October 2, 2023 • 35 mins
What if you had a detailed list of your assets, helping you to prioritize investments, identify risks, and streamline your path to efficiency? That's what an Installed Base Evaluation (IBE) offers, and we're diving deep into the transformative power of IBEs. We'll explore how knowing exactly what you own can serve as a foundation for effective strategizing and action planning where it's needed most.
We'll also look at how an IBE can be an engine for facility improvement. It's not just about data - it's about leveraging that data to identify functional improvements, manage surplus and obsolete inventory, and ultimately make better decisions. We'll discuss the crucial steps of an IBE, from trusting the data, verifying accuracy, modernizing goals, to capital planning. Plus, we'll share our tips for creative thinking and identifying quick wins to build trust along the way.
As we move forward in our modernization journey, we'll emphasize the importance of device level planning and looking beyond the short term to consider what technologies will be vital in the next couple of years. We'll discuss how best to seek expert advice and innovative solutions, ensuring maximum value from upgrades, and the benefits of documenting realized gains. Finally, we'll focus on how to manage data, establish objectives, and make decisions based on the information obtained from the IBE. It's a packed episode, full of insights that could change your destiny. Tune in and join us on this transformational journey.
Remember to keep asking why...
Resources:
Installed Base Evaluation Blog
EECO Smart Manufacturing Guide
Start your IBE today with EECO
Submit your questions and feedback to: podcast@eecoaskwhy.com
Host: Chris Grainger
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Chris Grainger (00:00):
Welcome to Eco Ask why, a podcast that dives
into industrial manufacturingtopics and spotlights the heroes
to keep America running.
I'm your host, chris Granger,and on this podcast we do not
cover the latest features andbenefits on products that come
to market.
Instead, we focus on advice andinsight from the top minds of
industry, because people andideas will be how America
(00:24):
remains number one inmanufacturing in the world.
Welcome to Eco Ask why.
I'm your host, chris Granger.
Let's get into it for today.
So it has been a while, youguys, since we had an episode
come out.
I'm so excited to be back withyou.
We have a little bit of a newformat, so we're not going to do
quite as many interviews thatwe've done in the past.
(00:44):
Our focus and our goal with EcoAsk why now is to serve you
with the information that youneed the most, particularly
around industrial automation,power control, whatever those
needs are.
So we're going to be divingdeep into topics and dropping
those out for you guys.
We're going to have a lot ofsupporting information that
comes along with it along theway, and I'm just excited to be
(01:06):
back with you.
The 250 episodes that we did,that's right 250 episodes that
we've already put out for EcoAsk why has been a true blessing
for me just to be able to meetpeople across the industries,
hear their stories and be ableto share them with you.
What an amazing ride it hasbeen.
So I'm hoping that you're goingto like the new format.
(01:27):
I'd love to get your feedback.
Again, you can connect with usdirectly.
Go to the show notes.
We'll have ways that you canconnect with us for more
information there.
So we're going to be talkingabout today, we're going to be
diving into how you can maximizeyour efficiency and overall
success with installed baseevaluations.
Now, you may be new to installbase evaluations and that's okay
(01:49):
.
That's what we're here for.
I hope that's something thatyou're familiar with.
We may be able to give you someinsight here with this
particular episode that willhelp you make the most out of
your install base evaluation,because we know that in today's
fast-paced industrial landscape,it's so easy for things to get
just lost in the shovel.
Let's just be real.
There's things that are movingin, that are moving out of
(02:09):
plants all the time right andequipment every day.
It does what it gets older.
We have people that turn overinto plants all the time, and
then when you have new installs,we all see those New projects
are happening all around us.
They leave us with somequestions Like how did that get
there?
Like how does this even happen?
When did we get this equipment?
(02:29):
And this is where an IBE cancome in and change the game,
because it can be a criticaltool as you actually start
implementing and moving forward,for regaining control, for
prioritizing those investmentsthat you want to make, and it's
going to help you set the stagefor future success.
So now we're going to have alot of different IBEs that we're
going to be talking about too.
(02:50):
We're going to be diving intothe essence of what an IBE is
and the types of IBEs that areavailable, and we're also going
to look about how you can getstarted and the multifaceted
benefits that an installed-basedevaluation offer.
So now let's kind of start slow.
Let's understand the essence ofwhat an IBE is, because at the
(03:14):
core of it, the IBE is basically, you know, the IBE is the core
of it.
It's knowing what you own.
That's it.
It's just knowing what you own.
It gives you that detail listof an inventory that is specific
to your assets and it's kind oflike a blueprint, you know,
when you open up a blueprint fora building, you can see
everything that's just laid out.
You can say, okay, this is overhere, this is this section of
(03:36):
the plan Over here we have.
Maybe this is finishing ordrying, whatever it may be, but
it gives you that.
It's kind of like a guidinglight, a starting point, because
we know that you're workingtowards operational optimization
.
We know that Every plant that'sout there, every manufacturer
that's out there, you're tryingto optimize your processes.
Why?
Because you know thecompetition is out there.
(03:57):
It's coming hard.
So now to get ahead of thecompetition, you need to
understand where you're at, andthat begins with a single step
this IBE.
The IBE is that pivotal initialstride you need to take towards
a modernization project, towardsany major improvements.
Before you spend any capital,you need to have it.
(04:18):
So just picture this.
Let's sit back, let's sayyou're inside your office right
now, in your industrialmanufacturing facility, and you
have a way to know, without ashadow of a doubt, all your
encompassing inventory of yourassets, as well as like a
comprehensive map to show youwhat's in place and what do you
(04:40):
need to start paying attentionto or planning for in the future
.
This is foundational knowledgeright here.
This is it, and this is goingto help you strategize
effectively and start puttinginto priority action where it's
needed most and where it's goingto give you the biggest lift,
because you don't want to spendmoney just for the sake of
spending money.
No, everyone there's budgetsare tight, so you need to know
(05:03):
where to take the action, whereyou have the most risk and
what's going to give you thebiggest turnaround.
So now that IBE is abouthelping you identify that that's
really what it's about and alsominimizing your strengths.
So what you do when you startminimizing those threats and you
identify those opportunities,what you're doing is you're
streamlining your path.
(05:24):
We all know that we need helpgetting to the next stage,
particularly in manufacturingthese days.
Right, there are so many thingsthat you cannot take action on,
but where do you need to focusmost?
This is where the IBE will helpyou.
It will actually give you abaseline to okay, this is a big,
big project.
However, based on the data itsays, I need to act here and
(05:48):
when you know that and you cansay concretely that you know
what the best use of ourresources, of our time, of our
energy, of our money is here.
It's just going to put you onso much a better path for
success.
Now there's different types ofinstall-based evaluations that
we need to kind of talk aboutand let you need to consider,
(06:09):
because each of them is going tobe tailored to your different
objectives and your needs.
So you've got big equipmentmanufacturers, you've got your
Rockwell Automations, you haveyour Eatons of the world and
they conduct extensive IBEs.
They can really get down to thecomponent level and that's
going to help you understanddirectly, whether your power or
(06:29):
your automation infrastructure,what do you have in install?
Okay, and they can even getdown to like power audits and
different ways to understand howthe power flow and the
synchronization within yourplant because of power system,
all the way to the load.
These are components that youneed to have awareness of and
(06:49):
you need to have evaluated.
You need to understand, okay,where am I at risk with these
and taking intentional actionhere?
I'm just going to set you headand shoulders above the
competition.
They didn't even havedistributors like Eco and other
distributors out there.
We can do IBE services as well,typically with a more focused
(07:11):
scope, and that's the reallycool part about working with a
distributor like an electricalequipment company, because when
you select that IBE provider,which your choice to align with
your objectives and your scope,right.
So think about this as you'reworking with electrical
electrical distributed, like Eco, you may want to target like a
particular system, or even asubsystem or a group of systems.
