Organizational transformation with the Chief Digital Officer reporting directly to Chairman Immelt

The core technology of the 4th industrial revolution, the industrial Internet of Things (IoT), refers to a technology that combines product diagnostic software and analysis solutions to connect machines and people, and to optimize the operating system of existing facilities. Combining the so-called 'thinking machines (intelligent machines)' with the Internet can explosively improve industrial productivity and efficiency. If the 3rd industrial revolution aimed at 'industrial automation' based on computing technology, the 4th industrial revolution aims at 'complete automation' based on the industrial Internet, symbolized by hyperconnectivity and intelligent machines. E4ds News, which holds an 'Industrial IoT Seminar' at the International Factory Automation Exhibition, Automation World (March) every year, visits leading industrial IoT companies in the industry to help understand the industrial IoT industry. <Editor's Note>

GE, which invested more than $1 billion in developing a cloud-based software platform, finally fully unveiled 'Predix' in February of last year, declaring 'the beginning of the golden age of the industrial internet.'

GE (General Electric Company) established the GE Software Center (now GE Digital headquarters) in San Ramon, near Silicon Valley, in 2011 to develop industrial internet technology. In October 2015, it announced that it would become a top 10 software company by 2020, and set a goal of growing software business sales to over $15 billion by 2020.

As proof of this, in 2014, the company achieved over $1 billion in sales through the Industrial Internet, and continuously upgraded Predix™, the Industrial Internet platform. In September 2015, the GE Digital division was established (a division created by integrating GE’s digital capabilities, including GE Software Center, IT, software, and security). A new position has been appointed, Chief Digital Officer, who will report directly to Chairman Immelt.

Conceptual diagram of GE's digital solutions applied to railway systems

In 2016, GE Digital acquired Wise.io, a company developing intelligent systems, to strengthen its own advanced machine learning development capabilities applied to Predix. In 2016, it received a $4 billion order for Predix-based software.

Predix is the world's first industrial internet operating platform developed by GE, and users can develop and operate applications optimized for the industrial internet within the platform. Customers can collect and analyze large amounts of data generated from industrial machines/facilities using apps operated based on Predix, and achieve operational optimization through this.

In 2015, GE opened Predix, its industrial internet software platform, to all companies, thereby creating an industrial app ecosystem. Of course, fully opening does not mean free. It means that you can use it as much as you want by paying a certain cost.

Regardless of size and industry, all companies will be able to utilize the results of GE's investments without barriers to entry, and companies will be able to develop and operate their own specialized applications based on this platform in a short period of time. Since the launch of Predix, more than 22,000 software developers around the world have developed more than 250 big data-related software applications, and GE is currently building an industrial application ecosystem by collaborating with more than 400 partners (as of the end of 2016).

GE is also leading the way in building infrastructure to ensure that the Industrial Internet works well. It launched the Industrial Internet Consortium with companies such as IBM, Cisco, Intel, and AT&T, and acquired WorldTech, a cybersecurity company based in Vancouver, Canada, in early 2014 to strengthen the security of its operating environment. In July of last year, GE established a partnership to enable Predix to operate on Microsoft’s cloud platform, Azure. Through this, customers can process big data collected from industrial facilities and machines anywhere in the world with Predix, and develop more efficient applications by utilizing various services such as natural language technology, AI (artificial intelligence), and advanced data visualization provided by Azure.

By the end of 2017, 18 GE factories worldwide will be Brilliant Factories.

Brilliant Factory is a next-generation factory that improves productivity by applying various new techniques such as advanced manufacturing, 3D printing, and advanced software analysis.

GE is pursuing 3D printing (additive manufacturing) technology as a key initiative, and launched GE Additive in late 2016 through the acquisition of Swedish 3D printer manufacturers Arcam and Germany's Consaplaser. The goal is to convert 18 GE factories around the world into Brilliant Factories by the end of 2017.

We are applying new methods to all processes and operations, including product design, manufacturing, and service. By combining hardware and software, all processes are digitized, and operations are faster and more efficient than in the past. In particular, based on GE's industrial internet platform, Predix, we can improve product quality and performance by introducing concepts such as digital thread (data is generated at all stages of design, purchase, production, distribution, sales, and product use, and the smooth flow of data generated during this product life cycle) and digital twin (virtual digital assets corresponding to physical assets).

For example, at a GE oil and gas plant in Florence, Italy, sensors are being installed on equipment to determine the optimal maintenance schedule with minimal impact on production, allowing the company to add an additional production line without having to add additional shifts.

Of GE’s more than 500 plants worldwide, six are best characterized as Brilliant Factories. GE’s Transportation plant in Pennsylvania has seen a 10-20 percent reduction in unplanned downtime, while GE’s Oil & Gas plant in Florence, Italy, has installed sensors on its equipment to determine the optimal maintenance schedule while minimizing disruption to production. The Pune (Multimodal) plant in India is GE's Brilliant Factory in which GE has invested over $200 million.

Predix, where is it used?

The case of Predix is Aviation analytics and This can be seen in digital power plants, digital wind farms, and digital port management projects.

First, GE Aviation developed analytics tools that segment commercial aircraft and provide deep engine health and flight operational insights using Predix. In 2015, Predix-based optimized maintenance generated more than $175 million in customer benefits. This resulted in a 10% improvement in fault detection accuracy and a reduction of more than 1,000 unnecessary commercial aircraft cancellations.

Concept diagram of a digital power plant with industrial internet technology applied to optimize the operating system of existing facilities

This is a concept that fundamentally changes the way plants are operated by combining the industrial internet with power plants. Numerous sensors attached to the equipment continuously collect data and perform big data analysis to notify engineers of the possibility of equipment failure in advance. If the Digital Power Plant solution were applied to all coal-fired power plants, which account for 40% of global electricity generation, it would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 0.58 gigatons, equivalent to reducing the emissions of 120 million cars and planting 540 million square miles of forest.

Digital Wind Farm is a next-generation wind power plant model that increases wind power generation by 20% annually and creates economic value equivalent to approximately $50 billion (based on 50 GW) over 20 years. Since 2017, the Port of Los Angeles has adopted GE Predix to visualize various types of cargo transportation data in advance. By obtaining data two weeks in advance, sufficient time is secured to prepare ships for port entry, and efficient transportation is possible by confirming the final destination of the cargo and waiting for cargo vehicles and related equipment.

When Predix was fully unveiled early last year, Harel Kodesh, one of the designers of Predix, said when asked about the outlook for the next year, “You’ll see a lot of developers jumping into Predix.” He also said that the Predix ecosystem will start growing on its own, and that we’ll see more interesting applications in the future. His prediction (?) is still in progress, but what’s clear is that the industrial wave is already swaying toward the Industrial Internet in the midst of a massive manufacturing revolution (whether it’s the Fourth Industrial Revolution or not).