Ask any site manager what their biggest pain point is and they’ll tell you it’s their equipment failing when they need it most. They are about to go into a process run when one of the machines breaks down but it’s not clear why.

They have a worker whose role it is to run around manually checking equipment performance but it’s pretty much impossible for them to predict every potential issue. The result? Unplanned maintenance – a massive waste of time and money.

Other pain points are all the annoyances that are part and parcel of relying on manual processes

• limited number of collection points
• infrequent data collection
• human error
• high costs

Industry 4.0 provides the solution to all these pain points and the key to improving overall equipment effectiveness (OEE).

The introduction of a machine health monitor and wireless vibration sensors enables you to measure more variables, more often. Most importantly, this measurement happens automatically. You get access to a huge amount of data and your ability to identify trends, and therefore improve OEE, increases exponentially.

However, harnessing the power of Industry 4.0 requires reliable connectivity.

There is no point setting up automated machine monitoring with wireless vibration sensors at your industrial plant if you’re plagued with connection issues.

Without connectivity, you won’t be getting timely and accurate data to allow you to predict failure before it results in costly unplanned maintenance and downtime for your workers.

You need to ensure your equipment is available for 100 per cent of your operating schedule.

We engineered our MHM AlphaX to provide a low cost, rapidly deployable industrial internet of things (IoT) device for superior data collection.

Our recently released AlphaX Gen II combines connectivity of networks.

You no longer have to choose which network you wish to use when you purchase the device.

Gen II provides tri-band connectivity – the ability to communicate on all the major cellular networks – on every device. You simply buy the device and select your chosen network through our software.

The new and improved AlphaX transmits data on Sigfox and LoRaWAN™, which are low-cost narrow-band networks for securely connecting IoT sensors to the Cloud, or 4G LTE (just like your smart phone). These are augmented by Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n 16 mbps. Bluetooth is also possible.

Sigfox and LoRaWAN™ have drastically reduced the cost and energy consumption associated with connecting IoT sensors to the Cloud. Data collection through wireless vibration sensors and the ability to identify trends has become much more affordable as well as easier to implement.

Your specific application may require hundreds of wireless sensors that are installed and monitored over a long period of time so battery life is a big consideration. Alternatively, fast access to data may be crucial for you to make instantaneous decisions. So, as you can see, the ability to be able to choose the best IoT connectivity for your specific situation is vital.

Of course, there are plenty more cost savings to be made through your ability to implement predictive maintenance and increase OEE at your plant.

Automate your monitoring process with AlphaX and wireless vibration sensors.

Contact us today about an industrial IoT solution for your operations. We work with businesses across Australia and globally to automate vibration monitoring and analysis.