Real innovation makes life easier
by Sidney Hill, Jr., executive editor -- Manufacturing Business Technology, 8/18/2008 2:25:00 PM
I have a friend I wouldn't call a technophobe, nor can I call him an early adopter. He will use new technology, but only after it does something that actually makes his life easier.When he first saw me take a call on my BlackBerry, he asked, “What the heck kind of cell phone is that?” I explained that it isn't just a cell phone; it's a mobile device with an Outlook client that allows me to keep up with email just like I was in the office. It also has a Web browser and an Internet connection that lets me browse news and sports sites when I'm bored out of my mind in an airport. He shrugged his shoulders.
A few weeks later, he told me his company was shipping him a BlackBerry and he had been ordered to use it. This guy is a sales exec who spends a lot of time on the road, which means he makes his living talking on his cell phone. So you would think he would be thrilled about getting a phone that not only would allow him to talk to clients, but help him organize appointments, store notes on his contacts, and do many other things. But he was more concerned about how this new device might disrupt his long-standing—and quite successful—routine.
“Trust me,” I said. “When you get the BlackBerry, you're going to love it.”
The next time I saw him was about six week after his BlackBerry arrived. He waved it at me and said, “You were right about this thing. I should have gotten it years ago. I can now travel without my laptop.”
I'm telling this story because my friend's criteria for adopting new technology is similar to the standard we set in selecting the winners for the 2008 MBT Innovation Insight Awards, which are highlighted in this issue.
We looked for situations in which technology was used in innovative ways to solve real business problems—in other words, to make manufacturers' lives easier.
Once all of the entries were compiled, the top four selections involved the use of wireless technology.
The co-winners in the innovative product category—Honeywell Process Solutions and Emerson Process Management—have customers using wireless networks that function without error in paint-making plants, copper mines, and aboard ships.
In the innovative process category, Gardner Denver, a supplier of compressor and vacuum products and fluid transfer systems, uses a wireless network to support remote monitoring of equipment installed at customer sites. A Gardner Denver executive says data collected via this network forms the basis for preemptive intervention on issues that, left unattended, could negatively impact customers' production schedules and cost. Thus, it makes life easier for both Gardner Denver and its customers.
Meanwhile, Ce De Candy, the maker of Smarties and other well-known treats, installed a wireless network to handle the tracking and tracing functions necessary to comply with FDA reporting requirements. But the network has helped Ce De improve everything from its production processes to inventory management because it provides real-time, minute-by-minute status of plant operations.
Read through the issue to learn more about how innovations in wireless—and other forms of technology—are making lives easier for manufacturers. You might be convinced to adopt some of this stuff yourself, if you've haven't already.
Read the Innovation Awards coverage now.
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