An Update from umati
Another eventful year full of new and old challenges lies behind us. Many drastic restrictions and obstacles, which we thought we had almost left behind, continue to shape our everyday lives – both at home and at work. Especially the trade fair business has been hit hard. For more than a year most of us were obliged to stay at home, organize work from our home offices and stop travelling around the world for business trips. What could be more compelling in these times than a Global Production Language to connect not only machinery but people as well?
umati has made great steps ahead in the past 12 months. The first version of the specifications OPC 40501-1 UA for Machine Tools was released in in September 2020. All companies that manufacture machines, components such as controllers, software for machine tools and IT systems in the production environment are developing and refining their products based on this specification – worldwide and free of charge. It was also the first to be published with reference to the overarching specification for the entire machine and plant engineering industry, OPC 40001-1 UA for Machinery.
In October 2021, EMO Milano was the first occasion in a long time at which everyone could meet in person on an international stage. Of course, umati was also there - with its own booth, information event and live demonstration. More than 50 machines were connected, almost half of them remotely. Via the updated umati dashboard, interested parties were able to observe their activity and status directly. Several woodworking machines were also present for the first time. They had been integrated into umati’s ecosystem via the OPC 40550 UA for Woodworking specification just one week prior at LIGNA.
Also, the connectivity of IT, MES and ERP systems was proven through the first production-ready interface implementations in well-known MES systems by our partners mpdv, IGH-Infotec and Orchestra. But above all, EMO Milano showed us how worthy face-to-face meetings are for us and that with precisely fitting hygiene concepts, the safety, health, and well-being of all involved are the focus. This is an extremely positive signal which allows us to look ahead with confidence.
umati has become a community of more than 200 strong partners – that means 61 companies and organizations have joined our efforts to develop new specifications for a Global Production Language in 2021. To communicate our common goal to the outside world, we continuously drive forward our contemporary and uniform brand profile. Thus, we want to create greater visibility and anchor umati in the minds of decision-makers. One tool to ensure that is our new image movie which explains in less than three minutes how production becomes more efficient with umati and how it helps users to save time and money.
Future Developments
• For the next year, many trade fair appearances are planned like METAV, Hannover Messe, GrindingHub and AMB.
• The Machine Tool and Machinery specifications are getting significant updates
• More industries are going to join the umati community