(07:33):
Maybe you want to actually justunderstand hey, I want to have
a good understanding of all myPLC cabinets.
I just need to know what's inthose cabinets, right?
Or you may want to, hey, thissection of the plant.
I need a very, very fundamentaland detailed understanding of
the electrical infrastructurethat exists.
Insert the IVE, because that'sit.
You get to define what'simportant.
(07:55):
You get to define what youfocus on.
You get to say you know what,I'm not going to worry about
these assets over here becauseif they go down will it be a
headache.
Yeah, but it's not the end ofthe world.
However, these assets over here, in this section of the plant,
I have to focus and I need toknow where am I at risk and
where do we need to makeimprovements.
And that is it.
(08:16):
That is the biggest thing rightthere, when you start
understanding different types ofIVEs.
That's going to help you makethat determination on where to
focus.
So let's think about that for asecond.
Where do you even start?
You have to really get narrowedin on that focus right here.
If you have a scope out there,like a scope that's on a rifle,
(08:37):
you better dial that thing in soyou can see exactly what you're
aiming for.
And so a practice that's oftenmissed and I think about this a
lot from the manufacturers weworked with in the past is you
don't want to tackle everythingat once, right, because it could
be so much more effective ifyou start with smaller subsets
(08:59):
or areas of your plant that youwant to focus on.
It's the old, you know how doyou eat an elephant?
One bite at a time.
You don't just attack the wholething at once, right?
So maybe you think about themas asset zones or focus areas or
whatever you want to call.
But think of how, what are theplaces inside your facility that
you can focus on right now.
That's going to yield quick andimpactful results.
(09:21):
That's the difference, theimpactful results.
For example, maybe you'restruggling with VFD failures,
right, and that's constantlyhappening.
You're having VFD failures andyou need to understand, okay,
why are these VFDs failing?
Well, maybe you want toactually go through and start
conducting some data around theVFDs that you have in the
(09:41):
particular areas of the facilitythat are causing you problems.
If you had that data then youcan start working with your
vendors and your manufacturersto ultimately get down to the
root cause of what's going on.
It all starts withunderstanding the data.
Similarly, maybe you're havingnetwork issues and you need to
have a network assessment.
That's essentially an IBE foryour networks that can address
(10:02):
maybe some connectivity issuesthat you're having in the plant.
So, regardless of where youchoose to focus that, with an
IBE it can really focus down tohave a list of factors.
I want you to think aboutassessment of risk, assessment
of risk due to obsolescencefailure.
So you need to understand rightat the gate what equipment do
(10:23):
you have installed thatpotentially is at risk for
failure due to obsolescence?
Right, because if you can't getit, then you better have a
backup plan, you better have aplan B and a plan C.
So really think about that,because if that risk, if that
fails and you can't go to eBayand you can't find it in one of
your sister plants or anythinglike that, what are you going to
(10:46):
do Then?
You also need to think aboutthe condition of your assets.
Really, think about thermalrising enclosures.
How much heat are these assetsseeing?
Environmental protections arethey exposed to elements?
Do they have things within yourfacility that could be
impacting the overall physicaloperation condition of them?
Because all that stuff, allthat stuff impacts run life and
(11:09):
if you start messing around andstart throwing different factors
at these components that theyweren't in this hunt for, you're
not going to have the run lifethat you should have.
So you need to know that.
You need to know that so youcan evaluate that risk.
Then you need to think aboutasset protection.
Think about things like shortcircuit protection, overload
management, coordination.
(11:29):
You need to have all theseunderstandings to know you know
what?
Do I have everything in a placethat I need to ensure that my
asset is protected to themaximum of visibility.
And then maybe for your lowerrisk assets you don't worry
about that, but your higheritems, your higher dollar items,
the harder to find items youbetter make sure you have all
those components in placebecause you're trying to prevent
(11:51):
that.
Oh man, what do I do now?
Momin, you don't want thatright.
You need to understand that.
Now, criticality assessmentsthat's another core component of
an IBE, because you need todetermine the criticality of the
assets themselves and then youneed to say, okay, based off
these assets, these are the onesI got to focus on the most,
versus these, I can back off,you know, to let off the gas
(12:14):
Again.
Criticality, assessment of thatprotection all these things run
together.
Now, what about identifyingfunctional improvement
opportunities?
So just think about this If youhad a way to have that vision
of your facility and you can seeright up front, okay, here is
my immediate low-hanging fruit.
(12:34):
I know I can make animprovement right here.
If I just focus right here inthis area for this line, for
this particular part of theproduction, I know I can get a
return.
Hey, and I believe he's gonnahelp you do that.
It's gonna spot you those areaswhere immediate enhancements
can make a big improvement.
That's it.
Also, surplus, obsoleteinventory how about you start
(12:57):
eliminating that stuff that youhave in your storeroom and your
warehouse that you never needBecause you were storing it for
something that you had installed30 years ago?
Guess what, it's not in theplant anymore.
It's a great way where you canclean up things and start
identifying that surplus you mayeven be able to get some money
for that surplus and get thatstuff out.
And I'm gonna tell you, youknow what I'm talking about.
(13:18):
A clean storeroom is so muchpeace about that, right?
This is versus going into astoreroom or going into your
spare parts area and it lookslike chaos.
Ibes help you just get a ground, get a good set and be able to
actually move forward withconfidence, knowing what you
have in your plant.
Now, how about gaps in criticalspares?
(13:40):
Think about this for a second.
Okay, you have this criticalpiece of equipment and you just
know without a shadow of a doubtthat that spare is in that
warehouse.
Well, guess what, on thirdshifts three years ago, that
piece of equipment failed andthat spare that you thought was
there is actually installed andit never got replenished.
(14:03):
Now, does that happen?
Yes, is it intentional?
No, mistakes happen.
Manufacturing things arehappening all the time.
Assets that they did go outSometimes they don't get
replenished the right way.
So identifying that gap in acritical spare that is so
crucial Right there, an IBE canhelp you save that headache
(14:26):
moment to where you gotta go getextra leave.
You're gonna have to get extraPepto-Bismol because you're
gonna be in a stack of meetingsthat go over and over and over
because this piece of equipmentfailed, you don't have a
replacement.
Why you don't want that?
Let the IBE help you.
Now, how about the last piece,maybe to really think about?
Money doesn't grow on trees, weknow that.
(14:48):
So you have to prioritize thatcapital and you need to
prioritize your resources aroundthat capital, right?
So making sure that you'rerationalizing those resources
allocation based on the data,that changes everything.
It's not just a gut reaction.
Hey, we need to go work on lineone, because line one has given
(15:10):
us the biggest return.
Now you can actually say youknow what.
We need to focus on this areaof line one, because the data
shows us that we are volatileand right here, from point A to
point B.
And if we were gonna put somecapital to make the most
improvement to our overallprocess, that's where we need to
spend the money.
And you know what the IBE helpsyou do that directly.
(15:31):
It gives you information sothat you can say, oh, right here
, so the actual spend is not youknow this X times two.
It's actually X, right?
You can actually you can getdown to more granular detail,
because it's not just aboutgathering data.
That's the big misunderstandingabout an IBE.
It's about leveraging data.
(15:51):
That's the difference.
It's not about just gathering.
You gotta leverage that databecause then it's gonna help you
steer to your modernizationjourney.
That's gonna help you makebetter decisions.
Right A blueprint, it's gonnaguide your actions.
We've talked about this already.
So if you're gonna spend timeand effort and money upgrading
and working inside your plan tomake the most effective
(16:15):
manufacturing facility out there, you better have a good plan,
because people are gonna haveideas.
Let's just be real.
Everybody out in the plant hasideas and they.
These ideas aren't bad.
But if you, if you, are datadriven, that changes.
That changes the game.
So now let's, let's, let's moveforward.
Let's say that you've actuallyFocused in on your IBE.
