Mitsubishi Electric, TKK, and AIS join forces to elevate the Thai industrial sector with 5G Smart Manufacturing Solutions.

Despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, leveraging the potential of 5G technology to enhance industrial efficiency remains a key plan and has not been disrupted by the current pandemic. 5G Smart Manufacturing Solutions, a modern solution, is essential to fully transforming Thailand's manufacturing sector into the Industry 4.0 era.

To enhance the efficiency of 5G Smart Manufacturing Solutions technology and ensure its seamless application in the Thai industrial sector, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed between Mitsubishi Electric Factory Automation (Thailand) Co., Ltd. and TKK Corporation Co., Ltd., which share the same commitment to transforming the Thai industrial sector with Total Industrial Solution technology that can be practically applied in the manufacturing sector of all types of industrial plants, leveraging the potential of AIS 5G, the communication network trusted by Thais.

This collaboration is interesting and clearly highlights the strengths of our alliance partners: Mitsubishi Electric Factory Automation, renowned for its robust production lines in Thailand, and TKK Corporation, a leading supplier and operator of automated production control systems in factories. Together, they will offer the e-F@ctory solution, ready to provide services and enhance the manufacturing sector with Smart Manufacturing, coupled with practical applications on the AIS 5G network, which will fully enhance operational efficiency within the manufacturing sector.

To understand the new technology solutions for the Thai industrial sector, as well as the direction in which 5G's potential can be leveraged for industrialization and national recovery, AIS 5G organized a group interview to address all questions regarding this mission.

Key innovations and technologies will enable every industry to truly adapt to 5G Smart Manufacturing Solutions.

Wichian Ngamsuk Kasemsri, Managing Director of Mitsubishi Electric Factory Automation (Thailand) Co., Ltd., introduced the e-F@ctory solution, which has proven to enhance industrial production processes worldwide and is being widely adopted in Thailand.

“Thailand has long been a key global manufacturing base. Now is the time to leverage new technological solutions to enhance its capabilities and maintain this position. Mitsubishi Electric has always prioritized this.”

"And with the COVID-19 crisis, Thailand's export sector is a huge source of income. Therefore, the industrial sector must urgently adapt and increase production capacity to meet global demand."

"Today, we've jointly developed over 10,000 practical solutions worldwide, called e-F@ctory. This collaboration is enabling real-world applications in Thailand to meet the needs of the industrial sector. Connecting data at every level with IoT devices will benefit all aspects of operations, including cost reduction, factory efficiency, and support for future production systems across the entire manufacturing process."

“The main innovation that Mitsubishi Electric offers is Factory Automation solution with remote control using IoT.

IoT technology will become a significant step in transforming work and life, eliminating travel and work time constraints. It's adaptable to different work styles, and is ideal for the COVID-19 situation, where work can be done from anywhere, anytime."

Mitsubishi Electric developed IoT solutions in collaboration with its e-F@ctory Alliance partner, TKK Corporation, which specializes in the distribution and implementation of products for factory automation systems. This challenge entailed developing complex machinery and equipment controls, from the operating system to the connectivity network, that would enable complete control, similar to that of the production line. The result is the FA Remote solution, which consists of four components:

• Remote Monitoring: This allows managers, supervisors, or machine operators to check production status, machine status, or production efficiency from anywhere. This enables clear overall production management and provides a comprehensive view of problems for resolution.
• Remote Maintenance: Reduces the time required to visit the work site for maintenance or inspection of machinery, and allows you to work from home, reducing opportunity costs when the production line has to stop.
• Remote Development: This will increase the efficiency of overall management in coordinating with various departments within the factory, enabling continuous work from anywhere, helping to increase efficiency in coordination between departments.
• Remote Service: Immediate remote consultation service via Mobile Network from technical experts from Mitsubishi and Partners. When machinery has a problem, initial troubleshooting can be quickly and remotely resolved.

“And to ensure this solution operates at its best, Mitsubishi Electric and TKK Corporation have designed a comprehensive control system software solution powered by the e-F@ctory Alliance, covering all aspects of the industry, from monitoring, maintenance, service, and remote development. The entire system integrates seamlessly and seamlessly with the cloud.”

Industrial prototypes that can adapt 5G Smart Manufacturing Solutions to increase productivity

To illustrate the practical application of 5G Smart Manufacturing Solutions technology in the industrial sector, Kanlayanee Kongsomjit, CEO of TKK Corporation Co., Ltd., discussed TKK's role, including the innovations and technologies it has collaborated with Mitsubishi Electric to drive the Thai industrial sector towards Smart Manufacturing.

