Why effective asset visibility starts at the digital twin

The cost of poor asset visibility is potentially enormous. Estimates suggest companies are losing almost $25 billion each year in the UK alone. Yet many…

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OpenText

July 8, 20215 minutes read

The cost of poor asset visibility is potentially enormous. Estimates suggest companies are losing almost $25 billion each year in the UK alone. Yet many manufacturers still rely on manual, spreadsheet-based processes to track their inventory of assets. Asset tracking based on the Internet of Things (IoT) can lower costs and risk while boosting performance and productivity. For example, the OpenText™ Asset Intelligence for Manufacturing solution uses a scalable digital twin for asset tracking and optimization.

As the IoT matures, more and more use cases are springing up across manufacturing operations. We are beginning to bridge the gap between physical and digital. And there’s a huge range of benefits to be gained. Asset tracking is perhaps one of the most powerful of these, as this is an area where many manufacturers struggle. But there’s more to asset tracking than sticking an IoT tag or sensor onto your parts or equipment. To gain full visibility of that asset, you must be able to quickly capture and utilize that IoT data and combine it with other information and content. This is why building your asset intelligence capabilities around the digital twin is so important.

Let me explain.

Assets everywhere, except where they should be

This might sound familiar to you: A piece of equipment needs a new part, but that part can’t be located, which means the entire production line is affected. Maybe it can adjust but, in the worst-case scenario, it might have to stop. Or imagine that an asset such as a forklift is needed, but it’s not where it was a couple of minutes ago. While such situations sound trivial, the consequences add up and can become dangerous.

A continual drip of asset-tracking problems can soon become a drop in production, lost revenues and poor customer experience.

IoT-enabled asset tracking allows every physical object to be quickly converted to an IoT device that continually gathers digital intelligence on the asset in ways that weren’t possible before. The IoT device collects asset data and shares it—often in real time—with people and automated systems that can act based on that data.

But it’s not always straightforward to deliver an effective digital asset tracking system. Research suggests that three-quarters of all IoT projects fail. McKinsey found that the top two reasons for this were integrating IoT solutions into existing workflows and managing data. In fact, integrating the IoT into existing workflows was far and away the biggest issue—almost twice as common as any other cause.

Introducing OpenText Asset Intelligence for Manufacturing

To be successful, asset tracking must involve more than the capture and communication of IoT data. It must include the ability to bring different formats of IoT data together securely and integrate that with other information and content related to that asset. That’s why taking a digital twin approach is the most beneficial. This delivers that single point of truth for the entire asset that can then be accessed by the correct people and systems. It’s the only way to deliver end-to-end visibility into the asset and its connection with other related assets.

OpenText Asset Intelligence for Manufacturing is the starting point in the creation of the digital twin. The digital creation of the asset in the OpenText Internet of Things Platform allows for the collection, orchestration and governance of data from the identified and verified asset as it operates. And this information can be integrated into business applications. The data from this digital twin can be securely orchestrated and disseminated to key stakeholders, customers or regulators as required for their roles in the asset’s operation. For a short look at such asset intelligence, check out this video.

Scaling and developing the digital twin

OpenText Asset Intelligence for Manufacturing creates the foundation on which an extensive digital twin for asset track and trace can be built. It’s designed to be flexible and scalable, with future modules including:

  • OpenText Asset Track for Manufacturing

Building on the advantages gained from Asset Intelligence, the Asset Track solution leverages location-based services to pinpoint an asset’s location in real time. 

  • OpenText Asset Monitor for Manufacturing

The Asset Monitor solution delivers data on the asset’s condition, health and performance to support activities such as condition-based, predictive and prescriptive maintenance operations.

  • OpenText Asset Insights for Manufacturing

The Asset Insights solution empowers an organization to visualize all of its assets as an ecosystem, and to view an exception dashboard to quickly identify assets that are not performing as expected or are missing in action.

Growing with your business needs, OpenText’s portfolio of IoT-driven asset management solutions provides a starting point for organizations to begin using a digital twin of their physical assets.

To find out more about the OpenText range of digital solutions for manufacturing, visit our web page.

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OpenText

OpenText, The Information Company, enables organizations to gain insight through market-leading information management solutions, powered by OpenText Cloud Editions.

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