving significant improvements in energy efficiency, waste reduction, and process optimization, leveraging smart manufacturing for sustainable growth.