Megan Ray Nichols, Science Writer; Editor, Schooled By Science09.02.20
Although we have estimates, there’s no way to tell for sure how many devices will eventually be connected to the internet. The Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) is expected to register annual growth of around 24 percent between now and 2023. By 2025, there could be more than 75 billion IoT devices in operation around the globe.
The IIoT heralds a fourth industrial revolution, the benefits of which are already being felt by manufacturers everywhere—including medical device and connector manufacturers. Here’s a look at four ways the expansion of the IIoT improves the way we design and assemble medical products.
1. Automated and More Complete Maintenance of Industrial Facilities
The cleanliness and good repair of a manufacturing facility and its assets are vital for producing high-quality products and consistent results. Medical items and connectors are no different. Low-quality and counterfeit medical device connectors are some of the biggest risks to companies in this industry. The IIoT can be a great way for manufacturers to insulate themselves against some of these risks.
One example is FDA regulations concerning sterilization methods for medical connectors in manufacturing settings. Even an otherwise compliant company could face recalls, reputational damage, and government fines if lapses in equipment maintenance result in product defects, or injuries or illnesses to patients. The IIoT gives manufacturers the means to take a more hands-off approach to equipment and assembly line maintenance without sacrificing peace of mind.
Sensors provide even complex physical infrastructure with the means to conduct its own data logging and condition monitoring. With this stream of data from the company’s cyber-physical infrastructure, plant managers and others can perform maintenance during planned downtime and before unexpected failure.
2. Remote, on-Demand Manufacturing
Additive manufacturing, better known as 3D printing, is one of the most consequential Industrial Internet of Things technologies. Connected industrial printers are a major breakthrough in medical device manufacturing for several reasons, one of which is faster prototyping. The stakes can be high in both the medical device and connector manufacturing sectors, as these products require a high degree of compatibility with each other and biocompatibility with the human body.
Rapid prototyping courtesy of 3D printers provides tangible product design and testing capabilities and a potentially much faster time to market. There may be dire consequences for patients and company reputations when testing for medical devices and their components isn’t performed in good faith.
3D printers can see their functionality further enhanced depending on their degree of connectivity with the larger IIoT. It will probably be commonplace in the near future for patients to receive unique medical devices and even custom-printed medications at their local pharmacies. Manufacturers and physicians will be able to call in their prescriptions for things like bespoke medical braces or personalized medicine doses to address individual patients’ conditions.
These leaps forward could mean the end of one-size-fits-all medication doses and packaging. They would also eliminate the need to transport or wait for customized medical prostheses to be fabricated and shipped.
3. Improved Safety in Assembly and Manufacturing Settings
The connected network of the IIoT, above all, provides mobility for data. This is critical for designing and building work environments that are ergonomically correct, conducive to repeatability and good product flow, and which support employee safety and health. Sensors and other data loggers can become part of an IIoT system that keeps workers and workplaces safe in the medical manufacturing sector.
In one example, a manufacturer used the IoT to gather data on posture, speed, process bottlenecks, air quality, and other aspects of 11 distinct industrial environments and workflows performed by employees. This helped the facility owner create a new environment in which employees do their jobs without risking injury or burnout, and where automated systems can work even more safely alongside them.
4. Higher Standards for Accountability and Transparency
The IIoT is powerful on its own, but adding blockchain to the mix will further improve results in device and medical connector manufacturing.
In cases where product recalls are deemed necessary, it’s vital to have an accurate data trail describing each unit’s prior location, physical condition, chain of custody, and other points of interest. The IIoT gives manufacturers the means to capture this information from connected assembly lines, material handling equipment, trucks and planes carrying freight, warehouse bin locations, and many other locations.
Blockchain ensures the data gathered and distributed by the IIoT is accurate, up-to-date, and as tamper-proof as possible. Having complete and unfalsifiable records describing a product’s provenance—and the methods used to source, harvest, fabricate, assemble, or ship it to end-users—is precisely what any risk-averse industry needs right now, including connectors and medical devices.
In a way, blockchain completes the IoT and IIoT by ensuring the data being stored and shared cannot be manipulated after the fact by first or third parties. In terms of supply chain visibility, product quality, manufacturing partner accountability, and patient safety, this is a win for everybody involved.
The IIoT Takes Medical Manufacturing to the Next Level
Medical manufacturing, including fabricating connectors of all kinds, is an important and lucrative business that touches millions of lives. With the IIoT, manufacturers in this space can set more of their industrial systems on productive autopilot, improve their consistency and quality, reach their market faster with new products, and realize other competitive and practical benefits.
