How Sensor Technology is Remaking Modern Manufacturing

Philippe Boisvert, Director, Hydrogen Energy Systems, Plug Power

Sensor technology is rapidly reshaping the way we do business, bringing  an unprecedented level of strategic flexibility, technical sophistication,  and analytic insight to every link of the global supply chain. This effect is  most pronounced in the material handling, logistics, and manufacturing  industries, where sensor technology is enabling companies to innovate novel  approaches to business compliance, accounting, analytics, and strategy across all  product categories.

Smart sensor technologies have become a cornerstone of industry 4.0,  which is defined by the increasing prevalence of automation and data exchange  in manufacturing processes. Let’s take a brief look at some of the areas where  sensor technology is making a big impact on modern businesses: 

Compliance. Sensors are helping companies enhance quality control, improve  safety, and reduce waste in manufacturing. This is particularly true in categories  like oil & gas, where conditions can be hazardous. For example, new sensor  technologies are ushering in a wave of automated mobile robot (AMR) adoption,  enabling companies to improve safety compliance by removing vulnerable vehicle  operators from dangerous factory floors. The sensors that help these AMRs  navigate their surroundings can also monitor waste and quality control, ensuring  regulatory compliance. Combined with low-emission e-mobility solutions like  hydrogen fuel cells, sensor-guided AMRs are poised to usher in an era in which  factories are cleaner, greener, safer, and more efficient than ever before. 

Accounting. A recent report by global advisory firm Ernst & Young highlights  how sensor technology is helping companies streamline accounting functions  and produce unprecedented cost savings and efficiencies. The report details four  critical ways in which sensors have made this possible: They increase production  flexibility and worker responsiveness by providing real-time information to  factory management. Sensors also reduce equipment downtime through  predictive maintenance. As mentioned above, they improve quality control and  reduce waste. And most importantly, they allow for an improved understanding  of cost structures, enabling optimized energy and materials consumption. 

Analytics. Smart sensors can generate enormous treasure troves of data,  and the most successful businesses of industry 4.0 are combining that data  with advanced analytics to achieve significant productivity gains within the  manufacturing process. Data analysis can allow manufacturers to detect  inefficiencies in production and address those issues quickly. 

Strategy. Ultimately, each of the ladders, as mentioned above, lead to the  one area where sensor technology is undoubtedly making the biggest impact—  business strategy. Sensors aren’t just enabling companies to improve upon  their existing manufacturing processes; they’re also helping companies develop  entirely new products, services, and overall business models. For example,  sensor-guided AMRs can make it easier for companies to adjust manufacturing  processes quickly and efficiently to create small batches of customized  products.

We’ve seen firsthand how both forward-thinking enterprises and  disruptive start-ups are harnessing sensor innovations to create new  operating efficiencies, business models, and revenue sources. As  these trends continue to progress, there is no doubt that companies  who stubbornly adhere to legacy technologies and traditional  ways of doing business will be at a significant risk of falling by the  wayside