(16:38):
You got your IBE vendorselected, that you brought them
in.
You've done an IBE.
You know you've gone throughall the process of collecting
the data on site.
They've gone back through andthey've actually done the, the
data analysis for you.
With an IBE because that shouldbe your expectation you should
be able to expect a vendor tocome in collect data on Maybe a
period of a couple days,depending on the size of the IBE
(17:00):
.
Some of the IBEs can be done ina couple hours, but then they
have to go back, and this iswhere the rubber meets the road.
They're going to perform thatanalysis on what they collected.
So here's what we collected,here's your cross references,
here's your gaps, here's youropportunities, here's the
identified things that we see asrisk areas, and then you're
gonna have all this stuff thatcomes back at you.
So now, knowing that we're notjust collecting information,
(17:23):
right, we're planning.
We're planning for strategicmodernization.
I want you to consider thesesteps.
Just lay this lamb out verysimple for you.
Step number one this may sounda little silly, but I put this
here for a reason Trust, butverify, right, trust me.
I love that.
That old saying, what you needto understand for yourself, that
(17:45):
that I be.
I be data.
That's a valuable resource.
I Completely get the importanceof it.
The cross check I'm not sayingyou have to go through the whole
thing.
The cross check for accuracy.
Maybe go look at one of themost important areas for you and
just just do a quick, a quickCross check to make sure that
there's not an oversight there,because, let's just face it,
(18:07):
oversights can occur when you'regoing through a facility.
You're collecting that muchdata.
Things just happen.
But just check it because it'scritical.
Hey, I feel a whole lot betterif I've checked five items in
this area and everything,allines, I'm gonna feel pretty
good about that.
Moving forward to say thatthere's there's no discrepancy,
this looks good, there's just agood practice, right?
(18:27):
Don't just take things at facevalue.
Spend some time to understandwhat the data is telling you and
that it's there, because thenthat's gonna change everything
about how you approach stuff.
Moving forward now, once you'vedone that, you trust it, you've
verified, you get your armaround your buddy, feeling good
about your suppliers who'sworking with you.
Now I want you to think aboutyour modernization goals.
(18:48):
Okay, because again, it's gonnahelp you the IBE specifically
help you with thoseprioritizations around upgrades,
and there's usually gonna besome implications around capital
planning, and that typically isover and not just a short time
frame.
Right, you got to figure outwhat does the capital look at,
look like for the next one, two,three, five years.
(19:09):
So, to do this, if you couplethat capital planning around the
data and Combine it with asmart tech review Haul, you're
gonna be able to pick somedevices and some projects that
are gonna be well ahead, wellahead of where you are right now
, and it's gonna help youdevelop that progression plan.
And that progression plan,typically that spends multiple
(19:31):
years.
Okay, because you're not justgonna do this stuff overnight.
You can't just snap yourfingers and it's done.
Things take time.
So you need to start definingstandards.
You need to talk about the vicereplacements.
You need to talk about bigprojects that are coming and
incremental items when they popup.
Hey, how can I take advantageof it with this piece of
equipment you know happens tojust fail, what can we do in the
(19:53):
in the meantime to actuallystart making incremental
improvements?
You'll see all that.
And smart device standards thatare out there.
They're gonna help you withthat progression planning and
this is this is something thatyou really need to take serious.
Okay, because we've actuallydefined a smart manufacturing
guy and we help lay that, laythat out for our customers and,
by the way, check out the shownotes.
We'll have a link to our smartmanufacturing guys.
(20:15):
Because we'll give you someexamples of when we say a Device
standard, what does that looklike?
Because it needs to berequirements defined by you
around your objectives and yourgoals, what's gonna really move
the needle for you Right beforeyou just jump in and just pick
that next family of devices thatyou just happened to come
across, hey, let's make surethat they had the connectivity
(20:38):
that you need.
Let's make sure it's gonna giveyou the data that you need.
Let's make sure that that thatyour, your staff, that your team
can actually support thattechnology.
This is very important.
A couple ways you can maybe getstarted with this.
So you got think holistically,right from the site level
objectives and across all yourinformation systems, because we
know all these systems are beingtied together.
(20:59):
Now you need to actually thinkabout Personnel, not just
engineering personnel, but thinkabout operations, erp, delip,
the users that are working inthe plant.
You need to think holisticallywhen it comes to making
decisions like this and thenThink from a machine or process
perspective.
Right, this is kind of gonnaget where you need to get
(21:21):
specific with your, with yourengineering, your control group,
your ANI teams, to really getdown to that level.
And then you start big, but youwork back, work backwards.
That.
I had someone on our on our preon eco.
That's why say one time Thankbig, act small.
It's a great practice,particularly around your IBE.
Think big.
It's great to have those big,hairy, audacious goals right,
(21:43):
those be eggs.
But take smaller steps and ifyou do those small steps, it's
going to really put you on amuch better path, moving forward
.
And use creative thinking,those types of exercises.
When you combine that stuffwith IBE data, smart tech
reviews and things like that,that's going to help you just
get so clear on where you needto act, moving forward, and then
(22:07):
you can start.
Okay, you've done that smarttech review, you have that
little bit of a plan.
All right, start identifyingthose gaps and start
prioritizing, because what youwant the secret sauce in helping
IBEs be successful, to help youwith your plans for
modernization is get some quickwins.
You need some quick wins.
Address those immediateconcerns.
Go ahead and attack those outthe gate Obsclete equipment,
(22:31):
critical spare shortages, thingslike that.
You should just jump all over.
I mean just absolutely hang onthe rim with this stuff, because
that's what that's going to do.
It's going to help you buildtrust.
Your organization is all of asudden start looking at you like
, oh go, they really got itfigured out, they're ahead of
this thing and you're going toshow right there.
(22:51):
Well, hey, I was able to figurethis out because we made the
investment here and because I'vebeen able to identify the areas
that we need to focus on.
We just we took action, and itmay lead you to future IBE
projects for bigger areas of theplant, addressing larger gaps.
But start small.
Don't forget the opportunity togain advocates when you win.
(23:15):
People like to hang out withpeople who win.
Trust me, they just do.
Look at all the bandwagon thatare out there.
So find those immediate gaps,prioritize them.
Okay Now, we already talked alittle bit about what we're
doing the planning goals arounda smart tech review.
So what a smart tech review isreally?
When you get down to it, it's agreat intermediate step that
(23:38):
you can take before you startjust replacing stuff.
So it's the IBE and that can bea good reference for you.
But before you start justpulling stuff out and throwing
stuff in, you probably want tounderstand what it does.
So this is a great way to getsome inspiration too.
Okay, we've been doing it thisway since forever.
What is new that's out therethat we could try?
When this fails?
Hey, here we come down, let'sget to that smart tech review
(24:00):
and that device planning, andyou can get your vendor
community involved and you startworking with vendors, which is
highly encouraged, particularlylike vendors, like electrical
equipment company.
Hey, we would definitely wantto work with you.
Share some data.
Maybe the vendor directlydidn't do the IBE, maybe someone
else did.
Share the data, it's okay.
Request recommendations.
(24:20):
You know what?
Here's what the data shows me.
I'd like to see yourrecommendations and, by the way,
when you send me that I want tosee a demo, okay, get specific
with the demo, because vendorscan come in and it can be just a
straight up commercial like oldTV infomercials, right, stop
that stuff.
Make sure you need to determinefor them directly.
(24:43):
Hey, I need you to demonstrateright now for me the functional
performance of this item, whatdata is available that actually
matters to me and what's thediagnosis available that I can
plug into my system to get methe information that I need.
Because it's great if this newpiece of smart technology has
500 data points, guess what Ifit doesn't have the three that
(25:07):
you need and you can tie backinto and actually make better
informed decisions?
It's just junk, it's garbageand garbage out.
So you need an explicitdemonstration, okay, and you
need to see don't miss this theintegration component.
