The most connected man in the world

Some of the sensors Dancy uses measure his fitness, others report upon his body's response to the environment, whilst the strangest are downright 'cyborg-esque', such as Google Glass. Dancy has been collecting wearable devices for the past five years and is now actually more connected than a 'typical' factory.

“By the end of the decade, there will not be a job on earth that hasn't been changed by smart objects, wearable computing or personal information,” explains Dancy.

His statement is particularly relevant to the manufacturing industry and, in many ways; the road has already been paved for that level of interconnectivity.

The concept of connected plant refers to the way in which people and systems can communicate effectively. Process control, operational, monitoring and maintenance systems have been successfully used for the last 30 years. The advent of SCADA and DCS has changed the way in which operations are scheduled, planned and monitored. As a result, a greater emphasis has been placed on lean manufacturing, efficiency, reducing energy consumption and diminishing scrap.

Applying the concepts of connected plant allows connectivity between legacy plant monitoring systems and an increasingly mobile workforce. Furthermore, when people need to work from home, different locations such as warehouses or even clients’ sites, robust network and system integration is the key. It all boils down to greater standardisation of operational processes, traceability, safety and repeatability.

Abiding by the connected plant philosophy provides operations managers with accurate and timely information about assets. Another added benefit is that it will increase profit and reduce the costs and risks associated with unplanned downtime.

A plant is similar to a living organism. Each application depends on the correct functioning of the one before it in the system, with health and safety practices applying at each stage.

And, just as in the case of 'the world's most connected man', who lost 100lbs and improved his lifestyle thanks to the devices he wears, maintaining plant health can be achieved much more effectively through continuous monitoring and data gathering. Interpreting that data and making smart decisions based on it are part of the day to day life of the plant.