"TKK has been involved in collaboration with Mitsubishi Electric and its partners. First, we provide automation system design and consulting. Second, we program software for control systems, using the e-F@ctory Alliance, to control machinery. Third, we are building industrial and service robots. Fourth, we are developing vision systems, or camera systems that inspect workpieces and ensure quality in production lines. Finally, we are developing SCADA systems, which are now being used in the industrial manufacturing sector to effectively manage production processes."

"However, for Thailand's industrial sector, we must acknowledge that it's still below Industry 3.0. To achieve automation, cutting-edge manufacturing technology is required. This technology also requires a focus on machine-to-machine communication efficiency. Therefore, IoT technology is essential to enhance automation and communication, enabling machines to analyze and resolve problems on their own without human intervention."

"Therefore, the e-F@ctory Alliance proposed by Mitsubishi Electric is a very important ecosystem. As Mr. Wichian stated, for this ecosystem to emerge, collaboration is essential. Today's press conference is another example of this important collaboration. It's clear that in this current era, collaboration is a valuable asset, enabling all parties to grow together."

The CEO of TKK Corporation then shared examples of the company's best practices, which have successfully implemented 5G Smart Manufacturing Solutions to improve quality and reduce production costs.

"As the world is no longer normal, it's time for every business and every industry to adapt faster and be as flexible as possible to transform their organizations into agile organizations. TKK has been introducing solutions to customers that pave the way for every industry to become a Smart Factory, resulting in industry best practices that can be implemented using the FA Remote Solutions system."

Great Wall Motor Manufacturing (Thailand) Co., Ltd.

Great Wall Motors is China's leading electric vehicle manufacturer, which established a production base in Thailand in Rayong Province in 2020. If you look back at Great Wall Motors' factories in China, they have already installed a system similar to the e-F@ctory Alliance in China. Therefore, when expanding their production base in Thailand, Great Wall Motors looked for a similar solution to use in their factories in Thailand as well.

TKK was therefore selected by Great Wall Motors to be one of the partners to oversee the Energy Monitoring System. This system analyzes and controls various energy systems used in every part of the factory's production line, including electrical systems, heating systems, cooling systems, and various energy meter values.

The obvious benefits are reduced recording time, fewer workers, increased work efficiency, reduced errors from manual labor, the ability to view machine operating hours in real time, and the ability to analyze how to adjust the production process to maximize efficiency at each time.

This is later useful in preparing reports for executives to understand the performance of the machines, which can be processed to further develop and increase the competitiveness of the manufacturing sector.

Honda Automobile (Thailand) Co., Ltd.

A new factory was built in Prachinburi Province, a massive facility covering thousands of rai. Workers had to walk around and record energy data every day. These data were then entered into data entry both morning and evening, compiled into reports, and analyzed by employees. TKK subsequently implemented a new system, the System Overview, which resulted in a significant reduction in the number of workers required to perform this task, and a payback period of only 2.5 years.

Nissan Powertrain (Thailand) Co., Ltd.

We have a factory on Bangna-Trad Road that has opened a new production line for electric battery assembly. This line used human monitoring, using a stop-call-wait process. However, once we switched to a SCADA system, the old process was no longer necessary. All operations are processed as data, which is keyed into a dashboard and displayed in real time to executives, operators, and supervisors. This includes daily work results and any errors that occur. The team can then use this information to plan for future failures.

สัญญาณ 5G ที่ไว้วางใจได้ คือ Key success ของ Total Industrial Solution

Wichian, MD of Mitsubishi Electric, has made it clear that “the ecosystem that creates the e-F@ctory Alliance cannot be without a reliable 5G network,” he said.

“AIS 5G plays a significant role in helping Mitsubishi Electric and TKK Corporation deploy and implement industrial systems in Thailand, accelerating the revolution towards smart manufacturing. Prior to this collaboration, Mitsubishi Electric faced numerous challenges, particularly in the area of system integrators providing stable signals to the industrial sector, enabling all factories to efficiently utilize the 5G Smart Manufacturing Solutions system.”

Thanapong Ittisakulchai, Head of AIS Enterprise Customer Group, said in announcing the success of this collaboration that:

"This marks another important step in bringing the prototypes we've developed over the years to practical use. This collaboration is being conducted with Mitsubishi Electric Factory Automation, a strong manufacturer of factory production lines in Thailand, and TKK Corporation, a leading supplier and operator of factory automation systems. Together, we will offer e-F@ctory solutions ready to serve and elevate the manufacturing sector with Smart Manufacturing, deployed on the AIS 5G network."

"AIS 5G will completely enhance efficiency within the manufacturing sector, enhancing quality, reducing production costs, and meeting the demands of private network deployments. It also enhances data security, speed, and reduces latency, enabling full support for IoT."

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