You need to see that thisequipment is integrated into
your control system.
(25:29):
Whatever that system may be, youneed to think about the
connectivity of it, okay, theprogramming right, and the
maintenance, because if you'veinstalled new equipment into
your facility, you're going tohave to have a.
It's got to connect first andforemost.
Then you got to know how to getplugged in and working with
your process.
And then don't forget themaintenance component, because
(25:51):
once it's installed and whoeverwalks away walks away.
If they're in your, if theywork for you inside the facility
, that's great.
You still have that resource.
But if they're an outsidevendor, hey, you're kind of a
little bit at a risk point rightthere.
Now, maybe for this piece ofequipment, that's okay here at a
risk point, but you need tomake sure you have a good
understanding for maintenance ofthat equipment, okay.
So if you had a little advancednotice and a little planning
(26:15):
and that demo where it's gettingvery specific, hey, these are
going to really help you makethe best decisions moving
forward, for not only for yourprocess but for you, you want to
lower your stress level too.
Ibes can do that.
Now, as you start moving forward, you're planning your
progression for modernization.
You need to think, really thinkthrough those device standards,
(26:38):
really think through it.
Make sure that that thatEverything that you're, that
you're standardizing on,supports the technology that you
want to have in your plan.
And Start thinking, not justyou know right now, the next
quarter.
Start thinking in the next two,three years.
Thank you for down the road andif you need help with device
level planning, there aretemplates out there.
(27:00):
Okay again, go to our smartmanufacturing guide.
We'll have that link in theshow notes for you all listening
.
Go to that if you need help.
But the smart, but but outsideof that, if we are ready,
particularly an electricequipment company, to help you
in those areas.
So if you need help with theprogression planning with your
device standards, this is agreat area for us.
We have a lot of experts thatare ready to jump in that kind
(27:22):
of leads to sound to the nextpoint Collaboration and
expertise.
You have to collaborate with,with industry experts out there,
and then there's a ton ofinformation on internet, but at
some point you should probablyseek the advice and Actually
start thinking directly more onthe innovative solutions that
are out there from them directly, ask them for case studies.
All right, this is greattechnology.
(27:43):
I love the advancement I'mseeing here, but can you show me
directly how this is working?
A facility, similar hours, canyou give me a demo that maybe
even I don't want?
I don't have time to come in toyour, to your site.
Maybe can you give me a virtualdemo, show me how the software
is configured so that I canactually connect this into my
rock world automation platformor to my, to my eatin or my
(28:06):
Siemens platform for powermanagement, whatever it may be.
Seek that expertise.
It's out there.
You just have to take the timeto look for it.
And I'm telling you, with theadvancement in technologies,
there's so much that can be doneVirtually and digitally to can
make sure you have theinformation that you need to
make the best decision, and thenyou need to Maximize the value
(28:28):
of those upgrades.
Okay, when you start thinkingabout the upgrades, you need to
obviously be planning to makethe most out of every
opportunity and any chance.
You can incorporate a smartdevice into it.
You're gonna go actuallyincrease your operations even
further, and that I be eitheryou're doing.
That's your baseline.
That's your baseline forevaluating, hey, evaluating, hey
(28:51):
.
Where am I?
Essentially dumb devices, wherecan we implement our smart
devices and what's gonna be theimpact and when?
You, whenever possible, don'tforget this piece Document the
realized game.
Document the realized game.
Don't go far past this, becauseif you have new data and that's
(29:12):
helping you achieve new goalsand Operations, it's making your
, your plant more efficient,more reliable, more Sustainable,
is able to to give you a littlebit more peace at night Then
you need to make sure that'sdocumented, because that could
be a supporting case and datathat you needed the future for
more projects.
(29:33):
It's all about documentationeverything, everything against
you.
If you can't measure it, youcan't manage it.
So go ahead where you can startmeasuring it, start managing it
and then put that informationin front of decision-makers.
Help that.
A couple that with the datathat you have from your IBEs and
that's gonna give you so muchmore fuel, if you will, to move
forward with more Modernizationprojects in the future.
(29:55):
Because I'm a tissue to you.
Tell you what an IBE it's notjust a snapshot.
If you're thinking of it as asnapshot, that's completely
wrong.
Okay, it's.
It's strategic tool that'sgonna help you thrive and grow
in the future, because your IBEis giving you data, data that
you can plan with they, that youcan prioritize with and that
(30:16):
data, it's gonna help you propelyour operations toward that
efficiency and more success inthe future.
So it can't just stop a datacollection.
It has to be that catalyst fortransformation.
It really does and if youactually have that mindset going
into it, it's gonna changeeverything because all of a
sudden you're changing yourdestiny, you're changing your
(30:37):
journey and modernization.
All book all of a suddenbecomes very real and that's the
great part of it.
It becomes something tangible.
Because when you have somethingin your hands that you can hold
, say, okay, I have this, thisis my map.
Think about the old power setof Caribbean movies and things
like that.
They had a map.
The map showed the way.
(30:57):
The same thing with the IBE.
Don't get overwhelmed with thedata.
Make sure you get very specificwhen the your menu or when your
supplier, whoever it comes in,it can be overwhelming.
So get very clear.
Okay, that's great that we haveall this data here.
I need you, as a vendor, toshow me directly Okay, where,
(31:19):
where are the items of mostimpact?
Where do what are yourrecommendations for areas of
focus?
If you start putting some ofthat, that heavy lifting back on
the suppliers that you workwith.
And you do this, there's a pingFalling back and forth, right,
because they're not gonna knowyour goals.
You have to be very clear onthat.
They're not gonna know yourplan as well as you do.
You need to make sure you haveall that stuff to find.
But working together inconjunction with a partner the
(31:42):
partner it's just gonna changeeverything.
It's gonna bring so much moreclarity to what you do moving
forward.
So again, eco-as-why now it'sreally shifted up.
So when I think about the whybehind an install-based
evaluation, for me it's allabout.
It's not just about data, it'sabout better decisions and
(32:04):
leveraging that to make thosedecisions.
That's the why.
Right, don't get trapped intothis.
It's just a spreadsheet ofparts.
No, that's not what it's about.
It's so much more than aspreadsheet of parts.
It says this is informationthat's gonna help you grow,
modernize, make thoseimprovements in the future.
So I wanna know do you like anew format of eco-as-why?
(32:27):
Is this something that bringsyou value?
We really trying to shift upthings here when we put
information out, like ourpodcast.
Now we wanna give you someresources, we wanna help you.
So again, go check out the shownotes.
Make sure that you get oursmart manufacturing guide.
Let us know where you'relocated.
We would love to send you somemore information.
We have resources that we builtspecifically for IVEs.
(32:51):
If this is something that you'reinterested in that you'd like
to move forward with, then hey,I'm curious from my plan how
this would work in this section.
If you have those questions, Idon't know you do, let us know.
Even if we're not in yourservice area, we'll at least try
to put you in the rightdirection.
But don't just limit it to yourautomation lines either.
(33:12):
Power so much can be learnedabout power, particularly smart
power now in the world of power,and eco has those resources.
So, from automation to powercontrols, wherever you need to
help the most VFDs, it doesn'tmatter, we are ready to jump in,
we're ready to serve.
We have the experts that aretrained up on-staff, that, at
(33:33):
the drop of hat, we're ready togo.
So I look forward to hearingfrom you guys.
I'd love to know what yourfeedback is on the show.
Again, share this out withother people.
Notice, there's a very specifictype of information.
So, hey, if you know someoneout there that this would help,
share it with them.
Give us a rating, give us areview.
That type of stuff helps bigtime.
Check us out on YouTube as welland connect with us on LinkedIn.
(33:53):
That is where we're most activebetween those two platforms on
YouTube and LinkedIn.
So be sure to connect with theelectrical equipment company
there.
Connect with me on LinkedIn.
