• Sixth live broadcast: How digital customer services and networked machines create added value

• “arburgXworld”: customer portal expedites and simplifies processes at the company

• Poll: 68 percent of German viewers think digitalisation is very important

Lossburg, Germany, 28 June 2021

“Digital all the way – arburgXworld in detail” was the name of the sixth arburgXvision episode. Around 500 viewers followed the show live online and actively participated in the interactive TV broadcast. The studio guests were Arburg experts Benjamin Franz, Team Manager Digital Solutions, and Stephan Reich, Head of IT Application Development. The viewers gained direct insight into the features of “arburgXworld” and the benefits of a digitally networked machine during two live links to the Arburg Training Center.

The central theme of the episode was the added value of digital customer services along the entire value chain. There were also impressive examples of how the digital tools from “arburgXworld” significantly simplify and expedite processes in the areas of purchasing, work preparation, production planning, quality assurance and maintenance.

Interactive polls

The topic of “digitalisation” was rated as very important by 68 per cent of German viewers and as much as 75 per cent of international viewers. 95 per cent of German viewers and 66 per cent of international viewers saw great or enormous potential in it. But only around 66 percent of German respondents already work with networked machines in their production system. Of the international viewers who took part in the poll, none had networked their machines yet. Digital tools are currently used primarily for production control.

Digitalisation makes us competitive

“Only those who invest into digitalization today will remain in the market, tomorrow!” was Benjamin Franz’s theory. “The customer portal “arburgXworld” assists our customers in this respect. That’s because it offers enormous potential for digitally networked machines, the optimisation of processes and an increase in efficiency across the entire production process. In his presentation, Benjamin Franz highlighted how Arburg is gearing itself specifically towards customer needs and market requirements and how each customer can use the bundled digital services of the central “arburgXworld” platform in a customised manner to collaborate across disciplines, generate added value and improve value creation. “In 2018, we started with four apps – now we offer twelve, spread across three packages,” said Benjamin Franz, explaining the progress made with the customer portal. “And there’ still a lot more to come! Impressively, he demonstrated how the three services “MachineCenter”, “VirtualControl” and “MachineFinder” alone can save a total of 215 hours per year for a production system with 20 machines, i.e. around one whole month of working time for an employee.

Digital data – the gold of the future

“Digitalisation needs pioneering spirit. And that’s what we have!” said Stephan Reich, confidently. He believes that the “Road to Digitalisation” will be smoother if we are enthusiastic about technology and passionate about digital transformation. He drew on examples such as smartphones and private internet use to illustrate how this is becoming prevalent in all walks of life. “Industrial processes and the world of plastics are experiencing similar upheaval,” explained Stephan Reich. “At Arburg, more than 90 per cent of the processes are digital already – whether it’s a machine changeover or mobile manpower planning for service technicians.” Networking along the entire value chain means that production-relevant information can be available at any time, in any place. Stephan Reich explained that Arburg is meticulous in its data management and has had a digital twin for every machine for a long time now. “We also make the data stored for a machine accessible to our customers through ‘arburgXworld’, in accordance with the latest security standards, of course.” He explained that the portal is a central anchor for the digital world of Arburg. Every customer is assigned their own virtual room to which only they have the “key”. This facilitates swift and secure access to data, efficient communication and greater value creation. In summary, Stephan Reich said: “Data is the driver of digitalisation and, for me, the gold of the future. With our central portal, we are able to provide our customers with this valuable asset.” According to the expert, the “MachineDashboard” and “AnalyticsCenter” services alone save around 750 working hours per year.

Demonstrated live: digital processes simplify everyday tasks

In two live links to the Lossburg Training Center, the viewers were shown how “arburgXworld” actively supports users in their day-to-day work. First, process engineer Ralf Kube presented the most important apps on the customer portal. He showed how the “MachineCenter”, as a central entity, provides an overview of the entire machine fleet including the associated peripheral equipment, as well as access to important documents and the ability to create service tickets. Then the viewers were shown how “VirtualControl” can be used to create a software simulation in advance and later be read into the machine or used for training purposes. In addition, Ralf Kube explained how the “MachineFinder” assists with the search for a suitable Allrounder from the company’s own machine fleet or the Arburg portfolio, saving valuable resources and time in the process. The second live segment focused on the potential offered by digitally networked machines for monitoring, analysing and documenting injection moulding processes. Using a hybrid Allrounder 370 H, Ralf Kube demonstrated how the machine, which is networked as standard via an IIoT gateway, is “smart” from the bottom up. He called up process data on the “MachineDashboard” and presented the new “AnalyticsCenter” app for detailed documentation and long-term analyses.

World of plastics considers digitalisation to be very important

In the concluding discussion with host Guido Marschall, IT expert Stephan Reich emphasised: “The guise of IT has completely changed. Nowadays, we go out to the customer as a team, share our expertise and develop a customised solution for them. From the countless visits and conversations we’ve had, now we know: the industry is going digital!” What’s more, digitalisation and the technologies associated with this would make Arburg even more appealing to students and qualified personnel. Benjamin Franz added: “With the digital services in “arburgXworld” and a clear strategy, our customers can save valuable time, become more adaptable, optimise processes across company departments, create added value and develop new business models.”

Next broadcast: 29 July 2021

The final “arburgXvision” episode before the summer break will be broadcast on Thursday, 29 July 2021. Viewers can expect an exciting blend of theory and practice on “The perfect service – quick help when it counts”. In the studio, Lars Langner, Divisional Manager Service, and Uwe Klumpp, Head of Product Training, will elaborate on Arburg’s comprehensive range of services and the potential of “predictive maintenance” in everyday production. During two live segments from the Training Center in Lossburg, viewers will gain important insight into the ways in which machine utilisation and reliability can be increased by way of flexible, reliable and swift support – on site or remotely

If you would like to attend and stay up to date with the series, visit our website www.arburgXvision.com and complete our quick and easy one-time registration process. Registration also includes access to all events and to the Media Center, where all previous episodes will be available to watch on demand shortly after broadcast.

About Arburg

German family-owned company Arburg is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of plastic processing machines. Its product portfolio encompasses Allrounder injection moulding machines with clamping forces of between 125 and 6,500 kN, the Freeformer for industrial additive manufacturing and robotic systems, customer and industry-specific turnkey solutions and further peripheral equipment.

Arburg is a pioneer in the plastics industry when it comes to production efficiency, digitalisation (Industry 4.0) and sustainability. The “arburgXworld” program comprises all digital products and services and is also the name of the customer portal. The company’s strategies regarding the efficient use of resources and circular economy, as well as all related aspects and activities, are outlined in the “arburgGREENworld” program.

Arburg’s central aim is for customers to be able to produce their plastic products, from one-off parts to large-volume batches, in optimum quality at minimum unit costs. The target groups include, for example, the automotive and packaging industries, communication and entertainment electronics, medical technology and the white goods sector.

An international sales and service network ensures first-class customer support at a local level: Arburg has its own organisations at 35 locations in 26 different countries and, together with its trading partners, is represented in more than 100 countries. Its machines are produced exclusively at the parent company in Lossburg, Germany. Of a total of roughly 3,200 employees, around 2,650 work in Germany. About 550 further employees work in Arburg’s organisations around the world. Arburg has triple certification, in accordance with ISO 9001 (quality), ISO 14001 (environment) and ISO 50001 (energy).

Further information about Arburg can be found at www.arburg.com