Megan Ray Nichols is a science writer and the editor of Schooled By Science. Her work regularly appears on Real Clear Science, Manufacturing.net, and Astronaut.com. Keep up with Megan by following her on Twitter.
The IIoT heralds a fourth industrial revolution, the benefits of which are already being felt by manufacturers everywhere—including medical device and connector manufacturers. Here’s a look at four ways the expansion of the IIoT improves the way we design and assemble medical products.
1. Automated and More Complete Maintenance of Industrial Facilities
The cleanliness and good repair of a manufacturing facility and its assets are vital for producing high-quality products and consistent results. Medical items and connectors are no different. Low-quality and counterfeit medical device connectors are some of the biggest risks to companies in this industry. The IIoT can be a great way for manufacturers to insulate themselves against some of these risks.
One example is FDA regulations concerning sterilization methods for medical connectors in manufacturing settings. Even an otherwise compliant company could face recalls, reputational damage, and government fines if lapses in equipment maintenance result in product defects, or injuries or illnesses to patients. The IIoT gives manufacturers the means to take a more hands-off approach to equipment and assembly line maintenance without sacrificing peace of mind.
Sensors provide even complex physical infrastructure with the means to conduct its own data logging and condition monitoring. With this stream of data from the company’s cyber-physical infrastructure, plant managers and others can perform maintenance during planned downtime and before unexpected failure.
2. Remote, on-Demand Manufacturing
Additive manufacturing, better known as 3D printing, is one of the most consequential Industrial Internet of Things technologies. Connected industrial printers are a major breakthrough in medical device manufacturing for several reasons, one of which is faster prototyping. The stakes can be high in both the medical device and connector manufacturing sectors, as these products require a high degree of compatibility with each other and biocompatibility with the human body.
Rapid prototyping courtesy of 3D printers provides tangible product design and testing capabilities and a potentially much faster time to market. There may be dire consequences for patients and company reputations when testing for medical devices and their components isn’t performed in good faith.
3D printers can see their functionality further enhanced depending on their degree of connectivity with the larger IIoT. It will probably be commonplace in the near future for patients to receive unique medical devices and even custom-printed medications at their local pharmacies. Manufacturers and physicians will be able to call in their prescriptions for things like bespoke medical braces or personalized medicine doses to address individual patients’ conditions.
These leaps forward could mean the end of one-size-fits-all medication doses and packaging. They would also eliminate the need to transport or wait for customized medical prostheses to be fabricated and shipped.
3. Improved Safety in Assembly and Manufacturing Settings
The connected network of the IIoT, above all, provides mobility for data. This is critical for designing and building work environments that are ergonomically correct, conducive to repeatability and good product flow, and which support employee safety and health. Sensors and other data loggers can become part of an IIoT system that keeps workers and workplaces safe in the medical manufacturing sector.
In one example, a manufacturer used the IoT to gather data on posture, speed, process bottlenecks, air quality, and other aspects of 11 distinct industrial environments and workflows performed by employees. This helped the facility owner create a new environment in which employees do their jobs without risking injury or burnout, and where automated systems can work even more safely alongside them.
4. Higher Standards for Accountability and Transparency
The IIoT is powerful on its own, but adding blockchain to the mix will further improve results in device and medical connector manufacturing.
In cases where product recalls are deemed necessary, it’s vital to have an accurate data trail describing each unit’s prior location, physical condition, chain of custody, and other points of interest. The IIoT gives manufacturers the means to capture this information from connected assembly lines, material handling equipment, trucks and planes carrying freight, warehouse bin locations, and many other locations.
Blockchain ensures the data gathered and distributed by the IIoT is accurate, up-to-date, and as tamper-proof as possible. Having complete and unfalsifiable records describing a product’s provenance—and the methods used to source, harvest, fabricate, assemble, or ship it to end-users—is precisely what any risk-averse industry needs right now, including connectors and medical devices.
In a way, blockchain completes the IoT and IIoT by ensuring the data being stored and shared cannot be manipulated after the fact by first or third parties. In terms of supply chain visibility, product quality, manufacturing partner accountability, and patient safety, this is a win for everybody involved.
The IIoT Takes Medical Manufacturing to the Next Level
Medical manufacturing, including fabricating connectors of all kinds, is an important and lucrative business that touches millions of lives. With the IIoT, manufacturers in this space can set more of their industrial systems on productive autopilot, improve their consistency and quality, reach their market faster with new products, and realize other competitive and practical benefits.
Megan Ray Nichols is a science writer and the editor of Schooled By Science. Her work regularly appears on Real Clear Science, Manufacturing.net, and Astronaut.com. Keep up with Megan by following her on Twitter.