I'd love to connect with youthere directly.
If they have questions, I'lldefinitely do my best.
If I can't answer them, I'llget you connected with the team
of experts at electricalequipment company that can
definitely get them answered foryou.
(34:14):
So there you go.
Have a great day.
Thank you again for taking thetime with us here on EcoSY and
remember to keep asking why.
Thank you for listening toEcoSY.
This show is supported ad-freeby electrical equipment company.
Eco is redefining theexpectations of an electrical
(34:35):
distributor by placing peopleand ideas before products.
Please subscribe and share withyour colleagues and friends.
Also leave comments, feedback,any new topics that you would
like to hear, to learn more orto share your insights.
Visit ecosycom.
That's E, e, c, o, a, s, k, s,w, h, ycom.
Welcome to Eco Ask why, a podcast that dives
into industrial manufacturingtopics and spotlights the heroes
to keep America running.
I'm your host, chris Granger,and on this podcast we do not
cover the latest features andbenefits on products that come
to market.
Instead, we focus on advice andinsight from the top minds of
industry, because people andideas will be how America
(00:24):
remains number one inmanufacturing in the world.
Welcome to Eco Ask why.
I'm your host, chris Granger.
Let's get into it for today.
So it has been a while, youguys, since we had an episode
come out.
I'm so excited to be back withyou.
We have a little bit of a newformat, so we're not going to do
quite as many interviews thatwe've done in the past.
(00:44):
Our focus and our goal with EcoAsk why now is to serve you
with the information that youneed the most, particularly
around industrial automation,power control, whatever those
needs are.
So we're going to be divingdeep into topics and dropping
those out for you guys.
We're going to have a lot ofsupporting information that
comes along with it along theway, and I'm just excited to be
(01:06):
back with you.
The 250 episodes that we did,that's right 250 episodes that
we've already put out for EcoAsk why has been a true blessing
for me just to be able to meetpeople across the industries,
hear their stories and be ableto share them with you.
What an amazing ride it hasbeen.
So I'm hoping that you're goingto like the new format.
(01:27):
I'd love to get your feedback.
Again, you can connect with usdirectly.
Go to the show notes.
We'll have ways that you canconnect with us for more
information there.
So we're going to be talkingabout today, we're going to be
diving into how you can maximizeyour efficiency and overall
success with installed baseevaluations.
Now, you may be new to installbase evaluations and that's okay
(01:49):
.
That's what we're here for.
I hope that's something thatyou're familiar with.
We may be able to give you someinsight here with this
particular episode that willhelp you make the most out of
your install base evaluation,because we know that in today's
fast-paced industrial landscape,it's so easy for things to get
just lost in the shovel.
Let's just be real.
There's things that are movingin, that are moving out of
(02:09):
plants all the time right andequipment every day.
It does what it gets older.
We have people that turn overinto plants all the time, and
then when you have new installs,we all see those New projects
are happening all around us.
They leave us with somequestions Like how did that get
there?
Like how does this even happen?
When did we get this equipment?
(02:29):
And this is where an IBE cancome in and change the game,
because it can be a criticaltool as you actually start
implementing and moving forward,for regaining control, for
prioritizing those investmentsthat you want to make, and it's
going to help you set the stagefor future success.
So now we're going to have alot of different IBEs that we're
going to be talking about too.
(02:50):
We're going to be diving intothe essence of what an IBE is
and the types of IBEs that areavailable, and we're also going
to look about how you can getstarted and the multifaceted
benefits that an installed-basedevaluation offer.
So now let's kind of start slow.
Let's understand the essence ofwhat an IBE is, because at the
(03:14):
core of it, the IBE is basically, you know, the IBE is the core
of it.
It's knowing what you own.
That's it.
It's just knowing what you own.
It gives you that detail listof an inventory that is specific
to your assets and it's kind oflike a blueprint, you know,
when you open up a blueprint fora building, you can see
everything that's just laid out.
You can say, okay, this is overhere, this is this section of
(03:36):
the plan Over here we have.
Maybe this is finishing ordrying, whatever it may be, but
it gives you that.
It's kind of like a guidinglight, a starting point, because
we know that you're workingtowards operational optimization
.
We know that Every plant that'sout there, every manufacturer
that's out there, you're tryingto optimize your processes.
Why?
Because you know thecompetition is out there.
(03:57):
It's coming hard.
So now to get ahead of thecompetition, you need to
understand where you're at, andthat begins with a single step
this IBE.
The IBE is that pivotal initialstride you need to take towards
a modernization project, towardsany major improvements.
Before you spend any capital,you need to have it.
(04:18):
So just picture this.
Let's sit back, let's sayyou're inside your office right
now, in your industrialmanufacturing facility, and you
have a way to know, without ashadow of a doubt, all your
encompassing inventory of yourassets, as well as like a
comprehensive map to show youwhat's in place and what do you
(04:40):
need to start paying attentionto or planning for in the future
.
This is foundational knowledgeright here.
This is it, and this is goingto help you strategize
effectively and start puttinginto priority action where it's
needed most and where it's goingto give you the biggest lift,
because you don't want to spendmoney just for the sake of
spending money.
No, everyone there's budgetsare tight, so you need to know
(05:03):
where to take the action, whereyou have the most risk and
what's going to give you thebiggest turnaround.
So now that IBE is abouthelping you identify that that's
really what it's about and alsominimizing your strengths.
So what you do when you startminimizing those threats and you
identify those opportunities,what you're doing is you're
streamlining your path.
(05:24):
We all know that we need helpgetting to the next stage,
particularly in manufacturingthese days.
Right, there are so many thingsthat you cannot take action on,
but where do you need to focusmost?
This is where the IBE will helpyou.
It will actually give you abaseline to okay, this is a big,
big project.
However, based on the data itsays, I need to act here and
(05:48):
when you know that and you cansay concretely that you know
what the best use of ourresources, of our time, of our
energy, of our money is here.
It's just going to put you onso much a better path for
success.
Now there's different types ofinstall-based evaluations that
we need to kind of talk aboutand let you need to consider,
(06:09):
because each of them is going tobe tailored to your different
objectives and your needs.
So you've got big equipmentmanufacturers, you've got your
Rockwell Automations, you haveyour Eatons of the world and
they conduct extensive IBEs.
They can really get down to thecomponent level and that's
going to help you understanddirectly, whether your power or
(06:29):
your automation infrastructure,what do you have in install?
Okay, and they can even getdown to like power audits and
different ways to understand howthe power flow and the
synchronization within yourplant because of power system,
all the way to the load.
These are components that youneed to have awareness of and
(06:49):
you need to have evaluated.
You need to understand, okay,where am I at risk with these
and taking intentional actionhere?
I'm just going to set you headand shoulders above the
competition.
They didn't even havedistributors like Eco and other
distributors out there.
We can do IBE services as well,typically with a more focused
(07:11):
scope, and that's the reallycool part about working with a
distributor like an electricalequipment company, because when
you select that IBE provider,which your choice to align with
your objectives and your scope,right.
So think about this as you'reworking with electrical
electrical distributed, like Eco, you may want to target like a
particular system, or even asubsystem or a group of systems.
(07:33):
Maybe you want to actually justunderstand hey, I want to have
a good understanding of all myPLC cabinets.
I just need to know what's inthose cabinets, right?
Or you may want to, hey, thissection of the plant.
I need a very, very fundamentaland detailed understanding of
the electrical infrastructurethat exists.
Insert the IVE, because that'sit.
You get to define what'simportant.
(07:55):
You get to define what youfocus on.
You get to say you know what,I'm not going to worry about
these assets over here becauseif they go down will it be a
headache.
Yeah, but it's not the end ofthe world.
However, these assets over here, in this section of the plant,
I have to focus and I need toknow where am I at risk and
where do we need to makeimprovements.
And that is it.
(08:16):
That is the biggest thing rightthere, when you start
understanding different types ofIVEs.
