Manufacturers are exposed to various operational risks relating to the performance of their critical production equipment, which if not managed proactively can all impact the bottom line.

Chief amongst these risks is the impact of unplanned production downtime due to machine outages. This has the potential for major financial impact to the business through wastage and spoiled goods as a result of interrupted production runs, stranded costs in staff standing time and inventory build-up, as well as ensuing reputational damage due to missed delivery deadlines.

Inefficient maintenance programmes combined with a lack of visibility into machine health are frequently cited as the cause of unexpected outages. This, along with the often overlooked risk of equipment damage caused by operator misuse, has the associated challenges of high costs of repair as well as the cost of lost production time.

To help manufacturers mitigate these risks, software developer Quill has developed a dynamic, real-time condition monitoring solution that utilises the latest industrial Internet of Things (IoT) technologies and the advantages of cloud computing to deliver proactive insights into equipment health and performance.

Quill states that its aim “is to help organisations maximise their output, by improving production line efficiency and eliminating unplanned downtime.”

Quill’s solution provides real-time visibility and insights into machine utilisation and performance, across multiple locations. Using statistical analytics and machine learning from volumes of accumulated machine data, Quill can anticipate equipment failure before it happens, identifying the root cause with confidence and dynamically alerting users and supervisors to the issue. Armed with this advance warning, plant managers can then identify and resolve production line issues quickly and plan maintenance activities in good time, ensuring that production is not impacted.

Quill’s ability to detect trends and predict impending problems also helps producers to improve their overall equipment effectiveness, extending the lifetime of their critical machinery and reducing their maintenance and servicing costs as a result.

The Quill dashboard, which can be accessed via a web or mobile interface, provides users with a consolidated view of all of their machinery and the ability to track important machine data such as vibration, temperature, torque, run time, pressure, power consumption and more, in real-time or over any defined period of time.

Quill states that its condition monitoring solution is designed to benefit manufacturers of all types and sizes, as its open architecture allows it to integrate with multiple data sources and third-party devices, making it suitable for almost any production environment. This allows customers to leverage their existing investments by complementing these with Quill’s insights and alerting to increase efficiency and productivity.