That's going to help you makethat determination on where to
focus.
So let's think about that for asecond.
Where do you even start?
You have to really get narrowedin on that focus right here.
If you have a scope out there,like a scope that's on a rifle,
(08:37):
you better dial that thing in soyou can see exactly what you're
aiming for.
And so a practice that's oftenmissed and I think about this a
lot from the manufacturers weworked with in the past is you
don't want to tackle everythingat once, right, because it could
be so much more effective ifyou start with smaller subsets
(08:59):
or areas of your plant that youwant to focus on.
It's the old, you know how doyou eat an elephant?
One bite at a time.
You don't just attack the wholething at once, right?
So maybe you think about themas asset zones or focus areas or
whatever you want to call.
But think of how, what are theplaces inside your facility that
you can focus on right now.
That's going to yield quick andimpactful results.
(09:21):
That's the difference, theimpactful results.
For example, maybe you'restruggling with VFD failures,
right, and that's constantlyhappening.
You're having VFD failures andyou need to understand, okay,
why are these VFDs failing?
Well, maybe you want toactually go through and start
conducting some data around theVFDs that you have in the
(09:41):
particular areas of the facilitythat are causing you problems.
If you had that data then youcan start working with your
vendors and your manufacturersto ultimately get down to the
root cause of what's going on.
It all starts withunderstanding the data.
Similarly, maybe you're havingnetwork issues and you need to
have a network assessment.
That's essentially an IBE foryour networks that can address
(10:02):
maybe some connectivity issuesthat you're having in the plant.
So, regardless of where youchoose to focus that, with an
IBE it can really focus down tohave a list of factors.
I want you to think aboutassessment of risk, assessment
of risk due to obsolescencefailure.
So you need to understand rightat the gate what equipment do
(10:23):
you have installed thatpotentially is at risk for
failure due to obsolescence?
Right, because if you can't getit, then you better have a
backup plan, you better have aplan B and a plan C.
So really think about that,because if that risk, if that
fails and you can't go to eBayand you can't find it in one of
your sister plants or anythinglike that, what are you going to
(10:46):
do Then?
You also need to think aboutthe condition of your assets.
Really, think about thermalrising enclosures.
How much heat are these assetsseeing?
Environmental protections arethey exposed to elements?
Do they have things within yourfacility that could be
impacting the overall physicaloperation condition of them?
Because all that stuff, allthat stuff impacts run life and
(11:09):
if you start messing around andstart throwing different factors
at these components that theyweren't in this hunt for, you're
not going to have the run lifethat you should have.
So you need to know that.
You need to know that so youcan evaluate that risk.
Then you need to think aboutasset protection.
Think about things like shortcircuit protection, overload
management, coordination.
(11:29):
You need to have all theseunderstandings to know you know
what?
Do I have everything in a placethat I need to ensure that my
asset is protected to themaximum of visibility.
And then maybe for your lowerrisk assets you don't worry
about that, but your higheritems, your higher dollar items,
the harder to find items youbetter make sure you have all
those components in placebecause you're trying to prevent
(11:51):
that.
Oh man, what do I do now?
Momin, you don't want thatright.
You need to understand that.
Now, criticality assessmentsthat's another core component of
an IBE, because you need todetermine the criticality of the
assets themselves and then youneed to say, okay, based off
these assets, these are the onesI got to focus on the most,
versus these, I can back off,you know, to let off the gas
(12:14):
Again.
Criticality, assessment of thatprotection all these things run
together.
Now, what about identifyingfunctional improvement
opportunities?
So just think about this If youhad a way to have that vision
of your facility and you can seeright up front, okay, here is
my immediate low-hanging fruit.
(12:34):
I know I can make animprovement right here.
If I just focus right here inthis area for this line, for
this particular part of theproduction, I know I can get a
return.
Hey, and I believe he's gonnahelp you do that.
It's gonna spot you those areaswhere immediate enhancements
can make a big improvement.
That's it.
Also, surplus, obsoleteinventory how about you start
(12:57):
eliminating that stuff that youhave in your storeroom and your
warehouse that you never needBecause you were storing it for
something that you had installed30 years ago?
Guess what, it's not in theplant anymore.
It's a great way where you canclean up things and start
identifying that surplus you mayeven be able to get some money
for that surplus and get thatstuff out.
And I'm gonna tell you, youknow what I'm talking about.
(13:18):
A clean storeroom is so muchpeace about that, right?
This is versus going into astoreroom or going into your
spare parts area and it lookslike chaos.
Ibes help you just get a ground, get a good set and be able to
actually move forward withconfidence, knowing what you
have in your plant.
Now, how about gaps in criticalspares?
(13:40):
Think about this for a second.
Okay, you have this criticalpiece of equipment and you just
know without a shadow of a doubtthat that spare is in that
warehouse.
Well, guess what, on thirdshifts three years ago, that
piece of equipment failed andthat spare that you thought was
there is actually installed andit never got replenished.
(14:03):
Now, does that happen?
Yes, is it intentional?
No, mistakes happen.
Manufacturing things arehappening all the time.
Assets that they did go outSometimes they don't get
replenished the right way.
So identifying that gap in acritical spare that is so
crucial Right there, an IBE canhelp you save that headache
(14:26):
moment to where you gotta go getextra leave.
You're gonna have to get extraPepto-Bismol because you're
gonna be in a stack of meetingsthat go over and over and over
because this piece of equipmentfailed, you don't have a
replacement.
Why you don't want that?
Let the IBE help you.
Now, how about the last piece,maybe to really think about?
Money doesn't grow on trees, weknow that.
(14:48):
So you have to prioritize thatcapital and you need to
prioritize your resources aroundthat capital, right?
So making sure that you'rerationalizing those resources
allocation based on the data,that changes everything.
It's not just a gut reaction.
Hey, we need to go work on lineone, because line one has given
(15:10):
us the biggest return.
Now you can actually say youknow what.
We need to focus on this areaof line one, because the data
shows us that we are volatileand right here, from point A to
point B.
And if we were gonna put somecapital to make the most
improvement to our overallprocess, that's where we need to
spend the money.
And you know what the IBE helpsyou do that directly.
(15:31):
It gives you information sothat you can say, oh, right here
, so the actual spend is not youknow this X times two.
It's actually X, right?
You can actually you can getdown to more granular detail,
because it's not just aboutgathering data.
That's the big misunderstandingabout an IBE.
It's about leveraging data.
(15:51):
That's the difference.
It's not about just gathering.
You gotta leverage that databecause then it's gonna help you
steer to your modernizationjourney.
That's gonna help you makebetter decisions.
Right A blueprint, it's gonnaguide your actions.
We've talked about this already.
So if you're gonna spend timeand effort and money upgrading
and working inside your plan tomake the most effective
(16:15):
manufacturing facility out there, you better have a good plan,
because people are gonna haveideas.
Let's just be real.
Everybody out in the plant hasideas and they.
These ideas aren't bad.
But if you, if you, are datadriven, that changes.
That changes the game.
So now let's, let's, let's moveforward.
Let's say that you've actuallyFocused in on your IBE.
(16:38):
You got your IBE vendorselected, that you brought them
in.
You've done an IBE.
You know you've gone throughall the process of collecting
the data on site.
They've gone back through andthey've actually done the, the
data analysis for you.
With an IBE because that shouldbe your expectation you should
be able to expect a vendor tocome in collect data on Maybe a
period of a couple days,depending on the size of the IBE
(17:00):
.
Some of the IBEs can be done ina couple hours, but then they
have to go back, and this iswhere the rubber meets the road.
They're going to perform thatanalysis on what they collected.
So here's what we collected,here's your cross references,
here's your gaps, here's youropportunities, here's the
identified things that we see asrisk areas, and then you're
gonna have all this stuff thatcomes back at you.
So now, knowing that we're notjust collecting information,
(17:23):
right, we're planning.
We're planning for strategicmodernization.
I want you to consider thesesteps.
Just lay this lamb out verysimple for you.
Step number one this may sounda little silly, but I put this
here for a reason Trust, butverify, right, trust me.
I love that.
That old saying, what you needto understand for yourself, that
(17:45):
that I be.
I be data.
That's a valuable resource.
I Completely get the importanceof it.
The cross check I'm not sayingyou have to go through the whole
thing.
The cross check for accuracy.
Maybe go look at one of themost important areas for you and
just just do a quick, a quickCross check to make sure that
there's not an oversight there,because, let's just face it,
(18:07):
oversights can occur when you'regoing through a facility.
You're collecting that muchdata.
Things just happen.
But just check it because it'scritical.
Hey, I feel a whole lot betterif I've checked five items in
this area and everything,allines, I'm gonna feel pretty
good about that.
Moving forward to say thatthere's there's no discrepancy,
this looks good, there's just agood practice, right?
(18:27):
Don't just take things at facevalue.
Spend some time to understandwhat the data is telling you and
that it's there, because thenthat's gonna change everything
about how you approach stuff.
Moving forward now, once you'vedone that, you trust it, you've
verified, you get your armaround your buddy, feeling good
about your suppliers who'sworking with you.
Now I want you to think aboutyour modernization goals.
(18:48):
Okay, because again, it's gonnahelp you the IBE specifically
help you with thoseprioritizations around upgrades,
and there's usually gonna besome implications around capital
planning, and that typically isover and not just a short time
frame.
Right, you got to figure outwhat does the capital look at,
look like for the next one, two,three, five years.
(19:09):
So, to do this, if you couplethat capital planning around the
data and Combine it with asmart tech review Haul, you're
gonna be able to pick somedevices and some projects that
are gonna be well ahead, wellahead of where you are right now
, and it's gonna help youdevelop that progression plan.
And that progression plan,typically that spends multiple
(19:31):
years.
Okay, because you're not justgonna do this stuff overnight.
You can't just snap yourfingers and it's done.
Things take time.
So you need to start definingstandards.
You need to talk about the vicereplacements.
You need to talk about bigprojects that are coming and
incremental items when they popup.
Hey, how can I take advantageof it with this piece of
equipment you know happens tojust fail, what can we do in the
(19:53):
in the meantime to actuallystart making incremental
improvements?
You'll see all that.
And smart device standards thatare out there.
They're gonna help you withthat progression planning and
this is this is something thatyou really need to take serious.
Okay, because we've actuallydefined a smart manufacturing
guy and we help lay that, laythat out for our customers and,
by the way, check out the shownotes.
We'll have a link to our smartmanufacturing guys.
(20:15):
Because we'll give you someexamples of when we say a Device
standard, what does that looklike?
Because it needs to berequirements defined by you
around your objectives and yourgoals, what's gonna really move
the needle for you Right beforeyou just jump in and just pick
that next family of devices thatyou just happened to come
across, hey, let's make surethat they had the connectivity
(20:38):
that you need.
Let's make sure it's gonna giveyou the data that you need.
Let's make sure that that thatyour, your staff, that your team
can actually support thattechnology.
This is very important.
A couple ways you can maybe getstarted with this.
So you got think holistically,right from the site level
objectives and across all yourinformation systems, because we
know all these systems are beingtied together.
(20:59):
Now you need to actually thinkabout Personnel, not just
engineering personnel, but thinkabout operations, erp, delip,
the users that are working inthe plant.
You need to think holisticallywhen it comes to making
decisions like this and thenThink from a machine or process
perspective.
Right, this is kind of gonnaget where you need to get
(21:21):
specific with your, with yourengineering, your control group,
your ANI teams, to really getdown to that level.
And then you start big, but youwork back, work backwards.
That.
I had someone on our on our preon eco.
That's why say one time Thankbig, act small.
It's a great practice,particularly around your IBE.
Think big.
It's great to have those big,hairy, audacious goals right,
(21:43):
those be eggs.
But take smaller steps and ifyou do those small steps, it's
going to really put you on amuch better path, moving forward
.
And use creative thinking,those types of exercises.
When you combine that stuffwith IBE data, smart tech
reviews and things like that,that's going to help you just
get so clear on where you needto act, moving forward, and then
(22:07):
you can start.
Okay, you've done that smarttech review, you have that
little bit of a plan.
All right, start identifyingthose gaps and start
prioritizing, because what youwant the secret sauce in helping
IBEs be successful, to help youwith your plans for
modernization is get some quickwins.
You need some quick wins.
Address those immediateconcerns.
Go ahead and attack those outthe gate Obsclete equipment,
(22:31):
critical spare shortages, thingslike that.
You should just jump all over.
I mean just absolutely hang onthe rim with this stuff, because
that's what that's going to do.
It's going to help you buildtrust.
Your organization is all of asudden start looking at you like
, oh go, they really got itfigured out, they're ahead of
this thing and you're going toshow right there.
(22:51):
Well, hey, I was able to figurethis out because we made the
investment here and because I'vebeen able to identify the areas
that we need to focus on.
We just we took action, and itmay lead you to future IBE
projects for bigger areas of theplant, addressing larger gaps.
But start small.
Don't forget the opportunity togain advocates when you win.
(23:15):
People like to hang out withpeople who win.
Trust me, they just do.
Look at all the bandwagon thatare out there.
So find those immediate gaps,prioritize them.
Okay Now, we already talked alittle bit about what we're
doing the planning goals arounda smart tech review.
So what a smart tech review isreally?
When you get down to it, it's agreat intermediate step that
(23:38):
you can take before you startjust replacing stuff.
So it's the IBE and that can bea good reference for you.
But before you start justpulling stuff out and throwing
stuff in, you probably want tounderstand what it does.
So this is a great way to getsome inspiration too.
Okay, we've been doing it thisway since forever.
What is new that's out therethat we could try?
When this fails?
Hey, here we come down, let'sget to that smart tech review
(24:00):
and that device planning, andyou can get your vendor
community involved and you startworking with vendors, which is
highly encouraged, particularlylike vendors, like electrical
equipment company.
Hey, we would definitely wantto work with you.
Share some data.
Maybe the vendor directlydidn't do the IBE, maybe someone
else did.
Share the data, it's okay.
Request recommendations.
(24:20):
You know what?
Here's what the data shows me.
I'd like to see yourrecommendations and, by the way,
when you send me that I want tosee a demo, okay, get specific
with the demo, because vendorscan come in and it can be just a
straight up commercial like oldTV infomercials, right, stop
that stuff.
Make sure you need to determinefor them directly.
(24:43):
Hey, I need you to demonstrateright now for me the functional
performance of this item, whatdata is available that actually
matters to me and what's thediagnosis available that I can
plug into my system to get methe information that I need.
Because it's great if this newpiece of smart technology has
500 data points, guess what Ifit doesn't have the three that
(25:07):
you need and you can tie backinto and actually make better
informed decisions?
It's just junk, it's garbageand garbage out.
So you need an explicitdemonstration, okay, and you
need to see don't miss this theintegration component.
You need to see that thisequipment is integrated into
your control system.
(25:29):
Whatever that system may be, youneed to think about the
connectivity of it, okay, theprogramming right, and the
maintenance, because if you'veinstalled new equipment into
your facility, you're going tohave to have a.
It's got to connect first andforemost.
Then you got to know how to getplugged in and working with
your process.
And then don't forget themaintenance component, because
(25:51):
once it's installed and whoeverwalks away walks away.
If they're in your, if theywork for you inside the facility
, that's great.
You still have that resource.
But if they're an outsidevendor, hey, you're kind of a
little bit at a risk point rightthere.
Now, maybe for this piece ofequipment, that's okay here at a
risk point, but you need tomake sure you have a good
understanding for maintenance ofthat equipment, okay.
So if you had a little advancednotice and a little planning
(26:15):
and that demo where it's gettingvery specific, hey, these are
going to really help you makethe best decisions moving
forward, for not only for yourprocess but for you, you want to
lower your stress level too.
Ibes can do that.
Now, as you start moving forward, you're planning your
progression for modernization.
You need to think, really thinkthrough those device standards,
(26:38):
really think through it.
Make sure that that thatEverything that you're, that
you're standardizing on,supports the technology that you
want to have in your plan.
And Start thinking, not justyou know right now, the next
quarter.
Start thinking in the next two,three years.
Thank you for down the road andif you need help with device
level planning, there aretemplates out there.
(27:00):
Okay again, go to our smartmanufacturing guide.
We'll have that link in theshow notes for you all listening
.
Go to that if you need help.
But the smart, but but outsideof that, if we are ready,
particularly an electricequipment company, to help you
in those areas.
So if you need help with theprogression planning with your
device standards, this is agreat area for us.
We have a lot of experts thatare ready to jump in that kind
(27:22):
of leads to sound to the nextpoint Collaboration and
expertise.
You have to collaborate with,with industry experts out there,
and then there's a ton ofinformation on internet, but at
some point you should probablyseek the advice and Actually
start thinking directly more onthe innovative solutions that
are out there from them directly, ask them for case studies.
All right, this is greattechnology.
(27:43):
I love the advancement I'mseeing here, but can you show me
directly how this is working?
A facility, similar hours, canyou give me a demo that maybe
even I don't want?
I don't have time to come in toyour, to your site.
Maybe can you give me a virtualdemo, show me how the software
is configured so that I canactually connect this into my
rock world automation platformor to my, to my eatin or my
(28:06):
Siemens platform for powermanagement, whatever it may be.
Seek that expertise.
It's out there.
You just have to take the timeto look for it.
And I'm telling you, with theadvancement in technologies,
there's so much that can be doneVirtually and digitally to can
make sure you have theinformation that you need to
make the best decision, and thenyou need to Maximize the value
(28:28):
of those upgrades.
Okay, when you start thinkingabout the upgrades, you need to
obviously be planning to makethe most out of every
opportunity and any chance.
You can incorporate a smartdevice into it.
You're gonna go actuallyincrease your operations even
further, and that I be eitheryou're doing.
That's your baseline.
That's your baseline forevaluating, hey, evaluating, hey
(28:51):
.
Where am I?
Essentially dumb devices, wherecan we implement our smart
devices and what's gonna be theimpact and when?
You, whenever possible, don'tforget this piece Document the
realized game.
Document the realized game.
Don't go far past this, becauseif you have new data and that's
(29:12):
helping you achieve new goalsand Operations, it's making your
, your plant more efficient,more reliable, more Sustainable,
is able to to give you a littlebit more peace at night Then
you need to make sure that'sdocumented, because that could
be a supporting case and datathat you needed the future for
more projects.
(29:33):
It's all about documentationeverything, everything against
you.
If you can't measure it, youcan't manage it.
So go ahead where you can startmeasuring it, start managing it
and then put that informationin front of decision-makers.
Help that.
A couple that with the datathat you have from your IBEs and
that's gonna give you so muchmore fuel, if you will, to move
forward with more Modernizationprojects in the future.
(29:55):
Because I'm a tissue to you.
Tell you what an IBE it's notjust a snapshot.
If you're thinking of it as asnapshot, that's completely
wrong.
Okay, it's.
It's strategic tool that'sgonna help you thrive and grow
in the future, because your IBEis giving you data, data that
you can plan with they, that youcan prioritize with and that
(30:16):
data, it's gonna help you propelyour operations toward that
efficiency and more success inthe future.
So it can't just stop a datacollection.
It has to be that catalyst fortransformation.
It really does and if youactually have that mindset going
into it, it's gonna changeeverything because all of a
sudden you're changing yourdestiny, you're changing your
(30:37):
journey and modernization.
All book all of a suddenbecomes very real and that's the
great part of it.
It becomes something tangible.
Because when you have somethingin your hands that you can hold
, say, okay, I have this, thisis my map.
Think about the old power setof Caribbean movies and things
like that.
They had a map.
The map showed the way.
(30:57):
The same thing with the IBE.
Don't get overwhelmed with thedata.
Make sure you get very specificwhen the your menu or when your
supplier, whoever it comes in,it can be overwhelming.
So get very clear.
Okay, that's great that we haveall this data here.
I need you, as a vendor, toshow me directly Okay, where,
(31:19):
where are the items of mostimpact?
Where do what are yourrecommendations for areas of
focus?
If you start putting some ofthat, that heavy lifting back on
the suppliers that you workwith.
And you do this, there's a pingFalling back and forth, right,
because they're not gonna knowyour goals.
You have to be very clear onthat.
They're not gonna know yourplan as well as you do.
You need to make sure you haveall that stuff to find.
But working together inconjunction with a partner the
(31:42):
partner it's just gonna changeeverything.
It's gonna bring so much moreclarity to what you do moving
forward.
So again, eco-as-why now it'sreally shifted up.
So when I think about the whybehind an install-based
evaluation, for me it's allabout.
It's not just about data, it'sabout better decisions and
(32:04):
leveraging that to make thosedecisions.
That's the why.
Right, don't get trapped intothis.
It's just a spreadsheet ofparts.
No, that's not what it's about.
It's so much more than aspreadsheet of parts.
It says this is informationthat's gonna help you grow,
modernize, make thoseimprovements in the future.
So I wanna know do you like anew format of eco-as-why?
(32:27):
Is this something that bringsyou value?
We really trying to shift upthings here when we put
information out, like ourpodcast.
Now we wanna give you someresources, we wanna help you.
So again, go check out the shownotes.
Make sure that you get oursmart manufacturing guide.
Let us know where you'relocated.
We would love to send you somemore information.
We have resources that we builtspecifically for IVEs.
(32:51):
If this is something that you'reinterested in that you'd like
to move forward with, then hey,I'm curious from my plan how
this would work in this section.
If you have those questions, Idon't know you do, let us know.
Even if we're not in yourservice area, we'll at least try
to put you in the rightdirection.
But don't just limit it to yourautomation lines either.
(33:12):
Power so much can be learnedabout power, particularly smart
power now in the world of power,and eco has those resources.
So, from automation to powercontrols, wherever you need to
help the most VFDs, it doesn'tmatter, we are ready to jump in,
we're ready to serve.
We have the experts that aretrained up on-staff, that, at
(33:33):
the drop of hat, we're ready togo.
So I look forward to hearingfrom you guys.
I'd love to know what yourfeedback is on the show.
Again, share this out withother people.
Notice, there's a very specifictype of information.
So, hey, if you know someoneout there that this would help,
share it with them.
Give us a rating, give us areview.
That type of stuff helps bigtime.
Check us out on YouTube as welland connect with us on LinkedIn.
(33:53):
That is where we're most activebetween those two platforms on
YouTube and LinkedIn.
So be sure to connect with theelectrical equipment company
there.
Connect with me on LinkedIn.
I'd love to connect with youthere directly.
If they have questions, I'lldefinitely do my best.
If I can't answer them, I'llget you connected with the team
of experts at electricalequipment company that can
definitely get them answered foryou.
(34:14):
So there you go.
Have a great day.
Thank you again for taking thetime with us here on EcoSY and
remember to keep asking why.
Thank you for listening toEcoSY.
This show is supported ad-freeby electrical equipment company.
Eco is redefining theexpectations of an electrical
(34:35):
distributor by placing peopleand ideas before products.
Please subscribe and share withyour colleagues and friends.
Also leave comments, feedback,any new topics that you would
like to hear, to learn more orto share your insights.
Visit ecosycom.
That's E, e, c, o, a, s, k, s,w, h, ycom.
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